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Acura unveils hand-built PMC Edition MDX at the LA Auto Show

Like the PMC TLX before it, this SUV will be hand-built in Acura's NSX factory in Ohio.

Kyle Hyatt Former news and features editor
Kyle Hyatt (he/him/his) hails originally from the Pacific Northwest, but has long called Los Angeles home. He's had a lifelong obsession with cars and motorcycles (both old and new).
Kyle Hyatt
2 min read
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The PMC Edition MDX is built in the same factory by the same technicians as the NSX.

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Acura's hand-built PMC Edition lineup started with just one car, but at the 2019 LA Auto Show, the automaker finally brought a second vehicle into the mix.

If you don't remember what the whole PMC thing is all about, then we're entirely too happy to explain. PMC stands for Performance Manufacturing Center, which is the facility in Ohio where Acura builds its supercar.

The PMC Edition cars are very limited runs of otherwise normal-production -- but very well optioned -- vehicles that are essentially hand-assembled by highly skilled technicians. Acura is offering just 330 PMC Edition MDXs, 300 for the US and only 30 for our friends in Canada.

What else separates a PMC Edition from a regular MDX? Well, for one thing, it's offered in only one color, albeit a lovely one. It's called Valencia red pearl, and even that's given special love and attention at the factory. There are also a bunch of gloss black exterior trim pieces that are exclusive to the PMC, and gloss black 20-inch wheels. Inside, it's all a sea of exclusive black leather and Alcantara with red accent stitching. 

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The PMC MDX gets a very nicely equipped interior with lots of soft black leather and Alcantara.

Acura

The rest of the equipment is a mix of A-Spec and sport appearance package stuff with all the safety features like AcuraWatch and infotainment and navigation equipment thrown in. What you'll notice very clearly is a distinct lack of any performance modifications.

The PMC is still powered by Acura's 3.5-liter direct-injected V6 that still makes 290 horsepower and 267 pound-feet of torque. That engine is again mated to a nine-speed automatic transmission and paired with Acura's Super Handling All-Wheel Drive system.

What can you expect to pay for all of this special attention? Acura hasn't given any hard numbers yet, but it's estimating that the hand-built PMC will retail for somewhere in the mid-$60,000 range. For the record, that's around $5,000 more than a similarly equipped MDX Advance sans the PMC treatment.

Is all of this white-glove care worth it? If you just want a nice SUV, then, frankly, no. If you love Acura and you want the best-built one that you can get your hands on, and you also plan to hold onto it until it dies? Then, yeah, totally.

Acura's 2020 MDX PMC Edition debuts in LA

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Watch this: 2019 Acura NSX: A few small tweaks make a huge difference