The pictures don't do these wheels any justice, i think they look great and even handle better than the Devetions.
Finally my TPMS work.
Comments are welcome

 

Hi Qatar, I've been lurking around on your thread and I must say I love what you've done with your RL. Now I belive that you live in NoVA correct? If so could you tell me where you had your Inspyres painted and how much it ran? I have a set too that I might be interested in having painted. Thanks!

 

Good job, Qatar.

 

Devo's looked 1000X better but the inspyres arent bad either

 

I'll clean up the car in couple of days and dress up the tires and post new pic's.
I liked my Devotion wheels, but they caused me too much headache.

 

Lookin' Good Qatar! It's strange how the pics don't really do the wheels justice. I'm experiencing the same thing with my 5Zigen rims. They look AMAZING in person, but in the pics, they're just "allright".... Are you going to lower with somethign other than the A-Spec in the future? Just curious, I'm looking at the rs*r springs....

 

I like the previous wheels more imho, but it's nice to try something different. Since your going with a JDM theme I think a set of Work Wheels would look fantastic on your car. When I spoke to my Work rep they said they have alot of Legend fitments in 19" . I'm trying to decide on those and a set of AME wheels. Which choices are so hard!.

On the JDM lights did you notice any different behavior from the AFS ?. I was thinking that perhaps since the lights are meant for a RHD drive car the swiveling pattern might be reversed ?.

 

Touge,
The only thing i noticed is the rotation angle, i'm positive that the AFH swivels about 25% the area it covers is much greater than the US RL lights.
I meant to mention this earlier, but forgot

 

Qatar, I respect the Honda badging, car looks much better and more modest. Actually, being a Honda makes it seem even more technologically advanced rather than just a Cliche brand lol. Same goes for Honda Accord (TSX) in Europe.

On a sidenote, I respect pedestrian/mainstream brands (Toyota, Chevy, Honda, Nissan 350Z/Skyline (G35) in Japan. I have a 2005 Solara sle v6 and it is in many ways a better car than the TL like my dad's 2006 ACccord V6 sedan with Navi is better than a TSX in many ways, especially the engine and bigger seats.

I actually like teh TL, but chose a Solara for 12 reasons 1. turning radius of a Civic/Corolla 2. torque (240lbft @3600rpm), 3. better fuel economy 4. better quality materials and potentially more reliable transmission. 5. style (semi tied with TL) 6. Solara has TPMS on V6 SLE, TL did not in 2005. 7. Toyota pain is thicker. 8. price. 9. JBL Toyota is a better sounding stereo overall. 10. fog lights. 11. full size spare 12. Sunroof button is on roof with one touch open and close.

What's missing is surround sound, DVD audio playback, dual zone climate control, camel (for 2004 TL) interior, HIDs (offered on 2007 Solara), bluetooth (offered on 2007 Solara), LED tailllights (offered on 2007 Solara), dual temp heated seats (SOlara is only on or off). On the other I saved $12-13k CDN or about 26% off the TL's list price or about . Before anybody goes on saying Solara is Toyota, it is better equipped and better looking inside and out compared to the Lexus ES330, basically a door ES330 without hids, without a hideous airbag cutout fault in the ES330 and without heated/cooled seats. Oh yes the Solara has the same engine as the ES330 and the Solara has tiptronic which the ES doesn't have.

I went from a 2001 Accord LX V6 with side airbags with cloth. This car ate transmissions (3 in a 100000 mile period). Hence my inclination to Toyota. I must say one thing though, Honda/Acura is a poor man's BMW and I miss that especially the V6 models after 1998. I would probably get a USED TSX maybe TL with 6 speed manual though today.

 

Qatar, I respect the Honda badging, car looks much better and more modest. Actually, being a Honda makes it seem even more technologically advanced rather than just a Cliche brand lol. Same goes for Honda Accord (TSX) in Europe.

