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Monday, January 21, 2013
Save for a few minor tweaks—smaller wheels, a more realistic lower front fascia design—the rig you see here is pretty much what the 2014 MDX will look like. The outgoing MDX is hardly boring to look at, and arguably wears the best rendition of Acura’s hard-edged, techno-forward design language. That said, casual observers would have a hard time differentiating between the new MDX and the old. The current model’s somewhat-fussy front bumper gives way to a cleaner unit with two wide-set air intakes, and its pointy body lines now are broken up by some softer edges. The concept features Acura’s “Jewel Eye” LED headlight clusters, though unlike on the (production) Acura RLX, the MDX’s are tinged a cool blue hue.
Lately Acura has taken a shine to awkwardly integrated rear fender bulges, slapping them on the compact, front-drive ILX and the front-drive-based RLX flagship—they’re present and accounted for on the new MDX. Here, it appears Acura exercised some restraint in the bulges’ implementation, and to good effect. The lightly arcing body crease rather gracefully hides the visible increase in the MDX’s wheelbase. Always one of the more tidy and athletic-looking three-row luxury crossovers, proportionally, the longer 2014 model now falls closer to competitors such as the Infiniti JX and the Audi Q7. Acura says added length between the wheels increases rear legroom for second-row passengers and improves access to the crossover’s third row of seating.
Just as the 2014 MDX’s styling might not be much of a surprise—spy photos of a test mule already revealed the minor cosmetic upgrades—the crossover’s powertrain isn’t, either. The outgoing model’s 300-hp, 3.7-liter V-6 engine is being ditched for a new, direct-injected 3.5-liter V-6 with variable cylinder management. Acura has not yet released power figures for the new MDX’s V-6, but the company says the engine will make more torque than the old 3.7-liter while delivering better fuel economy. The MDX’s new powerplant probably is the same as the one powering the 2014 RLX sedan; in that application, the 3.5-liter makes 310 horsepower and 272 lb-ft of torque and bolts up to a six-speed automatic. Expect similar specs for the 2014 MDX.
Thanks to: Car and Driver
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