I love cars. Writing to express that interest is something I occasionally like to do. With that in mind, I compared interiors of the RL with some of its competition at the Detroit and Cleveland auto shows. I realize this isn't the same as driving the cars, but since most of your time in the car is appreciating the interior surroundings, I felt this comparison appropriate. Comparisons like this are invariably limited by lack of electrical supply to the car's electronics at auto shows--a HUGE error when you are trying to sell someone on gadgets in their car. Lexus routinely wins in this way. Acura needs to improve in this way...they had the cars connected to electricity in Detroit, why not in other car shows? In any case....

Base model RL I sat in at the Cleveland auto show


My RL's interior (sorry for the snowy mess on the mats). The leather is a bit thin and not up to the same standard as the Germans or Lexus, but is pretty comfortable. The seat is comfortable, but doesn't grip you when engaging in sporty driving. Of course, this is a luxury sedan so that's not completely unexpected. As for the navi, I still prefer touch screens but the knob is far better implemented than in some of the other cars below, and I'm used to it. Besides, if I don't want to use the knob, the excellent voice command system works fine. I do have an issue with the navi screen, though--I can't use it in bright sunlight. I wish it had the ability to tilt slightly to allow for different light conditions.




Audi A6 (Edited for error in my original notes--NB)--I saw this beauty in Detroit. I've never test driven one but would love to do so. The interior surroundings are more luxurious than the RL in that the wood they choose has more of a luster to it, and the leather seems a little softer. The seats grip you, allowing you to be held in place as you engage in spirited driving. The navigational system is the only one I saw that was close to intuitive as the RL. It has a knob that also doubles as a button like the RL. It is located on the center console, behind the shifter, along with several buttons next to it. I found it as easy to use as the RL's system, though the reach is out of the direct line of sight while driving, a distinct disadvantage compared to the RL.



Infiniti M--I also saw this car in Detroit. I still love the exterior shape, but the interior is far inferior to the RL in several ways. The interior I saw was rather plain and even a little plasticky. The navi wasn't on, so I couldn't evaluate it adequately. However, the big navi button is a long reach and has too many buttons on it. This is as opposed to the RL's approach, with one BIG button that acts as a joystick and can be pressed, and the ring around it. I think Infiniti needs to go back to the drawing board with this approach or just use my favorite, a touch screen. The leather I felt was not as good in quality as the RL.


Lexus GS300--I saw this in Cleveland yesterday. The interior is definitely opulent, with the wood steering wheel and center console. The leather is superior to that in the RL, and the seats are buttery soft...they simply define luxury. A little more wood on the dash would complete the effect, but who's complaining? The navi has an interesting, but complicated approach. It is a touchscreen. You can enter data nicely here. You can even enter the date and time of your last oil change, battery change, tire pressure, etc. The navi plots routes pretty quickly. With a phone connected, you can dial from the navi system by touching the numbers. Not recommended while driving, of course. I understand that you can only enter information when in "park", though, a definite disadvantage to Acura's approach, which at least lets a passenger enter data while on the road.



Volvo S80--saw yesterday in Cleveland. I hate to say it, but it looks cheap and plasticky. On top of that.....too many buttons on the center console! This is the same criticism I have made of the RL's center console, but it's much worse. The seats are firm but like the RL, don't really grip you for those runs in the twisties, so similar to the RL in that way.


Mercedes E-class is another example of a very luxurious interior. It's not that different from the RL, though. I couldn't evaluate the navi because it wasn't on. Another approach with way too many buttons on the center console, and again more cluttered than in the RL.


So I leave the rest of the thread to you...discuss amongst yourselves!

Some other interiors at random:
BMW 335i coupe


Infiniti G35

 

Nice job Dr. Bob. I have noticed that the wood trim color seems to vary from RL to RL. Have you noticed this also. Even though I love my wood steering wheel it does not match my wood. I wonder if there is an RL wood out there that matches it?

I always like Mercedes interiors the best. They look and feel good.

 

Nice photos, and always a worthy topic for discussion and analysis. These interiors are all so very different, and definitely reflect a common design theme within each brand.

I definitely agree that power should be on, so you can see the displays. And yes, Lexus always does a good job in that regard.

Audi has excellent use of brightwork. Their metal finishes look great. Best in class, though I'm not a big fan of the metal trim around the wood.

I agree with your comments on the M family. The knob is too far away, and no touch screen. In fact, many of the buttons seem kind of far away.

The Lexus is a mixed bag for me. While the materials are top notch, the presentation doesn't do it for me. The center console and Nav screen look kind of homely to my eyes. I agree that some wood on the dash itself would spruce things up (even if it isn't spruce). The cassette player is a nice touch.

Thanks for the write-up.

 

I love the RL interior, they get so much done with such efficient use of space.

 

As I mentioned before, the Lexus GS was the only serious competitor to the RL for me, and the RL's interior won me over. Hands down. The little flip out tray for the secondary controls wasn't very ergonomically friendly to me. Also with respect to the Toyota Navs, having lived with the (Gen IV) Nav in my Land Cruiser for the past three years I can share a few things with all of you.

