who gives a crap, really. So what if it is faster to 60...I have driven both a RDX and an Outback and I tell you what, you are better off with the outback overall when you live in areas where there is significant snowfall or if you want do go off road

it is significantly cheaper while offering BETTER safety features..

So if it means I have to give up 23 HP to have *real* AWD, better in town fuel economy, and eyesight, I'll take it any day of the week

RDX is 19 / 28 / 22: AWD
Outback is 20 / 22 AWD


btw a fully loaded 3.6R comes in at $37,335 a RDX with similar equipment comes in at $44,340 yeah... you pay 7K more for that 23hp....

 

Hate to tell you, but most people on this forum purchased the RDX BECAUSE of its V6 engine. Nobody cares about its AWD/offroad capability other than rockyboy who'll claim that the RDX can climb Mount Everest and deserves the 4x4 SUV of the Year.

Features.. What makes Subaru's eyesight so much better than Acura's "Acurawatch" feature?

MPG.. seriously? You're going to claim the Outback has better fuel economy? The MPG rating difference is so minimal, i'd be embarrassed to say either one has the better fuel consumption rating. Also sounds like something rockyboy would say.

 

The 2016 RDX is a car that can both go off road very well and also be driven to a fancy place like the Princess of Wales theatre. If you take the Subaru to the Princess of Wales theatre, it will look out of place.

The Mercedes luxury is wayyy over rated. I have a few friends who own Mercedes. They are nice vehicles but the 2016 RDX is very comparable to them and in fact is better in many areas for 20-50% lower price tag. The Acura is a steal.

 

The 2016 RDX is the safer vehicle. It got top safety ratings across the board. Couple that with far greater acceleration (better passing power on the highway, for example), better handling, and smoother suspension, and we soon realize that the RDX is in a different class. And we haven't even discussed that the RDX interior is far classier, the technology more advanced (e.g. Jewel Eye LED headlights and LED tail lights), better infotainment system (multiple BIG screens plus physical buttons--many options). And the beauty of the 2016 RDX is exceptional. It drives and looks like a high end luxury vehicle. Someone in my neighbourhood has a Subaru. The Subaru looks like a regular vehicle, doesn't stand out. It might be fine for someone looking for a regular vehicle, but if you want a luxury vehicle, the 2016 RDX is the way to go.

In real life driving conditions, I am averaging 10 L / 100 km fuel economy CITY driving. Highway I get below 9 L / 100 km. That is phenomenal considering the power you get with the RDX. It's a beast yet very fuel efficient.

The Subaru you can compare to a Toyota or a Honda or a Nissan. Not an Acura. The Acura is compared to Lexus, Infiniti, Mercedes, Audi, Porsche, etc.

The price difference is warranted. You get the better deal with the 2016 RDX.

 

I'm sure CR is rating each vehicle as it comes from the factory. All 4WD or AWD systems are not created equal so some will obviously be better than others as delivered. They clearly state that winter tires are necessary for best snow traction and stopping. If you aren't willing to get an extra set of wheels with snow tires and get lots of snow, then the CR rankings may help steer you towards the better vehicles for dealing with snow.

 

Put down the crack pipe..... outback has been top safety pick for YEARS. Acura is nowhere near the level of Lexus, Mercedes, etc...

RDX and crv = same structure... oops

 

2016 RDX is different than the CRV. RDX got top iihs safety ratings in every category. RDX is bigger than CRV and structure more reinforced. 2016 RDX has significantly greater roof strength than the Subaru Outback. The Subaru is also a very safe vehicle, yes. But a fully loaded Outback costs almost as much as the RDX. Why would anyone pick the Outback?? The RDX is way better overall.

The RDX has most or all features as good or better than the Lexus, Audi, Infiniti, Mercedes, etc competing vehicles. I already compared them all. That's why I got the RDX. I could have bought any of those other vehicles. My friends drive many of these other luxury vehicles, been in them all. The 2016 RDX is as good or better in most areas. Trust me, those other brands are over rated. I was happy people under rated the Acura, kept the price low so I got it at a steal!

 

 

I think you discovered the real reason people don't want to hear you spouting why the RDX is so great.

If more people purchase RDX's based on your posts, not only will it drive the price upwards, but I will have a smaller share of RDX groupies that are chasing me down the road (trying to bite my tires) .

 

They are not different, they are the same vehicle... one has a V6 and the other does not... Interior quality is not above the CRV. People complaining about all sorts of issues with these cars slightly different styling but the same chassis.... you bought it, fine, but to argue it is better than a Lexus build quality wise is asinine.

 

If you test drive both vehicles, it is like night and day. It is smart for Acura to overlap some parts and manufacturing with Honda, keeps the price down.

