The 2022 Acura RDX is the third generation of the smaller of two Acura SUV models, taking a place as the little brother of the hot-selling 3-row MDX. In the smaller RDX, owners get two seating rows, room for 5, and a machine built on the most extensive Acura redesign in over a decade. The 2022 model year sees the RDX fitted with more standard tech, a retuned suspension, a quieter drive, and enhanced looks inside and out.
When it launched a few years ago, the latest-generation RDX signalled the beginning of a new era for Acura. Today, the model has achieved boatloads of recognition for its safety, tech, and overall value in the segment. In fact, it wasn’t long after launch that the RDX was setting sales records, attracting younger and more diverse buyers to showrooms, and helping drive month after month of sales growth. Today, the Acura RDX is one of the most popular luxury models on the road, and a machine that’s boasted double-digit conquest sales, meaning that many RDX shoppers are switching to Acura from other brands.
My tester was the A-Spec, a sports-enhanced version of the RDX that’s responsible for attracting double the number of younger shoppers to the model line. Twice as many buyers under 45 choose the A-Spec over any other RDX on offer.
Included are 20-inch wheels, unique interior and exterior styling complete with red leather, slick and sporty instrumentation, LED fog lamps, oversized exhaust outlets, metal sport pedals and paddle shifters, a premium ELS stereo system, and a heated, flat-bottom steering wheel. While the A-Spec package is fundamentally cosmetic, the machine is no poser: it just brings the RDX’s looks more closely in line with the way it drives.
Importantly, if you happen to be coming here from a previous-generation RDX, you’ll find the latest model to be a night-and-day difference. On styling alone, the new machine has much more visual energy dialled in, inside and out. The last-generation RDX’s V6 engine was a favourite of mine, though the new machine’s latest turbo four is quickly earning a spot on my same list of favourite engines with its hard-working snarl, low-end push, and pleasing pull, even at higher revs — all accompanied by a nice soundtrack. Also, the second-generation RDX didn’t get Super Handling AWD, while latest RDX gets the latest fourth-generation of Acura’s famous system, along with a new-and-updated bag of goodies. So, you probably bought a second-generation RDX because it was a very reasonable machine. If you’re planning to upgrade, I think the new one will really sell you on the way it feels in motion.
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
The biggest part of this machine’s character — and one of the best reasons to consider one — is the way it drives. Broadly, it’s quite an athletic machine and it puts on a nice show for its driver. This isn’t the choice for shoppers after the most comfortable ride for their dollar (that’s about $46,000 to start and $58,000 for my loaded tester), but it should prove a very good choice for shoppers arriving from a smaller sports sedan, and who don’t want to lose any of the excitement, response and agility at the controls.
It starts with the chunky, flat-bottomed steering wheel—grabbing your attention as you grab it, and your hands settle around the thick rim, and your thumbs settle into their notches, and your fingertips check out the metal shift paddles behind. To a driving enthusiast, this is a strong tactile signal of something fun to drive.
Poke the engine start button, and the 2-litre 272-horsepower VTEC TURBO four-cylinder engine comes to life, alongside a full pre-drive sweep of the bright red instrument needles– each floating just above an anodized meter disc with laser-red lettering and numbers illuminated from behind. That’s another strong signal to the driving enthusiast– a visual reinforcement that this machine is built to give you a bit of a show.
Much of my test-drive took place on snow-covered backroads, where the SH-AWD system was the star of the show, primarily for its ability to put plenty of that power to the ground with minimal drama, thanks in no small part to my tester’s winter rubber.
The most important observation here? The RDX picks up on your vibe to give drivers exactly what they’re expecting: locked on and predictable traction with very little fuss while you’re driving cautiously in dangerous weather or icy conditions, but also some quick access to plenty of low-end snap and a little wheelspin if a sportier winter drive is in order. Some drivers will wish for less intervention from the traction control system on winding backroads, where it can work a little aggressively to keep on-throttle wheelspin down. Experienced drivers have other options for slipping and sliding at will, the RDX’s firm suspension and quick steering and brake pedal action make it easy for the machine to be slipped, slid and steered around using the throttle and brakes.
Add in the snarl from the other side of the firewall and the quick-shifting 10-speed automatic that’s smooth and snappy, and you’ve got a convincing amount of fun factor at the tips of your fingers and toes.
On bare pavement, the RDX isn’t shy about showing off its appetite for quick and winding highways and their various merge ramps — the twistier the better. The ride over expansion joints and dips is firm and sporty, as the dampers keep the RDX’s body sprung tightly against its wheels. Platinum Elite models, like my tester, get adaptive shocks that can alter and optimize ride quality in real time against one of several drive-mode presets. If you’re coming here from an Audi S4, a BMW 340i, or a Lexus IS, I think you’ll be quite familiar with the RDX’s sporty and engaging road feel.
As it is in the snow, a combination of factors comes together to generate the grins: fast reactions to steering and braking inputs, an eager and snarly engine that blends low-rev torque with pleasing high rev capability, and a heavy, clamped-on handling feel that’s short on body roll and big on encouraging drivers enjoy the nicely dialled-in reflexes.
