Buried in a recent preview of Honda's upcoming products and business developments was a little note about a new Acura SUV. But don't let that tiny mention fool you: This new Acura is a big deal. It will be the brand's smallest, most affordable SUV, sliding in beneath the compact RDX, three-row midsize MDX, and upcoming all-electric ZDX in the lineup. For the past year or so, Acura's entry point overall has been its resurrected Integra hatchback—the new SUV will likely take over that role. Even though it's likely to be priced higher than the Integra, it'll sell in greater volume by virtue of its shape. Customers just can't get enough SUVs, it seems.
A New Entry SUV With Familiar Bones
So what will this new Acura be called? What will it look like? And what will it be based on? We have a few clues, but no official confirmation at this time. For starters, the name is likely to be "CDX." Honda recently has trademarked both the "ADX" and "CDX" names, but we're leaning toward the latter because it's almost guaranteed that this SUV will be based on Honda's entry-level HR-V crossover (pictured below). And in China, Acura sold a CDX for years that is a lightly restyled version of—you guessed it—the last-generation HR-V. Acura being a global brand, and it already using the CDX name for a highly similar vehicle suggest there's little reason to switch things up and adopt the "ADX" moniker.
As you've probably surmised already, the 2025 Acura CDX is most likely going to be spun off the Honda HR-V's platform. There's precedent at work here—the Integra is a heavily revised take on the current Honda Civic hatchback, with unique exterior styling and a more upmarket interior and powertrain combinations not available on the workaday Civic. The HR-V is, essentially, the same thing, a Civic-based small SUV, albeit with chunkier looks and available all-wheel drive. We see no reason why Acura wouldn't turn to the same well for the also-entry-level CDX, given how decent a starting point the excellent Civic family is for the class-above Integra.
We've rendered what the CDX could look like, using the HR-V's body shell as a basis, and the results aren't bad. The newest HR-V has a longer, lower appearance than its dumpling-shaped predecessor, with its only major styling sins being longish front and rear overhangs and a mouthy grille. The interior is pleasant enough, thanks to its classy Civic-derived dashboard design and nice switchgear. Look for Acura to pull off the same stunt with the CDX that it did with the Integra, taking the HR-V's basic structure and elevating it with pointier, Acura-specific headlights and taillights, the brand's pentagonal grille, and unique wheel designs. As with the Integra, expect more HR-V to carry over inside, at least in general terms; Acura will dress up the Honda bits with nicer materials, a better stereo, and more.
More Power?
We're hoping Acura has already binned the HR-V's pipsqueaky 158-hp 2.0-liter I-4 gas engine for a more exciting motivator, like, say, the 200-hp turbocharged 1.5-liter I-4 from the Integra (itself borrowed from the Honda Civic Si). We doubt Acura will use anything but Honda's continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) here; though the Integra offers a six-speed manual option, it's a safe bet few if any shoppers in the market for a subcompact luxury SUV are looking for one.
As cool as it would be for Acura to install its torque-vectoring Super-Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD) in the CDX, color us surprised if that happens. That setup, available on the RDX and MDX SUVs, improves handling by directing torque sent to the rear axle to the outside rear tire during cornering, helping power the rear end out of bends and the driver forget those SUVs are front-wheel-drive-based people movers. It's also pricey and takes up space in the rear axle area—and space isn't something the small HR-V has a surfeit of. That said, Acura prides itself on sporty handling and edgy design, so there's a chance it goes full ham sandwich on the CDX in a bid to win new-to-the-brand buyers over. Either way, front-wheel drive is likely to be standard, while all-wheel drive (some kind of AWD) will be optional.
When Will We See It?
Honda's business update noted merely that we'll see the new Acura SUV sometime this year, stating: "An all-new Acura crossover will debut later this year, positioned at the gateway of the lineup alongside the Integra." A 2024 introduction suggests to us that the CDX will be a 2025 model-year offering when it goes on sale either later this year or early next year. Expect to pay a little over $33,000 for an entry-level CDX when it appears—that's slightly more than an Integra costs, but given the two are said to share the "gateway of the lineup" for Acura, they'll probably be priced similarly, with the CDX earning the usual SUV price bump over the Integra hatchback.
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January 19, 2024 at 04:46AM
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2025 Acura CDX: Everything We Know About the New Entry-Luxury SUV - MotorTrend
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