2005 Acura RL, quite disappointing
jeff...@comcast.net
can't express how disappointed I am with this car. I was really hoping
that they were going to create a true flagship for the Acura name
brand, one that could compete with the Audi A8's, BMW 7 series,
Mercedes S-Class and the Lexus LS430's of the world. Instead, they
shrink down the RL so it now is not even classified as a Large Sedan
anymore, it is a midsize car. That surely does not sould like a
flagship to me. The Accord keeps getting bigger and the RL gets
smaller? What gives? The RL is about the exact same size as the TL
but $15,000 more. Heck, the RL is only 3 inches longer than the
Accord. Looks like instead of buying a new RL, I'll be looking at
plunking down some cash on a real flagship, a used 2003 or 2004 Lexus
LS430.
jeff...@comcast.net
sedan is not too much to ask for.
jeff...@comcast.net
that's why I bought it. That being said, my next car will also be a
large sedan, not a midsize. I need the room, too many kids and stuff.
Lee Florack
A flagship HAS to be a large car? The RL has more features that
are optional and extra on most other 'flagships'; it has a very,
very slick AWD system; it's a very well built car that has won or
come in second on several luxury car comparisons and all you can
say is that it's a bit smaller?
Lastly the 2005/06 RL is universally thought of as a huge
improvement over the very weak and disappointing 1st generation
RL's that you seem to like. I guess everyone has their own
opinions about stuff but I'm confused about yours.
Lee Florack
<lflo...@rochester.rr.com> wrote:
>A flagship HAS to be a large car? The RL has more features that
>are optional and extra on most other 'flagships'; it has a very,
>very slick AWD system; it's a very well built car that has won or
>come in second on several luxury car comparisons and all you can
>say is that it's a bit smaller?
>
>Lastly the 2005/06 RL is universally thought of as a huge
>improvement over the very weak and disappointing 1st generation
>RL's that you seem to like. I guess everyone has their own
>opinions about stuff but I'm confused about yours.
To follow up on my own message, here's the opinion on the 2nd
Generation RL from one of the participants (static808) at the RL
forum at AcuraZine
(http://rl.acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?p=18593#post18593).
------------------------------------------------
I own a '05 RL and my wife has a '04 TL. TL vs. RL is no
comparison. The TL is sporty and faster but I can't wait to get
into my RL. The ride is smooooooth and I really enjoy the
gadgets. Its a luxury car and my wife agrees...Its the ultimate
road-trip car...
People can say the RL is not selling well, it looks like a Honda
Accord, etc...
In the end, get the car that fits your needs. I've owned BMW's,
Mercedes, Hondas & Acuras. My decision came down to Fit-n-Finish,
Interior, Gadgets, V6, AWD and Price.
On another note, I work for a financial firm and have people in
my parking lot who own some high-end German vehicles (E350's,
S500's, 745i's and lots of brand new 530xi's) and several of them
have stopped by to check out my Black Acura RL. They are very
impressed at high quality interior, overall exterior fit-n-finish
and high-tech gadgets in this car.
They also can't believe I can say XM Channel 80, Fan Speed Down,
AC On, Display Traffic List and never touch a button. They always
say, this is an Acura ?! Why didn't I hear about it.....I did,
enough said.
g
consider its six cylinder engine as realistically competing with a v8. That
opinion did not change, even after I drove both vehicles.
Personally, I think the TL is a much better buy and purchased one recently.
It's a great car.
<jeff...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:1135913554....@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com...
whyone...@hotmail.com
roomy for your family, check out the new third-generation Avalons.
James
You must have some pretty fat kids if they won't fit in a midsized car....
But anyways, I would say for the money the TL is the better value, perhaps
look at it?
<jeff...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:1135915643.8...@g43g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
karinhall
<jeff...@comcast.net> wrote in message news:1135913554....@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com...
michael t
"karinhall" <a...@nsdp.com> wrote in message
news:nM-dnX4hyfY...@usa2net.net...
>
> <jeff...@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:1135913554....@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com...
