George Knighton

So.

Am I the one RLX owner around here?

George Knighton

Evidently, that's a yes, I am the only one. :-(

George Knighton

Yup. I am the only one.

George Knighton

When the RLX was beginning to be rolled out, they had events across the country where you could drive an RLX and compare it with any number of competitor vehicles from BMW, Mercedes, Volvo, Cadillac, Lincoln and others.

Look how flat the RLX is on the autocross section. Fully competitive if not easier than the 535i.

The RLX has reactive dual stage dampers that don't come into their own unless the RLX is hard pressed.

George Knighton

Zzzzzz zzzz z .... .. .

George Knighton

Those lights work wonderfully, by the way.

Acura was never big on bilux HID, so the high beams will surprise you, especially.

George Knighton

Let's see now, how does that song go?

"Alll....by...myself....."

George Knighton

A solid, basically unbiased driving review of the RLX Advance.

George Knighton

Alex does *not* like the RLX as much as other reviewers and he has said in another venue that he would not buy one.

His reviews are always long and in depth, however, so they lend some special insight.

I disagree with his ideas concerning ACC + LSF + LKAS.

He finds them disconcerting, but I find the Acura systems to be a step ahead of the equivalent systems at BMW, Mercedes, Volvo, Cadillac and Lincoln. For one thing other manufacturers have systems that drag the brakes to keep you in a lane...an inherently energy wasting and unprofitable way to do things, a sort of last ditch defense that wastes gas and is obviously inherently wasteful.

The LKAS on the RLX uses the steering rack. It is disconcerting when you first experience it, as Alex says. But, believe me, you get used to it and on a very long commute with changing speed conditions and changing traffic conditions, you arrive at your destination much, much less tired than you would without these systems and they are a step ahead of the systems in other cars.

xracer6

How do you like the car so far?

George Knighton

It's quite a car, especially for the money.

Very neutral handling...surprising. It doesn't handle anything like what you might expect if you're thinking it's a 310 HP Accord. In most maneuvers you would not even suspect that it is front drive.

In a drag race, yeah, you know it's front drive. The VSA is very good but you're going to spin the tires with 310 HP on the nose. In a corner and in everyday driving, it is very neutral. Maximum acceleration is obtained by just putting your foot down and it doesn't make any difference whether you are in Sport Mode. Sport Mode makes a difference in regular driving, but not in a drag race and the car seems to deliver maximum performance whenever you put your foot down, Sport Mode or not.

My one design criticism has to do with the suspension. The springs are a little heavy, which enthusiasts will like. However, in order to handle a multitude of situations, they use expense multi-valved, multi-tube shocks. The driver cannot change how the shocks work, although they experimented successfully with magnetics in the ZDX.

Since the driver cannot change the suspension, there is an occasionally odd situation where you're driving, say, 15-25 mph over a rough surface and the car gets jittery. It doesn't lose composure, but it is jittery. It is a result of being stuck with the heavier springs and the shocks in their comfort valving.

When pressed, the shocks go into their performance valving and the car will flatten out and you appreciate that the designers had this kind of thing in mind. It's just that one occasional metropolitan difficulty that the suspension doesn't handle things perfectly.

Other than that one thing, which doesn't affect me very often, I am loving the car.

People underestimate it. Especially since the car is being offered at substantial discounts because of the unpopularity of the car and the change in the dollar/yen ratio, it's a hands down best buy if this is the kind of car you're looking for.

I do not baby the car, and even though it is an automatic it is getting better gas mileage than the manual transmission TL was getting.

The Krell Audio.... Never heard anything this good in a car before. Somehow it makes even satellite sound good.

I'll answer any specific question, but basically the answer is that I'm liking it a lot.

spAdam

iTrader: (1)

My mom picked one up back in November. She's loving it so far, I think it's worlds better than her '05 was. That one really was just an overpriced accord with awd.

George Knighton

Well, if you stick your head under an RLX there is no way you'll ever mistake that suspension for anything off of an Accord. :-)

The 2005 car, as excellent as it was, had a lot of suspension in common with the Accord of its day.

xracer6

Glad to hear George as this car is Acuras flagship model until the NSX arrives. This has the hybrid SH-AWD though right? Glad to hear the car is neutral and feels nice to drive. How is the steering feel?

George Knighton

It's just like all modern Acuras. In other words, it doesn't have the road feel that people used to love and wax poetic about.

Once you learn to just trust the car, shuffle steer and use your fingertips, the car is digital perfection.

George Knighton

The looks have grown on me. I think it looks as good as or better than the competition. :-)

George Knighton

George Knighton

George Knighton

It's not all hype. It makes a difference.

George Knighton

So far, I've sold four people on the RLX Advance and they were able to get good deals, one of them a better deal than I got.

0_o

These are great cars and if people would just give them a try, they'd understand.

Considering that the price of an RLX Advance is still discounted to 52,500 and you're comparing it to an E350 that will only discount to 73,000...the RLX is a great buy.

And odds are it will also be more reliable than the Mercedes E350 or BMW 535.

George Knighton

Well, after our 18"-24" blizzard in the country in Virginia...I can safely say that this is not a snow vehicle. :-)

In the worst of it, the RLX was faltering in situations that I know the TL SH-AWD would have handled. I suppose that makes sense, but the difference was surprising to me. I guess I never really stopped to think about it. Turning off VSA helped.

On the other hand, a few days later, we had blizzard snow melting onto dry pavement and freezing around 8:00 PM last night. The car handled this well. The only way that I could tell that VSA was working was that the light turned on.

xracer6

Yeah as a New Englander turning off traction control helps big time in the snow... I mean my car doesn't have it but I've driven plenty that do! I'd imagine the AWD model would be much better in the snow. That seems to be the big disadvantage of the 2WD RLX. But glad it handled this icy roads splendidly.

George Knighton

I wouldn't say splendidly, exactly. :-)

Sometimes you had to turn off VSA, and sometimes you had to hold down the + paddle so that you started off in 2nd gear!

But it worked.

idriveahonda

Sometimes I wish I would have just waited a little while and gotten the RLX.

When I was looking for a new car in September 2013, I was between TSX/TL, BMW 5's, Genesis, Maxima, and the like. Looking at very different price ranges of cars, but price wasn't the main factor. I can't stand boring interiors, and Acura turns their cars with navigation into nerd heaven. Buttons all around.

We ended up going with the TSX Tech, as my wife and I are VERY small (5'6 & 4'10). Since the TL did not have folding rear seat (which is the dumbest thing Acura could ever do), that was immediately kicked out. My wife said she felt like a trophy wife in the new BMW 5's (she looks 19).

We sat in the RLX, and at that time the dealerships were FIRM on the sticker price of $62,xxx. That's MUCH different than the $52,xxx you are talking about now.

Kicking myself in a*s in the corner.

George Knighton

It's certainly a unique vehicle.

I can't even figure out why they make it. It's produced in very low numbers and does not share its chassis with any other car...not a recipe for financial success by any means.