<Tr> <Th> Body style </Th> <Td> 4 - door SUV </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Related </Th> <Td> Honda Pilot </Td> </Tr> <P> The Acura MDX, or Honda MDX as known in Japan and Australia (only the first generation was imported), is a mid-size three - row luxury crossover, produced by the Japanese automaker Honda under its Acura luxury nameplate since 2000 . The alphanumeric moniker stands for "Multi-Dimensional luxury". According to Honda, the MDX is the best - selling three - row luxury crossover of all time, with cumulative U.S. sales expected to surpass 700,000 units before the end of 2014 . It has ranked as the second - best selling luxury crossover after the Lexus RX, which offers only two rows of seats . </P> <P> The MDX was the first crossover SUV to have third - row seating, and shares a platform with the Honda Pilot . The Pilot seats eight, while the MDX seats seven, with two seating positions in the third row . The MDX was introduced as a 2001 model, replacing the slow - selling U.S. - only body - on - frame SLX, based on the Isuzu Trooper . In Japan, it filled a gap when the Honda Horizon (also based on the Trooper) was discontinued in 1999 . In 2003, the Honda MDX went on sale in Japan and Australia . The MDX has been the most expensive crossover in Acura's lineup, except for the 2009 - 13 model years when Acura added a crossover to slot above the MDX, called the ZDX . </P>

Is the acura mdx a suv or crossover