I have no doubt the motor if tuned correctly can handle hi power after reading about the nice internals acura gives us. It's that with no engine management controlling things you will loose driveability. Obviously a RL w/ s/c and engine management will be a better than a RL s/c with no engine management. That was the point I was making.

 

of course, ANYTHING with engine management is BETTER. but you are making it sound like it's actually a hazard, when in reality the 3G TL and 2G CL/TL runs fine without it at all and will do so for many many years.

 

Found in my opinion and for my needs, that the turbo would be a better solution. Advancements in turbo variable vane technologies and using ceramics, etc., have made them alot more user friendly in terms of maintenance and possibly even heat soak issues. BMW for '07 put 2 small turbos on their 3.0 liter straight six and got 300 hp and 300 lbft of torque. This same engine was putting out almost 100hp less in the early 2001 I believe. With supercharging, its "on" all the time so you are forcing air all the time. Ok if you like that - its instant hp and torque, but I think it comes with a penalty in the long run. In my '04 Ford Lightning truck with the 5.4 liter V8 supercharged and liquid intercooled, whenever you shut off the gas, the supercharger still boosting and all, would eventually suck oil up from the valve covers into your air intake where it would eventually get into the throttle body if you werent diligent about keeping it clean. Could the factory have done a better design ? Well I think so, but to satisfy all the EPA requirements, this is what worked and this what you got. Alot of people had to invent all kinds of filter things to put in those hoses to try to trap the oil before it got into your intake and that kind of worked but not always and certainly didnt look nice on your firewall.. I am sure that Acura would be alot smarter than Ford with their experience in F-1 and all - just dont ask about how BAD they are doing this year., but if I had my choice, I would still go for the less intrusive less maintenance , etc., of the newest turbo design. As a thought, the turbo is what alot of the exotic European cars use - Porsche, Lamborghini, etc.... My other vehicle with a turbo was a new '84 Buick Grand National. A tiny 3.8 liter v6 with a small Garret turbo mounted up top in back - it screamed, blew V8's of that era off the road and still got 20+mpg on the freeway at 75 with the a/c going full blast,, It never broke, never had issues, the kid that ended up with it had it stolen and they just took the engine and transmission and burned that beautiful black body and leather interior to the ground. bad boys, bad boys.... DanF

 

yours points a true, but i think there is argument for both sides. look at AMG and Jaguar, they both use superchargers. i think it's funny that the bmw needs 2 turbos on a 3L for 300 hp when infiniti does 300hp w/ a n/a 3.5

 

The BMW motor is 3.0 liters which I think is almost as large as an inline 6 can get with out disrupting the smoothness they are known for. So BMW is resorting to force feeding inorder to get the extra power. I also believe that with the new M having a V8, they have left room for the new twin turbo to produce way more then 300/300 in the near future.

Also Infiniti's motor, the VQ, while great drinks gas like there is no tomorrow.

 

The new bmw twin turbo motor is very nice. It's tuned very conservatively. Just with a exhaust and a piggback ecu the car puts down 356whp on a dynojet. That's somewhere like 400hp crank.

 

BMW's bread and butter forever was a 3.5 liter inline 6 635, 535, 735.

 

BMW M3 makes 333 hp with a 3.2L inline 6. But I definitely agree with you that the 335i motor could make more N/A power. One thing about BMW engines, especially the M engines, is that while they are high on hp, they are relatively low on torque. Using sequential twin turbos gives much more torque while still giving a lot of hp.

 

I would like to see some HP curves on current design superchargers. Last I knew superchargers were good for low end torque and were just dandy in the mid range but were parasitic to the point they had a net negative effect at high RPM. Also I'm not sure how you would get equal boost and inlet temperatures in an engine lay out like the RL. I would guess the compression ratio would be dropped and the bottom end strengthened if they want to meet Honda's stringent long life requirements.

Just seems counter to Honda's engine design philosophy. I would guess this isn't going to happen. But I have been wrong before (frequently)

 

Supercharger would possibly go against Honda engine design. From what was noted from the new generation AVTEC, it would provide more low end torque. Similar to the VANOS BMW Design.

It would be nice to see a AVTEC 3.5L pumping out 270+ Torque at 2500-4000 RPM. I know the VANOS BMW engines (3.0L) got some nice low end torque but fade at 5000 RPM.

 

I would love to see a small turbo on this vehicle, just to help out the bottom end performance. How come the TL gets all the goodies?

 

I've been looking 2 supercharge or turbo my RL since i've had it; the problem was the 11.1 compresion that the car has is to high it will blow the rings.I called comptech 2 days ago and they just brought in an RL for a supercharger and or turbo they said 3 months!!. And if you're worried about warranty acura will put it in and warranty bothe the supercharger & your engine.

 

the TL gets more toys cause it geared toward's a younger population but there is stuff for the RL,and some stuff you have to improvise!.