On a sidenote, I respect pedestrian/mainstream brands (Toyota, Chevy, Honda, Nissan 350Z/Skyline (G35) in Japan. I have a 2005 Solara sle v6 and it is in many ways a better car than the TL like my dad's 2006 ACccord V6 sedan with Navi is better than a TSX in many ways, especially the engine and bigger seats.

I actually like teh TL, but chose a Solara for 12 reasons 1. turning radius of a Civic/Corolla 2. torque (240lbft @3600rpm), 3. better fuel economy 4. better quality materials and potentially more reliable transmission. 5. style (semi tied with TL) 6. Solara has TPMS on V6 SLE, TL did not in 2005. 7. Toyota pain is thicker. 8. price. 9. JBL Toyota is a better sounding stereo overall. 10. fog lights. 11. full size spare 12. Sunroof button is on roof with one touch open and close.

What's missing is surround sound, DVD audio playback, dual zone climate control, camel (for 2004 TL) interior, HIDs (offered on 2007 Solara), bluetooth (offered on 2007 Solara), LED tailllights (offered on 2007 Solara), dual temp heated seats (SOlara is only on or off). On the other I saved $12-13k CDN or about 26% off the TL's list price or about . Before anybody goes on saying Solara is Toyota, it is better equipped and better looking inside and out compared to the Lexus ES330, basically a door ES330 without hids, without a hideous airbag cutout fault in the ES330 and without heated/cooled seats. Oh yes the Solara has the same engine as the ES330 and the Solara has tiptronic which the ES doesn't have.

I went from a 2001 Accord LX V6 with side airbags with cloth. This car ate transmissions (3 in a 100000 mile period). Hence my inclination to Toyota. I must say one thing though, Honda/Acura is a poor man's BMW and I miss that especially the V6 models after 1998. I would probably get a USED TSX maybe TL with 6
speed manual though today.

FYI, the Honda LEGEND in Japan/Europe(?) has the following which the US SPEC:

a) RADAR cruise,

b) The new Legend also offers a range of advanced driver support technologies, including the world’s first Intelligent Night Vision System*, which detects pedestrians during nighttime driving and provides visual and audio cautions to help prevent accidents.

c) The hood, front fenders, and trunk lid are made of aluminum using high-speed blow molding that enables one-piece molding of complex shapes, with approximately ten times the stretching capacity of conventional presses.

d) Genuine wood paneling made by TENDO CO., LTD. imparts the high-quality feel un ique to natural wood (Exclusive Package) e) HiDS*1 (Honda Intelligent Driver Support System) provides driver support during highway driving (Exclusive Package)
· LKAS (Lane Keeping Assist System) recognizes the vehicle lane using the images from a C-MOS camera mounted inside the upper front windshield, and applies the appropriate input to the EPS (Electric Power Steering)*2 to help keep the car in its lane.

IHCC (Intelligent Highway Cruise Control)*3 uses information from a millimeter-wave radar mounted inside the front grill to measure the distance to the vehicle ahead, while vehicle speed and yaw rate sensors detect the vehicle’s driving parameters. In addition to maintaining a set speed, this cruise control system is also able to automatically regulate vehicle speed and distance relative to a vehicle ahead traveling in the same lane.

In combination, these two systems reduce the burden of freeway driving, enhancing driver comfort and safety.

*1 HiDS is available with the Advanced HI Package
*2 HiDS-equipped vehicle (non HiDS-equipped vehicles come with electronically controlled, vehicle-speed-sensitive hydraulic power steering)
*3 IHCC is available with the Advanced Package

e) CMS (Collision Mitigation brake System) + E-pretensioners* work together to predict rear-end collisions and reduce impact on occupants and vehicle damage. The system uses visual and audio warnings to prompt the driver to take preventative action. It can also initiate braking to reduce vehicle speed. The E-pretensioners retract the seatbelts in anticipation of a collision to hold the driver more securely in place.



source: http://world.honda.com/news/2004/4041007.html

 

Oh yeah hate to break the news to Anti Honda LEGEND conversion folks, but your ACURA RL is inferior to the real Honda LEGEND as the RL is a STRIPPED down version .

