kdines

Hello – please allow me to introduce myself. I am 41 and live in San Diego and was contemplating a new Acura TL until it dawned on me that the RL was probably closer to what I like as well as the way I drive (pretty mellow). I really like wood trim in a car and also prefer the RL’s more traditional dash layout and the extra nod to luxury is an added bonus. The TL’s extra technology features would probably ‘gather dust’ with me, to be honest! I have an ’04 Saab 9-5 2.3T wagon with 70,000 miles in immaculate condition - I feel loathed to change cars but have recently felt that it may become an unreliable nightmare after a bad crankshaft position sensor stranded my daughter and I and lightened my wallet by $600. I have always loved Saabs but their shaky corporate condition, highly limited dealership network and horrendous depreciation is very off-putting right now.

Anyway, I’m thinking of an ’08 or ’09 certified pre-owned RL with Technology, preferably in the 20,000 – 30,000 mile range. I am drawn to the reliability and extended warranty and my only real potential concern is the fuel economy of the RL. Now, I drive very conservatively and doing the commuting etc that I do in my Saab, I get 25 – 26 mpg on premium fuel (it is officially rated as 26 highway). In my previous cars I have also tended to average the EPA highway rating in my routine driving. I know that it is easy in many cars to exceed the EPA figures by quite some margin – do you think that this applies for the RL and its 22 mpg EPA highway rating? I am OK in getting 15% or so less than I currently get but would begin to have a hard time with 20 mpg!

Final question – if I ended up with an ’09 model, can previous model year grilles fit on an ’09 as I am not a big fan of the newer grilles. To be honest, I prefer the look of the ’08 (can’t quite put my finger on the differences) but the ’09 may have some worthwhile ‘upgrades’.

I have spent quite some time looking through the posts here and have found them to be an extremely helpful resource as I research my next car.

Thanks and take care - Kevin

thephantom

Welcome to the board, Kevin.

1. If your driving style is rather mellow, an 05 to 08 (3.5 engine) will definitely get you around 22, maybe even 24 MPG. This also depends on how much highway/ city driving you do.

2. If you do end up with an 09, you can always paint the chrome part on the top of the grill to match the body color. A member here, 037, did it to his and it looks much better!

3. If you are interested in an 08; a client of mine (a Mazda and Volvo dealership) has recently acquired an 08 L with about 8,500 miles on it! It's a Silver on Beige with Tech Package. Let me know if you are interested.

Good luck with your search!!

mg7726

if you have reservations about the grille, do not, do not get the '09+. they have destroyed the entire line up.

tnobori1

Welcome! The '08 EPA hwy rating is 24 mpg. Many members here get better than that on their RLs. I get around 20 combined but I have sticky tires and enjoy pretty spirited driving. I love my car and would call it my favorite all around vehicle. It's a good choice for a wide variety of drivers.

kdines

Thank you all for your replies - they were very helpful and confirmed that the 3.5 L engine in the RL from '05 to '08 gets a little better mileage than the '09s and up. Throw that in with my general preference for the styling of the earlier model years and my mind is suddenly alot clearer! There is one locally that is also a certified pre-owned that I may go and check out - a silver with black interior. My first choice would be white and I tend to like light interiors......but maybe it's time for a change. Certainly, the light carpets in my Saab are not the smartest idea.

Thanks again, much appreciated - Kevin

Tomshark

Kevin,
I currently have an 06 RL with the 3.5 engine. I travel a bit up and down the east coast and i can routinely crack 28+ mpg on strictly highway driving. I have even gotten as much as 30 on a particular trip. Most of my other driving is suburban and i generally get 18.5 - 19.5 .
Good luck with your search !

xdarkne55x

Good luck with your car search.

Just on the side note the 08 interior is completely identical to the 09.....? I believe the front seats have air cooling and the rear side sunshades are automatic.... Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

oo7spy

'09 has cooling seats and a wood grain console trim. The '08 has neither. If I am not mistaken, the '09 comes with the wood shifter and steering wheel while the '08 doesn't without an upgrade. The '09 does not have the ability to shift with the knob. However, the '09 can shift at anytime with the shifters. You don't have to be in manual mode. Good luck, both are great cars!

kdines

Thanks again for the feedback - I just got back from taking a look at a June '08 with 36,800 miles for $30,695 (certified pre-owned and the KBB price is $31,185). It has the collision mitigation system but thankfully, they have replaced the PAX rims with normal 17" rims and brand new Bridgestone tyres. Of course, it has a few paint chips etc but no dents/dings and overall, it is in great shape and drives very, very nicely. Lovely, timeless light silver colour. Very solid and smooth and the black interior, although not my knee-jerk first choice, looks great and is growing on me. Besides, maybe it's time for a change! I did notice the lack of ventilated seats and wood console trim by the shifter but you can't have it all. I really love the wood that it does have - much more my taste. The exterior styling is also my favourite of the RLs and I think it is very classy with an athletic look.

The haggling is tiresome. There seems to be no movement on the trade-in value of my current car from the KBB value. I mentioned the Curry Acura pricing on Acura Care extended warranties and I may as well have been trying to convince him that aliens just landed and were buying slush puppies at the 7-11 across the street. Anyway, he told me $2,450 for 8 years/120K miles. Curry just emailed me with $1,850 for the same thing with zero deductible. I don't begrudge them making a profit but don't appreciate being told that I'll be taking a chance on the Curry deal as "it can't be legitimate as they haven't seen the car".

Thanks again and take care - Kevin

jacob king

my '05 has the wood console

thephantom

If you like the light interior, this Lakeshore Silver is perfect for you: http://gallocars.com/Vehicle_Details...4d35bf1d534c81

oo7spy

LSM/Taupe FTMFW! Unfortunately that isn't LSM. That one is either Cellestial Silver or Desert Mist. It's really hard to tell from their lighting. I looks like Desert Mist to me, but the "Silver" in the title has me thinking Cellestial. I find it hilarious that the people selling the RLs can't get the color name correct for their lives.

thephantom

The color code was pulled from the VIN automatically. Not saying the VIN decoder is always right, but it usually is. I'll have them look into the color code. Thanks.

oo7spy

Well it isn't Celestial; it would be Platinum Frost. They changed the name in '07. Otherwise it is the same color. I found a lot of issues with posted colors when I was searching for my car last fall. The Carfax was always correct b/c, like you said, it can pull it from the VIN. However, most posts were incorrect and inconsistent with the Carfax. Here is a color table anyway:

kdines

Thanks for the lead - but I probably will end up buying local. Also, as ironic as this sounds, getting one with more miles (say 30,000) will mean I'll optimise the use I get from the 8 year/120,000 mile AcuraCare warranty that I'll also probably end up buying. Taking a break from the haggling right now as I am thoroughly tired of it and it's sucking all and any potential fun out of obtaining a lovely, 'new' car!! If I lose this opportunity I'm sure there will be others!

Thanks again, all - Kevin

thephantom

No problem... it was just sold, anyway. ;-)

oo7, you were right, it's a Platinum Frost.