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Hey all, I've chimed in on a few threads here but didn't say hi yet. As the demands on my time have changed, I've made a switch and given the driveway a full reboot. Gone are our Odyssey EXL, Audi A4, and BMW 540i MSport. I replaced them with a pair of Acuras - an 08 MDX Tech for the wife and an 05 RL with Nav as my daily.
i scored pretty big on the RL - I wanted a black interior and was hoping for a silver car but I found my pearl white over tan car about 2.5 hours away in NJ with 127k and a ton of service records for $6300. The car is in terrific shape and after some negotiating, I paid $6900 out the door but that included them doing the full 105k timing job, a trans and diff fluid exchange, oil change, New armrests, air and cabin filters, and New pads all around. The dealer also threw in a full detailing and filled the tank. I brought the car home 10 days ago.
Three weeks before that I bought the wife a black over gray 08 MDX Tech in immaculate condition (literally near showroom-perfect). 65k on it, one owner like the RL, and every record back to and including the window sticker. That was a lot more expensive at $16,700 but compared to other MDXs in my region, it was a solid and fair price and I'm happy with it.
Both cars have been great and I'm loving the comparatively low maintenance required as opposed to especially the BMW. That's a hell of a fun car but a pain in the ass too. So far no regrets!
Wow, the MDX looks brand new! The RL doesn't look too shabby, as well. Looks like you found a couple of really nice cars/vehicles.
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks man, the MDX is a jewel. I couldn't believe the condition it was in. There was no way I was going to pass on it. So far I'm behaving with both cars - only did LED retrofits and ordered drop-in K&N filters. We'll see what happens as the year progresses though lol. I have the tendency to not leave any car as-is. The RL is in great shape too, I just don't like the brown/tan interior as much, so I'll probably go after that. In my Audi, I used a dye to change the seats to a two tone, and dyed the bottom of the wheel and the door card inserts too. I may use something similar to dye the darker top colors black and convert it to a Black and Tan interior. We'll see when the weather gets better - its way too cold for that stuff now
After the mistake I made with my TL Type S purchase, I vowed never buying a light color interior again and look like it working so far. I was looking at the MDX too but most of them have that taupe or parchment interior which is a no go for me so I end up with the RL.
Awesome! I'm a day and a half from picking up my new to me RL and I can't wait. I didn't score quite the deal that you did but still feel I got a good deal.
Awesome! I'm a day and a half from picking up my new to me RL and I can't wait. I didn't score quite the deal that you did but still feel I got a good deal.
Very cool, you'll definitely love the car. I absolutely got a good deal on this car and I think I could've paid more and still have gotten a deal. I'm sure your car will turn out to be worth its purchase price. Pics when you bring it home!
Love your RL especially since its the white with tan. Just bough one myself in January. A 2007 with 112k, people still think its brand new. Its one of the best cars I bought yet. A one Owner like yours price was a bit steep at 11k but Acura included 10 months of prepaid maintenance. The RL will never disappoint. Enjoy your Acura's!
Last edited by robscharp05; 03-22-2017 at 11:26 PM.
Love your RL especially since its the white with tan. Just bough one myself in January. A 2007 with 112k, people still think its brand new. Its one of the best cars I bought yet. A one Owner like yours price was a bit steep at 11k but Acura included 10 months of prepaid maintenance. The RL will never disappoint. Enjoy your Acura's!
looks familiar for sure I'll have to read back through to see who paid $11k - mine was under 7.
Is the MDX as bad as the RL on gas? That gen MDX is on my radar for whenever I purchase a SUV.
Actually it's worse lol, but keeping perspective on the cars, that's not necessarily bad. My older daughter plays on a travel volleyball team. Last Sunday we took the RL to her tournament, about 145 miles each way. Traveling 75-80mph, plus some stop and go and some idling time, the car returned 25.5mpg. I'm not upset by that at all.
