Used 2016 Acura RDX Consumer Reviews

Test drove them all, RDX is the winner !

My wife never had a SUV and wanted one to be our next one. She has been driving an 08 awd Acura RL and loved it. We put snow tires on it for the winter and it was a tank in the snow with the SH awd. So for us to trade it in was a big deal. I started doing some research on Edmund's and started to list the suv's we should consider. I test drove over 12 myself and reduced it down to 5 we should consider. We decided to stay in the mid size or smaller range since it is just the two of us. We picked one day to test drive all 5 for comparison. The Lexus NX and RX were the first she drove. Next she drove the Acura RDX then the Hyundai Tucson and Santa Fe. The RDX beat them all with the 6 cylinder engine, it was by far the most peppy of them all and drove more sporty than the RX. It seems like everyone has an RX these days so they are kinda of boring to us. The RDX is full of technology which has been greatly been improved upon since we had it in our RL. The biggest is the blind spot, auto braking, cross traffic and adaptive criuse control. I have using them and they help greatly with driving. We are happy with our decision and have found acura's hold their resale value as well as being reliable. By the way, the Hyundai Tucson was our second choice, which we may buy as a second car in the future. It is about $10000 less than the RDX and has alot of the same features.

Very pleased with this vehicle

This vehicle is fantastic! I test drove a Ford Explorer, Nissan Murano, Hyundai Santa Fe and I bought the RDX with the tech package. The reliability reviews over the others was one of the main points but after owning it I really have come to appreciate its high points. The ride is smooth, powerful and really quiet. The sound canceling system (like Bose headphones) does a great job. Being a musician, I was impressed with the stereo and during my test drive we adjusted the base and subwoofer to full potential and I was blown away. The sound quality with the ten speakers in neural mode (surround sound) is amazing. Some reviewers complained about having two screens. I prefer it and it’s much more pleasing to be able to still see your audio screen while navigation is showing on a different screen. Brilliant! They recommend 91 octane which basically doesn’t exist anywhere so I need to use 93. I’m not thrilled about that but at least gas is cheap now. I drive both highway and city to get to work so it seems I’m averaging around 19 mpg. No long trips yet to really see highway mileage. I live in South Florida and I can say that the air really cranks. Most of the time I only have the fan halfway even though the leather seats in summer can be hot. The advanced package has ventilated seats but will cost you at least $3500 more on your out the door price. I passed. The shortcuts menu, speed dial options, voice prompts and other technology is a big plus. I went from a stupid car (Honda Accord 2007) to this so it’s like walking onto the Enterprise! I can’t imagine anyone buying this car and not liking it. I paid $40,000 even out the door which seems to be a pretty decent price for a 2017 with the tech package. Updated11/3/2016. I can now confirm highway mileage on a long trip at 29 mpg which is as Acura estimated. I like this car even more now as I've been using more of the bells and whistles. I REALLY appreciate the back up cross traffic alert.

Comfortable Ride with Tech Pkg to Make Geeks Happy

I bought this car because the ride is quiet, the acceleration is excellent, the ride is comfortable, it has a very good safety rating and safety technology is state of the art. I also liked the Acura's reputation for reliability. I enjoy a good sound system and the RDX with the Advance package is among the best I have heard in a car. We drive a lot of miles each year on long vacation driving trips. Since the car is also used around town, the smaller size of this SUV is convenient as it rides well on a trip but also easy to park in a city. There have been a couple of surprises. While I knew the car had great safety features, I had not really experienced the changes introduced to my life by this car until taking it on a trip shortly after buying the car. The surprise is that it requires changing how to drive in many respects and requires a new driver for this car to adjust to the technology. Specifically, the ability of the car to adjust its speed with the traffic. Don't misinterpret: I like the changes but on a busy interstate, one needs to pay attention to adjust to the changes. Cars and trucks pull in front of a car unexpectedly. The first time this happened, the Acura RDX slowed dramatically and automatically. I did not have to apply the brakes. Several days into this driving trip, I had adjusted and found myself becoming almost lackadaisical about this feature as the car almost adjusts itself. Driving is more relaxing. On a busy highway, I disabled the system though as the distance between my car and the next vehicle was long, even with the lowest setting, and occasionally a large number of cars would continually pull in front and constantly slow down our pace of driving. I did not like the feature of adjusting the steering when changing lanes or moving in traffic. I turned this feature off quickly. No doubt, I will try it again but doubt it will be useful or one that I will use with any regularity. I prefer to drive the car and change lanes as necessary without objection from the computer in the car. My biggest complaint in an otherwise excellent vehicle is the navigation system. I don't like it or how in integrates with the other system technology. The navigation systems in previous cars are much better. The Acura system is not intuitive or designed with the driver or consumer in mind. It works with the voice control but the list of possible commands is long and ignores some of the most common features available on other vehicles. I still do not know if I can send instructions to the car to follow a route I have created on the computer. The Acura site indicates I can do this. The salesman who sold us the car said he had never heard of that feature. A system like this works well on a Mercedes that I own. The manual is silent on on how to do it. The website offers no advice. I do not mind making a call with Acuralink to enter the destination but would prefer to map it out myself to select my own routes. The ability to use the smartphone with the Acura's system is an excellent innovation. I also like being able to stream a podcast or Pandora through the stereo system. Sirius XM generally works well with the Acura although the traffic and weather features do not integrate with the RDX. We used those features extensively with a 2012 Murano and this lack of integration is a significant failing of a luxury SUV. There is weather and traffic information on the RDX, it is not up to Sirius. Unfortunately, the navigation system operates in its own universe. The voice system giving directions cannot be heard clearly while sound is coming through these other systems. Instead, the systems yammers away incessantly with turns and directions while leaving the stereo system as a higher volume. Moreover, attempts to turn down the navigation system with the voice controls apparently cannot be done. At least I have not found a way to do this or to find in the documentation how it can be done. In my older Murano, I was able to know when the next rest area was coming up as well as when the next exit was coming up. Not so in the Acura. Asking for rest areas results in a list of rest areas, some of which may be behind on the route being traveled or may be many miles ahead. The information is useless. One friend who bought an Acura said he gave up and bought a Garmin navigation system to use instead of the built in system. I now know how he felt and I am inclined to agree. The nav system in the RDX is a major disappointment. As a person who uses a system like this extensively on trips, I have already found using Google maps or Waze on my IPhone to be much more useful and easier to use. With an MSRP of $45,000 for this luxury SUV, I expected much better. Moreover, the Acura salesman was not well versed in how to use the system so learning how to use it has been largely trial and error and stopping occasionally to check the manual to see if we missed something that would make it more useful.