Bluetooth and Voice recognition - Hands down there is no comparison here. This was an unexpected surprise since I didn't really test this with the RL. After being thoroughly frustrated by Toyota's VR functionality, I pretty much wrote off the technology as a gimmick. I was throughly and pleasantly surprised and how Acura has developed this technology. I venture over at ClubLexus, and it's evident that it's still an issue. This is an area that I feel is a missed opportunity with most Acura salespeople when comparing with the competition.

Navigation - While not bad, again no comparison compared with Acura's Nav for both functionality and ease of use, and that's not even factoring NAVTraffic. Let's not even get into Toyota's insistence on allowing their corporate attorneys to dictate the maddening lockout of the majority of functions once the car is moving. Fortunately the boards have published a sort of "easter egg" sequence of keystrokes that allows you to disable the "nanny".

I still think though that the "L Finesse" design of the current Lexus offerings is stunning.

As for your comments about too many buttons on the RL's center stack, at first it seems that way, but once you realize that they are redundant for the activation of main functions (i.e. Audio, map/guide, trip computer, etc.) you realize that BMW could take a few lessons from Acura on how to improve i-Drive.

See my comments from the Chicago Auto show. I felt the same way! With the RL, you can flip through functions with barely having to move your arm off of the center console. Not so with the M.

 

I agree with your RL comments and said the same here after I bought my RL. It looks like there are too many buttons initially but everything is operated by voice, or by the big knob, so I hardly need to use them. They are also placed within easy reach. This is as opposed to several of the others, which have even more and smaller buttons, as I point out above. For example, look at where the phone keypad is on the Mercedes E-class--on the far side of the center stack! That's a long reach while you're driving, or even when you're stopped. The Infiniti M's controls are simply too far away for easy use even when not driving.

Overall, I am very satisfied with the RL's interior despite my comments in the original post. It and the Audi offer the best overall interiors to me when considering comfort and function together. I probably should have made that clearer before. If the RL had the same number of buttons at the same size as the 3G TL (my current standard for interior control--so easy to use even without voice control!), and still kept the big knob, and if the leather held up to frequent use a little better, I'd be even happier.

 

What a great thread. I couldn't agree more. So much time is spent talking about the 'exterior' of a car...when it reality we spend all of our time INSIDE the car.
I too thought the RL had the nicest interior, although I never sat in the A6 because I knew I would want one if I did, and my wife put her foot down. (her brother had unbelievable horror stories about his A6)
I didn't know the A6 had a touchscreen?!
And yes.. the 'big knob' on the M turned me off Infinity too. (Although I will say the DVD-A in the Infinity sounded as good if not better than the RL) Didn't like the DVD-A player in the center armrest though.

I don't see a BMW 5 in the pics... is it true that they only have a 'single' CD player...and that the 6-disc in the glove compartment is an option?

 

Oops! I missed my edit on the A6, it's been corrected. I had corrected it but used the wrong version of the text file in the original post.

I didn't include the BMW 5 series only because I didn't get to it. It wasn't anti-BMW bias or anything. I think it limits my comparo a little, but not by much.

 

I don't care for Audi interiors. Something about the console and the cheap looking black surrounding and the tiny buttons that look cheap.

I think Lexus has the best interiors in terms of quality and luxury but the RL's interior is close.

I also like buttons as long as they aren't tiny and they have some logic to them.

Oh and I find the Lexus LS460L interior to be the best out there.

 

One of the dangers of evaluating cars while they're sitting still at auto shows, with no power and people crawling all over you, is that you get false impressions.

I refer primarily to the Infiniti M, which I owned and drove for a year and a half. Its leather - at least in my opinion - is every bit as good as the RL's, as are the interior materials and build quality. I notice the one you saw had the aluminum trim, as opposed to the wood I had, and IMO that makes a big difference in overall warmth and perceived quality.

Ditto for the ergonomics comparison ... but since I'm not 6' or more, maybe the controls just fit me better. In any case, I didn't find that reaching the controls was difficult in any sense.

What DID bother me about the M was the big wide center stack, which intrudes into knee space. And of course the Nav is inferior to the RL's, mainly because of the in-motion lockout, but also because its menus and interface are not as intuitive as the Acura system. OTOH, I DID like that the maps show more detail (towns, secondary highways, etc.) when you're at higher zoom levels.

This is not necessarily a defense of the M, just a differing opinion from someone who has spent 20,000 miles with one.
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I agree 1000%. Any lux car maker worth their salt should power their top-of the line models (at minimum) during car shows to give a basic idea of what the tech they are pushing at the time is like. Lexus has been doing this for years at the Cleveland Auto Show, but no one else has. I guess it's that way to drive you into the dealerships, but it's really no fun on the auto show floor. Acura, in particular, if it's interested in showing how "Advanced" it is, should be doing this. I guarantee that it would drive people to their displays. The best experience, even so, is ownership, as you've just shown.

 

out of all the cars you posted, the RL's interior is still the best IMO.

 

True dat!

