Acura MDX (2007- 2013): Soccer Mom's Back Road Warrior

As car enthusiasts, we are supposed to automatically hate the crossover SUV. We say they are for soccer moms and shopping trips, which is true. But some are surprises that can put a smile on your face on a back road.

The Acura MDX is a mid-sized three row crossover sold by Honda’s North American luxury division, Acura. It is powered by a 3.7 liter V6 making 300 HP and 270 LB-FT of torque. This power it given to all four wheels via a six- speed automatic gearbox, with steering wheel mounted paddle shifts, helping it hit sixty time is 6.5 seconds. The curb weight is 4,594 to 4,669, depending on the trim level and the towing capacity is a strong 5,000 lbs.

Something that sets it apart from almost all other cars it the AWD system. The MDX uses Honda’s SH-AWD, or Super Handling-All Wheel Drive (sort of silly name). Despite the silly name, it is a very serious AWD system, as it has true torque vectoring for the rear wheels. So, not only is this car a beast in snow, it is a blast on back roads. In hard cornering, up to 50 percent of available torque can be directed to the rear axle for increased cornering capability and up to 100 percent of the torque sent to the rear axle can be applied to either rear wheel as the traction conditions dictate, reducing under steer, a flinging you out of corners. A more complex version is used it the new NSX supercar, but is similar.

With the suspension having been tuned at the Nürburgring, 56/44% (front/rear) weight distribution, SH-AWD, engine with decent power, sport mode with paddle shifters, and VTEC just kicked in, yo. It was also one of the last cars in the segment to have hydraulically assisted power steering, and with the next generation, this was lost. The steering has decent feel and is quick. So, far everything sounds great and it is great.

On a curvy Wisconsin back road, or a narrow, winding mountain pass, this car is a blast. Even if the paddle shifters are slow, they allow you to down shift into tight corners and the SH-AWD allows you to smash the accelerator out of corners, and catapult to the next to repeat again: downshift and then floor it mid-corner. The torque vectoring just pushes the car around the corner, giving the sensation that the car over steering.

The Acura MDX is popular in the U.S., with 50,854 selling in 2012. Unsurprisingly they are popular with mothers in the suburbs, like my own. Here is why my family bought a crossover SUV.

My family had a 2002 Honda Odyssey which we bought a few years after I was born. It served us well and still is, now having over 210,000 miles. In fall of 2013, with winter approaching, my mom said that she wanted something with AWD for the Chicago winters. We needed something that could towing 5,000 lbs, seat seven people, and was reliable (in other words, Japanese). She said that she liked the Toyota Highlander, and we began to look. She wanted a car that was something other than white, black, grey, and other bland colors, but there were no 2010 to 2012 Limited Models in anything other than bland colors. We also needed one equipped with the towing package, but none of the sales men really knew how to identify the ones equipped. We test drove at least one before I remember the Acura MDX. I did some research and found that the certified pre-owned prices were just a little more than a Limited Highlander and that Acura has what is arguably the best AWD system. Then I found the video that changed my parent’s minds. My mom was sold on the car and my dad was happy to learn that all MDXs come standard with the tow package. So we looked at a few at nearby Acura dealerships and bought a certified pre-owned 2012 Technology Package. As a sixth grader, I was amazed by all the tech this had, like a back up camera, Bluetooth, and a navigation system.

Now 6 years old, our MXD is still serving us well. It now has 108,000 miles and has taken my family to the Smokey Mountains, South Datoka, and out west again for a trip to Yellowstone and the other National Parks in that region. We might keep it for over 200,000 miles, with the new MDXs losing their great steering to electrically assisted power steering, gaining an ugly interior, dropping the 3.7 liter for the generic Honda 3.5 liter V6 while losing 10 hp, and becoming more massive and uglier. On the plus the new MDX gets better fuel economy. Our second gen is here to stay for a while longer.

Thanks for reading! Hopefully you learned something. I will make an article on SH-AWD specifically sometime soon.