Happy w/ the 2014 RDX - Even Happier w/ the 2016!

This is my 2nd RDX. My first was a 2014, which I was happy with, despite a few minor irritations. The 2016 took care of my irritations with added technology, specifically the blind spot and rear traffic warning sensors and changes in the technology package. The RDX has two good blind spots so the new tech is fantastic and solves the issues - and works beautifully. The 2016 feels heavier and drives smoother than the 2014. The steering feels better and more substantial, as well. It is also quieter with less wind noise and a smoother sunroof mechanism. I did purchase a wind deflector this time though. I love the 3D navigation viewing option and the 10-speaker sound system is wonderful. I've had Acuras since 2000 - three TLs (2000, 2003 and 2008), the 2014 RDX and now the 2016 RDX. My 2000 TL had transmission issues, which were taken care of by the dealer even though the warranty had expired. I've always been treated well by the Dealer (in South Orange County in California). I did not test drive competitors' vehicles, but did a lot of research on the Lexus RX, Lincoln MDX, Mercedes GL and GLK and some of the BMW and Audi SUVs, which would have fit into my budget. At the end of the day, I could not justify a higher cost for the competitors (when comparing the multitude of packages available with the competition), even though they may be more prestigious in name and perhaps more luxury interiors. The value, quality and solid luxury of the Acura won out when I decided not to tie up more of my money and still have all the bells and whistles you get with the RDX. 10-28-2018 Update - I still love this car. My only complaint is the Apple Car Play, which is not an Acura issue. The connection is at time touchy and at least once a month I have to into the settings on the car and re-enable the connection, if plugging and unplugging my iPhone doesn't reset it. Fortunately the touch pad is easy to use and I've been able to re-set the connection pretty easily.

Cross Country Breakin Fantastic

RDX 2016 Fantastic....New technology features work great....Long time coming but worth the wait....was deciding between Q5...Murano....Sante Fe....Lexus ....The overall cost in comparison to what you get is what convinced me....Although Sante Fe was close....Honda Quality and my Personal History with Honda cars sold me in the end.....Purchased the RDX 2016 with the intent to Drive Cross Country from California to east coast and back.....and wanted and needed the additional technology features ( Acura Watch Plus ) to assist and make my trip comfortable and Safe....I was not disappointed...My only regret is that I should have bought the Advance Package ....oh and it needs more USB Ports especially in the rear Seating areas.

2016 rdx w/advance pkg.

Great ride. Dont take that as its a sports car, its not. Just a great cruiser and if you want some fun slip it to sport and use the paddle shifters. Biggest complaint is the voice regonition. Only had it a month but it takes some work to master, and i havnt , and not sure i ever will. Best way is to put in an address before you leave, trying to find a certain restaurant etc on the go gets frustrating. I get better mileage than stated which is a nice surprise. Love the blind spot detector and the backup camera is awesome, really gets a wide view which is great. I am not disappointed with this suv at all, just the oppisite. Best bang for your dollar by far. Oh yeah the seats, especially the cooled option are the most comfortable of all the higher end SUVs, at least for me. Everyone has a different butt and back but for me its like sitting in my lazy boy.

Great overall value. Nice luxury features.

