heymonroe

Hey gang. Just picked up my first ever Honda/Acura.

Leased an RDX A-spec in white w/ red interior, coming from an Audi A4. Very happy with it so far! I apologize if any of these questions are asked/answered a ton, just trying to get ahead of some concerns:

Stereo/Phone:

- The infotainment/trackpad situation is garbage, but I knew that going in. I'm a CarPlay person so it won't be a huge deal to get used to. I have noticed that the 'play/pause' feature is, I guess, the 'powe'r button on the steering wheel? Unless I'm missing something.
- While music/podcast is paused, you cannot control the volume. It has to be playing in order to control it, which seems..odd.
- The wireless charging pad just doesn't work with an iPhone13? It charges for 1-2 minutes then just stops, have to readjust, charges for 2 minutes, stops again, etc. This appears to be a known issue but if anyone has any fixes? The dealer said "yeah charging pad is a little iffy"

Tires

- I've only driven the car 9 miles so far, so I dont have a ton of time on them yet but from what I've read the OEM's are trash. What's the recommendation to replace them with? Cross Climate 2's? I live in Los Angeles. About 85% city driving.

Other
- Any aftermarket 'must own/do' recommendations? I'll be adding carbon tint next week, as I do with all my cars because Los Angeles.
- Any quality of life stock settings in the car I should know about? Annoying things I should disable, or enable, etc.
- What's the recommended drive mode for city driving? I've got it on normal now, but haven't played with them others too much. My A4 had an individual mode which I know this one doesn't.

Thanks in advance for any tips/advice!

heymonroe

Texasrdx21

Congratulations - every vehicle has it pros and cons. You’ll get use to the track pad, I wasn’t a fan in the beginning g either, but works well once you get accustom to it.

Drive mode - I use sport 99% of the time, regardless of city or highway, as it’s more responsive and steering has more weight.

Tires - Goodyears are not bad, CC2 are great, but you noted you leased it…so I would just hammer on them till your lease ends.

I turn off Auto stop/start in the city, as it’s annoying and turns the AC air compressor off to much for my comfort.

swttsx007

Congratulations! Nice ride! As far as drive modes go, I have been using comfort the most lately. I prefer Sport, and was using it the most, but with the current gas prices, I try to not get on the gas too much.

I, too, am leasing my RDX Aspec. I've heard nothing but great things about the CC2 tires, but I don't see any reason to upgrade from the stock RSA's since it's a lease. Also, I have driven the RDX through a Midwest winter, and they performed rather well. I really have no complaints about them so far.

If I am in a lot of traffic, I turn off the Auto Start/Stop feature as it gets quite annoying. Otherwise, I just leave it on.

Good luck and enjoy the new ride!

ross7777

Wireless charger issue: could be your case. Is it thick? I’ve noticed it works better if your phone is set down at a slight angle to the left or right. I have an iPhone 12 Pro.

Since it’s a lease just keep the tires you have.

heymonroe

I don’t have a case. I live life on the edge.

jcross1231

Somewhere between 9 and 1,000 miles, you might find some of the things you think suck don't. The touchpad isn't too bad an interface. Some people don't like the absolute positioning, but it's better than relative positioning in a moving vehicle. Android Auto needs to discover this.
Changing the volume while paused works fine on my '21. Hopefully, they didn't honk that up for '22. There's no way I know of to pause the playback from the steering wheel. I use the touchpad.
The Continental tires aren't bad but aren't great, either. In a premium vehicle, Acura should use something better. The wife's Civic has the same brand of tires. Sometimes Honda just doesn't "get it".
I had been disabling the auto stop function until I sat at a stoplight one day and watched the gas mileage unwind. I've gotten used to having it enabled. I've found the AC duct temperature only comes up about 4° before the engine restarts. Having said that, it's about the most inelegant engine restart I've experienced. The engine sort of rumbles back to life and makes itself obvious. Once again Acura could do better.
I drive in Sport in town and Comfort on longer trips. Can't really tell it makes much of a difference.

ColoRDX

The more I used the trackpad the more I liked it. Once you get used to it you'll find it's quicker and more accurate than an out dated touchscreen and you'll no longer have to look at a display covered in fingerprints, grease or whatever else may have been on your fingers. Give it a serious try and you'll like it.

knakane

Touchpad: like the others here, I agree the trackpad isnt the greatest application of tech but I ended up getting used to it, at least as much as I have to

Wireless Charging: Honestly, just dont use it. As a battery person, its just not a great way to charge anything. I guess its good in a pinch but I usually have a battery pack with me and I keep an extra lightning cable in the car just in case I want to plug in

Tires: YES THIS. the stock tires are complete crap as with almost all stock Honda tires (exception: NSX, CTR). I got rid of the stock tires after about 8,000 miles I think. I'm in SoCal so it rains here about 2 times per year and went with Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ (the A/S 4) is the new version. I have yet to find the limit of this tire as far as traction & cornering goes (A-Spec FWD). I used to be a Yokohama guy, but having these Michelins has switched me over. Cost was about $1,200 installed w/the warranty

Definlety tint - windshield too. I went Ceramic 50% on the front sides and windshield and did 80% on the rears so they dont get too dark

Issues WILL pop up, mine have been mostly minor but super frustrating because Honda customer support has been terrible, but for the most part they have settled out and I either dont notice or ignore it..sad but I feel like a lot of this new cars have weird issues because of all the tech thats just band-aided together... for example, the Android kernel the infotainment is built on is super old and could use an update but they will never do it

I drive mostly in Sport.. Sport + is fun but sometimes feels like the transmission is going to fall out lol

And the best thing I have done is ceramic coated my car, myself for only a couple hundred dollars. the shine is unmatched and the way water just falls off 1.5 years later is just remarkable.. Dont look at the ceramic coating thread a few posts down. Just a bunch of nonsense from people arguing with people like me, who did my own ceramic and wash my car weekly and giving their evidence with YouTube videos.. its hilarious.

Vince D

Hey Monroe,

Welcome to the Honda / Acura owners fold.

I've been a Honda owner for my entire driving life starting with the Honda Civic CVCC and pretty much every Honda model from the Accord > S2000 to Acura > Legend > TSX > ILX > 2020 RDX Advance. I'm really not here to offer any advice, but basically a "congrats" on your purchase. You'll get plenty of advice from others on this forum. I completely understand the pros and cons of our RDX and the ones you alluded to. Our RDX is not perfect, but I happen to be a Honda cheerleader so you won't find me lodging any major complaints about my beloved brand. Minor irritations like the popping roof, squeaky chassis in the rear at 20K and yes, the infamous trackpad do make me shake my head, but overall the RDX provides me with an awesome driving experience.

Here's to many years of a great driving experience.