So close to greatness - some thoughts one year in with my RDX
#41
Alignment of tailgate (uniformity of gaps between openings) is off on many RDX. I even took the time to walk the dealer lot and in about half of the RDXs I could spot some wider vs smaller gap in tailgate openings, some worse than others. Most people wont notice this or wont care. For badly misaligned gate dealer will offer to take it to body shop, but not sure you want them to start taking it apart when its not a big deal. What happened to “Acura Precision” ?
#42
Alignment of tailgate (uniformity of gaps between openings) is off on many RDX. I even took the time to walk the dealer lot and in about half of the RDXs I could spot some wider vs smaller gap in tailgate openings, some worse than others. Most people wont notice this or wont care. For badly misaligned gate dealer will offer to take it to body shop, but not sure you want them to start taking it apart when its not a big deal. What happened to “Acura Precision” ?
One of the main reasons I avoid German brands is a personal belief that I have a greater likelihood of having problems. Do I think all German cars are problematic? No. But I do think, accurately or not, that problems are more likely. For the first time in over 30 years of owning Honda products, I'm having that same concern for Honda/Acura.
I'm happy, so far, with my current Honda product, but I'm feeling a little like it was a fortunate dice roll and not the baked-in quality it once was.
#43
I want to check out tailgate alignment in Lexus, maybe they are all slipping up now. Making highly precise parts that fit perfectly is expensive, so could be overall approach to save money.
60k Mercedes suv tailgates look perfectly aligned, but its an expensive car....
as I said, most people wont notice or care, but if you start looking close, some imperfections will come up.
60k Mercedes suv tailgates look perfectly aligned, but its an expensive car....
as I said, most people wont notice or care, but if you start looking close, some imperfections will come up.
#44
Alignment of tailgate (uniformity of gaps between openings) is off on many RDX. I even took the time to walk the dealer lot and in about half of the RDXs I could spot some wider vs smaller gap in tailgate openings, some worse than others. Most people wont notice this or wont care. For badly misaligned gate dealer will offer to take it to body shop, but not sure you want them to start taking it apart when its not a big deal. What happened to “Acura Precision” ?
#45
My 2020 also has a *slight* (but visible) misalignment on the left side of the hatch.
My Accord also has some significant fit and finish issues.
It seems like a theme. Luckily, both cars have enough going for them that I don't really care. Oh, and my RDX is a lease, so I doubly don't care
(It's my first lease in 20+ years of ownership, as it's 50% a business car, and it's such a freeing experience!)
My Accord also has some significant fit and finish issues.
It seems like a theme. Luckily, both cars have enough going for them that I don't really care. Oh, and my RDX is a lease, so I doubly don't care
(It's my first lease in 20+ years of ownership, as it's 50% a business car, and it's such a freeing experience!)
#46
My 2020 also has a *slight* (but visible) misalignment on the left side of the hatch.
My Accord also has some significant fit and finish issues.
It seems like a theme. Luckily, both cars have enough going for them that I don't really care. Oh, and my RDX is a lease, so I doubly don't care
(It's my first lease in 20+ years of ownership, as it's 50% a business car, and it's such a freeing experience!)
My Accord also has some significant fit and finish issues.
It seems like a theme. Luckily, both cars have enough going for them that I don't really care. Oh, and my RDX is a lease, so I doubly don't care
(It's my first lease in 20+ years of ownership, as it's 50% a business car, and it's such a freeing experience!)
Here is the thing, if it does not bother you, you dont see, or dont want to see, than its all good.
I am sure some people never looked closely, and now that they start looking they are getting upset, maybe better not to look?😀
#47
lol, looks like my comment about panel alignment made many people look and start discovering things they did not know they had.
Here is the thing, if it does not bother you, you dont see, or dont want to see, than its all good.
I am sure some people never looked closely, and now that they start looking they are getting upset, maybe better not to look?😀
Here is the thing, if it does not bother you, you dont see, or dont want to see, than its all good.
