That's weird. So out of 6 dealerships (so far evaluated) we have 3 which don't even showcase the RL. I know it's a slow seller but that should be besides the point. Your a dealership. Showcase the manufacturers products!

 

Oops. Add CL6's dealership and we now have only 2 of 6 showing the RL. Unbelievable!

 

Our dealer always has an RL in the showroom and usually has one on a concrete pad
near one of the showroom entrances

 

I mean 3 of 7 (I need a drink)

 

Maybe we should start a telemarketing campaign?

Start calling Acura dealerships and ask:

'Do you have an RL sitting on your showroom floor? You DO?

Well could you please give it a chair!'

 

What is Acura Style Magazine? Am I supposed to get one as an owner of a new Acura?

 

My dealer always has an RL on the showroom floor, usually one with CMBS and PAX, and a bunch sitting out front awaiting test drives. I have no idea how many they sell. No A-Spec RL, however. I would've loved to test drive that!

Chas2, Acura Style is an owner's magazine published by Acura that comes out four times a year. Haven't received one in forever, though, so who knows whether it's stillbeing published.

 

http://www.acura-style.com/

 

There's always an RL in the show room of my Central New Jersey Acura dealer.

 

Every time I've been at the dealer there's been an RL on the floor and three or four on the lot.

LL

 

I would wager that most TL or RL owners stepped up from a Honda or Acura vehicle. I honestly can't see anyone coming from MB, BMW, or Lexus converting to Acura, unless they had serious problems. Acura has always been, in my eyes, a step up from Honda.

Think about why you purchased your RL, TL or CL. The car that you selected may not have been the best in any one category but it did everything well at a nice price. That's Honda/Acura and it always will be. Now, think about why you didn't buy the Lexus, Infinity, MB or BMW. Was it cost, dependability, previous Honda experience or something else? I'm just curious.

 

I saw a NBP/ebony with A-SPEC wheels, suspension and wing being driven by the sales manager. Probably the best looking RL I have ever seen. THAT car should have been on the showroom floor.

 

I think your right. Most Acura buyers are loyal Honda buyers making a step up. That was always confirmed for me by my brother who works at an Acura dealer. That's not to say there aren't others buying Acura's. Their used car inventory is proof of that. I saw an Infinti G35 and a Mercedes E the other day when I was there. Those were the two that caught my eye because I like the looks of those cars. I'm sure there were others besides Accords, etc. Can't we say the same about Lexus mostly being loyal Toyota step up buyers? I was on the Lexus lot last month when I was car shopping. Didn't see many MB's there either.

I suppose you are suggesting that Acura has no draw except from its loyal following? if you are, then I'd agree partially. The real question is why? Certainly the product is good. It's a question my brother and his other salesmen friends debate all the time on smoke breaks outside of earshot from customers. I still think it's from a narrow product line and lack of advertising NOT lack of quality products -- or even good looking products.

 

The higher up on the automotive food chain you go the fewer trade-ins you'll see as most people lease and this results in fewer MB or BMWs being on the lot of a Lexus or Infiniti dealer, for example and is not necessarily an indication of brand loyalty.

 

OK, you got me.....yes, I am an 8-time Honda/Acura buyer. Including my current cars, I've owned five Hondas and three Acuras. I guess that makes me a fanboy.

Actually, I've owned Dodge and Ford as well. I'm looking at leasing a Corvette (my latest infatuation) as a weekend car, but only because Acura no longer has a real sports car.

 

My introduction to Acura was when I was looking to replace my POS Volvo S-80. The Volvo was such an unreliable car I knew I needed a car that woujldn't give me this sort of trouble again.

I read about this great new Honda coming out- Acura TL. It had bluetooth, DVD-A, Homelink and was going to be a very sporty looking ride. Most importantly it was a reliable Honda. I was so happy with the purchase and I discovered 'Acurazine" loaded with very helpful enthusiasts. I must say that in Fall, 2003 there were very few people going to the website. The TL section was very much "a private club"- now it seems to have too many members.

I like the RL better because of it's superior ride, Sh-AWD; no torque steer, and overall better build quality.

TL is the best sporty vehicle out there for under $35K.

 

Ditto, except it was POS Saab 9-5 and spring of 2004. Started with an 04 TL non-navi for all the reasons acuralvr1 stated, found the TL to be a little rocket that was even better than anticipated, then moved up to the RL two and a half years later for NavTraffic. The RL, as we all know, is better than the TL in every respect except fuel economy and acceleration. Never looked back. But, like others, I had to take the initiative...nobody tried all that hard to sell me an RL.

 

Same with me. I had to ASK to see an RL. Like I said in earlier threads, they didn't even have an RL on the showroom floor. What's up with that? I've heard others talk about how Acura NA doesn't want this car. Not sure if that's true. However, if it is, it doesn't make a whole lot of business sense to me. The product line is small enough as it is. They need to be showcasing and offering MORE cars not less. Looks like a large minority of dealers treat the RL like an ugly step sister.