 

You have GOT to be kidding. Comptech wants to do a 2G RL supercharger? I won't believe it until I see it, or hear from Comptech myself. Edit: Not trying to be harsh, I just want to see confirmation that they're really considering this rather than doing a one-off, or that someone is pulling your leg.

I would strongly consider standing in line for that if it were real and provided real gains.

 

That's pretty much BS because the TSX didn't get an OEM supercharger for 2008. Unless you go the comptech route and get an aftermarket supercharger.

 

no bullshit i went to t3 motorsports this brian and i were looking up aplications that would work for the rl and we went 2 comptech it didint show anything and he decided 2 call and see and thats what we were told to check in 3 months that they brought on in last month!

 

i called an acura dealer in framingham,Ma and they told me that if the upgrade is from comptech they'll put it in and it falls under warranty, so check your dealers and see what they say

 

Was it Herb Connolly? They quoted me something like $1200 just to install the A-Spec suspension.

I'd be interested in a Comptech supercharger for the RL.

 

yes it was.but thats stupid money to install i can give u allot of places you can install your suspension for cheap,i do custom exhaust so im conected to allot of shop's in boston,let me know. nice rl,iwas scared to get black

 

This was a year ago when I had it installed on my 05 OBP RL. Ended up doing it at Acura of Auburn for much, much less.

I've had the black 06 for a couple of weeks now and I'm really liking the color. It'll probably be a different story this winter with all of the salt on the road. No A-Spec for the 06 due to the CMBS/PAX package.

 

go to bulletproofautomotive.com they have mugen lip kits and other company lip kits asswell as suspension and other goodies for our cars,but thats why im scared of black the winter,i love the color,mine is in the shop, vandalized, but its pearl silver-pearl blue- ice crystal flakes-front & back eyelids- shaved trunk-rear plate is in right corner in bumper 2-1/2 in stainless steal staight pipe-no third catalytic converter and exhaust come's out the side's of the bumper-0%tints in the back 17%in the front window's and last air brushed ghost flames with skulls from the front bumper over the hood no front plate.

let me know when you want to trick your's out!

 

I would think you could install the suspension mods with PAX - which would be the biggest change (improvement?) in handling anyway. I think I read elsewhere that the part numbers on the items replaced by the A-spec suspension package are the same on non-PAX & PAX.

 

if your going to change the suspension for the money go mugen or h&r ofer a much better system than the a-spec

 

Well, depending on cost and power added, I can stand in line for that. If it costs less than $5k like the TL supercharger and adds 50 hp like the TL SC, then I'd consider it. More than that (which I would expect given the limited market penetration of the RL), and I'll invest the money instead.

 

The standard OEM suspension part numbers on the front suspension for the PAX car are the same as the non PAX. The rear are the same except for the dampers. The PAX dampers are unique to the PAX model, I suspect they are valved differently to account for the greater weight of the PAX wheel tire combination.

That being said, the dealer parts manager and I determined all the interfaces appeared to be identical between PAX and non PAX cars.

So bottom line is that the A-Spec will fit on the PAX car, but I know of no one that has tried it.

I believe, but cannot get anyone to confirm it, that the reason Acura says the A-Spec is NA for the PAX model, is not because it will not fit, but because the height of the car is changed, with the front having slightly more drop than the rear, and this changes the ACC/CMBS settings because the radar is now pointed down toward the road more, and will likely have less range as a result. There is an obscure advisory in the owners manual about making suspension changes to the car, but it is obscure, and and I think you have to draw the conclusion I made above.

2006 OM, P. 327

The radar sensor may not scan as
intended under these conditions;

Your vehicle is tilted because of a
heavy load in the rear or from
modifications to the suspension.
Do not overload your vehicle (see
Carrying Cargo on page 305), and
do not make any modifications to
the suspension (see Accessories
and Modifications on page 303).

 

That makes sense - I remember reading that. Frankly - I think it is just fine stock anyway.

 

im hoping that the sc for the rl will put out more than than 50hp we can get 50 easy with other mods the problem is the 11.1 compresion intheRL witch most cars get when you turbo them,i think it would be a waste of money at $5k for 50hp;id rather bore out my engine and direct port nitrus it!! atleast id get 150-200hp out of it!......one can only hope.

 

The 400 HP spec is a bit hard to believe...short of Honda doing a major rework of the internals of the J35 motor. We're talking about a full 110 HP increase.!

Adding a frame-of-reference, followers of COMPTECH know that the J30 & J32 supercharger packages afforded far lesser gains, seeing around 40-60 hp increases @ 4-5 psi. This was reasonable considering Honda did not engineer the J series for boost (w/o eventual problems at least).

