2003 Acura MDX Owner's Manua

Turn of f the engine.
Press and hold the select and reset
buttons on the instrument panel,
then turn the ignition switch ON
(II).
Hold the buttons for
approximately ten seconds until
the indicator resets.
1.
2.
3.
Gauges
Inst rument s and Cont rols77
SELECT BUTTON
RESET BUTTON

Î
Î
Thetwoleversonthesteering
column contain controls f or driving
f eatures you use most of ten. The lef t
lever controls the turn signals,
headlights, and high beams. The
right lever controls the windshield
washers and wipers.
The switches for the hazard warning
lights and rear window def ogger are
located to the right of the steering
column.
The controls under the lef t air vent
areforthecruisecontrol,the
moonroof , the f og lights, and the
VSA light.To use the horn, press the pad
around the ‘‘A’’ logo.
The tilt adjustment lever on the
underside of the steering column
allows you to tilt the steering wheel.
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols78
VEHICLE
STABILITY
ASSIST
SYSTEM
OFF
SWITCH HEADLIGHTS/
TURN SIGNALS
FOG LIGHTS
CRUISE
CONTROL
MOONROOF
SWITCH REMOTE AUDIO
CONTROLS
STEERING WHEEL
ADJUSTMENT HORN
CRUISE
CONTROL
WINDSHIELD
WIPERS/WASHERSLIGHT CONTROL
SWITCH HAZARD
WARNING
LIGHTS
REAR WINDOW
DEFOGGER
VTM-4
LOCK
INSTRUMENT PANEL
BRIGHTNESS
PASSENGER
AIRBAG
CUTOFF
INDICATOR
(P.79/
83)
(P.88)
(P.267)
(P.216) (P.114)
(P.181) (P.89)(P.216)
(P.83/87)(P.128)
(P.
87)
(P.
58)
(P.
88)
(P.259)
(P.82)

If you leave the lights on with the
ignition switch in ACCESSORY (I)
or LOCK (0), you will hear a
reminder chime when you open the
driver’s door.
The rotating switch on the lef t lever
controls the lights. Turning this
switch to the ‘‘ ’’ position turns
on the parking lights, taillights,
instrument panel lights, side-marker
lights, and rear license plate lights.
Turning the switch to the ‘‘ ’’
position turns on the headlights. To change between low beams and
high beams, pull the turn signal lever
until you hear a click, then let go.
The blue high beam indicator will
light (see page ).
When the light switch is in either of
these positions, the Lights On
indicator comes on as a reminder.
This light remains on if you leave the
light switch on and turn the ignition
switch to ACCESSORY (I) or LOCK
(0).
71
CONT INUED
On vehicles with automatic lighting
Headlights
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols79

To f lash the high beams, pull the
turn signal lever back lightly, then
release it. The high beams will come
on and go off.
The high beams will stay on f or as
long as you hold the lever back, no
matter what position the headlight
switch is in.The Automatic Lighting f eature
turns on the headlights, all other
exterior lights, and the instrument
panel lights when it senses low
ambient light.To turn on automatic lighting, turn
the light switch to AUTO at any time.
The lights will come on automatically
when the outside light level becomes
low (at dusk, f or example). The
Lights On indicator comes on as a
reminder. The lights and indicator
will turn of f automatically when the
system senses high ambient light.
The lights will remain on when you
turn of f the ignition switch. They will
turn of f automatically when you open
the driver’s door. To turn them on
again, either turn the ignition switch
to ON (II) or turn the light switch to
.
On Touring Model
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Automatic Lighting
80
AUTO POSITION

Even with the automatic lighting
f eature turned on, we recommend
thatyouturnonthelightsmanually
when driving at night or in a dense
f og, or when you enter dark areas,
such as long tunnels or parking
structures.The Automatic Lighting Of f f eature
turns of f the headlights, f og lights,
parking lights, taillights, side marker
lights, license plate lights and
instrument panel lights within 15
seconds of removing the key f rom
the ignition switch and closing the
driver’s door.
This feature activates if you leave
the headlight switch in the or
position, remove the key, open,
then close the driver’s door.
If you remove the key f rom the
ignition switch with the headlight
switch on, but do not open the door
and get out, the lights will turn of f
af ter 10 minutes.
Do not leave the light switch in
AUTO if you will not be driving the
vehicle f or an extended period (a
weekormore).Youshouldalsoturn
of f the lights if you plan to leave the
engine idling or the engine of f f or a
long time.
The automatic lighting f eature is
controlledbyasensorlocatedontop
of the dashboard. Do not cover this
sensor or spill liquids on it.
CONT INUED
Without Touring Package
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Automatic Lighting Of f Feature
81
LIGHT SENSOR

The dial on the instrument panel
controls the brightness of the
instrument panel lights. Turn the dial
to adjust the brightness.
The lights will turn on again when
you unlock or open the driver’s door.
If you unlock the door, but do not
open it within 15 seconds, the lights
will go off. With the driver’s door
open, you will hear a lights-on
reminder chime.
With the headlight switch off, the
high beam headlights come on with
reduced brightness when you turn
the ignition switch to ON (II) and
release the parking brake. They
remain on until you turn the ignition
of f , even if you set the parking brake.
The headlights revert to normal
operation when you turn them on
with the switch.Instrument Panel Brightness
Daytime Running L ights
(Canadian Models)
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols82
INSTRUMENT PANEL BRIGHTNESS
CONTROL DIAL

Signal a turn or lane change with this
lever. Push down on the lever to
signal a lef t turn, and up to signal a
right turn. If you push it up or down
all the way, the turn signal continues
to blink even when you release the
lever. It shuts off automatically as
you complete the turn.To signal a lane change, push lightly
on the turn signal lever in the proper
direction and hold it. The lever will
return to the center position as soon
as you release it.
The right lever controls the wind-
shield wipers and washers. The
rotary switch at the end of the lever
has three positions;INT: intermittent : low speed
: high speed
CONT INUED
Without Touring PackageT urn Signals Windshield Wipers
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols83
TURN SIGNAL LEVER

If you turn the INT TIME ring to the
shortest delay, the wipers will
change from intermittent to low
speed operation when vehicle speed
exceeds 12 mph (20 km/h).
In intermittent, the wipers operate
every f ew seconds. You can vary
how of ten the wipers sweep the
windshield by turning the INT TIME
ring next to the rotary switch. The
sweep interval will change slightly
with speed; getting shorter as you
drive f aster. In low speed and high
speed the wipers run continuously. To operate the wipers in mist mode,
push the control lever down. The
wipers run at high speed until you
release the lever. This gives you a
quick way to clear the windshield.
Controls Near the Steering Wheel
Inst rument s and Cont rols84