 

New Volvo S80 - the one I just test drove looks much better in person than the photo. Compared to my '05RL, the dash is more spartan, but is definitely Swedish stylish. The BMW 5 I test drove a few months ago had a cheap looking dash area...a viewpoint I also noticed somewhere at Consumer's Reports.

OT: The new S80 is the vehicle I would most likely buy if/when I replace my '05RL. My test drive was most impressive...pleasing and redesigned exterior, AWD, good lights (adaptive), ventilated seats (heat & AC), lots of power (V8 & 311hp), huge trunk, blind spot warnings for both sides, adaptive cruise control, dynamic stability and traction control, puddle lighting. Accessories include some stuff I'm interested in...trailer hitch, bike carrier, roof rack.

On the downside, the Volvo S80 will cost more to service/maintain. At this point, having been in all intents and purposes, abandoned by Acura service when I first attempted to have some of the '05 TSB's done on my RL, I'm more than willing and ready to pay a bit more for service.

 

I sat in the LS460 at the Portland Auto Show and was blown away....very luxurious but with its recent price hikes, I really don't think it competes with the RL anymore.

 

I owned a 2006 Lexus GS430 for a year before I traded it for an RL. I agree with all of the comments above concerning the Lexus, especially where the Nanny is concerned; when I spend almost $60K on a car with technology, I don't expect it to shut off all the toys as soon as I get over 3mph. What's the point of the voice recognition if I can't even make a phone call with it unless the number is one of my 10 speed dials? Oh, you could actually dial the phone and it automatically transferred over the the in-car system over Bluetooth (something I wish the RL would do since I can't remember all of the 800 phone numbers in my contact list), but I ask you: more dangerous to dial the phone on the touch screen or through voice recognition while driving, or more dangerous to look down into the center console and dial the phone?

Anyway, lots of reasons for choosing to switch to the RL from the GS430 including:

• A better Nav system
• No need to spend $2000 on winter tires and rims
• Better headlights/illumination
• No need to spend $800 to get XM Radio installed
• No Nanny

Here's my RL



Just so we're clear, I'm still a big Lexus fan. That was my third GS. Here are the things that I think made it better than the RL:

• Better quality leather all around
• Heated and cooled seats. "Cooled" sounds like a gimmick until you get that first hot summer day
• Quiet as a tomb
• Both side mirrors tilt down in reverse and the backup camera was helpful
• Great new look with L-Finesse
• Clean center stack
• Cool LED lighting inside
• Keyless entry even with the rear doors

And just so I don't play favorites too much, here was the GS

 

Those are two beautiful cars! You are lucky to have had both.

 

Yeah, the new GS is a stunner from the exterior as much as the interior. My colleague at work who has one bought one (it's also his third) and he raves over it.

The "nanny" navi would kill me though now that I'm spoiled by Acura's navi systems.

Keep the comments coming, they're all good, especially from previous (or current) owners of these models.

 

That's a good way to look at it. It makes me crazy that virtually everyone but Honda/Acura kills the Navi inputs when moving. Hell's bells, the whole purpose of a Navi is to help you get somewhere, and having to pull over and stop everytime you want to input an address or make an inquiry is just plain ludicrous.

And I'm willing to bet that Acura vehicles with Navi are no more likely to be involved in accidents than any other brand with their crippled Navis.

I'm giving some passing thought to trading my TL for a new G35, but everytime I remember that Navi lockout on Infinitis I get second thoughts. I've suggested on the G35 forums that we should get together a fund to reward anyone who can find a software crack to defeat the Infiniti lockout ... I'll pitch in $100 in a heartbeat!
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I'm sure there has to be a way. With the Toyota/Lexus, you just need to get into the diagnostic menu (like Acura's MAP+MENU+CANCEL sequence) and touch an OVERRIDE button.

 

Welllll..... evidently, there's another way (now) to diable the Nanny in the Lexus/Toyota brand. Looks like CoastalTech (www.coastaletech.com) sells a device called the Ultimate Lockpick for $229 that will disable all that annoyance. Saw this in C&D's April 07 issue last night on page 110. Guess they installed it in an RX400h and it worked like a charm. Even automatically dismissed the startup screen.

Of course, you have to take half the dashboard apart to install it, but it's a plug-in that can come out later without you hacking up the wiring harness.

 

Yeah, I was able to do that with my '06 IS350, but they closed that backdoor in the '07's. There has been lots of crabbing on the Lexus forums about it, too, since it was a nice alternative to lockout!

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That's too bad. The Land Cruiser is really a wonderful word-class SUV, but my wife was beginning to hate it due to the nanny. Her point (a valid one) was the same thing mentioned here, what's the purpose of having the technology if you can't use it while you're moving, which is ALL THE TIME! The LC is her daily driver so it bothered her the most.

I belong to several forums, including ClubLexus, and IH8MUD.com which is a site dedicated soley to the Land Cruiser. She always ribbed me about talking to my car geek friends.

Her opinion changed after I found out about the hack. When I showed it to her, even though you have to do the hack everytime you start the car, you would think I just bought her an expensive gift. She was thrilled.