2025
Acura ADX

If you find the controls and infotainment systems in most modern cars frustrating, overwhelming, or just plain annoying, the ADX is meant for you. Thanks to some of the simplest controls available today, it’s easy to change the temperature, turn down the volume, or adjust airflow by feel without looking away from the road. As with the Integra sedan, Acura once again borrowed Honda’s superb climate setup that includes dedicated knobs for temperature, fan speed, and audio volume. Heated and ventilated front seats have their own buttons, the climate display isn’t buried in a menu somewhere, and the gear selector is a traditional “PRND” setup. Mercifully, the infotainment controls have nothing in common with the maddening touchpad-based setup used in the RDX. We can’t believe we have to say this, but the ADX also benefits from traditional turn signal and wiper stalks, buttons for adjusting the side mirrors, and conventional door handles inside and out.

The infotainment touchscreen itself is as simple as you can get: Our A-Spec trim even has a dedicated physical “home” button and a physical “connect phone” button, which answer two of the biggest questions people have with touchscreens today: How do I get back to the main menu, and how do I connect my phone? You’ll need to use Android Auto or Apple CarPlay if you want to use navigation because there’s no built-in system. Similarly, SiriusXM satellite radio is not available. We think both omissions are acceptable in the smartphone era, especially because it’s possible to stream satellite content. A-Spec Advance models have a different screen with more complex Google software (including built-in Google Maps) and no dedicated buttons.

So far, drivers have praised how easy it is to get into and out of the ADX’s front seats, although there’s no grip handle above the driver’s door. The rear seats are a little tighter, and the seats themselves are low, but the height of the vehicle makes it easy to sit naturally. Front visibility is excellent, although rear visibility is always a little compromised in an SUV with thick rear pillars. The rear quarter windows (behind the rear doors) are shaped differently compared with the HR-V, giving it a slightly divergent style. But they are too small to be of much use.

While it doesn’t turn the ADX into a sports car, the 190-hp turbocharged four-cylinder engine is a major upgrade compared with the 158-hp four-cylinder HR-V, which always felt a bit underpowered. (We measured a leisurely 0-to-60-mph time of more than 11 seconds for the Honda.) At the very least, there’s less engine noise because it doesn’t have to work as hard while merging or accelerating.

The ADX is composed and controlled in corners. In everyday situations, the steering is responsive without demanding too much attention from the driver. It’s not a particularly exciting car to drive, but it feels eager to carry out the driver’s instructions and is more engaging than the humdrum HR-V.

The firm suspension offers a smooth enough ride, isolating the cabin from minor imperfections. The car feels a little choppy only over big bumps and expansion joints.

What We Don’t Like

Most drivers complained about the seats found in our A-Spec trim. Although they can be positioned comfortably, they lack adequate support to keep backs and butts from aching on long drives (other Honda models have a similar issue). Several people said that the bottom seat cushion felt too compressed and worn out, and that the seatback felt particularly shallow. Neither front seat has lumbar adjustment, an omission that feels really inexpensive on a car from a luxury brand. The seat heaters were particularly weak, too. Rear passengers don’t have it any better, thanks to a short rear seat cushion that provides very little thigh support.

The continuously variable transmission is the weakest link in the ADX’s powertrain, a slow-to-respond middle manager that gets between the driver’s wants and the engine’s abilities. It feels responsive enough when accelerating from a stop and when the driver puts the pedal to the floor, but we wish that Acura had tuned the ADX’s CVT for a little more potency under medium acceleration. As it stands, the ADX isn’t nearly as fun to drive as the larger RDX.

Other than some slightly redesigned air vents and less-useful cup holders (why is one of them square?), the ADX shares most of its interior with the HR-V. Acura added a little extra padding to parts of the dashboard, but the difference in quality between the suede-like trim and the hard plastic pieces makes the carryover Honda bits stand out even more. It’s sort of like remodeling a kitchen by upgrading the appliances but keeping the Formica countertops.

We really wish the ADX offered a hybrid powertrain. The Honda Accord Hybrid, Civic Hybrid, and CR-V Hybrid are all standouts, but Acura doesn’t offer any hybrids. The only other hybrid choices in the entry-luxury SUV segment are the Alfa Romeo Tonale—which is a plug-in hybrid—and the tiny Lexus UX. Because today’s hybrids are typically quicker, quieter, smoother, more efficient, and not much more expensive than their gas-only counterparts, we recommend that ADX shoppers also consider a well-equipped CR-V Hybrid Touring or a Mazda CX-50 Hybrid.

What We’ll Keep an Eye On

We have yet to put the ADX through our instrumented fuel economy test, but the window sticker shows an EPA estimate of 27 mpg combined, and we’ve been observing fuel economy closer to the mid-20s during routine driving. Acura also recommends premium fuel for the ADX, which will increase your fuel bills. A Honda CR-V equipped with effectively the same engine and identical horsepower rating requires regular fuel. A hybrid version of the ADX would likely get fuel economy in the high-30s.

The ADX comes standard with a ton of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and active safety features. Acura calls them AcuraWatch, and they include automatic emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection, blind spot warning (BSW), lane departure warning (LDW), lane centering assistance (LCA), and adaptive cruise control (ACC) with traffic jam assistance.

We don’t love the overzealous LDW system—it shakes the steering wheel if you pass over or get too close to a lane line, which is unnerving. LCA swung a bit wide on some curves, and ACC occasionally got too close to cars ahead to the point where we had to intervene by hitting the brake pedal. We’ll put the ADX through our evaluations and see how well it performs.