Compare the2026 Honda PassportVS 2025 Acura RDX

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda Passport have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Acura RDX doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Passport are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The RDX doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Passport deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Passport’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The RDX’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Passport has a standard Low-Speed Braking Control that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The RDX doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Passport’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The RDX doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Passport and the RDX have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available around view monitors.

The Honda Passport weighs 420 to 691 pounds more than the Acura RDX. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

There are almost 4 times as many Honda dealers as there are Acura dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Passport’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Acura vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda above average in initial quality. With 12 more problems per 100 vehicles, Acura is rated lower.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Acura With 10 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Honda higher than Acura.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2025 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Acura vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda fourth in overall reliability. Acura is ranked fifth.

The Passport’s 3.5 DOHC V6 produces 13 more horsepower (285 vs. 272) than the RDX’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Passport’s fuel efficiency. The RDX doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Passport uses regular unleaded gasoline. The RDX requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Passport has 1.4 gallons more fuel capacity than the RDX (18.5 vs. 17.1 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Passport higher (7 out of 10) than the Acura RDX (5). This means the Passport produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the RDX every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the Passport’s brake rotors are larger than those on the RDX:

For better traction, the Passport has larger standard tires than the RDX (265/60R18 vs. 235/55R19). The Passport TrailSport’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the RDX (275/60R18 vs. 255/45R20).

The Passport offers an optional full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the RDX; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which has mileage and speed limitations, or roadside assistance and a tow-truck.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Passport’s wheelbase is 5.3 inches longer than on the RDX (113.6 inches vs. 108.3 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Passport is 3.8 inches wider in the front and 3.5 inches wider in the rear than on the RDX.

For greater off-road capability the Passport has a greater minimum ground clearance than the RDX (8.3 vs. 8.2 inches), allowing the Passport to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The front grille of the Passport uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The RDX doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Passport has 15.1 cubic feet more passenger volume than the RDX (119.1 vs. 104).

The Passport has .9 inches more front headroom, 3.3 inches more front hip room, 2.2 inches more front shoulder room, 2.4 inches more rear headroom, 2.5 inches more rear legroom, 7.5 inches more rear hip room and 5.1 inches more rear shoulder room than the RDX.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Passport’s rear seats recline. The RDX’s rear seats don’t recline.

The Passport has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the RDX with its rear seat up (44 vs. 31.1 cubic feet). The Passport has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the RDX with its rear seat folded (83.8 vs. 79.8 cubic feet).

The Passport’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the RDX’s (5000 vs. 1500 pounds).

Standard Trailer Stability Assist on the Passport uses the Vehicle Stability Assist sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The RDX doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Passport to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The RDX doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The Passport’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The RDX has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Passport TrailSport has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The RDX doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Honda Passport and the Acura RDX, based on reliability, safety and performance.