FYI, the Honda LEGEND in Japan/Europe(?) has the following which the US SPEC:


a) world’s first Intelligent Night Vision System*, which detects pedestrians during nighttime driving and provides visual and audio cautions to help prevent accidents.

b) The hood, front fenders, and trunk lid are made of aluminum

c) Genuine wood paneling made by TENDO CO., LTD. imparts the high-quality feel unique to natural wood (Exclusive Package)

d) HiDS*1 (Honda Intelligent Driver Support System) provides driver support during highway driving (Exclusive Package)

e) LKAS (Lane Keeping Assist System) recognizes the vehicle lane using the images from a C-MOS camera mounted inside the upper front windshield, and applies the appropriate input to the EPS (Electric Power Steering)*2 to help keep the car in its lane.

f) IHCC (Intelligent Highway Cruise Control)*3 uses information from a millimeter-wave radar mounted inside the front grill to measure the distance to the vehicle ahead, while vehicle speed and yaw rate sensors detect the vehicle’s driving parameters. In addition to maintaining a set speed, this cruise control system is also able to automatically regulate vehicle speed and distance relative to a vehicle ahead traveling in the same lane.

In combination, these two systems reduce the burden of freeway driving, enhancing driver comfort and safety.

*1 HiDS is available with the Advanced HI Package
*2 HiDS-equipped vehicle (non HiDS-equipped vehicles come with electronically controlled, vehicle-speed-sensitive hydraulic power steering)
*3 IHCC is available with the Advanced Package

g) CMS (Collision Mitigation brake System) + E-pretensioners* work together to predict rear-end collisions and reduce impact on occupants and vehicle damage. The system uses visual and audio warnings to prompt the driver to take preventative action. It can also initiate braking to reduce vehicle speed. The E-pretensioners retract the seatbelts in anticipation of a collision to hold the driver more securely in place.



source: http://world.honda.com/news/2004/4041007.html

 

few know that Acura RL is levels below the Honda Legend in terms of options.
I don't think everything should be standard, but at least offered as options because i along with others are willing to pay.
What bothers me the most is Acura is the only claimed luxury brand that doesn't offer vantilated/cooled seats!!!! I need to find a way around this, probably get Canadian front seats.

 

 

Canadian RL and JDM Legend both have cooled seats

 

did not know America does not have cooled seats and.... wondering why we in Canada actually need that feature lol

 

Qatar, I was not posting in reply to your reference to cooled seats. I too would love the cooled seats - even over the heated seats, for MY climate here in Florida).

I was posting in reply to that dissertation above your post. Looks like I was posting my at the same time you posted your comment on the cooled seats...your post just beat mine to the thread!

 

I thought you were wondering about the cool seats, thats cool.
Canadians dont get Nav/traffic, so we dont get cooled seats.
Acura only forgot that XM is with subscription, so a year after free service we must pay monthly to keep the service , as appose to having cooled seats at no monthly charge. We lose either way.

 

Items b+c on that last list we get stock. Some of those other items are avail on the tech package.

 

Interesting how they shorted us a bit in the features. Are there any features on the RL that are not found on the Honda Legend? Just curious. I find it ironic however that many Japanese tuners are badging their Honda Legends to be Acura RL's.

 

Some of the features are packaged differently for different marketplaces and is discretionary to the manufacturer (not that I agree with those packaging strategies...I WANT COOLED SEATS TOO! ) . However some features are not offered in certain markets due to regulations in that market. I wonder if night vision assistance has yet to be approved in the US?

Some of the features are intentionally held back so they may be added in MMY changes further down the road. It seems to be a balance the manufacturers determine with pricepoint, content and upping the ante on the direct competitors while offering new features to keep interest in the vehicle.