The direct Lexus competitor to the 2016 V6 RDX is the 4 cylinder Lexus NX. I visited Lexus twice before deciding on the RDX. The Lexus NX is an inferior vehicle in every way except it has a leather covered dash (some people like that, to me it's not important). The NX is smaller in all dimensions, weaker, slower, and it's much uglier looking. I also examined the RX, also inferior to the 2016 RDX except the RX has a quieter cabin, leather dash. But the RX competes more directly with the MDX.

In conclusion, if you want the better vehicle at a significantly lower price, the 2016 RDX is the best choice. Even if the 2016 RDX was the same price as the NX and RX, I would have gotten the RDX.

 

my best friend has a Lexus 350 the ride quality and noise isolation makes the RDX look like a civic in comparison. Butter smooth quiet superb ride. NICE leather that does not feel plasticity.....

My cousin has a Mercedes GL SUV..... utterly amazing ride and driving experience.... again RDX cannot compare to that...

because they can?

 

I checked out the Lexus RX350. I found the interior to not be that different than the 2016 RDX. It had soft toich materials here and there and plastic parts also. I found the RDX Elite seats to be more comfortable than the Lexus. Lexus had leather covered dash. 2nd row in RDX is better, lower hump on the floor in the middle. RX350 has better wind noise control but the ride quality is not that much smoother than the RDX. The RDX is faster and more powerful, and more beautiful. The RX350 has the ugly oversized fish mouth grill. And again, the RX350 more directly competes with the MDX, which is also better than the RX350.

A few of my friends own various Mercedes. Again, overrated. The 2016 RDX easily competes with these vehicles. See my other thread comparing the 2016 RDX with the Mercedes ML.

 

I have to agree that the Outback is a better vehicle for snow than the Acura RDX. The Outback has a full time AWD system, 220mm ride height vs 137mm RDX.

However, for any other situation I would much prefer to have the RDX than the Outback.

 

The 2016 RDX has 8.1 inch ground clearance which is about 205 mm. The RDX is better in snow due to greater horsepower, torque, and advanced vehicle stability controls.

 

Hello, we were actually crossing shopping a fully loaded 2016 Subaru outback vs a 2016 RDX with acurawatch.


Having driven the outback with eyesight and now owning our RDX, I can confidently say Subaru is the leader in this category. The adaptive cruise control on the Subaru is so much smoother than the RDX. The RDX seems to either step on the gas or slam on the brakes excessively when following a vehicle. While the Subaru seems to know when to "coast". Adaptive cruise control also works to a complete stop on the Subaru, while the RDX deactivates it at a certain speed (note that the MDX has low speed follow). Also, eyesight's emergency braking is capable of bringing the outback to a complete stop from 25mph while the RDX acurawatch can not.


Since eyesight is strictly based on cameras, it's adaptive cruise control does have a problem in direct sunlight compared to acurawatch's radar system, though.


Finally, the acurawatch lane keep assist is much more aggressive than the eyesight system. It seems acurawatch is more active trying to keep you in the center of the lane while eyesight only makes corrections when you get close to drifting lanes. Not sure if this is better or not, but probably depends on your preference.

 

The Acura radar system is superior. I wouldn't feel comfortable with a safety system on the Subaru that has problems in sunlight. Most of the time you drive in sunlight!

 

haha, yeah it's only those times during dusk and dawn when the sun is shining directly into the cameras (and your own eyes).


but don't get me wrong, imo, the RDX is a much nicer vehicle than the outback.

 

Please watch this


go try that with your RDX and post up a video....

here is another one

 

That looks pretty fun!

The video says that was the second worst snow storm in Kansas. In Canada, that's moderate snow fall. I've driven through much worse in lesser vehicles than the 2016 RDX. There's no snow right now but I'm confident the 2016 RDX will have no problems.

 

I have been driving 4WD/AWD SUV's for over 25 years, and see that type of snowfall 2-3 times each year. I have never had a problem during those 25 years (at least no worse of a problem than displayed in the videos).Based on the wheel-spin , I am certain that the vehicles in the video were only using all-season tires. Since switching to winter tires about 5 years ago, I experience even less wheel-spin than depicted in the videos.

I also own a 2012 Subaru vehicle, and I can attest that it does have a superior AWD system, under certain conditions. The Subaru excels when the tires are on surfaces with unequal traction. For example the center of the road is bare, and the right sided tires are driving through deep snow. In some AWD cars, the right side tires may spin in this situation, where the Subaru tires don't.

In both YouTube videos, all four tires were obtaining equal traction, resulting in equal distribution of torque, the fancy torque distribution of the Subaru never really came into play in these videos. Although I haven't driven the RDX in snow, I fully expect it to work as well as any of my previous SUV's in situations similar to the videos.

 

Getting this one back on topic a bit...

