Intel HAXM and Host GPU on Mac OS 10.8.2 (NVIDIA)
Why don't you try running it on a different OS? Dual-boot linux (probably Ubuntu) you'd be able to find much more info in the community forums and/or their official documentation.  I doubt that this has to do with your device, more likely some missing dependencies on your host system. (sry, I wasn't "allowed" to add this as a comment :-(  )



Additionally, in your last line of the question you mention that in the 4.1 image everything works fine, whereas in the intel 2.3 x86 image it does not.  According to the documentation, graphics acceleration is supported in SDK Platform API 15 revision 3 (4.0.3) and higher.  Assuming that your remark about intel 2.3 x86 and 4.1 refer to Android version 2.3 and 4.1, respectively, this would be in line with the android documentation.

Furthermore, take a look at the Android Project Issue Tracker for similar bugs and updates.  There's also a pertinent question on StackOverflow with some useful suggestions and user activity.