When I drove a LEGEND in Japan a few months ago, I believe there was also a TV reception feature. Obviously that would not go over well with US regulations.

Keep in mind the RL is truly Honda Japan's flagship...not designed as an Acura flagship. In Japan, technology is paramount, and should that technology be accepted in other markets, it can trickle down. Perhaps night vision is on the verge of acceptance in the US. Cadillac and other manufacturers have hinted they have the technology, but unless I am missing the release, I have yet to see it in US products.

 

Yes, and while thermal night vision is one thing, Honda also has image recognition integrated into it which identifies "human" like features and puts a red box around it. I can see all sorts of liability problems with that also if something did not work just quite right in the litigation happy society we live in. Same with the Lane Keeping Assist.

I think another feature we do not have is the pedestrian safety enhancement for the hood. I cannot remember entirely, but the trailing edge of the hood, nearest the windshield is spring loaded and pops up to help lessen pedestrian injuries as they are rolling over the hood.

 

Cadillac has offered nightvision for a couple years now, and I believe it was/is an option with the Lexus LX470.

 

From what I understand, there are two basic types of technology for night vision: active and passive. The acura/honda night vision system is passive. As a result, it doesn't work above a certain temperature. Therefore, it would not work very well in the warmer parts of the us.

 

I looked through the Legends option/standard list, the only thing it lacks is XM Radio.

 

A feature the Legend has, but that the RL lacks Lane Keep Assist similar to Infiniti's version with a lane change camera in front of front mirror to beep when out of lane.

Oh yeah and Qatar, the grille looks much nicer as a Legend grille, too bad you couldn't just put a larger Acura Logo instead, I am not a fan of the current RL grille with thin sideways waterfall, it kinda looks like it belongs on a Hyundai.

As for the RL itself, I only have two beefs; one is the US grille and second is the lack of touch screen for navi input with on-screen keyboard like US Accord/TL have.


The only criticism I have for Qatar's car is the 4 or 5 badges on the trunk lol.. Mugen, why? it's not a Civic!

Ah yes, Canada will be getting Nav Traffic sometime in the next year or two I heard from XM.

Oh yeah and my reasoning for posting lengthy posts prior to this was to prove that renaming a book does not always make it better, I think the RL goes in keep with the no frills price and very few options as per TL and Navi as the main option. However, all I can say is that the Honda Legend is a better equipped car than a many BMW 5 series for the price of a loaded 3 series.

 

It appears that Cadillac used to offer night vision starting in 2000, but with weak demand, stopped the offering in 2005. Here is an excerpt from the IEEE Spectrum, Mar 2006.

http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/mar06/3043

"Automotive night vision comes in two flavors: near and far infrared. The type of system offered as an option in the Mercedes S Class (and in the Lexus LX470 sport-utility vehicle since the 2004 model year) uses near infrared technology, which detects the portion of the infrared band nearest to visible light. But the near infrared detector needs an assist. Special bulbs mounted next to the standard headlights are aimed straight ahead like a car's high beams, but they don't blind other drivers, because the human eye is insensitive to the infrared light. The infrared reflection of objects is captured and converted to a digital signal by a charge-coupled device (CCD)—similar to those used in digital video cameras—which perches behind the rearview mirror.

The digital signal from the CCD is routed to an image processor that trans-lates it into a format that can be viewed on a black-and-white head-up display beamed onto the windshield—in the Lexus system—or on a liquid-crystal display in the instrument panel behind the steering wheel—in the Mercedes system.

BMW (and Honda, which offers the enhancement on its Legend luxury sedan, sold in Japan) has opted for far infrared technology, which detects energy farther up the infrared band that is emitted by objects as heat. This far infrared night vision is also called passive, because no special light source is required. The special camera these systems use—essentially a phased array of infrared detector elements analogous to the pixels in an ordinary digital camera—creates a temperature pattern called a thermogram, which is refreshed 30 times a second. The heat from a pedestrian or an animal is much greater than the heat coming to the camera from its surroundings.

