http://www.edmunds.com/honda/cr-v/2015/road-test.html According to this article, the CRV gets ACC, CMBS and LDW along with a power tailgate on the top trim. It also has rear vents on ex and above! This shows that an advance trim is certain for the RDX and that Acura will have to make significant changes to justify the premium over the CRV. I don't know what those changes are, but expect RDX sales to tank until the MMC.

 

It's been widely speculated that the Earth Dreams 4-cylinder is stronger than the official power ratings suggest. Combining the stronger engine with the CVT should deliver improved acceleration, too. I like the CR-V's new face, I just wish they'd do something about the other end. Still, all the upgrades plus improved fuel economy, it's a compelling package, and hard with not to recommend it to friends and relatives.

 

Official Honda Press Release: Boldly Restyled and Significantly Enhanced 2015 Honda CR-V Gets New Powertrain, Advanced Features and New Premium Touring Trim - Honda.com

See the chart at the bottom. The touring trim will make RDX sales tough.

 

Make you wounder if Acura is a separate brand from Honda working with or against them? There seems to be a lot of overlapping cross-over with tech/price:
ILX - Civic
TLX - Accord
RDX - CRV
MDX - Pilot/Odyssey

My sister's Odyssey has everything my MDX has with better mpgs and more room (minus the sh-awd). I thought tech and performance should start with Acura and trickle down to Honda a few years later. Not sure why Acura is have such a hard time with this?

 

I think we are finally at a point where technology is cheap enough that features are not as big of a determining factor separating luxury cars and mainstream. A big example is how Honda made Keyless Access/Push Button start an Acura only option for years and years while Toyota and Nissan moved those to the mass market quickly. Honda is having to finally move those features to Honda to stay competitive but this will certainly hurt Acura who will have to think of over ways to stay different (e.g. powertrain, driving experience)

 

The features that are new now are:
- HUD (heads up display)
- 4g in the vehicle
- ventilated seats
- nice LED DRLs
- all LED lights (no more halogens for front or rear)
- AWD (will probably be standard at some point since the tech is basically a 2 wheel drive vehicle with the computer turning on the AWD with slipping)

- look at Audi and Lexus for technology that is new since they are the front runners

Chrysler, Buick, Acura, and Lincoln are the laggards in the luxury marketplace

 

^^This is on the money. And I think what Acura has started to do is make the Acura vehicles quieter with different drivetrains to differentiate them from their Honda counterparts. They're making the Acura vehicles feel more upscale and more refined than the mainstream Honda vehicles.

 

Acura can distance itself from Honda in a couple of ways. Since they are chasing luxury, quieter is always better but still let a little of the engine in to keep it sporty (get rid of wind and road noise). Improve the material quality and design of the interiors using premium materials with a premium feel.

Push the technology envelope and bring cutting edge features to the cars. I have heard rumors that Acura is considering moving to an all AWD model line up. If that is true, I can see the offering of the RLXs Sport Hybrid setup on all the models. Offer it with a 4 cylinder engine for economy and some sportiness and offer it with a 6 cylinder to get the heart pumping. They have the SH-AWD technology and they should use it. It costs more, but if you get the vehicle right, people will pay more.

Dealer experience is huge part, loaner cars at request even if for oil change, with updated service areas that are clean, modern, and comfortable. In today's service oriented society, customer care is a big deal and an aspect of ownership experience that should never be underestimated.

These improvements can be expensive and could very easily bloat the price of the vehicles and that will be a challenge for Acura. Improve the product and the experience but don't price yourself out of the market. I think an iterative approach with with more extensive MMCs coupled with timely redesigns will keep the product up-to-date, fresh, and competitive. Acura needs to look where they have been and remember what their brand was built on as they move forward to remain relevant in the marketplace.

 

If you're interested, a friend of mine just posted his review of the CRV.

 

Honda is trying to save us a lot of money by encourage potential buyers to forgo their so-called luxury brand 'Acura' and buy their sensibly priced Honda instead. With all these features that aren't even found in their ACURA brand, I see no reason to visit my Acura dealer anymore. The only thing missing is the V6 option. Throw that in the CRV and I will trade my RDX in a heart beat.

 

Sometime ago I remember a talk given by Honda /Acura boss about the direction Acura is taking and how they are trying to blend BMW and Audi into a single package. He also mentioned that while they are refining their next generation technologies, Acura will go through a phase with not much innovation..... May be this is that passing phase .

 

So, I was bored and skimmed the 2015 CRV manual over lunch. The CRV also apparently has a heated windshield for CAN and Auto wipers too (not clear if this is CAN or not). It now has the smart vent side air bags too that allow for back heating on the passenger side as opposed to just cushion heating. One more thing, the height adjustment is driver only, so who knows what that means for the RDX. Not sure if that feature is dictated by the seat frame as lumbar support is on the ILX

 

To me where Acura is lagging is in the head unit, even the new TLX/RLX/MDX head unit is behind all the competition. They need in car connectivity (LTE) and Google Maps. I have grown so spoiled with the head unit in my Audi and while I want to come back to the Asians to save some money, Hyundai is the one one that gets it and is offering up to date tech.

 

How does that work? Does it tether to your phone or do you have to pay a separate fee?

 

In the Audi you pay a fee, in my case I bought 30 months for $450 which includes 3G in car unlimited data for up to 5 (or maybe 8 devices), but then Google maps, and all their other features. The new A3 has 4G LTE in car, but I think they jacked the price up a bit since they moved to ATT as the provider. The Online destinations/Google Earth/Maps is where the value is. I don't have to worry about Navi updates to get current info. I hot the voice button and say "Online destinations...." followed by whatever phrase I am looking for and it does a Google search and come back with very accurate results. If it is a relevant POI (such as a park or such) I can get more info on it, or select it as a destination and go on my way. I have used to to look up doctors locations for appointments have had where I forgot to bring the address with me. If there are major road changes you still may want to do a navi update as Google lookup only get the info not the actually map DB. I love it and if Acura had a head unit that advanced I woudl be back in a TLX rather quickly.

Interestingly Honda showed off their new Android based head unit for the new CR-V (Europe only) that is based on Tom Tom navi and I would hope has Google lookup. They need to get this head unit in all the US cars ASAP.

Honda's in-car Connect system does Android its own way (hands-on)

 

The new CRV certainly has some nice upgrades, but it still has 185 horsepower. The RDX has 273 Hp, almost 90 hp difference. Also, if you read the article referenced by the OP carefully, they didn't exactly give the CRV glowing comments on performance and handling. Accelleration is "acceptable" and steering is lifeless due to CVT. And I can say from having test driven one, the suspension was a flat out deal killer for me. The RDX blows it away. And with the touring package coming in at $33,000+, and no way to fix the engine and suspension, it is not a hugely better deal than the RDX.

That said, most people don't care about engine size and suspension, so long as they have cool toys on the inside, and I'm sure Honda will sell a million of these. And I agree with others here that hopefully the added tech in the CRV will force Acura's hand and we will see the RDX get some badly needed upgrades in 2016.

Just my thoughts.