2013 Acura RDX Exterior Lighting Problems
Owners have filed 89 complaints with NHTSA about exterior lighting problems on the 2013 Acura RDX, 55% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 102,000 miles. The words owners use most often: “low beam” (45% of reports).
- 89exterior lighting complaints
- 102,000median miles at failure
- 2mention a crash
- 0mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- $2,250typical repair cost reported by owners
- 10%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Low beam: mentioned in 40 of 89 complaints (45%)
- Headlights dim: mentioned in 20 of 89 complaints (22%)
- Headlight assembly: mentioned in 13 of 89 complaints (15%)
- High beams: mentioned in 13 of 89 complaints (15%)
How much does it cost to fix?
Owners who wrote down what they paid or were quoted put the typical exterior lighting repair on the 2013 Acura RDX at $2,250, and half of them between $2,150 and $2,900.
Based on 15 NHTSA complaints about this problem alone that state a repair bill or quote (2022–2026), converted to 2026 dollars with the U.S. consumer price index. These are owners' own figures, not a quote: they include dealer quotes, and owners who file complaints often faced larger repairs, so they can run higher than typical shop prices. Prices vary by shop, region and warranty coverage. How we calculate this.
At what mileage do exterior lighting problems happen?
Based on 9 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 89 complaints, 2 mention a crash.
Acura RDX exterior lighting complaints by model year
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists exterior lighting for the 2013 Acura RDX. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
The headlight housings on this generation of 2013 Acura MDXs completely fail due to a design flaw that causes the housing to overheat and dim the lights to a dangerous level. At night, you would be safer if you were driving with flashlights taped to the hood of the vehicle. Iâm sure this has…
The headlights do not produce enough light to see the road. Every time the car is driven at night it is extremely dangerous.
Headlights are very dim due to degradation of the reflective projection surface. Internet searches indicate this is a common problem for the 2013-2015 Acura RDXs. The only solution is to replace the entire headlight assembly.
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2013 Acura RDXs have exterior lighting problems?
No. NHTSA has 89 owner complaints about exterior lighting for the 2013 Acura RDX (55% of the 162 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2013 Acura RDX exterior lighting?
No recall currently lists exterior lighting for this vehicle.
At what mileage do exterior lighting problems start?
The median reported mileage is 102,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
How much does it cost to fix exterior lighting problems on the 2013 Acura RDX?
Owners report a typical cost of $2,250 (half paid between $2,150 and $2,900), from 15 complaints that state a repair bill or quote, in 2026 dollars.
What do owners say about exterior lighting problems on the 2013 Acura RDX?
The most frequent phrase is “low beam”, in 40 of 89 complaints, followed by “headlights dim” (20).
See all 2013 Acura RDX problems or exterior lighting problems across all RDX years.