princelybug

iTrader: (16)

Nice car. I say go for the tinted windows.

tmnhs81

I'd say 35% all around?

sr4dt

to tint 35% side/20% rear.

Also looks like your wipers are in the Summer mode. For the winter weather you can pull them up a bit and they will give a better sweep and not get stuck in snow/ice as much.

vas25tl

If I get tinted windows, it'll probably be 20% all around..



pull them up manually?

sr4dt

Yes gently pull them upwards parallel to windshield. They will move up about 2 inches. IIRC you do it on one side and both come up together.

Some folks like to move the wiper arm up from the glass to perpendicular position to prevent sticking in snow. But you can't do that in 1G RL. Moving it to winter mode atleast helps so that it is not sitting too low in ICE buildup.

vas25tl

^ Very interesting. I'll have to do that later today.

Thankfully I park in the garage at home and at work Don't have to deal with that too much.

OLD_HATCH

Looking good.

I agree about the papers being a seling point. I actually called the dealer to verify some services on mine when I purchased and was extremely happy to hear how well the maintanace was done.


The winter wiper thing is in the manual somewhere.

Oh and I say 30% all around. You wont be looking to classy with blacked out 20% on the ride.

vas25tl

^That's my main problem. I'd like to keep the classy elegant look on the car and I'm afraid tints will ruin it.

I found the wiper thing in the owners manual, I'll put it in winter mode tonight. I've never seen this.

silver3.5

20% if your interior is tan or light color and 35% if your interior is black or dark. or like me, go 14%.....

anything higher than 35% is not worth it because it's like your windows aren't even tinted.

lox1985

Ok dude, I registered call me a stalker whatever, but I say go with tints. 20% would be good since you have a tan interior. It will look same as my infiniti with tan interior. Its not dark at all.

pdbailey

Wow, it looks gorgeous, nice photos!

BTW, I can't figure out how to get the screws/bolts on the top of the front license plate--there is no room to hold the other side. What are you going to do?

vas25tl

Ha-ha! Welcome to the forum. You'll find it much better than chicagoz and audizine

What do you mean?

pdbailey

Vas25tl, in the back the trunk lit itself is threaded--very easy. In the front bottom, there is access (if difficult) to the front and back of the license plate holder. On top, the license plate holder is flush all the way around on the back so you can't possibly get a screw or nut in place--much less hold. You could remove the whole assembly, but the bolts are covered by the license plate--so you have to have it off when you put it back on. I have a 1999, not an 02, so maybe they changed things around a little, I don't know.

97_RLer

Believe me or not, mine is 2% all way around! It is checked by transmittance measuring devices several times. Nobody can see inside from outside but I do see outside well enough!

vas25tl

^That's crazy! I've always had 20% and I have a tough time backing up sometimes when it's dark in areas with no street lights.


Day 2 with the RL: I'm really enjoying the ride so far. I need tires - if it snows I'm screwed; I just hope I can go get my TL in time.

Oh and this thing is such a boat! You can just feel how heavy it is.

I'm taking it in for an oil change on Wednesday at a shop that specializes in only Honda's. Wisco residents - check this out:

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...3#post11640243

My license plate and dome light bulbs are coming tomorrow so I'll be spending some time in the garage putting those in.

silver3.5

considering how heavy the RL is to your TL, feeling a bit like a boat isn't that bad at all. you should drive an avalon or any fullsize american car then you will know how a real boat feels like. i actually like the ride of my '02 RL; it's smooth and yet firm enough to some degree that i'm not that afraid to tackle a corner at higher speeds. the type of tires you have on also makes a big difference in sound, handling, and just plain driving characteristics. i'm running some ultra-high performance all-season tires in size 225/50-17 and it's a world of difference compared to 225/55-16 plain A/S tires.

what's that name of the shop? i might want to take my car there for service considering acura of brookfield is the only acura dealer in milwaukee and their prices show it.

silver3.5

holy cow....2%? i thought 5% was the max. mine is at 14% (was 20% when put on but had it checked by a state patrol with his little gadget to be at 14%) all around and backing up my driveway or any driveway that isn't lit is hard as heck. my wife complains every time she drives it. and it's worst during heavy rain storms.

vas25tl

It's called car-ismamotors. They're located in Cedarburg, just 20 miles north of downtown. They're actually basically in my back yard so if you ever do go there for something, let me know.

http://car-ismamotors.com/

They will NOT work on anything over than Honda/Acura. Their labor is $72 or $76/hour so for bigger jobs, it is worth it to make the trip to them...Acura of Brookfield most definitely knows they have no competition. I haven't been there in quite a few years.

