Acura Rdx
Problems & Worst Years

Two very different stories define the Acura RDX in NHTSA's records, depending on which generation you're shopping. For 2015, the 187 complaint occurrences are overwhelmingly about headlights: dimming headlights despite replacing bulbs accounts for 104 reports on its own, joined by dimming blamed on reflector oxidation, dim low beams, and outright headlight assembly failure. Owners also filed complaints about airbag recall issues. Both of the year's safety-severity problems involve the dimming-headlight complaints, which makes sense — weak lighting is a visibility problem, not just an annoyance.

The 2019 and 2020 model years share a more startling signature: rear glass breaking on its own. The 2019 RDX is the worst year in the file at 231 occurrences, with rear windshield shattering without impact (62 reports) and spontaneous shattering (51) topping the list, followed by engine power loss during acceleration (28) and safety-severity engine stalls during operation (25). The 2020 year runs nearly as high at 225 occurrences, again led by rear windshield shattering — including reports tied specifically to warming up the vehicle — plus engine stall or power loss during acceleration and a smaller batch of fuel system complaints.

Recall campaigns 20V314, 21V215, and 23V858 apply to the 2019 model year, and 21V215 and 23V858 to 2020, so run the VIN and confirm the work is done. On a test drive of a 2019 or 2020, pay attention to any hesitation or momentary power loss under acceleration; on a 2015, check the headlight output at night and look closely at the lens and reflector condition.

None of this is a verdict on any single vehicle. Complaint totals reflect what owners filed with NHTSA, not measured failure rates, and later years have had less time on the road to accumulate reports. A thorough pre-purchase inspection and a complete service history will tell you far more than the model year alone.