Greetings, 2nd Gen RL Forum.

So I have a situation, and I was hoping to aquire some advice from actual 2nd Gen RL owners.

I currently have a sporty project car and 01 Civic beater for the winter. The Civic has about 190K miles on it, runs great, cheap to fix, but its a Civic. And, because of it's age it does have it's fair share of annoying problems that might drive me mad this winter. To avoid losing my sanity, I was thinking of looking at a luxury AWD sedan for an every day car to replace the beater.

I'm looking for a daily, that's a highway cruiser. (60-75 miles round-trip a day.)
I'm looking for something excellent in the snow, highway & back roads.
I'm looking for something reliable and comfortable.
I'm looking for something that is somewhat cheap to fix. (I'm hoping the reliability aspect should keep the costs down.)
and lastly, I'm looking at something that is 30+ MPG highways.

My research has found the RL to meet all these qualtities - I'm just wondering if its truly that good of a car? And, is it worth grabbing a 2006 w/80-100k mileage for around 10k?

 

yes, yes, yes, yes and yes.

 

The 2 points in your list that do NOT meet you're looking for with an RL are:

1) MPG
2) Somewhat cheap to fix

Other than that, the RL is an EXCELLENT daily driver. In fact, that's why I bought my 06 RL. But you will be hard pressed to get 30+MPG highway even if you do 60-75 miles a day. And repair costs are not cheap on the RL because there are not many of them out there (as opposed to a Civic!) and because of all the fancy electronic parts, they are not cheap.

Hope this helps...

 

I agree with Megatron. The cost to maintain and repair an RL is a lot higher than a Civic. Also, I usually average @22 mpg combined city and highway. The highest I have averaged is 23.5 mpg.

 

Yeah, my Civic is so damn cheap to maintain its really hard to sway myself to get different daily, but recently the issues that caused my loyalty to sway were:

Radio froze a few times, and would not turn off until I disconnected the battery.
Car Alarm went off, and would not turn off until I disconnected the battery. (This happened twice, within 10 minutes of each other.)

and to make matters worse, the hood takes some finese to close - and this will wear my patience on snow days here in New England.

 

you have to realize that you're going to buy a flagship sedan.

along with the title, comes a few cons.
but a few cons shouldnt sway you from an RL if your "sports car" is something ridiculous

 

If your trying to 30+MPG on the high way isn't all that hard to achieve in the RL. I recently did a trip through the mountains here (AB-BC) and managed to get 32MPG, and I wasn't driving like an old lady.

From the research I've done I've found that the most reliable RL's were made in either 07 or 08. The first two years had some bugs in them that were fixed by 07.

Tons of creature comforts so that's a solid yes.

As Justinspace said, it's a flag ship sedan so repairs aren't in the same range as they would be your civic, but that comes with the territory of a luxury sedan.

For what it's worth I love my RL and for the price there isn't much else out there that will give you the same safety features with creature comforts and Honda reliability.

 

And don't forget that it's PREMIUM fuel on the RL as well. No matter how you cut it, it's going to cost way more to operate an RL vs a Civic for a daily driver for both gas and repairs. Of course, in return, you get an awesome handling, comfortable, high end sedan.

Just curious though... if you have $10,000 to spend, why not get a newer Civic so you can still get cheap repairs and high MPG. Of course, you don't get SH-AWD, but the interior of a modern Civic is both roomier and cushier than your 01.

 

+1 on a newer civic for cheaper maintenance

The RL will be a dependable Daily Driver; but will show its age in repairs.

Remember, its a flagship.

 

I thought about a new Civic, but I really wanted a car with AWD for longer winter trips and commuting to work.

and, the only cars I like that have AWD are: Impreza and RL
- My Ex-sporty car was a WRX, so that (kind of) eliminates the Impreza. I was also thinking creature comforts too, and since the RL has always been on my radar, I haven't been able to stop thinking about buying one.

 

Anything over 27 mpg is the exception, not the rule. I only ever achieved that once and it took over 100 miles with non-stop 70+ mph. Any sort of traffic on the HWY will drop you to 23 in a heartbeat.

You gotta pay to play.