Owned the 2016 RDX for 2 months. Bought the FWD with technology package. The RDX has the best overall engine for small SUV. Same engine as the MDX, but much smaller car means better performance. Great HP for its class. Very good gas fuel economy and uses regular unleaded gas. Other SUV's that had similar HP were turbo charged engines that required premium gas (i.e. more expensive to operate). Transmission is 6 speed automatic that is very smooth and shift points are perfect. Ride quality is a little stiff, but that helps with handling. The car is very quite when windows are rolled up. Seats are very comfortable. Very nice dual displays (one of which is touch screen). Premium stereo with XM and HD FM. I like the HD FM sound quality. It has a 15GB hard disc so you can save CD's or transfer songs from USB stick. There are 2 key fobs that you can customize most of the car features for each. Seating position, radio settings, navigation settings, are just a few of the items. Car recognize which key is closer and those settings are active for that driver. Very nice. Only a few negatives: Lots of wind noise when back windows are down more than about 1 inch. The electronics take about 1 minute to boot up when you start the car. Does not sound like much, but much slower than my Lexus that is 8 years older. Navigation system works good, but a little funky to set. Sound quality is good compared to standard quality systems, but less than other premium systems. ** 2.5 years and 29K miles update. Still very happy with the car. No mechanical issues. The stereo had some memory problem, but was under warranty so the dealer replaced it and solved the problem. Really the only complaint is the slow electronics system. Entering address in navigation system is cumbersome. Usually just use Waze and skip the car nav system. Other than that, the rest of the car runs perfectly. Gas mileage still very good at 25MPG+ in mixes hwy/street driving. Engine and transmission are strong. No squeaks or rattles in the body. The key fob memory is a really nice feature. I like how seats adjust and my music stations are personalized for me when I am driving.

Acura RDX 2016/Advance Package Red

We purchased car January, 2016 - love it - first new car in a long time and very happy with purchase even though it was on the high end of our budget. Car is very comfortable to drive and is made well. Technology is very easy to figure out and has lots of cool features. Took ride up to Minnesota and ride was very stress free with cruise control system features. Smooth quiet ride. Some reviews state navigation system is cumbersome and at times it is, but no different then using a Garmin. Sound system is great and love the HDD CD Drive. Even though dealers do not deal much in price we found a much better deal at an Illinois dealer vs Milwaukee area and they were great! Hope we get lots of years out of it and it holds it value.

Survived snowmageddon 2018

I just spent 9 hrs commuting 12 miles in a nj nor’easter that crippled the roads. This car got me up and down 4 treacherous hills that regular cars could not climb. Would have not gotten home without it. The suv is powerful, comfortable and safe. I will smile when I make my payments after yesterday. It’s a solid car.

RDX offers the best overall value for money.

This is my 2nd RDX. The first was approaching 10 years old original owner no problems aside from normal maintenance items. The 2016 RDX has come a long way - is extremely comfortable fun to drive and loaded with Technology and safety features. The adaptive cruise and lane keeping assist work very well. If you're in the market for a reliable new car with state of the art technology this is one you should take a good look at. While i'm not big on extended warranties, especially not having any issues with my first RDX, they did sell me on a transferable 4 year extended "bumper-to-bumper" warranty (9 years total). If nothing else it adds re-sell value. My only con is interior/exterior color selection. You're pretty much stuck with what they offer but not a deal breaker. Overall very happy.

The RDX offers the best overall value for money.

It may not be the best vehicle in each and every category in its class, but when you weigh the pros and cons of the competition, it comes out on top. The factors that I look at in an SUV, are ride, performance, styling, interior room, resale and reliability. Sure, if money wasn't a factor, I would have chosen an Audi 6 cylinder Q5, or a BMW twin turbo X3. I just don't see $10,000 to $12,000 worth of difference. Keep in mind most of the competition comes standard with 4 cylinder engines. The RDX has surpassed my expectations in my early ownership, and I suffer no buyers remorse. My only issue is that I had to pay $468 to the service department for a "spare tire kit", as it comes with only an inflator and sealant pump. Other then that, all is well with my RDX.

Love it.

We traded in a 2004 Acura TL for our new 2016 Acura RDX. My husband and I are Senior citizens and found that the RDX was easier to get in and out. It has the Acurawatch feature which helps us drive our curvy back roads where we live. All and all, its beautiful! We have had it a year now and I am still in love with it. This year I had a very serious spinal surgery and from the time I left the hospital I have had no problems getting in or out. I am a short woman so this is very important to me.

Way better than expected!

We expected the RDX to be a great car but it has exceeded all our expectations. The tech packages work fantastic. The only issue is it offers so much tech that we keep learning new ways to operate the vehicle. The car is very quiet, the ride is smooth and the mileage is very good for a new vehicle. I would recommend the RDX to anyone looking for a smaller vehicle but needs lots of room for riders (I'm 6"2" and my son is 6'5" and sits comfortably in the front seats.)

