48k miles on my Celestial silver 06 RL, with 1 year old A/S tires. Runs great but getting the new car itch. Everything I look at as possibly being better is in the 60k plus range. CTS-V, 535xi with Dinan S1, 2011 M etc. I really love the RL as a single all purpose vehicle, especially in snowy cleveland.
Does anyone know of an engine flash etc to boost performance in the way Dinan does for BMW? I would gladly drop 5k into the RL for a nice performance boost, and drive it till it drops.
CTS-V is very tempting but I don't think I would have nearly the winter confidence along my 30 mile commute in the winter, even with snows.

 

I have to agree that nothing in the $40K-$50K range can make me lust for over my 3 year old RL. And certainly $20K more to be considered is not part of my game plan.

If maybe there are some new models down the pike are worth waiting for? A new M, or new GS? Even waiting to see a new RL can be a year and a half or two away.

Why not consider an ASPEC suspension + wheels to give a new, tighter feel? Perhaps a CAI for some performance boost? I have seen no performance chip upgrades...likely because the RL is too low volume and issues with SHAWD interface? I also would not want to void any warranty support.

I know if my RL were to disappear today, I would be shopping either a cherry CPO 2008 RL or a CPO 2008 Lexus LS. The RL being the obvious value and closest to my heart.

 

Hey kssod, sorry I haven't been around....work has been hectic.

I totally understand the new car itch feeling. It is very difficult to resist, as you can see from my sig.

I can't wait to see how my CTS-V handles Cleveland snow with the Pirelli 240 Sottozeros waiting in the basement for the car....pics will follow the first significant snow.

As far as chipping the RL, the only company known to make a solution for our KB1 is Amuse, and this is not available in the U.S. The RL has few true performance mods, but if you want to pep up your RL and keep it a little longer (best option in this economy), I recommend:

a) wheels--decent wheels totally change the character of this car
b) intake--intake and exhaust increased power in my RL when I had it
c) suspension--A-Spec was covered by warranty and made the car fun to drive, but there are also other aftermarket suspension setups you can read about on this site.

...and last, 535xi? Are you kidding? If you're going to get a 5-series, do it right and get the RWD and snows. Fun in warm weather, and with snows, you can drive it year-round. One of my colleagues has a 540i and does the same thing I plan to do with my V.....he has a separate set of wheels with winter tires on them. Just remember, 25 short years ago, everyone in Cleveland was driving massive RWD cars without traction control in the winter and surviving. They just threw a coupla bags of salt in the trunk and kept on rocking. We have traction control on RWD cars...that and snows hit the spot.