Compare the2022 Acura MDXVS 2021 Cadillac Escalade

For enhanced safety, the front and middle seat shoulder belts of the Acura MDX 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 Cadillac Escalade doesn’t offer pretensioners for the middle seat belts.

The Acura MDX has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Escalade doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The MDX has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Escalade Premium/Platinum/Sport offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the MDX has a standard cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Escalade Premium/Platinum/Sport has a cross-path warning system.

The MDX’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 Escalade doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the MDX uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The Escalade uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the MDX and the Escalade have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the MDX has an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the engine in the Escalade.

On the EPA test cycle the MDX gets better fuel mileage than the Sequoia:

For better stopping power the MDX’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Escalade:

The Acura MDX may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1250 to 1350 pounds less than the Cadillac Escalade.

The MDX is 1 foot, 1.5 inches shorter than the Escalade, making the MDX easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The MDX is 9.6 inches shorter in height than the Escalade, making the MDX much easier to wash and garage and drive (lower center of gravity).

Unibody construction lowers the MDX’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The Escalade uses body-on-frame design instead.

The MDX uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Escalade doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

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