getakey

I tend to agree with you, but wondering whether the new NSX shown in Detroit have a rear drive shaft? If it does not, then I think you are right that standard will be FWD.
My bad - I forgot the NSX is RWD, but that gives hope to standard RL being AWD without the electric engine

Type-S RPh

I knew all RLs were made in Japan, my question was if we knew if it was going to be still made there or they were moving production to the US like the NSX. Its more expensive to make the cars in Japan which is one of the reasons the current RL has the price it does.

oo7spy

Getakey, remember the NSX is a mid-engine car, so there is no need for a drive shaft. The NSX and RL will likey be the exact same drivetrains facing different directions.

getakey

Yeah - I realized that after the fact.
So, FWD it is on Std model

SSjTrunks112O

+1 on going during the week as opposed to the weekend.. 2009 was my first one..

LoL @ the ghey wave/hug & the cat pic btw..

vybzkartel

Wouldn't be surprised if it's announced at NY auto show, when the concept(prototype?) is revealed.

sleepinxlionhart

Well, I personally think the Genesis copied it's body lines from the RL first. So technically, the new RL is going to have similar body lines like the current RL/05-08.

BDoggPrelude

Exactly. The NSX definitely came out on top in that design study.

My biggest concern is that it's been mentioned now by two different columnists that the next gen RL will heavily resemble the current RL. That's pretty unfortunate considering the current RL is one of the oldest designs in the industry having been first released in late 2004 and only receiving a mild face lift over the last 7-8 years. Not that I expected Honda/Acura to go off the deep end on the design, but at least make sure it's revolutionary and not evolutionary. Given Honda's recent "evolutionary" models: Civic, CR-V and after seeing the next gen Accord prototype...I'm actually a bit concerned.

BDoggPrelude

Hyundai copying somebody else's designs? Blasphemy!

Rocket_man

Why would any car manufacturer copy a car that sells barely a 100 units a month?

When they launched the Genesis the VP of product development said...

"Hyundai Vice President for Product Development, John Krafcik, described Genesis as the boldest statement yet of Hyundai’s philosophy of its “unrelenting quest to deliver the value every car buyer deserves.”

“Genesis offers the performance of a BMW 5-Series, the interior packaging of a 7-Series at the price of a 3-Series,” he declared."

They are not worried about Acura or even trying to compete with Acura.

In Dec 11 Hyundai sold almost 2,500 Genesis, Acura sold 50 RLs. Maybe Acura should be copying the Genesis?

alfadoctor

All is conjecture from what I have heard about what you will or won't do. Wait until the car comes to the dealer and take it for a drive. The drive will tell everything if Acura got the car right or wrong. My guess is that a lot of engineering went into this car to make it mechanically a better design and getting rid of a $2000 drive shaft. Knowing Honda, they ran those electric motors until they failed and went in and rebuilt them to a better standard. There is to much reputation on the line to screw up their flag ship car. Styling has always been short in the RL. Let some of the Art Design students have a go at some concept designs for a new sedan.
After driving our RL for 45,000 miles since we acquired it a year and a half ago, I am more than pleased with the car, is an understatement. I now have my B mileage recording my overall gas mileage...23+ I don't baby the car, but I am easy on the throttle and use cruise control a lot. If the new RL comes out in the high 20's and has the same performance or better than what I am getting now, I might look at trading up but only in 2013 when the 2nd year models come out and I have read up on consumer reports.

kssod

that pic looks like the next Accord with SH-AWD

neuronbob

That IS an Accord. The picture is from a press release some months ago in which Honda discussed changes to SH-AWD. This particular Accord was a test bed.

oo7spy

You have a sharp eye!

dwboston

The RL sold that few units at the end of its life because Acura stopped marketing it, stopped producing it in meaningful numbers, and had made minimal changes to a design that debuted in late 2004. The RL was ahead of its time in 2004 — not so much by 2011.

sleepinxlionhart

If a car doesn't sell well, doesn't mean it doesn't look good.

I put this together, so you can see them side by side. See the similarities now?