I'm not complaining about the boat feeling, I'm a big fan of huge lux cars...the RL has that feeling and when I need it to go, it goes.

I'm in the process of deciding whether to put 16" snows on the stock wheels and go with a 18 or 19" package for summer or just all seasons on the 16's.

vas25tl

From their "about us" section

sr4dt

How about an HPAS tire on a 17"/18". Toyo Proxes4 make for a great A/S upgrade.

Ken1997TL

It is a heavy car but you'll love how it drives on the highway

vas25tl

I'm trying to justify doing 2 sets of wheels/tires...

I'd like to put a full bath in my basement in the spring.

vas25tl

I love how it rides on the highway. Today I finally put some CD's in the changer, the BOSE sounds good, just maxin and relaxin on the way to work.

By the way, the fact that the headrests fold forward is just flippin awesome.

OLD_HATCH

Oh yes the RL definately loves the highway. If you dont pay attention you'll get up to 90-100 wwithout noticing.


It definately has some weight to it. Remeber it weighs a good 1000+ lbs more than a TL.

When I get into my RL from driving one of our Accords you can definately feel the weight. Its good though since it feels nice and planted.

Dont be afraid to push it into the turns though. When I had my OEM tires and rims it still handled very well and when pushing corners a slight understeer would actually turn into a slight oversteer. Its very well bablance considering how much it weighs. That Legend drivetrain layout is what makes it happen.

vas25tl

It's not that I'm afraid, the tires are down to 5/32.....and I don't want to replace them quite yet.

I'll drive the TL when it snows

vas25tl

I wanted to see how it would look w/out a drop. Thanks lox1985 for your garage, rims and grills












Lox1985's G35 6MT dropped on 350z suspension:





And we had to grill after. It's nice when it's warmer than 15 degrees.

silver3.5

if you want the pimp big baller ghetto look, those rims would be a perfect fit. for the classy or vip look, no way! my $.01!!

you guys were able to grill out in this cold? amazing! good food!

lox1985

Oh yes, we grill in any weather

I personally like how they looked on the acura, but you definitely need different offsets Front wheel was sticking out too far and rubbing on the control arm.

These rims are for sporty look, not classy for sure.

lox1985

I still have plenty of beer left over, so you are welcome back any time

OLD_HATCH

looks nice. looked better on the G35 though.
What are the rim and tire specs?

vas25tl

I don't think it looks that ghetto, not a VIP look either. I thought it looked okay.

I agree on them being a better fit for the G35, they look good on there. Now if we can get through this winter they'll finally get some use.

The rims are 19x8, tires 245/35/19. I didn't clear the control arm which is why the front wheel was sticking out so much. It needs spacers, the G35 does also. The wheel fits the G35 much better, especially in the front.

I just wanted to see how the RL would look - and importantly wanted to check if the car needs a drop with 19's on it...and it does...now I know if I were to get rims, I'd have to do something with suspension; that keeps me from buying rims

tmnhs81

Nice rims, I say get them and drop it a llittle and I'll

vas25tl

Well I put 1000 miles on it so far and I really like this car. I like it more than I thought I would. I took it to Chicago last weekend with 4 people in the car and luggage and the car felt great on the freeway.

My only dislike is the MPG but really what is a few going to get you?

I also love the fact that there aren't many 99-04 RL's around where I live, I like the exclusiveness.



I also decided to keep it stock...not even going to tint the windows, I like the classy look.

OLD_HATCH

yeah the RL is so great on the highway.

I wish I could get like 28 or so mpg, but oh well.



lol at keeping it stock. As soon as you mod something I'm going to be there smiling. Lol

Ken1997TL

You know you wanna do the Bluetooth conversion

vas25tl

I really do like the bluetooth conversion but the amount of time I spend on the phone doesn't justify the investment. If it was around $50, I'd do it.

28mpg would be nice. Why oh why isn't there a 5 speed transmission in there?!

OLD_HATCH

actually if you could get a lightweight rim with larger than oem tire diameter you might be able to get a couple more mpg's.


oh and piaa license plate bulbs are a mod. lol

vas25tl

Stop trying to talk me into rims!


The PIAA's don't count, I just put them in in fear of OEM's burning out.

vas25tl

I got my new tires installed last night. It was snowing just a little bit on my way home and I tried my best to lose control but I couldn't. They grip really nicely in light snow so far, very quiet on the HWY.

I can't wait to try them in substantial snow, so far I recommend them for sure.

Continental ExtremeContact DWS's in a 225/55/16

Cost me $417 installed - not bad...

OLD_HATCH

Grippier than oem tires = Mod