Sudden Deceleration Among Reported 2019 Acura RDX Issues

Owners and lessees report 2019 Acura RDX issues with the electrical system that cause the vehicles to stall even at high speeds on the highway.

Both 2019 and 2020 models of the Acura RDX and MDX sport-utility vehicles allegedly experience periodic power losses that most of the time cannot be duplicated by the dealership, say drivers.

At least one class action lawsuit has been filed against American Honda Motor Company by a woman who leased a 2019 Acura MDX from a Fort Lauderdale, Fla. dealership. Sandra Ferrera said the first time the vehicle rapidly decelerated was when she was changing lanes on the highway. The second time the vehicle lost its ability to accelerate, she was driving straight down the highway. Her husband also alleges the vehicle decelerated when he didn’t want it to when he was driving, too.

The lawsuit alleges that once the driver presses on the accelerator pedal, the affected vehicles might choose to decelerate and shut down without warning, but might regain power just as quickly.

According to others who have leased or owned an Acura RDX or MDX, Sandra is not alone. Other owners and lessees are wondering why the electrical system has not been subject to a recall.

2019 Acura RDX Issues Force Owner to Trade it in

One owner reported to Edmunds.com that he thought he had found his dream car when he bought his 2019 Acura RDX. Little did he know when he drove it off the lot that he would be back in seven months to trade in the RDX “for something more reliable.” 

He wrote to Edmunds that the “most terrifying issue was the electronic issue.”

The man described driving on the freeway at about 65 mph on his way to work one morning when the entire car shut down except for the engine. He said he had no dials, no GPS, no A/C, nothing, and because he was in the middle lane, he could not pull over.

He safely arrived at work, but when he put the vehicle in “park,” the electronics came back on in a “strobing” manner. The dealership never found anything wrong, despite the electronic failure recurring with the owner driving subsequent times.

The man wrote, “I really wanted to love this car but for the price I paid (and the thousands of dollars I lost trading it in) it just wasn’t worth my safety.”

A New Jersey Acura RDX owner said the vehicle’s engine lost power, the engine malfunction light started blinking, and the car decelerated to 20 mph as she was passing a dump truck. According to her account at CarComplaints.com, she was able to pull onto the shoulder, narrowly averting getting hit by the truck she had just passed. When she was on the shoulder, she turned the vehicle off and then back on. The car had no malfunction lights lit and resumed operating normally. Still, she told the dealership of the 2019 Acura RDX issues, but the dealer could not duplicate the issue after test driving it 60 miles over the course of three days.

At the time of the initial deceleration, the RDX had about 10,500 miles on it.

“This is a very dangerous problem,” wrote the owner, who added, “I narrowly avoided being in a car accident.”

A couple who bought a 2020 Acura RDX wrote to CarProblemZoo.com about their experience driving on the interstate in North Carolina in the rain in heavy traffic, which was moving between 65 and 80 mph. Just south of Charlotte, the RDX started slowing down even though the driver was pressing down on the accelerator.

With the check engine light blinking and engine “rattling and sputtering,” the driver turned on the hazards and made it to an exit to a gas station. After shutting down the car completely, waiting 15 minutes and turning it back on, the vehicle went six more hours without a problem.

The couple took the car back to the dealership on Nov. 25, but the dealer could not duplicate the problem and said no error or fault codes were stored in the vehicle’s computer system.

Join a Free Acura RDX Acceleration Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

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This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.