jgr7

iTrader: (1)

The RX is the wifes ride and she didn't like the looks of the MDX. She could have had either one as I didn't care, I liked the looks of the MDX, but like I said its hers to pick and she is very happy.

viperdoc

I purchased an F sport 6 months ago. I looked at the 2013 MDX, but thought it was uncomfortable. My parents have one, so i was able to drive it quite a bit. The lexus rides much better....sure the F sport is a little firmer, but overall ride quality and noise levels were much better in the lexus.

The new MDX is a completely different animal from the previous one. I have heard that there were many complaints about ride stiffness, noise levels, and room in the third row for the previous gen MDX, and Acura spent most of it's time trying to fix those. The result seems like a great car- in testing it accelerates as fast as the RX, is quieter at 70mph (according to motor trend), and gets great gas mileage compared to the previous gen (27 hwg vs 21 before). They also enlarged the back to make the third row seats useable for people that actually have legs. (I couldn't even sit in the third row seats in the 2013). But all those changes, particularly making it bigger, put it into a different category than the RX for me. The F sport is my daily driver, and I didn't really need that large of a car, or one with three rows of seating. My car is large enough to take the family on trips (3 kids here), including the dog (labrador).

I think the new MDX has become a minivan replacement, which is why I am looking it to possibly replace our Odyssey. The new MDX also competes with the infiniti Q60, which says alot, given that the infiniti is really just a minivan without sliding doors. When you look at the specs of both these cars (the infiniti and MDX) the interior dimensions regarding legroom are just a hair off. When I drove the infiniti before buying the RX I thought it was enourmous inside. I haven't driven the new MDX, but given the dimensions, it will likely be large enough to replace our minivan comfortably. As others have said, I think a better competitor to the RX is the RDX, X3, and Q5....not the MDX.

hypervish

That isn't a good thing. Being that it is new, you don't know if it's going to be durable. And, we all know what Honda's track record is with transmissions.

Honda is having a lot of problems with VCM right now as well.

Because of those two things alone, I'd go with the RX.

lester123

I beg to differ with you. Try this website http://www.mdxers.org/

It has much more participation than this website.

I have used the MDX website for 12 years - had 2002 and 2008 MDX before getting RX350 last Oct. Main reason for getting RX was the fact that I only used the third row about 4 times over all the years and I wanted a slightly smaller SUV.

wase4711

I traded my 2012 mdx for the 2014 rx last week...

MDX drives like crap on regular gas, and the rx is fine with it
MDX has 3rd row seats, which is worthless for empty nesters

MDX handles nice, drives stiffer than the the RX, and us older geezers prefer the rx ride

biggest difference for me, aside from the fact the RX looks and feels a lot more cutting edge than my MDX did, is that the lexus dealer I use, McGrath Lexus, has always treated us like gold, and gone far above the call to make us happy; the have Acura here as well, but the lexus store just shines when it comes to treating you the way you always wished a car dealer did..
My wife still has her 2012 TL, but already she is whining that she wants a Lexus too!!

You cant go wrong with either one, but unless you have a big family, I think the RX is a better choice..

lamar411

http://mdx.acurazine.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=414

There's a good Acura forum with a MDX area, pretty lively. But if the RX had been my primary driver I would not have bought it. My wife did not even test drive it, she just wanted a Lexus. Unfortunate, but oh well, vehicle is still very nice.

markrivers

Can i be honest and say that Acura doesn't spell Luxury.
lexus, at least can go head to head with some Merc and Bimmers.

So, if that's not important to you, then go ahead with an MDX.

utkinpol

We looked at it back and forth for a month. Other than MDX there is also Infinity JX35.

So, with Acura my most concern would be with a quality of production and resulting longevity of the car. If you decide to lease it then it is not an issue but for us we plan to purchase for long term. ES330 lasted 10+ years. I can only hope RX will do the same.

From practical perspective you need to decide how important 3rd row seat is for you. If you got 2+ kids and expect many rides with in-laws then 3rd row is a must, IMHO and it outweighs other downsides.

for us from a practical perspective, storage area of RX is way bigger with 2 rows than in MDX with 3rd row of seats up. Storage in RX is blocked by 2nd row when in MDX with seats down (to make same amount of a storage space as in RX) your bags may tumble forward.
With seats up in MDX storage is a joke, not even enough for a 'proper' grocery run.

JX35 is slightly better than MDX in all regards and those who found this car in 2013 model on sale are probably got the best deal, our friends snatched new 2013 one in August for $43000 or so. Decent deal.

Anyway, for us we got 2014 RX350 and it is quite nice so far and lives to the expectations. I ordered Thule box for it but with a single center element of rear seats down it fits my 190cm skis just fine and my kids skis as well so not sure if it was even needed to get thule.

ngerstman

My wife has a 2011 MDX and I just traded in a 2005 rx330 for a 2011 CPO rx350. While the newer rx is nicely designed and functional, there is no question in my mind that the MDX is the much better driving vehicle, not really close. The new MDX is definitely much nicer looking inside than the older model and other than some complaints about the dual screen infotainment system, it has been widely praised. If I was buying new, I would go with the MDX, sorry RX fans!! The sound system is much better as well if you care. Regards. Ned.

Browninggo

Congrats ngerstman enjoy your new ride. I love my '14 RX F-Sport..

sc400

is cost a factor for you? I looked at the '13 MDX and it was $10K more than the '13 RX before any negotiations. I thought it was overpriced. So after considering all, I got the Lexus.

ngerstman

No idea where you are getting your price information. A nicely loaded MDX should have a sticker of around $47,000 which actually might be less than a similar rx. I own one of each so I know. Regards. Ned.

sc400

I went to the Acura dealer for test drives and pricing. And I am referring to new SUV, not older model or cpo which can be bought for much less.

ngerstman

I was referring to new vehicles as well. A loaded Acura and similarly equipped rx are in same ballpark, with mdx a little less. There is a loaded version of the mdx that gets higher but has a load of stuff you don't need or can even get in the rx like the DVD entertainment package and other useless stuff. Regards. Ned.

CSSLDR

........you must get the most expensive MDX - 58K for the following options available standard on AWD RX(49K), .... or F-sport(52K)

I use these all the time:
**Auto dimming and reverse tilting side view mirrors
**Lane change assist

wife's comfort is very important to me:
**Passenger power lumbar
**Cooled front seats

To me they are not similarly equipped. Acura falls short when it comes to packaging options. If I wanted great AWD I would have gone back to Subaru. Lexus AWD w/VDIM is more than adequate in the NY-NJ-CT area. In the end I picked up the RX F sport with a premium luxury interior for well less than 50K.