It's almost as if Honda wants to treat Acura like a niche brand (e.g. VW's Bugatti or Lamborghini brands). The obvious problem is these cars are not niche market cars. Aside from the NSX, these are all general everyman-cars.

I think Honda needs some new leadership (and new vision) for Acura....

 

My dealership, located in an upscale neighborhood, also does not have an RL in its showroom. I asked the manager and he said the RL is not a good seller, and they want to reserve the precious showroom space for cars that are in higher demand, like the TL, MDX RDX and TSX. The showroom can easily fit 4 cars, and 5 in a squeeze. But I think they are going to put 2 TLs, one base w/ nav and one TL-S. I looked at the lot, and there were only 3 RLs, but I believe there are more in their warehouse off premise. The RL, as a flagship, is NOT getting the love it deserves.

 

Ditto here. I never considered the RL when I bought my 05 TL. If I had, I likely would have bought the RL over the TL in Jan 05 when the RL was still selling near 50K. On the flip side, the TL was a great car, but just missed the mark on some assembly issues I do not expect to experience frm Honda, or a premium, Acura. As much as I enjoyed the TL, owning it first has made me appreciate the RL even moreso. The avg 1-2mpg less I experience with the RL and the loss of the TL's edginess is FAR surpassed by the attributes the RL brings to the table.

The shame is that very few people will go to that much consideration, comparison and analysis to discover what a stellar vehicle the RL is. I pleases me to see more than a few us us here ave taken the same journey. I cannot help believe there are more outside the AZ focus group to discover the RL, or step up from the TL.

The truth be told, Acura did NOTHING to coax me into that decision. It was my own curiosity and affirmation from reading Acura discussion boards. Acura corporate should be designing a marketing campaign on real owner testimonials. There are PLENTY of them out here. If they cannot get the image tuned to make the draw, why not capitilize on those of us they spent NO money to attract?

I remember a Lexus Certified infomercial. It was all about real owners gushing (realisitic, intelligent people) over the car. Not only did it make me want a Lexus, I would have been happy with a used one (errr...'Certified Pr-Owned').

 

Interesting conversation...I'm fairly new to the RL forum...as a non-Honda owner I am considering it...the cars on my list right now include the BMW 335, G35/37 and believe it or not, an '08 vette-which has been upgraded a lot for '08. (Sounds weird I know, but, I have a fully paid for '04 Mazda 3)...I either sell it and use the funds for something nicer, or keep it and get the 2nd perf. car- used to have an '03 Cobra to go along with the Mazda)...

Anyway, the 335 has had some issues (oil coolers not in some earlier automatic cars so oil temps go to 280 and beyond.....and fuel pump issues, which have left a lot of new owners stranded, to name a couple). It is also their first twin turbo car and I would be outta that thing by year 4. Resale on these should be interesting...just not sure I want to deal with BMW crap again....too much time at the dealer...I had a 540 sport in the past.....

G35...I dunno...trying hard but still doesn't seem quite there...value seems decent.

I really want the nice features of this car but wished it looked a little better...I will need to check out this A-spec version you guys talk about. Maybe some subtle bodywork and rims would do a lot. The pricing appears to be very right...

 

A full underbody kit, decklid spoiler, and the upgraded 18" wheels does make a big difference. Turns it from a car your mother might drive into something much tougher looking. One side note; if you're looking for top CMBS package you can't upgrade the wheels. Those wheels look like the stock 17" wheels but are upsized to 18" and are made specifically for the PAX tires. No options for wheels there (even aftermarket)

 

I'm amazed by this. We've had a couple dealers here who have said they can't sell the RL. Not having one on the show room floor; mind boggling.

For the foreseable future the RL owners will continue to be a small club. I have no problem with this.

Thankfully RL owners in here show the car plenty of love.

 

The RL won't sell - so the dealers say. But they don't promote it, they don't talk it up when you're considering a TL, and they don't have one on the floor. You could also argue that Acura doesn't advertise it. But Honda/Acura doesn't really advertise any of their cars so that can't explain it.

It's a Chicken or Egg thing.

 

Unfortunately, the club is too small to have local RL meets except in certain locales (NoVa, NYC, SoCal among others).

It boggles the mind that Acura won't help a slow-selling model like this along other than by bribing dealers with marketing support. Sorry--dead horse, will keep moving.

 

There's $3,500.00 'marketing support.'

 

VOdoc,,,,I think you have some royalties due to you. I just saw a video ad on Edmunds for the Buick Lacerne: "The inersection of Luxury & Technology...."

 

Let me phone my lawyer. How COULD they apply that nice tagline to a Buick!?!? Even the name means barf.