Of course, they won't be exactly alike, but the amount of similarity of the Genesis to the RL is uncanny.

neuronbob

Meh. Hyundai is not really copying just Acura as pointed out above, and are having great success doing so.

Acura is not really copying anyone with the RL. The RL is meant to be a test bed for new tech. That has been IMHO its sole reason for being. I don't think Acura particularly cares that it sells few copies, or it would have been pulled long before now instead of just lingering in dealers, collecting dust.

Honda, as always, marches to its own drumbeat even if we don't completely understand it. Sometimes that drumbeat leads to stellar success (Accord) and sometimes not (4G TL, RL).

Pint

I just wonder, why not a single spy photo is yet available. Strange.

neuronbob

^^^^^
Honda/Acura is legendary for their secrecy. It is almost Apple-like. You won't see anything before the NY auto show unless they specifically decide to leak, which is exceedingly rare.

Pan0k

Really, The RL front looks a lot like the Lexus ES or LS. Everytime a Lexus stop, I thought it was an RL but then I saw the L, and not the A.

sleepinxlionhart

You're talking about the current ES and LS right? I think the ES looks more like the RL, but anyway, both cars debuted well after the RL.

alfadoctor

When you drive in the larger cities in comparison to where I live you see a lot more cars. One thing that strikes me is how many cars are sharing the same body lines as the RL. Copying is the sincerest form of flattery when it comes to design of cars. Acura must be doing something right with the looks as the comparison photos showed. Even the MB shares some lines that I have noticed. "Oh, Look Honey it is an RL...uh, no its a Japanese copy".

VOdoc

I hope for the best and prepare for the worst.

Best case: irresistible new LEGEND hybrid with beautiful sheet metal, fantastic technology and appealing price tag.

Worst case: something that resembles the current, egregiously ugly TL. (Note to Acura designers: Hyundai's Genesis, mentioned by some as inspiration, is pretty underwhelming in the looks department with a droopy butt--don't look there for design ideas.)

Most likely case, based on recent experience: Acura continues with the meaningless "RL" moniker. Screws up the styling. Reduces the value equation. And alienates current customers while trying to reach unreachable buyers who have already tasted and enjoyed the MB or Lexus /Toyota Kool-Aid.

BMW, here I come...after I drive the wheels off my fantastic '06 LEGEND. Currently at 91,325 serene, enjoyable miles and looking beautiful.

037

let's see, "droopy butt" vs BMW





or



but for the price...you really would get a 328i really.

037

here's one of an RL the same day.



and ofcourse here's the newer one

neuronbob

I completely agree. My fingers are crossed that Acura won't F this up. So far, the ILX and RDX look good. Hopefully the RL will, too.

db22

The 05 RL came out as a world car with its debut in Japan. Does anybody know if the new RL is going to be Japanese (world) or a US only model or where it is going to be made? Alabama?

oo7spy

I think it would be extremely foolish of Honda to switch from a factory that is tried and true to a new one, and it would be even more stupid to take a flagship that displays all of Honda's technology away from the world and isolates it to a country that doesn't care.

It stays in Japan and is sold worldwide.

neuronbob

Acura hasn't said anything about this yet. Hopefully soon. I am quite sure, based on the previous two RLegendos, that it will be a world car.

kssod

Need a photo and some specs soon, getting the itch....
A7, A6, GS350

jhr3uva90

I saw the new Lexus GS at an event tonight. It looks like a big IS to me.

db22

The next MDX is moving to the new US factory from Canada. I would not be surprised if the RL follows suit. The Legend was not a big seller around the world as well as not doing too well in the US. If they decide that the US is the main market then a US factory may well happen.

kssod

ILX interior photos are available on acuranews, nothing really new or exciting,looks just like current TSX and TL. Hopefully not the direction for the new RL. Need something totally new, like what Lexus has done with GS. Not the same as the GS but equally different from the previous/ current model as the 2013 GS is from the 2011. Acura has never been a big advertiser, but Lexus is really flooding the media with GS ads, one would think it has to generate some interest, Acura should take some lessons.

Acura_Dude

getakey

Let's hope the new RL is ground breaking on the inside as well. It vertainly introduced a lot of new features in 2005.

Acura_Dude