The Acura MDX is an SUV offered by Honda's luxury division, Acura, since 2003. One of the many factory-available upgrades for the MDX is a roof rack that allows drivers to tether luggage to their car and also install other roof rack accessories, such as a ski, bike, snowboard or kayak rack. Installation of the roof rack is straightforward, requiring a few tools and about an hour of your time.
Slide a cotton rag over a flat-head screwdriver and insert it into the roof molding at either the front or rear of the car. Once the molding is popped up, gently lift it up with your hands and repeat for the other side of the MDX.
Remove the roof molding clips using a flat-head screwdriver and reposition them as necessary, if they will be getting in the way where you plan to mount the front and rear roof rack rail pieces.
Use needle-nose pliers to remove the two retaining clips on each side roof. Grasp the top of the clip with the pliers and lift.
Cut the roof molding pieces from each side into three parts to accommodate the roof rack. Using a hacksaw, cut a 670mm-long piece at the front of the molding, a 550mm-long middle section and a 535mm-long rear section. Repeat for the other side.
Push the molding pieces down back onto the roof so the front piece is installed at the front of the car and a 155mm gap is left between the front piece and the middle piece. Leave another 155mm gap between the end of the middle piece and the beginning of the rear piece.
Align the front and rear roof racks on the roof so they sit in the 155mm-wide gaps between the roof molding pieces.
Insert two of the included Torx screws into the each end of both the front and rear roof rack pieces. Tighten them down using a T-30 screwdriver.
Install the plastic roof rack end caps on the horizontal ends of both the front and rear roof racks. These act as a protecting layer to prevent corrosion and water from entering the Torx mounting hardware. Place them over the end of each rack and push the cap's tab into the roof rack to secure it.