SOLID PERFORMER

After extensive review of the Acura RDX, I recently purchased a CPO 2016 RDX AWD Advance package vehicle.It is everything and more so far on what I expected. The ride and comfort are on par with the Lexus RX350(which I had previously owned). I am getting better gas mileage and the overall safety features are working as expected.Fit & finish is excellent. I have not been able to drive it yet in poor weather or snow, but I am confident on what I have read, it will perform well despite not having the SH-AWD feature.I will agree the navigation and voice controls are of lesser quality then a BMW or Audi, but the price of this vehicle for what you get in total far outweighs the issues compared to those other vehicles. Call this one a win!

First Acura - mixed feelings

the good stuff - overall a very nice ride. Good safety tech, stereo, looks and power. Stable at speed and good mid range power. Lane departure warning and adaptive cruise control are a great feature. Looks are very good. Stereo sounds very good. Seats are excellent, heated and cooled. dual zone climate control. Several of the electronic features are very helpful. The not so great stuff - Transmission hunts a bit at low speeds on occasion, the nav system is a pain trying to use voice recognition to get a location. Still cant figure out how to just enter an address manually. Mileage is not as good as I had hoped but, mostly city driving so far so may improve. It came down to this and a Lincoln MKC with 2.3 turbo. the Lincoln was faster and more luxurious but, went with the Acura for better resale value.

1 year review

Assume the usual: great quality, good dealer, power, good fuel economy, useful interior, only thing I've done is change the oil in 1 year. The downsides: confusing owner's manual, slight blind spot on left front side, I've got wind noise at speed from I assume the outside mirror. After 1 year I still don't know how to do a lot of the controls even after reading the manual several times (and I have the base model). Not an exciting car but then I'm dull myself. It's a great, useful vehicle but not a sporty SUV.

Most car for the money

The RDX probably isn't the best vehicle in the small luxury SUV category in any particular attribute, but it does score near the top in most attributes, and it's that, combined with a price $10,000 or more lower than similarly equipped competition, that makes it a great buy as well as a very enjoyable vehicle. We've found it very comfortable on a long road trip and around town. We also feel that the understated styling will endure over time without looking odd or dated.

Worst vehicle over $30K I've ever owned

While there were some high points with my 2016 RDX, all in all, it was the worst $30K+ vehicle I've ever owned. First and foremost, the electronics in my vehicle were so buggy and unreliable, it became positively maddening. About 1/3 of the time, my hands-free calls would fail to connect and leave the phone in "private mode" and utterly useless for 2-3 minutes. Worse yet, the voice recognition was horrific. The car dialed 9-1-1 three different times when I asked it to "call Taco Deli." For all intents and purposes, the bluetooth phone operation was worthless. The entertainment system worked okay, however, the preset labels rarely displayed the ACTUAL saved station. When I pushed preset 1, the tuner would tune to 94.7, exactly as expected, but the label on the display was sometimes 138.9, sometimes all Cyrillic characters, sometimes all 1's and many other random values. As long as I remembered what preset went with which stations, I was good to go. The navigation system works, but the traffic indicators are illegible. It actually took me a couple of weeks to realize I actually had traffic indicators on the Nav because the colors are so muted and the lines so fine. Traction was abysmal in the rain and poor when it was dry. While the RDX handles well (within traction limits), and ride quality was good, the traction was just such a liability. Interior build quality was revealed itself to be sub-par over the second half of my year of ownership. I had squeaking, creaking rear suspension, rattling door panels and a squealing A/C fan. Under the hood, only one complaint. I had a pulley that squealed as it spun down after engine shutdown. On the plus side, Fuel economy was quite good and when I sold it last week, I got $35,000 for trade-in after only paying $39,500. Headlights and general visibility from the vehicle were first rate. That's about it for positives.

Nice

This is our 3rd RDX and I must say the 2011 was best the best handling and most fun to drive although kinda choppy. I liked that, wife didn't. We got the advanced package and the tech is way much and rather complicated for her. It's her car and she likes it. Got the advanced because of parking sensors front and back and nicer rims. Biggest complaint was the lack of color selection (did away with silver-now slate silver BLUE) ugh. Bought the white. Almost went to BMW because of that. Interior selection also limited, parchment only with white, no black. They still insist on a 16 gallon tank, way too small considering mileage has been about 21. Always stopping to feel up. Took a small 200 mile trip and still about 22.5. We've never had an issue with an Acura product and love our dealer. Have a 12 TSX and 14 TL SHAWD as well. Love them all. In retrospect tech would have been fine at 3000 less. And yes she would buy again. UPDATE Have now had this vehicle 7 months and still not sure of the tech stuff and not liking most of it. Hard to see buttons and writing on them. Find myself searching all the time. Dual screen is foolish, makes no sense and is distracting while driving and hard to see in sun. Stupid that you cant operate phone book while driving. I guess designers think it's safer to pick up a phone and start searching. My 12 TSX and 14 TL both tech so much more user friendly. Find myself looking for those keys when heading out. Wife can have this thing, doesn't bother her because she ignores tech anyway.