I am sure some people never looked closely, and now that they start looking they are getting upset, maybe better not to look?😀
My take, if the car does what you expect of it, what difference does a few mm mean on a tailgate? Especially if you have to look for it. I don't even look at that stuff, rattles, squeaks and other unexpected noise/sounds bother me, and I don't have any of those.
We took a 220 mile round trip yesterday to see our first grandkid (6 weeks old boy) yesterday, in Arizona heat (~108 F) ...cool inside, and 27+ mpg at 75-80 mph highway speeds...Yes, the A/C does reduce mpg some, as we get 28+ mpg on the same trip in the Arizona "winter" when we don't use the AC.
Great car, very happy with it, and we just went over 20,000 miles on the odo...18 months of ownership.
#48
We were out and about today. Hauling stuff to Goodwill. The car is an easy hauler, and easy in and easy out. Took a spin up a high speed twisty road, alone, and while it couldn’t match my prior car, it got damn close: a BMW 535i.
The sound is very good. Carplay finally works. The driving aides work as expected.
This is one fine car, make no mistake.
The sound is very good. Carplay finally works. The driving aides work as expected.
This is one fine car, make no mistake.
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JB in AZ (07-27-2020)
#49
#50
I have no complaints with my late 2019 RDX Advance. I never notice any body fit issues but then I don't go around with a micrometer to double check! I was looking over a BMW owners forum one time before I got my RDX. These guys were telling stories about how they took their cars apart and made sure each and every body piece was made to perfectly align. I guess BMW owners must closely examine each other's cars to make sure all the seams are perfect! These guys were sharing hints on how they made adjustments.
Sorry, I got my car to drive, not be a work of art! Back in my working days we looked at bodies being plus or minus one millimeter as being GTG. As my Daddy use to say, "You are looking too close, step back a little further!".
Sorry, I got my car to drive, not be a work of art! Back in my working days we looked at bodies being plus or minus one millimeter as being GTG. As my Daddy use to say, "You are looking too close, step back a little further!".
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markm929 (07-28-2020)
#51
I picked up my 2019 RDX A-Spec last July and it's a car I love but also a car that's more "really good" than "great" and I wanted to dump some thoughts on that out here figuring there's some conversation to be had about it. I hope Acura addresses the issues I've run across (and others have) in their 2022 refresh as this could be a class leader car rather than a competitive car.
Stuff I love: Terrific motor (for a 4 cylinder it sounds great), lots of room (lack of the hump in the rear is awesome), great looks, pretty spot-on for sportiness (more on that later), right quality of luxury (the pano roof is terrific), great seats (fits me perfect, my wife less so), Sport+ mode is the real thing when I use it, and 10 speeds(!). SH-AWD works as advertised - drives far closer to a RWD car than a FWD car - drives close enough to a sport sedan that I don't miss my sports cars THAT much.
Stuff I'm disappointed with:
Stuff I love: Terrific motor (for a 4 cylinder it sounds great), lots of room (lack of the hump in the rear is awesome), great looks, pretty spot-on for sportiness (more on that later), right quality of luxury (the pano roof is terrific), great seats (fits me perfect, my wife less so), Sport+ mode is the real thing when I use it, and 10 speeds(!). SH-AWD works as advertised - drives far closer to a RWD car than a FWD car - drives close enough to a sport sedan that I don't miss my sports cars THAT much.
Stuff I'm disappointed with:
- Build quality is pretty terrible for a Honda/Acura. I've been in for the squeaky brakes (still not resolved), a squeaky tailgate, a seat that never returns to its saved position correctly (unresolved), squeaks abound, and a very flaky infotainment system (choppy CarPlay, regular crashes. My RDX has been to the dealer for non-regular service in 1 year more (3 times) than my 2007 TSX has been in 10 years of ownership (twice). While some folks have had no problems, it's pretty clear that this RDX is not up to Acura's reputation. I sure hope the 2021s are more consistent.
