- Safety
- 5
- of 5 stars
- Recalls
- 3
- on record
- MPG
- 27
- combined
Open recalls on record
3 safety recalls. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer — check the VIN before you buy.
Vehicle Summary
2021 Acura RDX
Before You Buy
Safety record at a glance
- Recall campaigns
- 3
- Owner complaints
- 111
- Complaints citing a crash
- 3
These are raw counts from NHTSA records. They are not normalized by how many of these vehicles are on the road, so a model that sold in large numbers will tend to show more of everything. We do not publish a composite safety or reliability score.
3 Recalls on Record
These recalls have been issued by the manufacturer. Contact any authorized dealer to verify they have been completed — repairs are free.
Safety recalls
3 NHTSA campaigns affecting this model year.
- 21V939000high
Driveshaft bolt issue
POWER TRAIN:DRIVELINE:DRIVESHAFT
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2021 Acura RDX and 2022 CR-V Hybrid vehicles. A component in the right or left front driveshaft may have been improperly heat-treated, which could result in driveshaft failure.
Consequence
Driveshaft failure can cause a sudden loss of drive power, or cause the vehicle to roll away when parked if the parking brake is not applied. Either condition can increase the risk of a crash or injury.
Full campaign recordRemedy
Dealers will replace the right or left front driveshaft as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 24, 2022. Owners may contact Honda customer service 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BBY, NBW, and OBX.
- 24V064000high
Airbag system issue
AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGER
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, failing to suppress the air bag as intended.
Consequence
An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.
Full campaign recordRemedy
Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XHP and VHQ.
- 26V332000high
Airbag system issue
AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGER
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.
Consequence
Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.
Full campaign recordRemedy
Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.
NHTSA crash-test ratings
NCAP star ratings and the underlying test breakdown for the 2021 Acura RDX.
Frontal crash
- Driver
- 4 / 5
- Passenger
- 4 / 5
Side crash
- Driver
- 5 / 5
- Passenger
- 5 / 5
- Side pole
- 5 / 5
Rollover
- Rollover risk
- 16.5%
- Dynamic tip
- No Tip
Driver-assistance technologies
- Electronic stability control
- Standard
- Forward collision warning
- Standard
- Lane departure warning
- Standard
What the ratings mean
NHTSA gives the 2021 Acura RDX 5 out of 5 stars overall. NHTSA does not publish enough comparable results for this class and year to rank it against peers.
NHTSA published results for every NCAP test in this program, so the overall star rating rests on a complete set of crash and rollover results.
NHTSA's dynamic test put this vehicle's rollover probability at 16.5% in a single-vehicle crash — the figure behind the rollover star rating, published here because the star alone hides how wide each band is.
Fuel economy & emissions
EPA figures for the 2021 Acura RDX, with tailpipe CO₂ and class context.
22
City
34
Hwy
27
Comb
- Annual fuel cost
- $1,944
- Tailpipe CO₂
- 329 g/mi
How this compares
The EPA holds too few vehicles in this class and model year to rank the 2021 Acura RDX against its peers.
Tailpipe CO₂ is 329 grams per mile — about 4.9 metric tons over 15,000 miles of driving.
Consumer complaints
111 owner reports filed with NHTSA.
- 111
- Total
- 3
- Crashes
- 0
- Fires
- 1
- Injuries
Most reported components
- OTHER25
- ENGINE22
- BRAKES16
- VISIBILITY14
- AIR BAGS11
Notable Issues
111 consumer complaints filed with NHTSA. 1 report involves injuries. 3 reports involve a crash.
Most reported problems
Safety timeline
Every dated recall and NHTSA investigation for the 2021 Acura RDX, newest first.
- Recall
Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.
- Recall
An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.
- Recall
Driveshaft failure can cause a sudden loss of drive power, or cause the vehicle to roll away when parked if the parking brake is not applied. Either condition can increase the risk of a crash or injury.
Dates are the NHTSA report-received date for recalls and the ODI open/close date for investigations. Crash-test ratings are not shown here because the source does not provide a reliable publication date for them.
Specifications & ratings
Specifications
- Body class
- SUV
- Drive type
- FWD
- Engine
- 2.5L 4-cyl
- Fuel type
- Regular Gasoline
- Transmission
- Automatic
- Seats
- 5
Fuel economy
22
City
34
Hwy
27
Comb
- Annual cost
- $1,944
- Fuel
- Regular Gasoline
NHTSA crash ratings
- Overall
- Frontal
- Side
- Rollover
Explore related
Systems recalled
Safety timeline
Full timeline- Recall
Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.
- Recall
An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.
- Recall
Driveshaft failure can cause a sudden loss of drive power, or cause the vehicle to roll away when parked if the parking brake is not applied. Either condition can increase the risk of a crash or injury.