Junk the Navigation

If you absolutely rely on a navigation system to find your way around, buy another car or get an Iphone with bluetooth to feed reliable guidance. The voice command feature offers choices that often don't relate to what you need and the thing usually doesn't accurately capture what you say. The maps are sloppy and haven't kept up with other gps providers, so you routinely find yourself getting a signal that you are "not on a digitized road" when your iphone or Garmin shows that very road clearly. Lazy engineering here. Also, there are destination commands that the system won't accept (try to enter Indianapolis International Airport on Co. H. Weir Road-mine won't take it). Also, on a "luxury" car, one would think they would allow updates to the maps on a detachable thumb drive that could be plugged into a computer port instead of the clumsy, expensive updates-at-the-dealer system. My urgent suggestion is that Acura (Honda) get in touch with the folks at Garmin who are developing an OEM navigation system for Daimler that doesn't have these faults and which may cost less now that development is about done.

6 month review

Very comfortable, more than adequate power, a pleasure to drive, especially on the open road. This suv could easily go all day smoothly and quietly at 80 mph. No maintenance issues so far.

After One Year...

Having given the base RDX a good year of use and driving 13k+ miles, I can report the following: THE GOOD (1) Ride is very comfortable, (2) road noise is low, (3) no issues with electronics or connecting my iPhone, (4) faux leather cleans up easily, (5) VERY fast and responsive acceleration, (6) nice, tight feel to the ride, (7) good sound system, (8) cabin is comfortable and solid feeling. Now the NOT SO GOOD (1) HORRIBLE, I repeat, HORRIBLE gas mileage. I get a combined 19 MPG, and probably only around 14 MPG around town - I was shocked at the numbers coming off owning a Honda CR-V. For this reason alone, I will probably look at other brands for my next car. If you live in a flat area of the country and never use the AC, perhaps you'll get better mileage. (2) storage and cargo space is lacking and not very well thought out, (3) NO spare tire, and (4) jerky feel to the transmission when slowing/downshifting.

Great value as a used lux crossover

After reviewing on Edmunds and elsewhere I picked one up in 2019 to use as a high mileage sales car. Now my wife and I use it more than the big Suburban sitting in the driveway. Great get in and go SUV, great V6 power and rev sound, smooth tranny, nice handling and ride. Comfortable for a big guy like me. AWD is basic and really only works for getting up hills and starts in snow. Easy to work on if you are into self maintenance. Cons - wish it had wider tires (cosmetic thing), wish it had better infotainment system (very hard to use), wish it looked more upscale and less like a Honda CRV, wish it had higher towing capacity (probably can tow more that it is rated for). Issues - jerky shifting transmission - if this happens to you with your RDX it is a common issue and the dealer knows exactly what it is and how to fix it. If the dealer acts like they don't know - they know. Other than that it is a super great value when purchasing as a used car.

Best buy in its class

I took delivery a few weeks ago and am very happy with this decision. I looked hard at the Audi Q5, Lexus F sport, Infiniti Q50, Mercedes ML, Honda CRV, Range Rover Evoque, BMX X3 and Porsche Macan. When you put them all together and try to evaluate performance, reliability, value, and comfort, the 2016 RDX came out on top. I look forward to many years with this vehicle.

Navpackage is not soa. Not recommended.

Update at 56000 miles. OEM tires replaced. Car is in like new condition. Very pleased with it. Navpackage remains a waste...apple play would have been nice but not offered on 2016. Rest of review at 36k miles valid. 36,000 miles in, have come to live with the idiosyncracies of the electronics. The car is solid, gas milage is good...just under 30 on the highway. Still a quiet vehicle. Found that we prefer the conflicting traffic signal in the rear view mirror to the other honda variant with a tv screen and rear view camera. Lka is a light touch...not perfect but a good support system. The auto braking system is helpful. Best of all is the modern brakes...came to stop quickly on a night-black-ice road, true and straight. Others behind me went off the road. It is amazing (enginneeing marvel) to actually see how the 4 wheel drive system works when our car is dricen up an icy driveway.

Acura RDX - Good Vehicle

Excellent fuel economy, very stable on mountain roads. Slight pitching due to firm suspension. High window sills provide a sensation of reduced visibility.

2016 RDX Died in just 22 Days

Had my new RDX for 22 days and the instrument cluster blew out. Was driving at night and the dash just went dark. Got home but once I turned the car off it would not restart. Just cranked. No instrument lights, doors would not lock and the rear view camera display would not turn off. Had vehicle towed to the dealer on July 15 and there it still sits as of July 29. They replaced the cluster and that did not fix it. Now they traced it to a wiring harness. The dash of my new car has been disassembled and will never be the same nor will I ever be able to trust it. I can already hear all the rattles. I have owned Honda vehicles for 23 years and never had to have one towed. Huge disappointment.

