Had my usual weekend test drives, which was a new Ford Focus( was a piece of driving crap) and the all new Audi S5 coupe(V8 345hp). I am not gong to do the long winded," what I thought". Unless someone wants to know more, I'll just say when I got back in the RL, it bought a big smile to my face. Let me tell you, the RL DOES NOT need a V8. I will say the Audi is a wonderful piece of automobile craftsmanship. Even with a 6 speed manual, there was no gear I could lug th engine with, and you never need to downshift. At the same time I found the car to be boring to drive. I am convinced you really will never know how good the RL until you drive some of the other cars out there. Dont get me wrong the S5 is a wonderful and head turning car. The one I drove had a msrp of 60K, but if I were only going to have one car, it would be the RL

 

Hmm...didn't realize that the S5 had made it to dealer lots. Guess I'm going to have to go see if I can find one to test drive.

 

I would agree. But I also would not be shocked if Honda produced a V8 that matches or betters the RL's economy. But how much more HP & torque? That remains to be seen. But I too doubt Honda would abandon it's ULEV and economy standards.

 

Nope, every car maker has to have niche and honda will Keep the ULEV one. I don't think honda is going to play with the big boys.

 

What if they offered a V8 with the Variable Cylinder Management that is on the new V6 Accord. If they could manage a 340-360 hp or more AWD RL that was able to get 25-27 mpg on the highway--that would be a fantastic combination. Any talk of Honda developing a V8 with VCM?