Acura RDX Engine Problems by Year
By CarWhere Research · Updated
Some, but not unusually many. Owners have filed 208 engine complaints with NHTSA for the 2008–2025 Acura RDX. For the Acura RDX, that's 0.46 engine complaints per 1,000 sold across the 2015–2022 cohorts, close to the 0.44 median of the 53 models we can rate. The worst years are 2019, 2020 and 2021.
Engine complaints
208
Filed with NHTSA, 2008–2025 models
Per 1,000 sold
0.46
2015–2022 cohorts
Share of all complaints
10.1%
of 2,052 complaints for this model
Engine recalls
0
NHTSA campaigns, all years
Acura RDX engine complaints by model year
Owner complaints filed with NHTSA whose component list includes Engine and Engine Cooling, and per 1,000 vehicles sold where a published U.S. sales figure exists. Worst years are highlighted.
| Model year | Engine complaints | Per 1,000 sold | Share of all complaints | Crash / fire / injury | Engine recalls | Engine TSBs* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 2 | — | 6.1% | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2009 | 0 | — | 0% | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2010 | 3 | — | 13.6% | 2 | — | 1 |
| 2011 | 1 | — | 6.3% | 0 | — | 1 |
| 2012 | 2 | — | 13.3% | 0 | — | 1 |
| 2013 | 2 | — | 1.2% | 0 | — | 9 |
| 2014 | 2 | — | 0.8% | 1 | — | 0 |
| 2015 | 3 | 0.06 | 0.7% | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2016 | 7 | 0.13 | 17.5% | 2 | — | 0 |
| 2017 | 11 | 0.21 | 15.1% | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2018 | 10 | 0.16 | 13.3% | 0 | — | 11 |
| 2019WORST | 89 | 1.42 | 20.7% | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2020WORST | 51 | 0.97 | 15.1% | 1 | — | 21 |
| 2021WORST | 18 | 0.32 | 17.6% | 2 | — | 17 |
| 2022 | 1 | 0.04 | 3.3% | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2023 | 4 | — | 21.1% | 0 | — | 5 |
| 2024 | 1 | — | 10% | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2025 | 1 | — | 3.4% | 0 | — | 1 |
- Per 1,000 sold = complaints ÷ published U.S. calendar-year sales × 1,000. Calendar-year sales stand in for the model-year cohort. A dash means no published figure or fewer than 5,000 sold, too small to divide by.
- Older model years have had more time on the road to collect complaints, so compare neighboring years, not 2010 against 2024.
- Crash / fire / injury = complaints where the owner reported a crash, a fire or an injury.
- *Technical service bulletins in the year's leading TSB categories that name the engine.
Common Acura RDX engine problems owners describe
We searched the narratives of all 208 engine complaints for symptom keywords. One complaint can mention several, so the shares don't add up to 100%.
Acura RDX years to avoid for the engine
2019 Acura RDX
89 engine complaints (20.7% of the year's 430), 1.42 per 1,000 sold. Most often described: loss of power or limp mode.
2020 Acura RDX
51 engine complaints (15.1% of the year's 338), 0.97 per 1,000 sold. Most often described: loss of power or limp mode.
2021 Acura RDX
18 engine complaints (17.6% of the year's 102), 0.32 per 1,000 sold. Most often described: misfire or check-engine light.
Worst years are those with at least 10 engine complaints and at least 1.5 times the model's median year. For every year's overall verdict, including other systems, see the Acura RDX years to avoid.
Related research
Frequently asked questions
Does the 2019 Acura RDX have engine problems?
Yes, it is one of the worst years. Owners filed 89 engine complaints with NHTSA for the 2019 Acura RDX, 20.7% of all 430 complaints for that year, or 1.42 per 1,000 sold. The most common description is "loss of power or limp mode" (49 complaints).
Does the 2020 Acura RDX have engine problems?
Yes, it is one of the worst years. Owners filed 51 engine complaints with NHTSA for the 2020 Acura RDX, 15.1% of all 338 complaints for that year, or 0.97 per 1,000 sold. The most common description is "loss of power or limp mode" (32 complaints). 1 of those complaints report a crash, fire or injury.
Does the 2021 Acura RDX have engine problems?
Yes, it is one of the worst years. Owners filed 18 engine complaints with NHTSA for the 2021 Acura RDX, 17.6% of all 102 complaints for that year, or 0.32 per 1,000 sold. The most common description is "misfire or check-engine light" (10 complaints). 2 of those complaints report a crash, fire or injury.
Which Acura RDX years have the most engine complaints?
2019 (89), 2020 (51) and 2021 (18), by owner complaints filed with NHTSA that name the engine. Raw counts favor older and higher-selling years, so compare the per-1,000-sold column too.
What are the most common Acura RDX engine problems?
In the 208 engine complaints, owners most often describe loss of power or limp mode (46.2%), misfire or check-engine light (44.2%) and stalling or shutting off while driving (18.3%). One complaint can mention several symptoms.
Is this a engine failure rate?
No. These are complaints owners chose to file with NHTSA. Many failures are never reported, and one complaint is not a confirmed defect. Dividing by sales shows how often owners complain relative to how many were sold, which makes models of different sizes comparable.
How we count
Counts are unique owner complaints (by NHTSA ODI number) filed with NHTSA for each Acura RDX model year, from NHTSA's public complaints data fetched July 2026 to November 2026. A complaint counts as a engine complaint when NHTSA's component list for it includes Engine and Engine Cooling.
Per 1,000 sold divides complaints by published U.S. calendar-year sales for that year. A year needs at least 5,000 sales to get a rate, and a model needs at least 3 such years for its overall rate. The comparison median covers every model with at least 50 engine complaints that clears those floors.
These are complaint rates, not failure rates. Owners report some problems more than others, and a complaint is not a confirmed defect.
Sources
- NHTSA complaints by vehicle (owner complaints API) — National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls by vehicle — National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Report a vehicle safety problem — National Highway Traffic Safety Administration