Pardon me if I stumble. I am new here. I recently purchased a 2005 Acura RL with 145k miles. First off, I am went to the nearest Honda dealer for a safety check. They provided me with a list an arm long. After the initial shock, I perused their list (which added up to about $6500 in repairs and delayed maintenance) and categorized it all, I realized that it was definitely overpriced, probably to encourage me to buy a new vehicle. After calming down, I realized that I could get it all done for a heck of a lot less from local mechanics. So, I have ordered parts and arranged for repairs, not from dealership.

Nonetheless, My name is Steve and I am now in the process of reviving a lovely 2005 RL. The problems are all within reasonable bounds. In a few weeks, I will have a once-$50,000 luxury vehicle, and I am tickled pink!

 

@Steve Stumpp Welcome to Acurazine! I moved your post to the 2nd Gen RL forum, since you have a 2005 RL. Good luck restoring it!

 

Greetings! You'll find the stickies at the top and the search function are your friends. There are a handful of ailments RL owners are used to either seeing or hearing about, but once they're shaken down, the basic powertrain of these cars and their road behavior when properly maintained has stayed remarkably fresh for a whole lot of us.

There's real quality in those bones—premium materials like magnesium, aluminum and carbon fiber, tech that was ahead of its time, and terrific construction at Honda's Saitama plant that included an incredible hand-sanded paint finish. As one driver put it, this and the LS430 were "the last of the great Japanese tanks."

Enjoy!

 

Enjoy your RL! I had a 2006 CPO RL and a 2012 CPO RL I just sold last summer. Between the 2 RLs I put about 320k miles combined on them. I loved both of them. And yes, the RL and Lexus LS430 were the last of the Japanese tanks. 3 of the many little things I really enjoyed on the RLs were the fold out front door map pockets and on my 2006 RL the fully adjustable headrest cushions. The rear seat armrest feels like it cost a fortune and escaped the bean counters! To me the RL was a better styled car than the RLX. Perfect design proportions.