InsaneRL

Whats up people, been looking into getting a 2nd gen RL. Growing tired of my G35 Coupe and looking for something bigger, AWD that looks good and isn't an SUV.

Was browsing the site but couldn't find anything as to what i should look for when buying one. I'm looking to put up the G up for sale in the next couple of months but have decided that I want a RL as my next car. Any tips? anything i should be looking at when inspecting one. I'm buying from a private owner and not a dealer.

Ill be looking to buy either a 2005 or 2006 model. any tips or advice would be appreciated.

expressbt

I purchased a 2006 RL a month ago. I am very happy with it.
One thing you should look out for is if the model has the tech package, some of them have a Michelin PAX run flat tire system. I was advised to stay away from this because the tires do not last long, and are very expensive to replace. You can identify them by their sub-standard size.
I got an RL with the tech package but the rims were after market and it had standard tires. I would recommend you do the same. I believe I got advice and would also advise you to stay away from the PAX run flat tires.
Here is a 2007 NY Times article about them.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/11/automobiles/11FLATS.html?pagewanted=all
The other thing I found (after the fact) that is common with the year/model is the passenger air bag sensor. This issue is how I discovered this site and joined the community.
When looking at the RL, check for messages and see if the Air Bag has been disabled. You can read about more on this site
Good luck with the search. There are not many RL’s out there.

InsaneRL

^ hey thanks alot, i will deff keep your advise about the run flats in mind saw the article and I never had run flats and I frankly don't really care for them but will stay away from those. As for the airbag messages where do i check for that?

Also, what did you pay for your RL? I'm finding good prices but wanted to see if i can do better, trying to get one for under 14k with good mileage.

expressbt

I got the 2006 for 18k with mid 60's miles. I would have liked to have found an 05 and paid less, but I got the color scheme I wanted (Black/Parchment) and it had the after market rims too. It compared favorably to Kelly value and they listed it for $22k

Regarding the airbag message, press the setup button at the bottom right of the center console and then use the dial to go to MESSAGES. See if there is a message in there about it. Sometimes, there is an Amber light lit on the middle of the dash too.

Hope that helps and good luck.

TampaRLX-SH

I think you may be misunderstanding the 'Passenger Airbag Diabled' message.

It is not a problem with the RL passenger airbag. It is doing what it should be doing. To prevent iunjury to a small child / person seated in the front passenger seat, the RL diables the Passenger Airbag if their weight is below a preset sensor trigger.

This way the airbag will not deploy if a child or small person is in the front seat, potentially doing more harm / injury to a child or small person (hense the recommendation that children are always in the back seat).

There is a side effect of this sensor. You can eaily trigger this sensor and disable the passenger airbag by placing a lightweight object on the passenger seat (a briefcase, backpack, or even leaning onto the seat with your hand). The system posts an alert / message on the Navigation System that the airbag is diabled. This is what it is supposed to do. This is not a defect.

The airbag will be enabled again once the car is restarted - rebooting the system sensors. The Message in the Navigation System may then be cleared.

charlesm23

Welcome! I was just like you two years ago I made the jump from a 08 G37S to my RL 05 with 65k. I've been happy with my purchase overall. I need more room and this was the most bang I found for my buck. I've put over 20k miles and she runs great. Only normal maintenance change all 4 tires and slotted rotors and brake pads. I don't know where you looking to buy, but you should be able to find an 05 or 06 RL in the price range of $15k or $16k with about 50 to 80k miles. Good luck! As you can see everyone with an RL is happy. The jump from and Infiniti G to Acura RL is a good move!

RL Chi-town

i am very happy...

tla11384

just picked mine up last month for 13k with 73k miles. The deals are out there if you are willing to look and wait.

tla11384

also make sure it doesn't whine when your driving around 40 or 60 MPH. could be a propeller shaft or rear differential going bad.

IanVS

Whichever one you find, might be worth taking to a dealer to have them give it a once-over. I did that on mine and they found two bad motor mounts (common problem on these cars, about $400 each to replace), a leaky power steering pump ($800), and a few other minor things here and there. All-in-all worth the $118 for the inspection to know that a car with 160k miles didn't have any super-expensive problems, like a transmission that had been neglected or something.

scrim67

I found an '07 with cmbs already dePAXed 110k miles for $14.5k

Flew to pick it up and drove it the 600 miles home over last wknd.

Really enjoy the ACC

Glen08RL

I bought my 08 RL with 45k miles 3 months ago and I believe it is best car I have owned. If you get one, I believe you won't regret it.

burbank_dude

I bought it for 19k with 45k miles. Don't let the PAX tires scare you away from the tech package. The CBMS alone on the tech package makes it worth dealing with the tires. They were on my car when I bought it but I bought aftermarket wheels with Bridgestone run flats for 1500 rather than replace the PAX tires. They were the original tires on this car and they still had 10k miles or so on them so I don't know about folks complaining about the durability of the PAX tires. They are good tires just a bad concept and pricing from Michelin. I was going to replace them but at a little over 2k to get new ones I decided to save some coin and shop around.

Aside from that the front engine mount needs to be replaced now. I must say that I was surprised that the front one in this car went bad just north of 50k miles. I got a good mechanic in SoCal who knows Hondas well and does good work at reasonable rates so I am not mad that it needs to be replaced. But in my Accord and Acura Tl the mounts went to around 100k miles. If I had to buy it again knowing what I know now I still would. The car is a great value.

TonyCD

To your original question:

Use the search function to search other threads on this board -- there have been a lot of good discussions about the problems to watch out for on the RL. It's a very reliable car on the whole, but it's good to know what the trouble spots are when you shop.

It's well known that the '06 had the bugs worked out that the '05 had. But since it's well known, you can also find '05s at better prices. And since the car sold better in '05, there will be more of those around.

Love my RL. Shop wisely and I suspect you will, too.