If anyone is interrested... this months issue of Motor Trend showed up in my mailbox yesterday...and the "Long Term Review" on the 2005 RL is featured towards the back of the magazine. It's not a glowing report... but I've seen worse. It seems to me unless the name of the car starts with a B and ends with a W... they don't like it.
-NavyDoc

 

I read it and I agree with you. Sometimes it's about more than 0-60 times or a V-6 versus a V-8. And what car, BMW's included, are with out some "issues"? For me, I couldn't be happier, I love my RL.

 

Generally, car magazine writers are expert drivers with advanced driving education who put overly-strong emphasis on fair-weather performance and no, or almost no, emphasis on reliability, resale value, true cost to buy, or true cost to own.

Have you ever read that VW's nav is complete crap? No.

Have you ever read a correct description of SH-AWD? No. (many AWD systems apportion torque between the rear wheels, SH-AWD is unique in it's ability to speed up the outside-rear wheel)

Ask any auto writer, and they'll tell you they'd prefer a RWD, manual transmission RL to save weight and complication, and maybe a V8 for more power. Is that what you wanted?

Of the magazines, Car and Driver is the best in my opinion and they recognized the RL as best-in-class. Unfortunately, the old-timers at C&D seem to be retiring and the new kids aren't as good yet, though even at their worst, they're still better than Motor Trend.

 

Consumer Digest has rated alot of cars. I used them when I was looking at different cars before I purchased the RL. I have prevoiusly owned 4 Acuras. All have been very reliable cars. It is interesting how they rated the BMW especially the interior.

 

what were the major issues they experienced?

 

I read that article last night when my mag arrived. I've definitely read much worse, but as already stated they love the RWD M/T cars and that's never going to change. With the work Touge is doing on his RL, in due time, HP won't be an issue for those willing to make a few tweaks....

 

Motor Trend writers are expert drivers who don't know squat about technology. That's why they can't review aspects of a car such as navigation system, voice commands, bluetooth, etc.

And I would also like to know what issues they had with the 2005 Acura RL.

 

The issues they had were minor, a couple of fuses blew... the center console 12V jack wouldn't come up... things like that. But what they complained about was it having only 'adequate' power and some of the log entries said things like, "A nice car for Grandma"
I'm doing this from memory.. I'll go home -re-read it... and post some of the highlights.
I may be able to scan it into a Jpg and upload it on here.
-

 

Sounds liek typical Motor Trend. The 12V jack in the 2005 RL isn't supposed to come up. That's how they built it that year.

Oh well. It would be nice if someone made a car magazine for geeks.

 

IIRC, they DID say it was the "go-to" car for anyone wanting to take a long drive or cross-country run.
.
.

 

I read the article. I had purchased MT, but mostly to look at the 600 HP Viper. f'n They don't mention the RL on the cover at all.

Anyway, I don't get how it was a negative review. It was actually well-balanced. Their criticisms are much the same as ours. They say it needs more power, and they accurately note that the max power was available later in the power band than in the 1G RL. They admit nitpicking about the mior problems in the electrical system, which many 2005 RL owners on our very board complain about. They say "Minor issues, though surprising to experience in an Acura."

The styling "some of our staff claimed their Dads love" smacks of calling the RL a geezer car, but hell, I'm 38 and a new dad, so I guess they were pointing their finger at me.

They say "the cushy interior, navigation, and terrific handling made this an ideal road-trip car....it became the chosen car for ski trips, holiday visits, and a couple of photo shoots". Pretty positive to me.

Their last paragraph pretty much says it all: "The RL is an improvement over the previous-generation flagship, but still has a long way to go before it can be considered a true sport sedan". Uhhh, guys, we say the same thing right here.

Not a bad article at all! It was more positive than Car and Driver's long-term article on the RL, with which they had more problems than the Motor Trend crew (and I like C&D enough to subscribe....).

 

It's Motor Trend... obviously, Acura just didn't buy enough advertising space in the magazine to get a glowing review....

 

AMEN to that. I stopped buying R&T, C&D, and the red headed step child MT long ago when they ALL gave into advertising. Any mag that would choose the PT Cruiser as the best of anything doesn't have a clue.

 

And that is why I dumped my Motortrend subscription years ago. The final straw was when I saw a comparo with a BMW that got trounced in performance categories yet they still gave it "the win" because they clearly jizz on BMW and I refuse to financially support people who are that biased and not worth my time.

Every auto rag is a piece of shit and the people who write for them are morons. Seriously...wtf is the point of stating your opinion on a car if all you care about are things the avg person won't use in day to day driving? Especially when it comes to LUXURY CARS...I mean really.

Familycar.com is one of the better sites out there since they actually know a car is more than its bloody 0-60 tim and slalom speed.

Car mags (and sites even though I can enjoy Familycar) are just another indication of what the mass media is- STUPID

 

Automobile is the only one worth reading, IMHO... they're fairly unbiased, although they do seem to have a bit of a hardon for Chrysler products... However, two issues ago they changed editorial staff, so it'll be interesting to see where the mag goes.

I do miss the days of David E. Davis as EIC at C&D and then Automobile, where there were many tales of drunken debauchery involving high-speed cross country runs in expensive cars with people like P.J. O'Rourke....

 

Check out DED's new internet mag. You can "subscribe" for free.

http://www.windingroad.com/about

 

Magazines are biased towards their big advertisers, no question about it. And it's not just limited to the automotive industry. The computer industry is the same way. Dell advertises heavily in all magazines since they are a direct marketer. The magazines always "tweaked" the benchmarks to give the edge to Dell and they always raved about Dell. They can't "bite the hand that feeds them", right?

I also stopped reading car magazines years ago for that very reason. It's a shame so many people fall for it.