LeftLeaner

My budget is 45k max.

I have test driven many crossover SUVs, including the RDX. I liked the v6 feel of the RDX, especially given my weak engine in the santa fe sport. One potential concern is that I felt a little bit lower to the ground in the RDX than compared to the SFS, but maybe that's all in my head. Is there info out there on how high the seat is from the pavement?

Regarding other vehicles:

-I knock out the Audi Q5 because it's side mirrors don't "break away," and I have a small garage.

-Toyotas are very reliable cars, but their interiors feel kinda cheap. Also, the Rav4 truly is a girl's car.

-Nissan Rogue is a bit smaller than I'd prefer.

-The Chevy crossover SUV makes far too much egine noise.

-I dont like the shape of the BMW X3, but the X5 is too expensive.

-Mercedes crossovers also look funny.

-Infiniti crossover is a little small for me, like the rogue.

-Maybe I should take a look at the Cadillac SRX, but it seems like the base model has few features and a nicely equipped one can easily take you past 50k. The RDX + tech, however, has everything that I want for under 40k.

JamesM

At your price point the RDX is going the best band for the buck. My only complaint was the lack RADAR/SONAR safety features (blind spot warning, adaptive cruise, etc.). However, to get that level of safety tech on the other vehicles will take you north of $50k, if you're buying new.

Also, if you want to accessorize you would have little to no room to do so with the competitors. The RDX, while lacking some of the latest safety technology that you can get with other luxury badges, isn't charging you for it either. And, the ELS premium sound system might be better than any of the competitors. Seriously. Test drive it again and get the demo audio dvd and crank it. The ELS is an awesome sound system.

rosen39

I don't know what the big deal is on the ELS sound system is. Yes, it has 10 speakers (including the sub woofer), and the "demo" CD Acura provides does demonstrate the separation of channels in 5.1 stereo very well, regular cd's and XM radio sound pretty much like any other audio in a mid-priced luxury car. I rode in a new RL with the "Krell" audio (whoever Krell is?) and it was ok and clear, but is it really any better than a Bose audio system found in many new cars? Audi has a Bang & Olufsen audio sound upgrade they charge upwards of $6K for. I have not listened to that, but that is many times more than some home theater systems.

markAZ

I don't know about it being a girly car but my kids told us that Acuras are old people's cars. Then again, we're old people so I guess that's OK.

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

^^^damn....i guess i'm old.

NBP04TL4ME

We are all getting there.....

Gen4MDX

You will enjoy the quality, reliability and longevity of all Honda/Acura vehicles. Go for it! You may also want to check out the CRV if you don't need the increased tech or v6.

Acura_Dude

Rocket_man

Old?!?!? Hey I test drove a Lincoln MKZ this week... talk about old. Heck I've never even been in a Lincoln as far as I can remember. And I test drove one... actually two, the Hybrid and the 2.0L Turbo... and I actually liked it. So I must be really old!

JAB00

Well there is no question that both the MDX and RDX are marketed to women shoppers. Acura wants to increase sales by marketing to women as well. Yuppie (men and women) will go for the RDX or RDX similarly to Subaru. I think the RDX is gender neutral and not overly feminine like the Lexus RX

CoachRick

Well, I just celebrated a 'zero' birthday and considered the Lincoln one year ago, before getting the RDX. DW insisted we are too young to drive a Caddy or Lincoln

After having the RX, the XC60 and the current RDX, I'd say the color scheme makes all the difference, appearance-wise. From a 'function' standpoint and a view of the vehicles overall, I'd rate the RX as most feminine, RDX next and the XC60 as the stud of the group. Again, color can make one look more or less feminine, that's for sure. Nothing about the day to day performance of the RDX calls to my softer side, however.

markAZ

I read an article a while back that the car companies are upping their marketing to women. They say that women influence the car buying decisions more than men. Who knows? We chose the RDX because it was the right size and had what we wanted on a car for the price we thought was fair...considerably less than the competition. Our experience with Honda (we traded our totally trouble-free CR-V for the RDX) and Honda/Acura reputation for reliability also played into it. I don't know what makes a car girly but don't care if anyone thinks I drive a girly car. Our other vehicle is a Ford F250 diesel pickup...definitely NOT a girly car.

kevTL888

if that's indeed the case, then car companies are missing one big factor, women don't change cars as often as men. i don't see regular soccer moms rush out to change their current rides when the new model shows up.

markAZ

I dunno. I read it on the internet so it must be true...

Acura_Dude

dcpc08161992

The only car I consider a girley car is when the "WV Beetle" that came equipped with a vase and one fake rose on the dash LOLzzz.

Joe Las Vegas

The Kia sportage and the CRV are girly CUV's IMO, but the 2013 Santa Fe and RDX are fine for guys.
I'm undecided between the two actually, the new SF is great looking inside and out, but performance wise, the RDX is great, very responsive throttle response, quick off the line, 0-60 in 6.5 secs, great trans with a real sport mode and the only CUV with paddles shifters (that doesn't cost 50 G's)

Gen4MDX

Are you seriously cross shopping a Kia against an Acura? IMO, you will be much happier long term with the Acura. These 2 vehicles are in completely different leagues.

Joe Las Vegas

The SF looks great inside and out, can't say the same about the RDX, plus the SF is $5,000 cheaper, great value with 10y/100,000miles warranty, and the turbo 4 of the Santa Fe has similar HP numbers the the RDX.
Of course it's slower because it's only a 2.0L and it's slow off the line, and the sport mode does nothing but allows shifting "manually", so performance wise the RDX is great, but I already said all that.
FYI, Hyundai is not Kia, sure they're the same until you see the vehicles they have, Hyundai wins over Kia, that's for sure.

markAZ

Hmmm...maybe there's something to this...

http://autos.yahoo.com/news/study-fi...000253287.html

Zen S14

I believe as some of the others have suggested that for the money you are getting a good vehicle in the RDX.

