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What are the common problems with the 2005 Acura RSX?

Owners of the 2005 Acura RSX have filed 32 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the suspension (13) and the airbags (4). In NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026, 22 of them list a mileage; a complaint is an owner's report, not a proven defect.

By VIN Lookup Research DeskPublished 2026-11-11NHTSA files 2026-11-11United States
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Most-reported problems, 2005 RSX

NHTSA's file holds 32 owner complaints on the 2005 Acura RSX. Owners named the suspension most often: 13 complaints, and half of the 9 that list a mileage came after 100 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 32 complaints, 3 report a crash, none reports a fire and none reports an injury. These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.

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Common problems with the 2005 RSX

NHTSA's file holds 32 owner complaints on the 2005 Acura RSX. Owners named the suspension most often: 13 complaints, and half of the 9 that list a mileage came after 100 miles. A complaint can name more than one component.

2005 Acura RSX: most-reported NHTSA component categories, with the median mileage of the complaints that list one (complaints file, November 11, 2026)
Component (NHTSA category)ComplaintsListing mileageMedian mileage
Suspension139140
Air Bags43Under 5 mileages
Electrical System31Under 5 mileages
Visibility32Under 5 mileages
Power Train22Under 5 mileages

Of the 32 complaints, 3 report a crash, none reports a fire and none reports an injury. These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.

Mileage when owners reported a problem with the 2005 RSX

The 22 mileages owners gave run from 1 to 151,000 miles. A quarter are at or under 100 miles, half at or under 1,500, three quarters at or under 51,200 and nine in ten at or under 91,000; 2 (9%) came after 100,000 miles, 1 (5%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000.

These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 2005 RSX wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.

Most of these reports came early in the vehicle's life: 20 of the 22 came at or under 100,000 miles, so they say nothing about how many miles a 2005 RSX can cover.

2005 Acura RSX: mileage in the 22 NHTSA complaints that list one (complaints file, November 11, 2026)
MeasureValue
Lowest mileage listed1 mile
25th percentile100 miles
Median (50th percentile)1,500 miles
75th percentile51,200 miles
90th percentile91,000 miles
Highest mileage listed151,000 miles
Complaints after 100,000 miles2 (9%)
Complaints after 150,000 miles1 (5%)
Complaints after 200,000 milesnone

Is the 2005 RSX a good year?

Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2005 is a good or a bad RSX: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2005 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.

With 32 complaints, the 2005 ranks 2nd of the 5 Acura RSX model years from 2002 to 2006 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2002 (76). The fewest: the 2004 (17).

Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.

Acura RSX: NHTSA owner complaints by model year, 2002–2006 (complaints file, November 11, 2026)
Model yearOwner complaintsListing mileageMedian mileage
2002 RSX764445,000
2003 RSX251645,000
2004 RSX171219,000
2005 (this page)32221,500
2006 RSX241623,000

2005 Acura RSX recalls

NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 2 recall campaigns that name the 2005 Acura RSX (0 vehicle campaigns and 2 equipment or tire campaigns that name this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.

2005 Acura RSX: the 2 recall campaigns in NHTSA’s recall files (November 11, 2026)
CampaignReport receivedComponent
06E064000Jul 17, 2006EXTERIOR LIGHTING
06E023000Mar 13, 2006EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS

What these figures can and cannot tell you

  • Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
  • The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
  • The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
  • They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 2005 RSX lasts.
  • A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 2005 RSX.
  • Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
  • 10 of the 32 complaints on the 2005 Acura RSX give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
  • NHTSA name counted: RSX. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only this one.
  • Recall-file name matched: RSX.
Evidence

Primary sources behind this page

Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.

  1. NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
  2. Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
  3. NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
  4. NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
  5. Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
  6. NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
  7. Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration

NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.

Quick answers

2005 Acura RSX questions

What are the most common 2005 Acura RSX problems?

NHTSA's file holds 32 owner complaints on the 2005 Acura RSX. Owners named the suspension most often: 13 complaints, and half of the 9 that list a mileage came after 100 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 32 complaints, 3 report a crash, none reports a fire and none reports an injury. These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.

At what mileage do owners report problems with the 2005 Acura RSX?

Of the 22 complaints on the 2005 Acura RSX that list mileage, the middle half came between 100 and 52,000 miles; 2 (9%) came after 100,000 miles, 1 (5%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000. These are mileages at a reported problem; they do not say how many miles a 2005 RSX can cover.

Is the 2005 Acura RSX a good year?

Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2005 is a good or a bad RSX: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2005 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 32 complaints, the 2005 ranks 2nd of the 5 Acura RSX model years from 2002 to 2006 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2002 (76). The fewest: the 2004 (17).

How many recalls does the 2005 Acura RSX have?

NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 2 recall campaigns that name the 2005 Acura RSX (0 vehicle campaigns and 2 equipment or tire campaigns that name this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.

How do I check a used 2005 Acura RSX before buying?

Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 2005 Acura RSX.