As Good as Advertised and Better in Some Ways

This is a really great car. I got out of a BMW X5 for this one and the RDX is way better than my old bimmer. The main thing I was looking for was a silky ride with a very quiet cabin. I get both with this RDX. The power train is exceptional with the standard v6. The cabin is very quiet although some what less so than Edmunds reviews said. Where Edmunds gave it an "A" - I would say it's probably a "B" or "B+". It is quiet at low speeds but gets louder on highways. As a plus, the ELS stereo on the Technology Package is an incredible system that makes the feint noise go away, replaced with beautiful music. Navigation system is lame, use Google maps instead. Edmunds says the screen controls for the tech is "confusing" but I disagree. If this control panel confuses you, you probably shouldn't be buying something called a technology package. Love this car. It's the best I've ever personally owned.

35 more months to go!

Just leased a 2016 Acura RDX AWD Base. Picked it up on July 31st and have put over 500 miles on it so far. My purchase rational is comparing my parents Honda CRV EX-L Navigation versus a base RDX. First and foremost the biggest difference between the CRV and RDX besides the Acura beak is the great 3.5 liter motor which has plenty of kick and power unlike the whiny CVT. My father loves the great MPG on his CRV but hates the lack of power and secondly he hates the motor and wind noise. The RDX has great pickup, the exhaust notes are smooth and crisp, and cabin noise is much better than a CRV and equal to my 2011 Lincoln MKZ. The seats are comfy but the base comes with leatherette which is a little of a bummer, but the leatherette is still much better than the material used in an EX-L Honda. The base is pretty bare bones and really to get the most bang for your buck the Acura Watch is the best option to choice. Some standard features like blue ambient lighting, turn signals, power lift gate, backup camera, keyless entry, push to start ignition, and sunroof are all notable. The center stack and steering wheel still has way too many buttons. Visibility isn't great out of the back and getting Acura Watch w/ backup sensors would really help. For a luxury car I would like to have seen backup sensors and blind spot warning standard. Acura recommends premium fuel and on my first 2 tanks I have gotten 19 MPG average and 22 MPG average, hopefully after breaking in the motor and going for longer highway trips I will average 22-26 MPG. Steering is good but numb and ride comfort is okay. The RDX is firmer than I imagined and tends to bounce you around when going over bumps. Value wise the RDX is hard to recommend over the CRV unless your like myself or my dad who finds the CRV to be noisy and slow and you don't prioritize MPG. If the lack of power doesn't bother you a cheaper CRV is your bet. Update: June 2016 I actually sold the car after owning it for about 12 months. Nothing wrong with the car but downgraded to an ILX due to space, mpg, and the car's eventual lease buyout. I still stand by the fact that the RDX is the best value for a compact/midsize luxury crossover. The tried and true 3.5 V6 has a ton of pickup and does 0-60 in about 6 seconds, while still getting 20/28 while smaller four cylinder turbo charged cars such as the Lexus NX get 22/28 mpg. Moving to an ILX the biggest thing I noticed right away is space, since the RDX has plenty of it, whether your upfront, sitting in the back, or loading the trunk. Also, the RDX is extremely composed and quiet compared to the ILX. Uneven pavement, potholes, highway cruising the RDX is almost Lexus quiet. The thing that I disliked about the RDX the most was that I got the base version so no real leather, no touch screen, no app integration, no safety features like blind spot or adaptive cruise control, no ventilated front seats or heated rear seats. Furthermore the RDX was just more car than I needed for grocery duties and weekend driving. If I had kids, did more highway driving, or lived in a place with more snow or rain than the RDX would have been perfect. Another great aspect of the RDX is the car's value. I put maybe 7500 miles on it over 12 months and the car's value was almost $2000 above the lease buy out creating equity. So if you are looking for a car that holds it value the RDX is great

Not a cushy Buick

Great car to drive. Adaptive Cruise, lane change warning and other safety features are just awesome. Brakes are terrific. Compared to our Lucerne, road noise is much worse, but tolerable; interior is not par w/price. Ride is pretty good for suv. Acura cheaps out on some features that will annoy you every time you drive it. For the RDX, only one of the two key remotes w/the applicable pkg will start the car. With the MDX, both remotes will do it. Guess Acura saved a couple bucks to hack off customers. Bad design is driver seat position. Our Buick had it right..seat went all the way back when ignition turned off, making getting out really easy, after getting in, push driver 1 or 2 and seat, outside mirror, and interior mirror repositioned. With the RDX, using the driver 1 or 2 setting, the seat positioned PRIOR to getting in. For us short people, that made getting in difficult. The inside mirror also was not among the setting. We had to disable the seat positioning setting. A really bad design. Door panels are sorta cheap also. Overall, a nice car, fun to drive but some cheap outs. Not worth the price..but close.

Bad car ruined by punishing suspension

Purchased the 2016 RDX advance which comes with nice tech features. Ride is comfortable on highway, punishing on bad pavement or potholes. Also what Acura claims are rain sensing wipers is false.they must be turned on and off manually each time it rains.as if left in Auto position, they continue to wipe even if dry.otherwise no complaints. Good car if you don't mind feeling every pebble on the road, but my last car was a Lexus so I may have been spoiled.

Definitely love it!!!

