Well, the lease end is finally here. Sad to say, I must depart with the 06 Rl. It has been one of the most satisfying cars I have ever had the privilege to drive. After test driven everything from a Smartcar to a Jag SF I have finally decided on something else to drive, till Acura makes an RL with some looks. Still have my TSX and my other two cars, so I will still be lurking around. My criteria for my our new ride, was, less lease payment then the good deal we got on the RL. Similar features and SOME style. After a very LONG and trying search, the lady and I decided on the 2009 Nissan Maxima. It was the closet I could get to the RL with less money. I never understood what was do special about that Nissan V6, but now I know. Compared to the RL the Maxima V6 has tremendous power, especially in the "sport" mode where the CVT transmission keeps the revs in the powerband. The step on the gas punch is awesome. There is no waiting for the power to come on like the Vtec. It gives you the sensation the you can take any car on a roll. Of course the fit and finish is no where as good as the RL but you're talking about a car the has a 20K less MSRP. The Navi and the rest of the controls you set up, are not as intuitive as Acura makes them. You NEED the manual for this animal. I am still scratching my head on how to set the memory for the outside mirror when they tilt in reverse. The audio system is on par with the RL except when you are playing DVD audio disk. Hard for any car to beat the RL there. The best audio there is, is the Lexicon in the New Hyundai Genesis.(fabulous). The Maxima as you would expect is much more tossable in the curves, but I will miss the AWD. The Rl is a very refined machine, where the Maxima is good, but a little ruff around the edges. For example the Fan noise in the RL sounds more like a whisper, where the Max sounds like I am in a wind tunnel when its onset on high. The Max have very limited voice commands. For example, all I can say for the climate controls are. " ac on, or ac off" -
Thanks goodness I still have my TSX I can talk to. Although he navi in the Max is more up to date, the operation of is sucks in comparison to the Acura. Big turn off is the car has to be stopped before setting a destination. On the other hand is does has some nice features the RL does not. I still like the plan and simple Navi screen the RL has compared to the clustered screen on the Max. Last but not least is the CVT transmission. That is one smooth shifting tranny. There is no detectable feeling of shifting except in the sport mode. In regard to engine and tranny, the combo of the CVT and the Nissan is smoother then the RL. Having said all this, if I was rich, I would keep this RL for a collection. I just think it is a world class car that is really not appreciated until you drive something else. I will miss her, and I hope Acura comes out soon with something that you can look at without wincing.

 

Anyone interested I might have a pristine condition genuine RLwood shift knob for sale. Contact me email if interested. Just need to make sure I can find the original first.

 

dwest, you are comparing a 3 year old car to a new car. Acceleration wise the 09 RL is just as fast 0-60 as the Maxima. I believe caranddriver.com had it at 0-60 in 5.8s, my RL did 5.9.

I don't know how your Maxima will manage 290hp to front wheels, but I'm pretty sure RL will channel 300hp to all wheels a bit better.

Either way, good luck with your Maxima!

 

*snif*

I am a Maxima fan from the "4DSC" days, didn't like the last gen, and love the exterior design of the new gen. It looks like what I imagined the 4G TL should have looked like. How much torque steer is there? It's been an issue with prior Maximas, especially the last two gens.

Good luck with the Maxima!

 

How many miles were on your RL out of curiosity?

How easy it to change the gear shift knob? I know in the new Bentley's you just put the trans selector in N and push down on the stalk and then you can unscrew the knob. Is this the same for the RL?

Good luck with the Maxima. I have rented a few Maxima's over the years when I got lucky at Emerald Aisle and have always admired their super slick V-6.

Ed

 

I believe around 22K. The gearshift knob just screws on and off. No Biggie

 

I have test driven the 09 but I did not have the opportunity to really put foot in it. My main point with the Max was its power delivery. It just feels instant with the new maxima, where the rl had to wait for the vtec to kick in(06 anyway) If there is any torque steer I have not noticed it yet. My peddle pushes have only been from a roll. I can say that Torque steer seems to be more of a problem with the TSX then this car.

 

Well...from experience, the 09 RL takes off from the start. I come from an 06TL and that thing took awhile to get going, a second slower to 60 on it's best day, which I could never replicate again...

How much did you pay for the Maxima and what trim level?

 

Torque steer does not seem to be a problem with the new Maxima. So far I have only done full peddle on roll ons. Unlike my tsx I do not feel a thing at the steering wheel. I think the fit and finish is a cut above in the new TL. In fact I like the interior of my 06 tsx better, but then I am a fan of wood trim and my tsx has that option. The buttons and plastic seem to be of better quality my tsx as well. I love the styling of the Maxima and I wish Acura would have put some more thought in theirs. The 3G TL was a masterpiece in my mind. I leased an 05 for 6 months, then test drove an RL and that was that. I am not sure what is going on with the car builders and the huge grilles.

 

I got the Max with sport and tech package. MSRP was 38K and change. I got it at invoice around 33K and change. Invoice is easy to get in these times. The dealer tried to get 500 over invoice but I told him I had a deal at another dealer at 200 over. When he ask what would it take to buy from him, I just said invoice and we shook hands.

 

33k, not bad. I got my self an 09RL with 3500mi for 40k fully loaded with CMBS. Same price I was ready to pay for 09 TL awd (invoice) except they told me financing was over 6%...screw that.

 

Wow, that is a great deal. I might have rethought my purchase had I thought you could get a 09 Rl at that price and with CMBS too? Thats fantastic. I hardly ever see any 09 Rl on my dealers lot. I could have lived with the styling for that price.

 

Well...you're gonna hate me but check out ebay action #400032000212

 

wow, I am really surprised that the 09 RL is going so low. I wonder, how much the dealers are taken off for a new one?

 

Not a bad choice, given the circumstances.. The new Maxima has the best looks out of the bunch for sure. There's been some Maximas I have definitely liked. The old school one, you know what I'm talkin about, the one I should of bought when I first got my license, but instead got a Mitsu Galant .. but let's not bring that up, oh, I did, anyway... And then I remember the 2003ish Maxima was really the cool "affordable" car when I was in high school. It had the circle split tail lights and some pretty nice factory headlights..

It's good that you still got the TSX, however .. I'm not fond of the interiors on Nissans....

 

I am not either. I have a Nissan frontier and the interior is just butt ugly. As I said, I was stepping down in class and price, so compromise is very hard coming out of an RL. It took a year of looking to decide on the Maxima. IMO the Max at its price, is the best you gonna do for a new car, compared to a RL. Styling was a big factor here also. Sorry TL.....

 

My very first car was a shiny new "Super Black" 1991 Maxima SE. Man I loved that car.