IMO, a better solution would be to drop the new J37 into the RL, and tune it up to around 320 hp. It would prove to be more robust than a J35 tuned to the Moon. Also, offering a less expensive & lighter version of the RL as a RWD only versions would help buyers stuck on linear acceleration.

Speculation & hope would have the J series also benefitting from increased output once A-VTEC arrives.

 

I humbly disagree with part of your statement, depending on where you are measuring your hp. The RL has a maximum output of 290 hp (new SAE rating 2006) at a bit over 5000 rpm at the crank. We have two dynos of stock RLs (including mine) showing about 190 hp to the wheels. This translates to about a 35% drivetrain loss, likely related to the SH-AWD system--it appears to be VERY inefficient and this car would benefit from torque lower in the power curve.

I added an intake and exhaust to my car and added 13-14 whp (click the "My Car" link in my signature to see the raw data from my dyno). Even if you take into account that 35% drivetrain loss, that's still about 35-40 hp at the crank, and that number is simply a guess. Adding a pulley probably adds low single-digit whp, but no one has done a before- and after dyno pull to prove this.

Pumping nitrous into such a high-compression engine as the RL will probably hurt it seriously. Not something I'd do to a car I love. The TL, maybe.

I do agree with your statement that the high compression of the J35 engine will make a supercharger challenging. We'll see what Comptech comes up with.

 

well the high-compression engine seems to be the problem with both the JUICE & SC-TC,in just saying that for-4-5psi i could have done the turbo my self and had it tuned so i woulndn't blow my motor!.But actually the juice isn't that bad especially direct port it's safer than the other applications of nos,and it wouldn't be that big a shot anyhow.

 

There's a very informative thread on the TL forum, written to supercharged TL drivers...lots of detailed info re the 'inards' of the motor related to factory design limitations.

Basically, if large amounts of boost are to be viable, the factory will have to re-engineer the pistons, cranks, and who knows how many other internals (their engineers know). Apparently collectively as the thread goes, there are enough reports of failed J32 motors just running the mild 4-5 lbs of boost.

Honda is way conservative when it comes to releasing anything that remotely looks like a sub-par design...they don't want to cross their 'magical' line in the sand to compromise reliability. Reliability is one of their trademarks. So IMO, no way could I ever envision them boosting anything that remotely looks similar to their current iteration of the J35 all the way up to 400 HP...no way.

Another way of looking at this is to do the math with the power/displacement ratios between their top J30, J32, J35 & J37 engines. They ALL are tuned to essentially the same level. When Acura went to release their Type S TL, they didn't tweak the J32 or add FI (they could have), they increased displacement. And essentially it was the same story with their new MDX...upped the displacement. The other more expensive option would have been to redesign the entire engine, an expensive proposition.

 

If honda offered a supercharger "upgrade" for the RL, I would have installed the very first day it was available no questions asked . They can keep the so called "aero" goodies. I'd happily pay 5K for the supercharger by itself and some change for the suspension goods. Come on Honda I dare dare you, the money is in the bank just begging for it!

 

I assure you, i would buy the new Lexus GS v8 before i'd go for a supercharger on an RL.

 

I would like to see some evidence of this “mysterious” kit in the works. I don’t think that Acura/Honda would release a forced induction system in the RL because like Snookynibbles said: (Which in itself is not really true, every car has its problems at one point or another.)

However, let us look at the history of Acura/Honda… How many cars have they released with some type of forced induction? I believe, not completely for sure, but the RDX is the only turbo car Acura/Honda has released to the public. This doesn’t include Type R’s or Vtech cars, because they did not come with F.I. however, they were leaps of ingenuity at their times and did wonders for the brand name and image, (birth of ricers ) What about the NSX? Honda’s supercar and it didn’t even come with F.I.! I think it would be amazing to offer an anniversary edition with some type of F.I. similar to that of the Z-tune Skyline, it would be good marketing before the NSX replacement appears.

If Acura releases something for the RL, I dunno what I would want more. A S/C or Turbo. A S/C would give more low end, which according to most RL members on the board is needed and, and I think it would be easier system to maintain, versus a turbo set up. BUT.... a turbo would be sweet more maintience though, but Acura has shown that they can go that route of a turbo with the RDX and like Tully said. So if we considered that then a turbo set up would be nice, since boost and everything is always nice in the high rpms...

Whatever Acura/Honda decides to do they need to do something to keep the brand ALIVE! Bring on the F.I. ACURA!

 

a supercharger kit for the Ridgeline.

enjoy.



Ps-S2000 comes with 11:1 compression and gets supercharged frequently. all about tuning my friends.

 

Someone buy this, customize and and makes us all

 

i doubt this can fit under the hood, but the one for the TL might work with some sort of engine management.

 

Hell no!
Its not only about power, the GS is a lard ass boat with bling on top. I wouldn't go toyota even if they gave out for free The only Lexus that I find even remotely interesting is the IS they can keep everything else.