A signal processor translates the thermogram data to an image suitable for display on a monitor. In the BMW, it shows up on the LCD screen in the center console normally used for its iDrive control system. In Honda's Legend, the night vision image appears on a display that pops up from the dashboard when the system is turned on.

Which technology is better? According to Bert Wolfram, vice president for passenger car information systems at Siemens VDO, which introduced both far and near infrared systems at the International Motor Show in Germany last September, neither has a clear advantage.

Wolfram reports that it would cost a car company more than $1200 per unit to buy the far infrared system in quantity, while the near infrared system costs carmakers just $300 or so. What is more, the camera used in the far infrared, passive system is about the size of a paperback book, while the near infrared's CCD footprint is about the size of a postage stamp. Space in the bumper or behind the front grille has to be created for the bigger camera, because it is sensitive to the artificial temperature environment inside the passenger cabin. A CCD has no such constraints, so it can be mounted on the rearview mirror or near the top of the windshield.

But far infrared systems see farther. Some detect pedestrians more than 400 meters away. In the interest of scaling back the cost to keep the retail price near $2000, BMW uses a system with an imaging range closer to 300 meters. This is still considerably farther than the 150- to 200-meter viewing distance offered by the near infrared systems in the Mercedes S Class and the Lexus LX470.

To be sure, not everyone thinks night vision in cars makes sense, even if the price is appealing and the performance impressive. "It's a terrible idea," says Marc Green, a professor of ophthalmology at West Virginia University, Morgantown, whose research is focused on perception, attention, reaction time, memory, man-machine interfaces, and related areas. He says the biggest problem with night vision is that these systems demand that the driver take his or her focus from the road, which is not a good idea, and he worries drivers will just increase their speed, believing themselves to be less at risk.

Siemens's Wolfram, defending night vision, does agree that "with or without electronic vision support, the ultimate responsibility for recognizing obstacles in the road remains with the driver."

 

And in that statement I see where this tool may be it's downfall in America. A driver take responsibility? In America?

Tune into Court TV for the episode of Driver vs. Automaker: The car allowed me to run into a tree at night.

 

it doesn't have to be a civic to have a Mugen badge. you know, Mugen makes or should i say, modifies nearly all the models for Honda in Japan. you know, at Japan, they have a Mugen Legend called the M1, and a Mugen Legend with a v8 that gets well over 500+ hp called the Legend MAX.

 

How did you get the RonJon Inspyre wheels on ? I thought they only came in 5x114 not 5x120?

They look great btw.

 

I had the rims modified to fit my RL.

 

 

these are the last i have for now.
I'll take new ones once i have the Amuse bodykit installed.
I hope everyone enjoyed the pic's

 

Qatar,
Car looks very nice.

 

Looks great. How much did it cost to get the wheels modded and who did it for you?

 

the shop is in Sterling, Virginia. its called Kar Tunes. Dan, the owner did the work for me. you can reach him @ 703-406-0825. He only deals with high end cars, so i trust any work he does on my car, and he actually did my HID fogs.
Recently he worked on Dave Batistas H2 which was displayed in the auto show in Virginia.

 

Qatar: You imported the car from Japan on your own?

 

Nope, he bought an RL here and JDM'd it. Quite nicely, I might add.

 

Quatar, do I see moisture in one of the fog light?

 

Yes, any time i use a power wash, i find moisture in my fogs.
If i recall correctly, it has been changed 8 times so far, but cant figure out why.
The Amuse kit should hug the bumper securly and not allow any moisture through (hopefully)

 

I have same problem with my wife's FX.Fogs has been changed few times and still have some moisture in it.I think it's time to go to Infiniti dealer again.BTW. no problems with my RL's fogs.