The 2004 luxury SUV market was becoming crowded: Volkswagen had its Touareg, Volvo its XC90, and Mercedes and BMW continued with their various offerings. The 2004 Acura MDX received some slight tweaks to better enable it to compete on the lots. In a deviation from its usual redesign/refreshen pattern, Acura retuned its 2004 MDX while the recently updated 2003 models were still available. The engine remained a 3.5-liter V6, but horsepower was bumped up to 265 from 260 the previous year (and 240 two years prior). Torque increased by a whopping 3 lb-ft to 253@3500 RPM. The 2004 MDX is an extremely family-friendly car, with top ratings for front impact, high ratings for side impact, and three rows of seats for storing the munchkins (kids or doughnuts, depending on your place in life ;)) Drivers of this car like the soft leather, but tend to find the seats uncomfortable. Some believe the stiffer seating to be a safety feature, but most complain that they are too bench-like. Cargo room remains a problem for MDX drivers. With the third seat, space in the back is limited to duffel back storage.