 

I can see what you mean. So then if you can overlook the extra $$$ for gas (both premium grade and lower MPG) and the more expensive repairs, then you should by all means get the RL. I use mine as a daily driver all year round and aside from those two points, it's perfect! I just acknowledge that I have to pay to play.

 

On the plus side oil prices have been dropping recently

 

I drove about 200 miles today and 300 yesterday, nearly all highway from 55 to 75 mph (mostly 70-75) with modest hills and averaged ~25 mpg. That's about what I anticipated. That said, it was raining for about 150 miles this morning and I thoroughly enjoyed the drive. When I parked the car I was literally thinking to myself, "I'm here already?"

 

moar info on the "sporty project car"

 

Go for it!!

find yourself a clean 1 or 2 owner RL and you'll be set!!

 

The RL is cheap to maintain relative to other LUXURY cars. But it will be more than a Civic. It has been rated top in reliability in the luxury segment. The issues the RL has had that may be needing repair are well documented on this forum, (i.e prop shaft bearing, AC on early builds, PAX tire conversions, motor mount wear, strut wear, battery snacking, door handle sensors) but generally 2006+ RLs are near bulletproof if they were well maintained and TSBs were applied.

My RL has been the least expensive car I have owned for repairs. Of course I had it regularly serviced, and used my warranty to address any issues until the warranty expired.

And if you are looking for mostly a highway cruiser, the RLs mpgs are not bad for a heavy AWD luxury car that can make you giggle like a schoolgirl in twisties. City traffic will plummet mpgs, but it will still be a serene place to be when stuck in the motoring apocalypse.

The RL is a car that few appreciate but those who own one seem to love it. It is a car that you buy and drive for YOUR pleasure and not to attract the attention of others.

 

The only prohibitive thing about the RL is the MPG and the repair cost. If you're OK with those factors, why not? Honestly, I use my old '95 "sporty" Camry in the winter

 

Oh, there is so much truth here, especially with the last part My MID was showing 14 or 15 MPG last tank because it was 90% city. Relative to a civic though, it will cost him more to operate.

 

My RL is my daily (have a turbo Mustang in the garage) and I absolutely LOVE it. The only complaints I have are that it can be pricey to fix sometimes and the gas mileage is about the same as the turbo Mustang (but not horrible, still mid low to mid 20's) but to me the comfort and creature features make up for it. I had an '04 TL as well, but I enjoy the RL much much more.

 

Guys, I appreciate all the advice; I guess ultimately if I'm going to go with the purchase; I have to understand that I have to pay to play. I'll have to really think about this investment before taking the plunge.

(The adult decision is likely another route because of affordability, but the impulse buyer wants it now!)

Haha, nothing too spectacular, but I have a slammed MK6 GTI for the nice days.

 

Oh and BTW, I've never gotten over 27 MPG since I've owned my RL 2.5 years ago. Best MPG I can remember getting was 26...heavy foot maybe?...

 

Tires (brand/model and inflation) probably play the biggest part in your MPGs with the RL. If you want to stop fast and tear through that twisty, you have to forfeit fuel efficiency.

The next contributor is likely location. Steep grades and headwind will kill a heavy roller like the RL.

To a lesser extent, the status of your maintenance will play a part. I expect a new air filter and new fluids to have a measurable difference over old ones.

FWIW, the 28 MPG (on the mid, not actual) I achieved once was done in Nov. (cool air likely blowing from NW), between Austin and Houston (flat and descending), with Conti DWS (reasonably sticky) inflated to 36 psi, and after my first transmission fluid change. The trip back was another story due purely to headwinds. YMMV.

 

I've seen such a huge spectrum of MPG on my own car driving within the same area. I've seen as low as 14(mostly city) and as high as 30 (highway) which is a really scare range

 

Sounds like the consensus MPG is 27ish combined if you are a conservative driver. That's not bad at all considering the size/weight of the car.

Perhaps, I should go test drive one this weekend.

 

There's a thread here somewhere that talks about all the 'hidden' features of the RL and cool unique things that the car can do. I'd recommend taking a read through there before you go test drive one, then test out some of the features in person.

