It all started with a minivan, that began two sports utility vehicles.

But even though the Acura MDX, born off the Honda Odyssey minivan platform also shared with the Honda Pilot, was only three years old, engineers decided it needed a face-lift.

Now, sales weren't the reason for the re-do -- Acura claims it reached all-time record vehicle sales of 170,918 in 2003, up 3.2 percent. That include record Acura MDX sales of 57,281, up 8.2 percent. The Odyssey and Pilot sales were also up.

No, it was just time to tweak, said Acura spokesman Sage Marie.

"Since its introduction, the MDX's development has been somewhat evolutionary," Marie said. "Sales have been increasing for this car every year. But you have to take a look at the segment, and we thought it was a wise strategy to give the customers something new every year."

The 2001 MDX debuted as Acura's first designed-from-the-ground up sport-utility vehicle, replacing a rebadged Isuzu Trooper. It had a tall, SUV look, a fairly compact front and rear overhang, the five-sided Acura grille with scientific calipers emblem inside and more car-like handling with a modicum of off-road capability. Since then, Acura has revamped its whole line, bringing in chiseled, sportier TL and TSX sedans with more power and aggressive styling. So Marie said they decided to sharpen the look of the MDX.

The signature Acura family grille now sports a wing-shaped satin chrome bar, and incises deeper into the more tapered front fascia. The chin spoiler is more integrated, the fog lights flanking the lower air inlet bigger with better integrated front chin spoiler. The MDX gets an integrated dual exhaust, satin chrome finish trim and redesigned taillights. The company even redesigned the area under the rear bumper to clean up its look, to "clean up the appearance of the rear end for people trailing it in traffic," Marie said.

Inside, new small touches abound in the two-tone gray interior, although the overall look is the same.

"It's a new pattern on the leather on the seats and doors. The headliner is new," Marie said. "The air bags have roll-over sensors, so if it senses the vehicle rolling over, they deploy."

The driver sits in an eight-way power leather-clad seat with power lumbar, two memory presets and good support and comfort, sitting just high enough to give you a good outward view. The passenger gets eight-way power adjustments too on the Touring model we tested. The tilt-adjustable four-spoke steering wheel gets integrated stereo and cruise controls, looking square into a deep-set 140-mph speedometer and 8,000-rpm tachometer flanked by gas and temperature readouts. Touches of chrome sparkle in the door handles and five-speed automatic transmission base, while some so-so-looking fake wood accents doors, dash and center console.

The dash's center section is dominated by a navigation system with voice recognition. In between the air vents sit some climate control system buttons. But to adjust the vent positions or fan speed, you have to tap the "A/C Info" button to the left of the touch screen, and adjust them that way. To access the trip computer and get gas mileage or other stats, you have to tap the "Menu" button," then tap the "Trip Computer" icon on the screen. Two steps forward to get one step done -- the price of technology. That said, the Acura touch-screen satellite navigation system is a breeze to operate when you tap in an address, vs. using a joystick to move and input letters and numbers. And the 225-watt, eight-speaker BoseAM-FM-CD-six-disc CD changer-cassette stereo underneath was superb sounding and easy to use, with backlit volume, preset station/track and Mode buttons on the steering wheel.

Wish I could say the same for the voice-command system, which supposedly could understand 217 voice commands. It didn't seem to respond to many of the phrases I correctly asked it. The touch-screen system also locked up on "A/C Info" once, but never failed again. We did appreciate the rearview camera incorporated into the tailgate, which transmits a picture of what you are backing into onto the navigation screen when the MDX is in reverse. And the center armrest hid two storage compartments with a second 12-volt outlet, the padded lid folding all the way back to provide rear seat passengers with a snack and soda can tray. The glove box was OK, the door map pockets adequate, but under-seat storage up front was replaced with a six-disc CD player under the driver, and satellite navigation DVD drive under the passenger.

The 2004 MDX gets other additions that you can't see, like a tire pressure monitoring system to alert the driver when pressure drops significantly below the recommended level. It has Acoustic windshield glass, which reduces the wind noise, and an automatic windshield wiper setting which senses rain and speeds up, slows down or turns off accordingly.

The second-row seat had decent room for two adults, with separate rear a/c controls and vents, and a fold-down DVD player that blocks rear-view mirror use, like most do. The right-side of MDX's second-row seat slides forward 40 percent more than last year to make accessing the third-row seats easier. With the third row seat up, there is really just space enough for two kids, and 14.8 cubic feet of cargo space behind, not including the below-floor cargo compartment perfect for holding grocery bags upright. Second and third row seats split and fold flat into the floor, expanding cargo space to 82 cubic feet.

Under the hood comes the biggest change, boosting the 3.5 liter, 240-hp V-6 engine to 265-hp , with 253 lb-ft of torque between 3,500 and 5,000 rpm. Shove the drive-by-wire throttle down and our 5,100-mile-old MDX gets to 60 mph in a quick-feeling 8 seconds (same as the 240-hp version we tested in 2000) with solid shifts and a slight engine rumble. We netted an average 15 mpg, a bit under the EPA estimates of 17 mpg city/23 mpg highway.

The suspension offered a comfortable ride, never feeling heavy or too cushy, but leaning a bit in turns like any SUV. Excursions on washboard dirt roads showed how sure-footed the VTM-4 four-wheel drive system was, the suspension absorbing the worst ruts with minimal rebound and no rattles, although we felt some fluffiness on aprupt bumps. The VTM-4 was grip-enhancing in the torrential rain we had the weekend we tested the MDX, its Vehicle Stability Assist system working to rein in throttle and apply tracrtion control when we tackled a slippery, soaked turn. The system stays front-wheel-drive when cruising, feeding power from the front to rear wheels if we had any wheelspin on launch. The system also gets a locking diferential for more aggressive off-road driving, although the worst we saw was some rutted sand. The power steering was precise if a bit over-bosted, the all-wheel disc brakes stopping the vehicle well with some nose dive and a precise feeling pedal.

The base price of the 2004 Acura MDX Touring was ,700, including its 265-hp V-6, four-wheel-drive, five-speed automatic transmission, front and side air bags for the driver and front-seat passenger, plus side head curtain air bags, ABS, tire pressure monitoring system; alarm; remote keyless entry; satellite navigation system with voice recognition and rear-view camera system; leather seats with eight-way power driver's and front passenger seats; three rows of seating for seven people; trip computer; power windows; door locks and mirrors; power moonroof; Bose AM-FM-six-disc CD changer-cassette deck and DVD rear movie system. Equipped as is, with a destination fee, the manufacturers suggested retail price was ,245. The 2001 model we tested had a suggested MSRP of ,850.

The Acura MDX's competition includes the Nissan Murano, Toyota Highlander, Lexus RX330, Honda Pilot, Ford Explorer and Kia Sorento and BMW X5. We are still surprised that the 2004 MDX's dash top is still hard plastic, and not padded like some of the competition. But overall, Acura's reinvigorated MDX is still stylish, solid, well-made and capable of on- and off-road activity. It's roomy, with a spacious cabin and solid build quality. It isn't as luxurious as some, but just right in terms of look and feel.