Compare the2025 Land Rover Discovery SportVS 2025 Acura MDX

Both the Discovery Sport and MDX have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Discovery Sport has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The MDX’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Discovery Sport. But it costs extra on the MDX.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Discovery Sport’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The MDX doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

Both the Discovery Sport and MDX have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Discovery Sport has Rear Traffic Braking (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The MDX’s Rear Cross Traffic Monitor doesn’t automatically brake.

Both the Discovery Sport and the MDX have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, 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 driver alert monitors.

The Discovery Sport’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the MDX’s (6 vs. 5 years).

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the Discovery Sport’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the MDX’s camshafts. If the MDX’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

On the EPA test cycle the Discovery Sport gets better fuel mileage than the MDX Type S 3.0 turbo V6 (19 city/23 hwy vs. 17 city/21 hwy).

Regenerative brakes improve the Discovery Sport’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The MDX doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Land Rover Discovery Sport higher (6 out of 10) than the Acura MDX (4). This means the Discovery Sport produces up to 12.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the MDX every 15,000 miles.

The Discovery Sport has a standard full size spare (not available on 7-Passenger) so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the MDX; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which has mileage and speed limitations, or roadside assistance and a tow-truck.

For better maneuverability, the Discovery Sport’s turning circle is 1.8 feet tighter than the MDX’s (38.7 feet vs. 40.5 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Discovery Sport has a 1.1 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the MDX (8.4 vs. 7.3 inches), allowing the Discovery Sport to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Land Rover Discovery Sport may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 250 to 550 pounds less than the Acura MDX.

The Discovery Sport is 1 foot, 5.4 inches shorter than the MDX, making the Discovery Sport easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Discovery Sport has 1 inch more front headroom and .6 inches more rear headroom than the MDX.

A control in the cargo area automatically lowers the Discovery Sport’s optional second row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The MDX doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The Discovery Sport’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the MDX’s (4409 vs. 3500 pounds).

The Discovery Sport has a much higher standard payload capacity than the MDX (1515 vs. 1173 lbs.).

The Discovery Sport has a much higher maximum payload capacity than the MDX (1670 vs. 1173 lbs.).

The power windows standard on both the Discovery Sport and the MDX have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Discovery Sport is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The MDX prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Discovery Sport’s standard Keyless Entry allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Keyless Access System standard on the MDX doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

The Discovery Sport’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The MDX’s standard intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Discovery Sport offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The MDX doesn’t offer headlight washers.

The Land Rover Discovery Sport has power folding mirrors that offer unparalleled convenience while maneuvering in tight places or parked. With the mirrors folded it’s easier to walk past and help prevent parking damage. The mirrors can be quickly unfolded when the driver is ready to leave. Power folding mirrors costs extra on the MDX.

The Discovery Sport has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel is only available on the MDX Advance.