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
Pushed hard, there’s a bit of a buzz from the engine and a bit of a jolt between gearshifts. These add to the experience, as the RDX isn’t trying to isolate its driver from any and all noise and feedback during spirited driving. It helps generate an engaging, attention-grabbing drive.
Ultimately, I think an enthusiast driver is going to find this machine a really good time, with the powertrain and handling feel as the stars of the show.
The SH-AWD system is notable here, too. Now in its fourth generation, SH-AWD is smarter and faster than ever with triple the rear-axle torque available at 100 km/h, 40 per cent faster response time and 30 per cent more power available to the over-driven rear axle. Thanks ot this, the RDX can spin a single rear wheel faster than the rest for active torque vectoring that puts an energetic and lively polish onto its handling dynamics in quick cornering situations, giving drivers a crossover that feels smaller and more eager than its size leads on.
It’s not all good news though.
Ride quality does begin to degrade more rapidly than some drivers will like on crumbling backroads surfaces, washboards, and potholes. The smoothest-riding premium SUVs on surfaces like this travel more quietly, filter out more of the abuse, and feel less jarring more of the time. The roughest-riding SUVs on a surface like this will nearly rattle the teeth out of your face if speeds aren’t considerably reduced.
The RDX sits somewhere in the middle, placing along the mid-to-sporty side of that spectrum. The increased suspension and tire noise is tolerable, and while abrupt at times, the ride rarely degrades into chaos as the suspension beneath takes a pummelling. And so, again, nicely suited to an enthusiast driver who doesn’t mind giving up a little ride comfort in exchange for some grins in the corners. So, on the way it drives, there’s little bad news to report.
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec tachometer Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
It’s much the same for the interior. Flanking the sports steering wheel and sports gauges are a smattering of suede and metal-trimmed panels, pads, covers, and grilles, each set nicely within its surroundings and tied together with red leather and stitching throughout.
It’s soft touch almost everywhere, with metal shift paddles and even solid metal door handles dialling up the rich feel. There’s a waterfall centre console, wireless charging beneath, abundant at-hand storage for smaller items, and even a handy wrist-rest that makes pointing your way around on the central infotainment track-pad a little easier.
Taken broadly, it’s an authentically upscale interior with plenty of depth, detail, and colour.
On space and storage, I think you’ll find that the 2022 RDX feels a bit bigger in person than it looks in videos or photographs. I had no trouble with space up front, and at 5’10, my comfortable driving position afforded plenty of remaining headroom with no crowding of my knees or hips, and easy access to all controls. From that comfortable seated position, I could sit behind myself with generous knee and legroom, and even plenty of room for my feet, thanks to a nearly flat rear floor. Headroom is tighter in back than up front, though still sufficient for an adult of my size, or even a bit taller. In the back, even the cargo hold is a bit deeper and a bit wider than I expected.
Canine jump-in height to the cargo area seems easy for a mid-size family dog too.
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
2022 Acura RDX A-Spec Photo by Justin Pritchard
If you’re shopping in the roughly, $55,000-$65,000 range for a luxury sports crossover model, there’s at least one additional model that makes a compelling argument for your dollars, and it’s the Porsche Macan.
Priced from $500 above my fully-loaded RDX A-Spec tester, the Porsche Macan’s 2022 base model features a 2-litre turbo engine with 261 horsepower, and 0-100km/h in 6.4 seconds. That’s a bit less power than the RDX (272 horsepower), but a bit quicker off the line.
Between the pair, the Macan’s ride is better sorted on rough roads, while being no less spirited at the controls than the RDX. Though I find the Acura’s engine more pleasing to listen to and work hard, the Macan has the superior transmission with faster response times, smoother shifting, and impossibly-quick upshifts at full throttle.
I prefer the Macan’s more clean and tidy interior design, and (especially) its infotainment system. In winter driving, the two are highly comparable, though it’s the Porsche with the more predictable and easygoing traction control system, and the Acura with the better headlights. The RDX has significantly better cargo space, too. If your budget is a little bit flexible and you’re after a sporty luxury crossover in this sort of size, both machines are worthy of consideration.
2022 Porsche Macan Photo by Justin Pritchard
The RDX’s headlights are worth a mention as well. I’ve been reporting on excellent headlight performance from all recent Acura test-drives, suggesting that the brand is rolling out top-notch lighting tech across all models. The RDX A-Spec is no exception: the signature LED lighting system uses numerous projectors to pour clean white light that thickly covers the road ahead, and reaches effectively into the roadside for early detection of potential hazards. High beams add some additional spot-lighting ahead of the vehicle in the mid-distance range, and engage reflective surfaces up the highway at an impressive distance. A precise beam cut-off helps ensure there’s plenty of light where it’s needed, little where it’s not, and helps keep oncoming traffic from flashing you, too.
After dark, I think new RDX drivers will quickly find confidence in its powerful and nicely-calibrated lighting system.
End of the day, here’s an athletic luxury crossover that drives like something smaller and more spirited than you might expect, offers more room and space than you might expect, and one that will inject some energy and fun factor into the daily travels of enthusiast drivers while remaining comfortable and confident to use in a wide range of everyday situations.
Keyword: SUV Review: 2022 Acura RDX A-Spec