The MDX is bigger, blockier, and weighs more, with the same engine. On our trips with it we see 20-22 overall. In daily driving it's on par with my V8 5-series, around 17 or so. But with all that it offers and the fact that it's a superb vehicle to drive and be in, to me that's an acceptable tradeoff. Don't let fuel economy dissuade you from getting one - they're terrific vehicles and I don't regret a dime I spent on it.
how big is the gas tank on the MDX? the 2012 MDX loaner I got actually doing better gas mile than a 2012 TL SH-AWD. OP is it me or the RL SH-AWD got really detune compare to your MDX SH-AWD. When I drove the TL and MDX the SH-AWD constant making adjustment where the RL only does that when you really getting into the gas during corner.
Thanks man, the MDX is a jewel. I couldn't believe the condition it was in. There was no way I was going to pass on it. So far I'm behaving with both cars - only did LED retrofits and ordered drop-in K&N filters. We'll see what happens as the year progresses though lol. I have the tendency to not leave any car as-is. The RL is in great shape too, I just don't like the brown/tan interior as much, so I'll probably go after that. In my Audi, I used a dye to change the seats to a two tone, and dyed the bottom of the wheel and the door card inserts too. I may use something similar to dye the darker top colors black and convert it to a Black and Tan interior. We'll see when the weather gets better - its way too cold for that stuff now
Congratulations! Those look like two very smart acquisitions.
The RL looks fantastic from outside, and suffers only from some worn driver's seat leather and brake pedal rubber inside, per your pictures. I have a tan interior on my own RL, and I agree with your instinct about black and tan. An easy way to achieve it, while also giving you a steering wheel that's both sportier looking and more comfortably fat-rimmed, is a leather cover over the steering wheel rim and a set of black floormats (yes, I've done both). As for the driver's seat leather, I recently had a leather repairer fix a rip in the passenger's seat, and while doing so, he re-dyed the whole middle of the seat. It looks virgin, and I think that'd be a great fix for your driver's chair as well (provided it's not tearing anwhere, of course).
Car looks awesome man - I'm very jealous of the black interior. Of all the schemes I've see for the RL I think the black looks best.
As for the MDX, it's a 21 gallon tank so it has legs, it's just expensive to fill. Not sure which way you mean about the RL feeling defined though - for what it is, the MDX moves pretty well but the RL is definitely quicker. That's expected though - the RL is lighter, with better aerodynamics and I expect better gearing, and is meant as a sport sedan, so being quicker isn't a surprise.
Congratulations! Those look like two very smart acquisitions.
The RL looks fantastic from outside, and suffers only from some worn driver's seat leather and brake pedal rubber inside, per your pictures. I have a tan interior on my own RL, and I agree with your instinct about black and tan. An easy way to achieve it, w hile also giving you a steering wheel that's both sportier looking and more comfortably fat-rimmed, is a leather cover over the steering wheel rim and a set of black floormats (yes, I've done both). As for the driver's seat leather, I recently had a leather repairer fix a rip in the passenger's seat, and while doing so, he re-dyed the whole middle of the seat. It looks virgin, and I think that'd be a great fix for your driver's chair as well (provided it's not tearing anwhere, of course).
lol we think alike - I have black mats in the mail already. I have no tears in the seats but I'm still likely going to dye my upper and lower dash, upper door panels, and seat backs and bolsters, center tunnel, along with the steering column and wheel, unless of course an RL shows up in black at the local yard, in which case I'll yank the black pieces and swap them in. Did you see the pics of my A4's interior when I did the two tone dye job with suede trim wrap? I'm looking to do something like that with Black and Tan. This is how it came out.
after I did my research the RL SH-AWD system distribute 70-30 torque under normal load where TL, RDX, ZDX and MDX distribute 90-10 under normal load. Also the MDX using slightly revise clutch pack which lead to quicker response time compare to the 05-06 RL.
As far as my RL goes its actually belong to a senior sale rep at my local Acura dealer where I services both of my TL (small world), the service advisor told me after I provide the VIN to see the reason for airbag replacement show up in carfax. I come to find out all the service, fluids, A/C charge, filter already been done, it like a new car except for the 111k miles on the clock. BTW I got the car for $7500. I talked to the former owner and found out he trade the car in for a RLX hybrid and he kinda upset about the RLX then he offer to buy the RL back.
Last edited by truonghthe; 03-23-2017 at 08:51 PM.