>> Acura sure missed the boat on their 'new RL'. As a current RL owner, I
>> can't express how disappointed I am with this car. >>
> I'm disappointed in the new model. They've actually shrunk some of the
> interior dimensions and the trunk, while raising the price! And they're
> still behind the curve with a V-6, even though it's a nice engine, it
> doesn't compete with the V-8 engines in the Lexus line. Hell, a Toyota
> Avalon might be a better value. 8-)
>
cabin and trunk size?
Surely, if you were wanting a V8 wouldn't you go down that track to begin
with?
If it's just price, okay, go get a Toyota Avalon and save $15k, but would we
see you back here soon after complaining that the Avalon is boring?
Personally, I think the Lexus IS 350 is great value, 306hp V6 with a list
price just over $36,000.
And don't go and compare the IS 350 with the Avalon.
Again, it comes back to what you're really wanting.
jeff...@comcast.net
I have a family of 5, and yes, I do have an overweight daughter, but it
is not her fault as she has a chromosome deficiency, so yes, we need
room.
jeff...@comcast.net
but the new RL is just too small. At 6'3" and about 250, the driver's
seat is usually pretty far back when I'm driving, and from the pics I
saw of the new RL, the occupant behind the drivers seat would have
virtually no leg room. I'm sure the new RL is a fine car, but I have
owned many Acura's in the past and have been pretty loyal to the name
brand, so I'm more disappointed with Acura (Honda Corp) for not
designing the RL as a larger full-size sedan that would compete with
other top flagships (Lexus, Audi, M-Benz, BMW, etc). The new design of
the RL (now a mid-size vs. full-size) looks like Honda just up and
quit, thinking "Why should we design a full-size RL when we know we
can't compete with the other big guns?". I'm just disappointed because
I now have to leave the Acura brand because the engineers at Honda were
thinking small instead of thinking big. I'm sure I'll be very happy
with my used LS430.
jeff...@comcast.net
jeff...@comcast.net
michael t
<jeff...@comcast.net> wrote in message
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karinhall
<jeff...@comcast.net> wrote in message news:1136514110.0...@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com...
michael t
>
> <jeff...@comcast.net> wrote in message
> news:1136514110.0...@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com...
>> HP, cabin, trunk size? All of the above. I'd be OK with a 300hp V6,
>> but the new RL is just too small. At 6'3" and about 250, the driver's
>> seat is usually pretty far back when I'm driving, and from the pics I
>> saw of the new RL, the occupant behind the drivers seat would have
>> virtually no leg room. >>
>
> Acura exactly. Too bad they didn't go with a little bigger car. Good
> car, just too small for the money they're asking.
>
>
karinhall
"michael t" <thom...@zzzz.com> wrote in message news:429dj8F...@individual.net...
Lee Florack
You are certainly entitled to your opinion but it's MY opinion
that you're way too hung up on size -- and what you believe is a
too small RL. It's really not a small vehicle -- even in
comparison with the vehicles you mention a bigger. Personally,
I'd not have purchased one of it were bigger.
As I said, we are all entitled to our opinions.
Lee Florack
wrote:
>As a current '02 RL owner, the above statement fits my sentiments about Acura exactly. Too bad they didn't go with a little bigger car. Good car, just too small for the money they're asking.
Bigger isn't the only criteria required to judge a vehicle. It's
not even close to being the most important -- at least to me.
Lee Florack
wrote:
>> So what do you favour then?
>>
>Lexus, or to go a little cheaper, a Toyota Avalon.
Looking at the information below, I'll agree that it's a bit
bigger -- but not very much at all.
RL vs Avalon Interior Dimensions
----------------------------------------------------
Headroom (Front) 38.5 38.8
Headroom (Rear) 37.2 37.5
Legroom (Front) 42.4 41.3
Legroom (Rear) 36.3 40.9
Shoulder Room (Front) 58.5 59.4
Shoulder Room (Rear) 56.1 58.2
RL vs Avalon Exterior Dimensions
----------------------------------------------------
Height 57.1 58.5
Length 193.6 197.2
Track (Front) 62.0 62.2
Track (Rear) 62.4 61.6
Wheelbase 110.2 111.0
Width 72.7 72.8
shitdick
<jeff...@comcast.net> wrote in message
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jeff...@comcast.net
shitdick wrote:
> Maybe you should choose a Suburban then...