I'm starting to build my winter setup for the RDX. After spending quite a bit of time looking for take-off rims that were a good price and not beat to hell - and trying to stick to the 17" rim diameter - I ended up going aftermarket. I found a set of 17x7, 40mm offset rims at discounttiredirect.com - all-in with free shipping and the centering rings for $330. Separately, I ordered a set of 4 TPMS sensors (with 4 washers and 4 nuts) from oemacuraparts.com for about $120 shipped, and a set of 20 open-ended bulge acorn lug nuts (12x1.5) for $15 shipped. Once those all come in, I'm going to bring the setup to my local tire shop and put a set of Nokian Nordman 5 snow tires on the wheels. My all-in price will be under $1k (which is about $150 less than a comparable tire rack setup), and it gives me a set of Nokians that I know will last for years and get thru whatever NH throws at me. And I get to keep the relatively decent factory setup in place for the other 3 seasons - no real complaints on the MXM4's in normal conditions.

With this I'll be able to swap tires/rims seasonally for my lease plus most of my buy-out years. And the RDX should be the snow tank it needs to be for the winter.

andy

 

I'm thinking the RDX will be fine... with a proper set of winter tires.

This was a 'take off' set of RDX wheels with TPMS and bundled with the blizzaks for $1000.

My Blizzak DM-V1s /dedicated winter tire set on the wall...on standby...

 

I was able to download this pic from the dicounttiredirect.com web site - sort of what my RDX will look like with the wheels I got. Not my first choice for sure in terms of style, but the covered lug nuts and the low price was the deciding factor for a brand new set. They'll be covered with salt/sand most of the winter anyway.

cheers - andy

 

You may want to reconsider the location of the gas cans - even if they are "empty".

 

Your wheels will look significantly better once you get them.

 

Get the 18 inch rims..

 

Nope - 17" rims - more rubber between the pot hole and the rim, plus the tires are less expensive, and the performance/handling difference between an 18 and 17 inch rim (in a snow tire) is negligible. My winter setups have always been to a smaller rim size if it fits over the brake caliper, and it's never been a bad decision.

andy

 

Actually, the 17" is a better choice for all-round handling as well.

From Car and Driver

 

Nice lookin' wheels - apparently no longer available.

 

What I've found thru the years is that the longer you wait to get wheels and/or a wheel/tire combo from tire rack or discount tire direct, the fewer low-cost choices you get. Most folks (me included) pick the lowest cost wheels for a winter package. On tire rack they had some low-cost wheels that disappeared in early october....

 

In this case the article referred to is 5 years old.

 

Somehow I don't think tire behavior has changed much in the last five years...

 

I was referring to the wheels being DC'd in the meantime. You were talking about wheels, weren't you?

 

Oh, OK. Wasn't sure what the point you were trying to make was. To me, it's not the wheel brand/model but rather the concept that I think the article was bringing forward. Different wheel diameters (and associated changes in sidewall height and tire makeup) can impact things dramatically. The concept is valid today as it was 5 years ago and even before....

 

"Most folks (me included) pick the lowest cost wheels for a winter package."


I wonder if that's really what "Most folks" do. Seems to me that lowest cost might not be the way to go, especially if quality of product and/or appearance is compromised. The winter wheels will typically be used over 40% of the time.

 

For me, considering that the winter wheels are covered in sand/salt a large part of the time (between cleanings) and that I drive thru the crappiest road conditions possible and spending higher $$ for nicer wheels becomes less plausible....

 

For winter wheels I think most people do pick the "What is the cheapest wheel I can get that I'll be able to look at for the winter"

Tires are another matter. I think most people do want to get a quality tire - but - realize that the cheapest quality brand tire (not the Chinese LingLong or equivalent crap) is probably a better winter tire than the All-Season on your car presently.

 

Finally got the winter setup mounted and on the car. Temps still in the 50's, but I know our luck will run out sooner rather than later.

AFtermarket MB wheels from Discount Tire, OEM sensors, aftermarket bulge acorn lug nuts (under the caps) and Nokain Nordman 5 non-studded in 235-65R17. So far, so good. Relatively smooth ride and not super loud. Snow can come any time now.

andy

 

I have no intention of taking my RDX off-road. The only off-roading I've ever done with it is park it on the grass.

I bought the RDX to be a 5 seater city and highway utility. They're all AWD in Canada so it's not like I had a choice. Even so, the AWD is just to help me when there's snow, which is absent this year... so far. Full time AWD doesn't make any sense to me.

As for the gas mileage, I'm actually seeing higher MPG on the highway than advertised.

And yes, I prefer having more power, which is why I chose RDX over CRV. I think the $7K diference can really be seen on the inside. Don't get me wrong, the Subbies are nice, but no match to the Acura interrior.