Very comfortable ride, VERY roomy, safety features are excellent, technology pretty good, will definitely stay in the Acura family, they have yet to disappoint me!! Also would like to inform buyers that I had the best experience ever @ Acura in Gainesville☺

Upscale SUV

Great look. Drives very well. Very disappointed that at this premium price for an upscale SUV the sound quality is mediocre. The Bluetooth keeps on dropping the calls and the phone sound quality is poor.

Transmission problems

I have had my RDX (purchased new) a few months shy of two years. The car is perfect for me, the right size, decent gas mileage, enough power. Until about a month ago that is, it started having a strong jerk upshifting to second gear, it was intermittent. After the third time of experiencing this, I took it to the dealership, who mentioned nothing about this being a known problem. They said they couldn't replicate the problem, so I got to run around using Lyft for the day. The problem happened 4 days later and I drove to the dealership, this time the problem replicated and the tech who was driving with me said this is a known problem. Thanks for wasting my Saturday. I hope they can fix it.

Acura RDX needs a makeover

The Acura RDX is well made with some classier features over the Honda lineup but they really need to step up their technology. The SUV is solid riding, quiet and comfortable but the air vents are not layered out well and do not hold cell phones in almost any position. The Bluetooth is quirky with iPhones and the navigation is fair at best. They need an upgrade soon for the premium price of this vehicle.

Regret this purchase

I downsized from a GMC Yukon Denali for better gas mileage, and wanted a dependable newer car as my 04 was aging. I am getting better than the 14/miles/gallon but not happy with car at all. In the first month, already had AC go out during 90+ degree heat. Was told it was low on freon. A brand new car low on freon? The navigation system is beyond frustrating and I end up using my smartphone or my TomTom. The integrated voice command is not user friendly, despite spending many hours programing and watching videos on youtube as to how to "learn" the system. As far as handeling, I know this is not a Denali or a BMW, but the handeling was very disappointing. The first time I drove on wet roads I went through a very shallow puddle and I was nearly pulled off the road! The interior is asthetically pleasing and comfortable, but I am very disappointed with the confusing set up of the bluetooth and voice commands as well as navigation. I really would rather have my non-tech Denali back! Car overall feels like a cheap SUV that has luxury interior. The jewel headlights are GREAT and really light up the road at night. LOVE those!

I really wanted to give it 5 stars, but...

I love this car very much, and I really want to give it a 5 stars review. However, the breaking system seems not responsive enough, I have to press harder in order to make it stop. Within a month, I heard noise while I hit break this morning, within a month! The noise was gone when I drive it during my lunch break, maybe it's the temperature, but still, it shouldn't do that because it's a new car. Also, the engine is so called "smart V6", it switches from 3 cylinders to 6 cylinders depends on the situation, I can actually feel it. The car vibrate a lot while it's on 3 cylinders mode, solid and smooth while it's on 6 cylinders. Not very good. While the exterior is superb, it's way better than the previous RDX models, but the interior looked outdated compare with its competitors. The Bluetooth is convenient, but it kept disconnected and connected, can't stay connected. Also, only the contact that's input to the speed dial (in car system, not phone speed dial) can display the caller ID when there is an incoming call. There are only 15 space speed dial for RDX. I missed many phone calls because I do not pick up number that I can't recognize, then I found those were actually people that I know but the car didn't display the caller ID because they are not in the car speed dial system. It's pretty dumb and outdated design. Finally, there is a backup camera, but no backup sensor... Doesn't make any sense. The sensor should be standard if the camera is standard. Therefore, I like this car, but I can't give it a 5 stars because of the flaws mentioned above.

Excellent car with lots of wind noise

Have had our 2016 RDX with Value package for about 500 miles. We don't use the Bluetooth (don't talk on the phone while driving), but all the electronics seem great. Phenomenal stereo system - easily the best we've ever had in a car. The only real shortcoming is wind noise. We test drove the vehicle twice and both times it was raining. Now that we've driven the car for 500 miles I can truly say the wind noise is nothing short of ridiculous. Yes, I know there is a three layer seal in the doors, but that doesn't stop the wind noise. I don't know that we've never owned a car with wind noise this bad. It's totally unacceptable for most cars, but for a car with a sticker price of roughly $43k it is shameful. Cranking up the stereo is the only way to avoid hearing it all.

Really nice vehicle

Outstanding options and value with our new 2016 RDX. We traded in an 08 RDX and it was such a great vehicle when we were in the market for a new one it was an easy choice. The new safety features, smooth ride, better gas mileage (even though it much bigger) and price compared to a BMW or Lexus was a no brainier decision. You will not be disappointed with this vehicle. Love it , thanks Acura for a great vehicle. Dave

Again......Acura gives you value for the money!!

Traded in a 2006 Acura TL that was really a great car and tremendous value. Would have kept but needed an all wheel drive vehicle due to moving north into snow areas. The RDX is a high quality ride and as always with Acura....reliable and great performance. The ride is smooth with tight handling. Mileage around town is 23-24 and on the road 31-33 depending on terrain. Interior fits well with a normal size person and everything is within reach easily to see and operate. You won't be disappointed with this vehicle. Update 12/23/18: Continue to be happy with the RDX now 3 years and 17,000 miles later. You won't be disappointed. Update 12/26/19: Again, continue to be happy with the quality of the RDX, 24000 miles and 4 years in. Still very satisfied. Update 12/27/20: 5 years in still very happy with the reliability and performance. Only 30,000 miles but the value is undeniable. No issues whatsoever.