- That brake pedal. How did a car with otherwise such dialled in controls launch with such a terrible brake pedal - long pedal travel that's far too soft making it difficult to modulate well. I'm not asking for Porsche pedal feel but how about something firm with consistent modulation. This is an economy car brake pedal. A nice firm pedal with smooth modulation would really tie together the "Precision Crafted Performance" tagline.
- Sport mode isn't really sport mode. It's too close to Comfort mode and too far from Sport+. I'd like to see a touch heavier steering and slightly perkier controls. Also next point...
- The automatic is too conservative. In Sport and Sport+ it should know to downshift into corners so I'm in the right gear coming off it. The programming does notice when I pick up the throttle early off a corner but often holds the gear too long. Manual downshifts are too slow to be useful (it's kinda hard to ask for 4 downshifts in under a second though). Between the brake pedal, conservative Sport mode, and the automatic programming it's hard to be smooth when I'm driving briskly.
- The damping on the shocks could be better, it's just a bit too brittle on the high frequency stuff - the heavy wheels (35lbs!) don't help though. Spring rates and roll control are good for the class of car.
- Those shitty Eagle RS-A tires!!!! OMGWTF. What terrible tires. Noisy, no grip in any conditions. A nice set of tires would go a long ways to making the A-Spec a truly sporty car.
- Bigger volume knob. I don't use it much but it's silly to place it so far away and have it be so small. Put it down next to the touchpad (like in the new TLX).
- Dial down the fake engine sounds. I like the tone but it needs to be a touch quieter - stop stuffing a sock into your Jockeys.
- A bit more sound insulation. A CX-5 is quieter than a RDX and that's not good. Big pano roofs reflect a lot of sound so a bit of extra noise management is useful.
- Minor thing: Slightly lower ride height - would be great if the A-Spec came in 20-30mm lower like the TSX A-Spec did.
- Reclining rear seat - if the CR-V has it the RDX should also have it. These are great for comfort especially when my wife wants to nap on longer drives.
More feedback to Acura corporate can help. I'd gladly pay $500 extra for them to stuff more insulating "foam" in it.
#52
Originally Posted by DJA123 [img]images/maestro/buttons/viewpost.gif[/img]
- A bit more sound insulation. A CX-5 is quieter than a RDX and that's not good. Big pano roofs reflect a lot of sound so a bit of extra noise management is useful.[Probably trying to steer people toward the more insulated Advance. Mine is very quiet.]
PLEASE contact Acura Client Relations with this feedback so they can correct with the 2022MY mid cycle refresh and also feed this back to the dealer.
#53
I have no complaints with my late 2019 RDX Advance. I never notice any body fit issues but then I don't go around with a micrometer to double check! I was looking over a BMW owners forum one time before I got my RDX. These guys were telling stories about how they took their cars apart and made sure each and every body piece was made to perfectly align. I guess BMW owners must closely examine each other's cars to make sure all the seams are perfect! These guys were sharing hints on how they made adjustments.
Sorry, I got my car to drive, not be a work of art! Back in my working days we looked at bodies being plus or minus one millimeter as being GTG. As my Daddy use to say, "You are looking too close, step back a little further!".
Sorry, I got my car to drive, not be a work of art! Back in my working days we looked at bodies being plus or minus one millimeter as being GTG. As my Daddy use to say, "You are looking too close, step back a little further!".
#54
BMW makes a fine product but they are assembled by factory laborers, many of which may not even speak good German. Like MB they have high standards in design but in the end they are just a car built to a price point. They are not cheap to maintain or repair as they age. BUT, if you like their look and feel that is all that matters.
#56
Just hit my two year mark last week with the car. CarPlay issues aside (1.2.1 completely fixed it for me, 1.2.2 broke it again) it's been a great car. MPG is lacking but besides that it's comfortable, quick, and fun to drive. My wife and I both have one (Advance and A-SPEC) and it's done us really well on long car rides up to 12 hours.
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