Acura’s Two New SUVs May Be Hiding in Honda’s Latest Trademarks
Next Big Leap
Acura reportedly plans to sell 200,000 vehicles per year by 2030, which would put it ahead of Cadillac and Audi if these two luxury brands maintain their current sales levels. The plan is to expand the lineup from four to six nameplates, including an unnamed adventure-focused SUV and an eight-seater flagship SUV.
But thanks to Honda’s new trademark filings with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), there may now be an idea of what the upcoming Acura vehicles could be called. Honda, Acura’s parent company, filed four names on October 16: TDX, LDX, Type-Trail, and Type T, all under “Automobiles and structural parts therefor.”
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Reading Between the Trademarks
At this point, it’s anyone’s guess where these names would be used, or if the Japanese automaker would even use them. Sometimes, automakers file trademarks to protect names from competitors without necessarily planning to use them. But given the timing of Acura’s expansion plans, the filings couldn’t have come at a better time.
The TDX and LDX are likely model names, considering that Acura’s SUV lineup includes the ADX, RDX, and MDX. Meanwhile, sedans like the now-discontinued TLX and RLX use the LX suffix instead of DX. This suggests that the TDX and LDX could be crossovers or SUVs, matching the luxury brand’s descriptions of its upcoming models.
The TDX could be the adventure-focused model, with reports suggesting it could be based on the Honda Passport. Meanwhile, the LDX could be the eight-seater flagship, assuming L stands for Large. These new additions could compete against the Lexus GX and TX, respectively.
As for Type-Trail and Type T, they could be trim names, similar to the Type R used on the Honda Civic or Type S on performance-oriented Acuras. They could also be off-road-focused trims, which would make sense given the strong demand for trail-ready vehicles. In fact, the more off-road-ready TrailSport trim accounts for around 80% of Honda Passport sales.
Cole Attisha
A New Type of Performance
Again, these are just speculations, though more details may not be too far away. The adventure-focused model is expected to arrive in the first half of 2028, so some details may start to emerge next year. Meanwhile, production of the eight-seater flagship SUV could reportedly begin in the third quarter of 2029.
It also wouldn’t come as a surprise if Honda itself uses some of the trademarked names, particularly Type-Trail and Type T. After all, the automaker is expanding its off-road lineup, having introduced a new initiative called Trail Line earlier this year to bring Honda Racing Corporation’s off-road racing expertise into production vehicles.
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