Interesting thread as I have my eye on a 2008 RL with black interior and 126k on the clock. They're military and about to ship out soon so I think they are selling for a low price. I'm taking a look at it tomorrow.
That's awesome i got my car last year ... i got a 06 RL 43k miles on it for 13k i love it the old bitty who had it did everything at the dealership.. lol she even when to get her air in the tires the guy who sold it to me showed me they did everything at the dealer. it was rear ended and it was repaired at Acura,, but you know what i said i don't care as long as nothings wrong with it.. I'm cool.. lol its soo bitchin i get some looks at it..some guy even asked if its a NEW type of TL .. lol i said noo this is the big daddy of the Acura and i told him all about it ... lol later on i found out he went and bough one. this car has got to be the best kept secret or just not enough notoriety...anyways love this car.. like i said it has enough LUX, enough power, enough sportyness, enough unieqness ..
KURA my car isnt she pretty
lol we think alike - I have black mats in the mail already. I have no tears in the seats but I'm still likely going to dye my upper and lower dash, upper door panels, and seat backs and bolsters, center tunnel, along with the steering column and wheel, unless of course an RL shows up in black at the local yard, in which case I'll yank the black pieces and swap them in. Did you see the pics of my A4's interior when I did the two tone dye job with suede trim wrap? I'm looking to do something like that with Black and Tan. This is how it came out.
Can you please post the products used to dye and the process? I want to dye my black seats red.
Thanks for the link man, excellent stuff in that thread. So you went with SEM, I also read that Colorbond is supposed to be really really good. I want to try this really bad but I have to be honest that I am terrified to ruin my interior. Especially since I have cooled seats, I don't want to gunk up my ventilation holes.
Otherwise, how has it held up since that initial post in 2010? Sorry if you already posted that info/posted that you sold the car and I missed it.
Thanks for the link man, excellent stuff in that thread. So you went with SEM, I also read that Colorbond is supposed to be really really good. I want to try this really bad but I have to be honest that I am terrified to ruin my interior. Especially since I have cooled seats, I don't want to gunk up my ventilation holes.
Otherwise, how has it held up since that initial post in 2010? Sorry if you already posted that info/posted that you sold the car and I missed it.
it has held up well honestly. I put a good 45,000 miles on it and it has just started showing some wear. The key is to not condition the seats for a few months before doing it, and to wipe them down with a damp microfiber, then dry them, before spraying. I spent at least an hour masking each seat and panel to get the edges as perfect as possible.
If Colorbond is the brand from Advance Auto, it works pretty well, but SEM is better. I would advise SEM for the job. As with any job like this, prep is key. Here is an interior I did with SEM for a 350Z. Came out pretty awesome
I think the results speak for the quality of the stuff. Well worth what they get per can.
OP you are the master of repaint the interior, however on the other note that our RL came with different color panels causing a headache when you trying to switch to another color.
it has held up well honestly. I put a good 45,000 miles on it and it has just started showing some wear. The key is to not condition the seats for a few months before doing it, and to wipe them down with a damp microfiber, then dry them, before spraying. I spent at least an hour masking each seat and panel to get the edges as perfect as possible.
If Colorbond is the brand from Advance Auto, it works pretty well, but SEM is better. I would advise SEM for the job. As with any job like this, prep is key. Here is an interior I did with SEM for a 350Z. Came out pretty awesome
I think the results speak for the quality of the stuff. Well worth what they get per can.
Now that looks sick! Well done man I am actually really really impressed. Wow! Loving how intricate that looks with the 2 V shaped lines and stuff. Another question if you don't mind, does it still feel like leather or does it feel like vinyl or plastic and hard?
Thanks for the excellent pics. I'm excited to see how your work on the RL turns out.
Thank you - nice part about it is that it's pretty easy to work with. You just need to prep and mask carefully. Afterward there is a slightly rougher texture initially but as the seats are used, it smooths out just fine.
I'm hoping to avoid all the labor and disassembly for the dye work by finding a wrecked RL with a black interior, but I have never seen an RL in the local yard so I have low hopes and likely will have to dye everything. Crossing fingers!
03-22-2017, 09:18 AM