1016 RDX AWD: Almost Perfect

High Tech, High quality, Excellent Value. I live on a steep hill and the AWD has worked well in heavy snow with factory all-season tires. The car has remained solid and quiet after 3 years and 21,000 miles. I find the GPS awkward to program. Integration with my android phone has been spotty. Cell phone messaging support has been on and off (currently on). When I use google maps (GPS) on the Samsung phone, I need to turn off the cellphone bluetooth or play the GPS audio through the bluetooth input (without music). I would prefer published maintenance intervals; the dealer sometimes suggested very short durations between maintenance events. The service quality has been excellent, however. Overall, I am very pleased with my choice to purchase the RDX.

nice ridding praticle suv with decent mpg , arcua

get the advance pakage its worth the extra value, comfortable reliable and safe to drive.

Multi purpose camera not multi after 75,000 kilome

I assume all post RDX models are equipped with CMBS systems and VSA systems etc. These and others are all dependant on a multi purpose camera mounted behind your rear view mirror. When this camera packs it in your systems all stop working. Replacing this camera can run you a nice bill of $2000. Don't expect your dealer or Honda to back you up ! ! I had barelly 75000 kilometers or 40000 miles for you Americans.My dealer has had two incidents of this type ln years and indicated to me a defective part. After 30 years of driving Hondas this will be my last. I expected a good will adjustment of some kind but they won't answer my calls ! !

Maybe best car value we’ve had in half century

After three years as our only retirement vehicle ...zero issues. In fact my wife finds it easier to drive and much better all around view of road than a GLE. Solid 23.9mpg.

Clutch started coming out

I bought Acura RDX 2016 not even 6 years and car started falling apart. Clutch started coming out and I see all the wires and airbags. All the sudden car started making a loud noise when I back up from the drive way. I been buying Acura for almost 15 years and this is the first time I seen it. Went to the dealer and they said factory warranty doesn’t cover even though I paid up to 100k. My car has only 58000mil It’s ridiculous. Beware before you buy Acura RDX now I feel uncomfortable buying a new one

Best Value SUV in the Marketplace

Received delivery of our RDX AWD Advanced this past Thursday and have loved every minute with it. Compared to the Lexus NX200t, Land Rover Discovery Sport and Lincoln MKC and found it to be the best driving of the bunch and the best value in themarket. Enjoy all of the technology features, smooth and comfortable drive, great fit and finish and the appealing interior and exterior design. We bought into the high Acura reliability and safety features.

Another disappointment

This is my second RDX. I had a 2013 Base AWD drive model which was a very nice car but lacked the technology options. Now I have an 2016 Advanced AWD and the technology looks promising but disappoints again. The Nav system has only level of directions; no verbose or minimal. The instructions do not override the radio . I would like to have the radio go silent so I can hear the instructions. Yes I can turn the instructions off which is nice. The speed limit is not shown (nicer would be if the speed would go red if I above it - either 1 mph or some amount I specify). The nice folks at Acura could not help me move my addresses from my Garmin to the Acura Nav system. Wonder if Acura will ever truly think through the tech on their cars? After 2 years. While the car is a pleasant to drive, I find it taking in a number of ways. - Adaptive cruise control is very abrupt, especially when someone moves into my lane. - The rear area is too small. My wife has an outback and her back area is about a foot longer. - Fuel economy is the same (on paper) as the MDX though the MDX is significantly larger and weighs much more. After two years with the car, I am trading it in for more space on an Outback. Not as fancy, not as plush, but at least I will not feel cheated. Acura failed to deliver on (1) fuel economy, (2) technology, and (3) interior space. I believe all this was done to protect the more pricy and profitable MDX line. Here is a message for Acura - if you don't eat your own lunch, someone else will do so. In protecting the MDX from the dumbed-down RDX you have made the RDX vulnerable to competitors. And I have succumbed to a better car, IMO, at a much lower price. After 2 years I decided to change to a Subaru Outback. It has more space in the back and is a more honest car. No dumbing down, WYSIWYG.

Nice looking 2016 SUV!

I just bought mine in June. Love the look! Roomy and smooth ride! I just wish Acura still make V4 with turbo. Still loving it after 1 year.

If you own Iphone don’t buy this car

I have had nothing but trouble with this RDX tech package . Won’t display songs , speakers go in and out , navigation doesn’t work properly. Took it in to Acura of Peoria and they couldn’t find anything wrong . It’s crap . The amount of money for the car . The sales man there Jon Lozano straight up lied to me . This is not ok . He avoided my calls after promising me they would take care of me . Never , would I recommend this vehicle to anyone . Nor would I recommend this particular dealership

Love our first Acura