Get what you like. Unless you are putting flowers in the dash or eye lashes on the headlights I don't see what is so feminine about it.

There are pink cars that are not girlie. Check some drift cars coming out of Japan with hot pink paintjobs...

then again some of those male drifters were rocking pink hair too...

seaguy

especially the white and red ones

Joe Las Vegas

The Scion and the smart car show more popular with men, seriously!
I think Acura is popular with women because of value and reliability, for me it's that plus a quick ride with a trans with a real sport mode and paddle shifters.

GEORGEMC22

This same "stupid" (sorry, but it is not your fault) question is asked many times, on many forums, about many cars.

There is no such thing as a "chicks" or "girls" car unless it is the Avon Ladies pink Cadillac. A car is a car and many different type of people buy and drive many different type of cars.

People who make these type of remarks are just jealous that they do not have one.

If we get an RDX for my wife it will be because she likes the vehicle, the size and the amenities, not because it is a girls car. And yes, I will drive it and not be in the least embarrassed.

George

danmangto

Well said. I sometimes get negative comments (only on forums) never to my face in the real world about my newish Honda Odyssey Touring, many times the person making the comment drives a car much older/worse. Jealousy, I'm sure.

PS.. in the real world I got 4 "nice car" comments when I first bought my all new for 2011 Honda Odyssey, I was shocked I sometimes Don't get that even in my GTO

OTown

I don't think it's a girl's car despite being a girl. I specifically am turned off the JX35 and the RX due to the soccer mom image. The RDX has a wonderful masculine look to it. Go with a black interior and you're all set

LeftLeaner

I took another close look at the RDX and have decided that it is too girly for me. There is no Acura dealership in my town, so I went to the shopping mall and looked at whatever 2013/2014 RDX's I could find in the lot. All of them seemed tiny when sitting to an SUV, and many of them had woman's belongings sitting on the passenger seat.

I am now going to see about a base 2014 MDX or a used MDX with a couple more features. Or maybe a Grand Cherokee .

Kyrra

Some people have said the 2014 MDX looks like a minivan. :-D But it's on my list of cars right now as well. Pretty nice car, and I actually feel like it's handling is better than the RDX, but who knows. But getting the power lift gate on the base model is nice (plus it gets the same MPG as the RDX).

markAZ

Why mess with a weenie MDX or Jeep? Get a real man's vehicle...a big ass diesel pickup. The Ford F series would be good, say, at least an F350 4x4 crew cab, long bed, maybe a dually, in at least Lariat trim but a Kings Ranch would be better, or a Harley Davidson model would be even better. It certainly wouldn't seem tiny compared to any SUV out there. And if you really want to intimidate those wimpy SUVs you can get a 6" lift and massive tires.

LeftLeaner

a big truck would be cool. my brother picked up the 2013 Tundra v8. However, I have a small garage, so the truck wouldn't fit. I had taken a look at the 1794 edition of the Tundra, which is a beast.

Also, I don't need a total "man's car," -- I just want to avoid something so blatantly vaginal, like the RDX. it's too bad, because for the price point and quality, there really is nothing out there that matches it.

TyroneBiggums

Seriously? A real man doesn't need to park his car in a garage.

danmangto

I don't think the MDX looks like a minivan. In fact I think the RDX and MDX look very similar from a small distance. Actually the RDX gets slightly better gas mileage. 19/27 vs the MDX 18/27.. Close. Since the MDX is bigger/heavier, I'd like to see the real world results on that. Pretty impressive.

danmangto

I wouldn't touch a JX35 for long term ownership 10yrs or more (or whatever Infiniti is renaming it soon) because of the CVT pulley and lever transmission.
Those don't last as long as the traditional auto tranny's with gears.

danmangto

With a Grand Cherokee you are then going to have the "rental car' image. Looking like you are driving a rental. Bad gas mileage esp with the V8. If you go with the V6, you will be seriously under powered. Nearly 9 seconds vs 6.2 on RDX. The RDX V6 is faster than the Hemi V8 Jeep.

Gen4MDX

Well I suppose this is true if he doesn't care about maintaining the exterior.

markAZ

Nah...the Tundra is just another weenie little truck wannabe. If it's not a 350/3500 or bigger with a turbocharged diesel, it's just another girlie truck.

And I'm curious...what makes the RDX, or any vehicle for that matter, 'vaginal'? Really, I want to know. As someone else mentioned, you really can't tell an RDX from an MDX from a distance. Hell, to me all the RDX/MDX class cars look pretty much the same.

LeftLeaner

For one thing, the RDX seems like it is shaped somewhat like a tampon.

More generally, it just seems a little too "cute." Oftentimes, things that are smaller than they should be are associated with girl products. The RDX doesn't seem like a big car to me, but rather like a tiny crossover.

Regarding another poster's comment -- why does the Cherokee look like a rental car? I found a lease takeover for a 2012 Cherokee V8 5.7L with about 10 months left, so I'm thinking about doing that and just seeing how I like it. I can then revisit the long term buying decision next summer. Maybe the 2015 RDX will be a little bit more manly.

markAZ

A tampon? You're pulling our leg now, aren't you? Come on. And it isn't a big car, it IS a small crossover.

Methinks you're just trolling us now...

LeftLeaner

Maybe I'm being a little bit colorful, but definitely not a troll.

LeftLeaner

Also, it's smaller than other small crossovers. My Hyundai Santa Fe (not a gigantic car by any stretch) sits higher than the RDX.