 

Thank you for the heads up! Compiling a list of these hidden features as we speak.

 

fwiw - i drove only city (about 7 minutes to and from work) each day. The best I could do with serious babying was about 15.4mpg according to the in car computer.

I had my RL for almost 3 years, and I loved it, but when it came down to it, for me, my commute, it was really pointless, that's all the driving it got. It had a 130 or 140,000 miles on it and things were starting to go.

For example the front control arms were going to need to be replaced because the bushings were cracked and would start doing some more damage shortly if I left them. Each side was close to $800.

That's the thing, $1600 on a car that's paid off isn't awful, but everything was like that, this is a low volume car, and there aren't a plethora of OEM or aftermarket parts available, so the cost goes up.

If you know that going in you'll be fine - but if you're like me and you're only driving a few minutes to and from work every day (not that you are) there are certainly better fit cars out there.

That said, the RL was by far the most comfortable care to drive in that I have ever been in. Quiet, and comfortable... and a pretty great stereo... other than no factory AUX input!

 

Yeah, I'm still having some trouble with the price of parts. Here's the thing though, my Civic isn't a true daily, its a beater - cheap, easy to fix, and high MPG. Daily driving the civic would be rough year around to say the least. If I went with the RL, it would absolutely become the daily driver, and the GTI would be shelved for the best days.

I just need a sign to move forward. Perhaps when I get home a truck will have smashed the Civic into the swamp behind my apartment building lol.

 

I don't think the consensus is 27MPG combined. No way that can be true. Perhaps 27MPG highway if you are VERY conservative with a tailwind or going downhill. The EPA sticker is 16/24. The more likely combined rating is around 19-20MPG. In combined driving, my norm is around there at 20 or so. More highway, and I get around 24 ish. The only way you get above 24 is if you have complete flat straight highway for LONG periods of time with a constant 60-65mph. That doesn't happen a lot in the real world unless you drive cross country all the time.

I'm just giving you realistic numbers here so you don't get shocked when you actually buy one. Expect 20 combined, or 24 or so if all highway. That's about it. And don't forget, it's premium gas.

 

The realistic numbers are hugely appreciated, and the more I think about it, the more I'm beginning to realize that the RL might be out of my budget because of weekly upkeep and maintenance. Unfortunately, I have a lot of plans for the GTI next year and the RL would eat into my tuning fund.

Now the problem is trying to find a similarly equipped vehicle for around the same $$s.

 

When I had a 70/30 hwy/city commute, I averaged 21-22.

 

This is about right for me! The numbers I mentioned before at 20 combined, 24 highway are even slightly optimistic.

 

If you want improved mileage, you'll have to give up AWD and maybe some size. I still think a newer Civic will fit your needs best. Or maybe a newer Accord. But if it's just for a daily driver, you probably don't need the extra space of the Accord, so might as well go Civic to save some more gas.

 

Sounds like it might be time to kick up my tire pressure. Even with long highway cruising to heat the tires, mine tops out at 34.

 

I love my RL. But I've said it before: I don't think I could reach 30 mpg if I shut down my RL's engine and dropped it out of an airplane.

I've set the cruise to 70-75 on level ground and consistently gotten about 26.2-26.5 MPG.

Now, if somebody says "Yeah, that's because you went 75 instead of 60," guilty as charged. But I would also submit there's nowhere in America where you can go a consistent 60 miles an hour. Anywhere where the road is open enough to let you maintain a constant highway speed, 60 will get you run over.

 

I still miss my old '06 RL that I traded in about 2.5 years ago (w/95K miles).

Agree with what has been said before, great car, but don't expect it to be cheap to fix. Even by today's standards this is a technologically complex car.

 

I managed to get 30MPG driving through the mountains easily doing 70. Mountainous terrains and constant gradients. Something's wrong with your car if you can't get 30 on the highway.

 

Best I ever got on mine was 27 mpg on the highway, doing around 75 - 80 mph. Anything less than that on Michigan highways and you'll get run over.

 

On the mid or actual? I don't think anything is wrong with anyone's RL if they can get over 25. You are one of less than 10 members who has ever claimed 30.