 

Unbelievable. They stole our line

 

I bet they killed Kenny too! Those BASTARDS!

 

That simply is atrocious That tagline certainly does not apply to a Buick. They have no shame

 

It may not apply to Buick, but apparently they were wiser and faster to the finish line than Acura.

 

I noticed in the Memorial Day weekend car ads for Acura dealers that the RL is not mentioned anywhere. All their other cars are. RL is a poor seller partyl because Acura can't explain why it is $ 15,000 better than the TL, when the two cars compare so closely on paper. The RL also can't compete with the competitors RWD V8's. If you can afford an RL, the dealers will push the MDX. I'm also not sure the RL even looks better than the TL. Honda has the technical wherewithall to make a luxury/performance car to compete with Lexus/BMW/Mercedes. They just need the business plan to justify it. Hopefully that will happen in the next couple of years.

 

Agreed.

But I suspect there will be little advertising on the RL at this point for 07 RLs. Inventory seems to be waning and the buzz is the 08 RL will be offered a bit earlier in late summer.

Perhaps there will be a bit more media coverage of the RL when 08s are hitting the dealer inventory. No one is expecting any significant changes for 08, which is likely another waning year in volume. So I doubt there will be any blitz or change in RL marketing theme for the remainder of this generation. Just a blip on new model years, and a push when inventory needs to be moved. In the mean time, availabilty seems to have been intentionally reeled back.

Fine by me. My 06 has not been dated! And since I even have the now deleted ONSTAR, I can still call and ask for Sarah, my favorite ONSTAR rep!

 

Can't justify the cost difference between an RL and TL?

Comparing a top end TL-2 to a top end RL does have a $15k spread but there are significant differences. Let's take inventory;
- Size: RL is 4" longer and provides a few extra inches of leg room in back, headroom up top, and shoulder room.
- Colision Mitigation Braking System - not in the TL
- Adaptive Cruise Control - not in the TL
- Active Front Lighting System - not in the TL
- Xenon Headlights - not in the TL
- Tires: 245 18's on the RL, 235 17's on the TL-S
- Keyless Entry - not in TL
- Power rear shade - not in TL
- Rear side window shades - not in TL
- Electric power steering wheel - not in TL
- PAX run flat tires - not in TL
- SH AWD - Not in TL
- Premium Bose Audio system with cabinnoise cancelation - Not in TL

And then lots of little stuff like; Power headrests, Wood trim, power lumbar, etc.

It's definitely more expensive but I can't see how anyone can say this car isn't a value. In fact, I think it blows away any car in it's class when it comes to value. The TL is less expensive, but the TL really isn't in this car's league. If you think it is, you should take it for a long test drive some day again.

 

I agree with much of what you said. I disagree, though, that the RL can't compete. The problem is that Acura has chosen not to market the car aggressively. In fact, their approach is passive-agressive. This car is definitely worth more than the TL. Maybe not $15k better, but better!

 

The TL has bi-Xenon headlights and the TL Type-S has Electronic Noise Cancellation and has VSC (can raise/lower the music according to cabin noise). The TL has a premium ELS Surround Sound with the same Dolby Pro Logic II that the RL has.

Both the TL and the RL come standard with 17" wheels. Neither comes from the factory with 18".

The TL has power lumbar support for the driver and Plood like the Base RL has.

You left out that the RL makes extensive use of aluminium and is sanded by hand before 3 layers of paint are applied.

 

I don't doubt that the RL is a better car than the TL. The question is, is it $ 15,000 better? Consumers are voting no at the moment. Of all the differences you took the time to mention (thanks!), I would pay extra for the awd, the extra leg room, & the audio upgrade. The rest I could do without. All they do is remind me of how cars have become over "technologized". Similar to software vendors who keep adding more and more useless upgrades that few users want or need. Acura promotes the TL as the car for the technology manager but it sounds like the RL is even more so. BMW likewise has been heavily criticized for it's I-drive system which is anti-intuitive and a lot of unnecessary electronics. Because electronics are cheap car companies know they can add a bunch of this stuff and charge a nice premium for it. I should take a test drive in the RL but I want to wait until the new one comes out with the V8. I notice that the RL 0-60 time is even slower than the TL.

 

Don't get all excited about the legroom. The RL has only 1.4" more legroom in the rear than the TL and the total passenger volume is only 1.2 cubic feet more than the TL.

I think the build quality is much higher in the RL and the paint is better.

 

I agree with CL6. Also, if you compare real market price (as opposed to MSRP) between the 07 RL w/ tech pkg with the 07 TL-S, the difference is only about $6k (42k v 36k). Is the RL worth the price difference, I think it is a very close call. The TL is not a bad car by any means, it is just not as good as the RL, which justifies the price difference, IMHO.