The Acura MDX has long been a staple of the upscale mid-sized SUV market. While I know a lot of people consider this a full-sized SUV because it has a third row, one need look no further than our recent review of the Cadillac Escalade to see that there is a grander scale of vehicle out there to be considered “full sized”. This said, the 2026 Acura MDX Type-S with SH-AWD was a pleasure to drive for a week, had gobs of fun to use power, solid styling, good interior technology, and a vibe that was modern, cool, and more youthful than virtually anything else we have driven in this class lately. With a 0-60 time of 5.5 seconds and and the ability to run the quarter mile in the 14s, it’s a lively rig. Adding in the SH-AWD and you have one that can also handle to a very fun degree. The first thing we can tell you is that the 2026 Acura MDX Type-S with SH-AWD brings a lot of driver engagement and fun behind the wheel.

The MDX has never been, nor has it been intended to be some sort of boundary pushing styling exercise and to us, that’s one of its charms. It continues to have presence, authority, and a refined look but it is not calling out for attention and we suspect this is one of the things that draws potential buyers to it. It’s possible to be upscale without being gaudy or ostentatious and the MDX displays this perfectly.

Stance wise, it would be cool if the 2026 Acura MDX Type-S with SH-AWD sat about an inch lower. It would certainly up the aggression level of its whole look and close up some of the gap between the tire and the wheel arch, but we’re picking nits. We have to compliment the brakes. You can see that our MDX was wearing the big Brembo calipers on all four corners and this thing stopped like few other vehicles in this class of the market can. Braking pedal feel was great and while we thankfully never needed to panic stop, we did find an empty road to test that situation and the haul down on the 2026 Acura MDX Type-S with SH-AWD was definitely enough to have you up in your belts. Impressive.

This 3.5L turbocharged V6 is the heart of the 2026 Acura MDX Type-S with SH-AWD and it feeds its power through a 10-speed automatic transmission. The power here is great and amplified by the 10-speed which was never once hunting for gears of trying to figure out what it was doing. The refinement of the powertrain is really good here and it’s what you’d expect from an Acura but in an era where more gears and more widgets continue to enter the drivetrains of cars, not all of them work well, this combination absolutely does. Of course with the SH-AWD here as well, the power can be fed to the wheels and corners it will be of best use. We really enjoyed taking the MDX on some strong merging situations as well as some of our favorite back country roads to run the engine and chassis through its paces. Buttery smooth power, incredibly well balanced handling for a vehicle this size, and just fun to drive. Fuel economy is not going to blow your mind nor is it out of league for this class of vehicle. We got a combined total of about 23mpg for the week’s driving in a variety of situations. If you want power, and we do, you get a turbo and the turbocharger is going to, in the end, cause somer fuel to be burned. More air into the engine, more fuel into the engine, more horsepower. It’s physics, kids.

Interior space is shown here with the third row both up and down. Load in height is reasonable, top to bottom entry height and space is inline with the competition, and as is typically the case with vehicles of this size, even with the back row up, you’d still be able to get a solid amount of luggage, sports gear, or whatever else in the back with no issue. With the third row laid flat, you can see that there’s vast amounts of usable space for whatever your heart desires. Regarding space, though. The third row is just tighter than tight for anyone who isn’t a kid. Again, not isolated to this make, model, or brand, it’s any three row SUV in this size class. The third row is definitely there but we consider them decorative for the most part unless you have kids jumping back there. Could you haul three adults back there? If they were smaller people? Sure. Would you want to haul three adults back there? Not if you wanted to maintain their friendship.

Our MDX interior was an aggressive red and we thought that was a cool contrast to the blue exterior color. Material quality and space are both on par with other SUVs of this pricing tier (which is in the upper $70,000 range). If we had one critique, specifically for the back seat, a little more bolster or at least attempting to bolster the side and hip area would go a long way to making this whole scene feel just a touch more elevated. Again, not lacking in space or quality but perhaps lacking that final, put it over the top touch.

We found the driver’s area and frankly the whole front passenger area to be next level good. It was tailored to the driver experience, the bucket seats were extremely comfortable and bolstered to take advantage of some of those more fun moments of intensive cornering we dipped our toes into, the center stack is appointed with a tastefully sized screen, both touch style buttons and those that are actually moved analog style. The Dynamic mode function dial is there as well which can move you into Sport mode in the flick of a wrist, and then Acura/Honda push-button shifter arrangement is also nicely integrated into the area. It all fits, flows, forms, and functions very well. If there is one thing the MDX does exceptionally well, in our opinion, it is this part of the experience. It is driver-centric which we can appreciate in a world where it seems infotainment, passenger gadgets, and other stuff are taking precedent over that, the MDX bucks the trend and thusly is one of our favorite vehicles in this segment.

Then 2026 Acura MDX Type-S with SH-AWD is a great buy in this SUV segment. It has the tech, the driving dynamics, the horsepower, and the driver-focused attitude to be functional as well as fun on a day to day basis. If you are seeking a higher end, mid-sized SUV with third row capability and horsepower you can dip into when you feel like it, this is a vehicle you need to shop. An industry player for decades with a reliability reputation that is unmatched in Honda, the tech and luxury of Acura, all being pinned down by what remains one of the best AWD systems on the planet? Yes, you get the picture. Two BangShift thumbs up on this one.