Vicman17

Really good article about FWD versus RWD technology on the July 04 Car and Driver (with the yellow Lotus on the cover).

Csaba Csere writes about the limits of FWD. Intriguing article and very informative. He writes about how a FWD car (TSX) and a RWD of a similar size/ power (325i) has advantages/ disadvantages when accelerating under power.

He also writes:

" Honda Accords and Nissan Altimas come with 240 hp V6s, and 300 hp luxury sedans are everywhere. At these power levels, front-drive has reached the limits of it's competence. " and expounds on the torque steer FWD cars are experiencing (like the 3rd Gen TL).

Thought I'd share that.

LiQiCE

Yeah even Honda reps were quoted as saying that they felt the limits of FWD was about 270hp and anything above 270hp would get AWD in the future (ala the 2005 RL). Lets just hope they follow suit with an AWD TL and TSX

ResidualFreedom

ya a 2006 TL-S SH-AWD with +300 Hp. That'll be nice!

Lawaia

Csaba Csere was the Editor-in-Chief that gave the '04 TL a less than average review. All due to the fact that there was too much torque steer, especially with the 6-speed. First time I ever heard C&D recommend the automatic model over the manual transmission.

SatinSilverTypS

iTrader: (1)

the tsx is in fact available with AWD in europe. and it's considered the european accord. sucks for us :'(

hemants

I'd take it one step further and say that any two wheel drive car has diminishing returns of power.

Once you have enough power to spin your tires, you would have been better off with AWD.

Add rain to the equation and the advantages are even greater.

260hp is plenty for me on this platform which I view as a sporty luxurious cruiser, not a sports car.

If I really wanted performance, I wouldn't get a RWD car, I'd get a 300hp AWD car.

Hmmm, did i just talk myself into buying another Audi? nah, i'll wait for the AWD TL

Who wants to raise a glass "To the AWD 300hp TL!" /ching

69ssrscam

Here here! I'll be looking very closely at the 05 RL to see if Acura has improved their quality and trans reliability. If they look good after a year, I'll be buying for 2006.

SatinSilverTypS

iTrader: (1)

imagine slapping a comptech blower on that monster!

Vicman17

Now It may be just me but doesn't the front of the '05 RL looks much more like the 2nd Generation TL (and a little bit like the 97-00 1.6 EL)as opposed to the 3rd Gen? And they said that this would be the look of further generations of Acura.

vandy786

A lot of people like to use this comparison to say how much better a RWD setup is better than FWD. I agree with Hemants though: putting power to the ground using 2 wheels will put limits to any and every car. If I wanted pure performance, I wouldn't settle for a RWD BMW 3 series or Infiniti G35. On my way back from NY, we hit a patch of road where it rained so much that water was all over the place and had nowhere to go. On the side of the road, I saw a Dodge Viper in the ditch on the side and 2 miles away, a G35 sitting upside down on it's roof. AWD is clearly the way to go.

SatinSilverTypS

iTrader: (1)

yes, there's a reason why lamborghini was using AWD years ago on some of their pasta rockets.

youngTL

Here, you don't see ANY G35's on the road in January! An AWD TL would be nice for that kind of incliment weather though.

Vicman17

If I wanted pure performance, I would've gotten myself a sports car, not a sedan classed as "sport" or "performance". Too many people want their cars more for what it really is. Despite how much mods you do on a RWD G35 or a FWD TL, or even an AWD RL, it still is a sedan. With it's amenities for rear room and trunk space, all the added weight can't come close to that of a true performance car. With RWD cars like the G35 or the BMWs, even their close to 50/50 weight distribution is still not enough to come close to that of a Porsche 911 or even an RX-8. Taking a look at the higher end of the sedans, the E55 and the M5 compensates for the shortcomings of the sedan by extensive suspension and engine modifications, but still end up in the upper end of the weighing scale.

For now I'm happy with my Type-S. IMO it's well adapted to my driving on all 4 seasons with a wife and 2 kids. If I was in California or Arizona, it would be a different story.