Waetherman

It's more expensive than a Hyndai but if you were budgeting up to an Advance RDX, why wouldn't you consider a TLX? Seems like a good sedan and much better than Hyundai or Kia options. Also Genesis G70?

I personally wouldn't pay a markup over MSRP for any car, never mind Hyundai or Kia. Even if the trade-ins are high right now, paying over MSRP is just pissing money away - that's money that disappears the instant you drive off the lot.

das1996

Interior space in a tlx seemed less, esp in the rear. It's a slower car too, and heavier.

G70 was a thought but interior space is tight, also no 2.5T for 2022 (maybe 2023?).

I will never pay over msrp for any car. Almost made a dead on a sonata Nline, but then discussing numbers they added in ~$1000 "market adjustment", I told him $0 or no deal. I walked out.

Madd Dog

The RDX is an excellent handling car for an SUV.

But that is what it is, it is not a cutting and thrusting sports sedan.

das1996

After much soul searching i ended up with a stinger 2.5turbo awd. I was aiming for the k5 gt but they were nowhere to be found without crazy markups. The stinger is a rwd bias so that's a big plus. I realized it's sufficiently fast enough for my needs and gets decent gas mileage (21/29). We were able to make the rear seat work and with more tweaking find a comfortable driver seat position. Suspension is more stiffer than on the rdx but that's expected. Came with 18" x 8 wheels so tires won't be too expensive. Can get a 245/40/18 michelin pilot sport a/s 4 which nearly matches the stock tires (RE97AS-02) perfectly (1 revolution per mile difference).

This particular model lacked a sunroof. I was ok with this. Rarely used the sunroof on previous cars anyway and one less thing to rattle/leak as the car ages. Driverseat is full power, pass is manual. Hatch is fully manual too. They had to cut corners somewhere.

I never got a chance to drive the rdx at night. Led headlamps on the stinger are adequate. Had to adjust them up a bit - aimed way too low as delivered. Great for city driving, terrible for roads with no street lights.

For what it is, the included features are plenty and sufficient.

Dealer played the finance game, 0% or $1000 rebate @ standard rates. Went with the latter. Within a day I had the account number and pay off amount. Refi'd immediately with penfed at 1.99%. In fact check was delivered today.

Didn't take any pics yet, but here's an identical model/color. Called ceramic silver. It's like a primer color with some metal flake in it. Pops well in the sun. Took some time for this color to grow on me. First color choice is some sort of gun metal gray (THIS COLOR)

Madd Dog

Nice color, kinda new out in the automotive world.

I think you are lucky to have even found a car worth buying in this current availability crisis, so good luck with it.

das1996

My motivation was the carmax offer - 18,5 for a '15 accord exl 27K in very good condition - over 68% of what was paid for it originally (OTD). Two years and 10K miles ago CM offered $16K for it. During normal times I'd expect value to be even lower, $14-15K. The car was originally appraised over a month ago, then reappraised last week, ~600 miles difference. Their offer was still the same. I'd be taking a gamble on a potentially higher future appraisal. At the same time, incentives seem to be reducing. Such was the case with the rdx when the july incentives rolled out. I wasn't going to pay msrp for any car period, or as in the case of local dealers, msrp + market adjustment. The best offer on the stinger was 7% below msrp, which is not excellent, but not completely terrible when combined with the high trade. I did have to drive an hr away to get this deal.

I've been car shopping for 2 years now, ever since the g37 got sold. That was a great car for one but too small for the family. Thought the accord would suffice. It did to an extent but is a very utilitarian vehicle - very boring to drive. I did drive the 6 cyl stinger back in 19. Thought it was a bit rough around the edges. Most of that seems to be improved in the refresh (21? or 22). So in my mind, either hold onto the accord and pay more for a newer vehicle when the time comes or do it now - shit or get off the pot . The expectation is to hold on to this one for at least 5 years, likely longer or until the itch for something else develops.

Priorities change as one gets older. What was important a decade ago is less so now. I've been driving stick/rwd since the late 90's. When I got the G I wanted rwd, manual, good handling, 4 doors. This is the first true automatic I've had since my first car, a mid 80s caprice. Still enjoy a manual but just don't care for driving one in all the traffic around here. Good handling is relative. The G was extremely stiff (S trim) even with no mods. Stinger is stiffer than the accord, but softer than the G. Something my back appreciates. I may install eibach sways, but im not touching anything else suspension related. In another 5-10 years needs/wants will change again. By then I'll probably be stuck with some electric vehicle.

tecwerks

First thing is bag those rims.....

das1996

^^How would that improve performance/function?

das1996

I seem to lack the edit button.

I was going add, unless i'm going for weight savings (forged wheels), or a larger diameter, I generally don't care what the wheels look like so long as they're round and damage free. In fact, I think these look better than the wheels on the rdx advanced.

However, looks like they are not symmetrical L/R. That is on the driver side the K is towards the rear, on passenger side towards the front. Leave it to kia to not consider this. Oh well. Can't view the left and right sides at the same time any way... Third world problems...

das1996

A little over a month later and 1600 miles now. So far trouble free. Got to drive through a torrential downpour few weeks ago. No limp/CEL issues. Granted I didn't floor it but was moving along nicely at 65 mph.

The stock re97as-02's had to go. Installed a set of pilot sport all season 4 (245/40/18) to give the car some better performance in the corners. Might do sway bars next year.
Avg mpg in mixed driving (~70% hwy, 30% city) is 28.5 mpg calculated by hand.

I find the trans is usually in the right gear at a given time but not always. It does better in sports mode which keeps it 2 gears lower for a particular speed. I think that's the case with most gear boxes these days. Top 3 cogs are all over drive, 5th gear is 1:1. Trunk space is plenty, esp with the back seats down (23 cu-ft seats up, 40 cu ft seats down).

What was news to me is the cooling system in this car. Turns out the intercooler is water cooled, not air cooled. In fact, the intercooler it self is quite small, but its coolant radiator is nearly as large as the engine rad and sits in front of it. There's a secondary electric waterpump for this loop.

https://i.imgur.com/0uqAO5x.jpg - part in green

https://i.imgur.com/P6GtEWh.jpg
The part just below the pump is the intercooler.

Showkey

Not seeing any coolant hose connection on the intercooler and 190* engine coolant would have no cooling effect on the air ?

das1996

Is that the rdx intercooler? Yes, looks like air cooled to me. Diagram and pic posted was for the stinger 2.5T.

Showkey

Yes that’s from the RDX service bulletin.