>
I already own one, don't need two surburbans. What I do need for a
second vehicle (to replace my aging 1st gen RL) is a full-size sport
sedan that is as fun to drive as a sports car, but can also double as a
family hauler. After doing a statistical ranking analysis on 13
categories (ranking the top 20 sedans on the market today), it is no
coincidence that the top rated car was the LS430 (tied with the BMW
754Li). The M-Benz S500 was 4th and the new Acura RL was 15th. Nuff
said.
Lee Florack
It might be 'Nuff said' as far as you're concerned, but......
In Motor Trend (6 cars) and Car and Driver (8 cars) comparisons
of similar cars, the RL came in 2nd each time. In the Car and
Driver review, the Lexus 430 (your #1) came in 3rd -- behind the
Acura RL. (Respective links are below.)
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/sedan/112_0503_6degrees/index.html
http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=15&article_id=9391
It would appear that these two respected magazines are using
different criteria/categories and ratings than you are. Perhaps
you'd be willing to share yours with us .
jeff...@comcast.net
feelings on the 'new' RL: "The Acura RL misses the top slot in this
test mainly because of the company's habitual restraint. Acura
engineers could have made the RL bigger but instead made it smaller
(retaining much of the previous model's interior volume). They could
have gone to a V-8, but they used a VTEC V-6. They could have changed
to rear-wheel drive but chose to adapt a front-drive platform to a
novel all-wheel-drive system known as SH-AWD, which can shift torque
fore-and-aft for traction and side to side to generate extra yaw for
cornering."
I'm sure the new RL is a great mid-size sedan, but Honda missed the
boat on rolling out a new flagship. The Lexus in the car and driver
review is a GS430 which is a totally different and sub-par car compared
to the LS430.
The categories included in my analysis include length to wheel base
ratio, width, height to front head room ratio, weight, front leg room,
rear leg room, luggage capacity, turning circle, horsepower, torque,
0-60 times & gas tank size. Out of 20 topend sedans sampled, the Lexus
LS430 scored the best with the BMW 745Li coming in second. Now if
things like rear leg room, trunk size or turning circle (or others) are
not important to you, then the results of this test could be totally
different. Notice MPG was not included as I am not that concerned
about gas milage, if I was I would probably be looking at a Prius or
Civic.
Lee Florack
>[snip]
>The categories included in my analysis include length to wheel base
>ratio, width, height to front head room ratio, weight, front leg room,
>rear leg room, luggage capacity, turning circle, horsepower, torque,
>0-60 times & gas tank size. Out of 20 topend sedans sampled, the Lexus
>LS430 scored the best with the BMW 745Li coming in second. Now if
>things like rear leg room, trunk size or turning circle (or others) are
>not important to you, then the results of this test could be totally
>different. Notice MPG was not included as I am not that concerned
>about gas milage, if I was I would probably be looking at a Prius or
>Civic.
Thanks for sharing your criteria. I see that a very large
portion of your categories deal with size. I would say that my
criteria would include almost none of those items -- at least not
anywhere the top of the list.
Now I understand what's driving your dislike for the RL. I hope
you find and get what you're looking for.
Dana
vehicle I've seen . Too bad you lose a year of warranty compared to the
Lexus . However ,you probably wouldn't need it anyway.
-Dana
"Lee Florack" <lflo...@rochester.rr.com> wrote in message
news:a5mvr1halojqq7lcd...@4ax.com...
Dean Dark
wrote:
>In the 30000.00 range the Avalon brings more to the table then any other
>vehicle I've seen . Too bad you lose a year of warranty compared to the
>Lexus . However ,you probably wouldn't need it anyway.
Concurrence. I've *never* bought extended warranties on Honda, Toyota
or Mazda, and it turned out that - even after 10 years in one case - I
simply didn't need it. I did, however, buy extended warranties on a
couple of GM products, and boy, did I make out like a bandit on those.
I wouldn't worry about warranty on Honda or Toyota. Mazda may be a
little more iffy, though it was actually a '94 Miata that the wife had
for 10 years and it never had any problem at all, other than normal
wear and tear.
--
Dan.
Jakob Sullivan
--
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