wstr75

I’m ready to get another car equivalent to my 2016 RLX hybrid. I’d also like to trade my Ridgeline for a hybrid Ridgeline. Honda had all this figured out with the RLX hybrid power train and today in 2025 model year could have been doing great business like Toyota/Lexus is currently enjoying. Yes, Honda’s Accord and CR-V hybrids are doing well. Honda could have been doing much better here in August 2024 with putting the RLX hybrid power train and it’s proven software into more Honda and Acura vehicles.

For the next year I’ll keep with what I own. There’s rumors a Lexus 300h replacement is coming a year from now and if it has better overall performance, it may be considered.

What are my fellow RLX hybrid owners considering going forward?

DanL07RL

I embark on long term relationships with my cars. The RLX-SH is a dream, and I will stay with that for the foreseeable future. IMHO Lexus is too many $$s for essentially the same car as Acura. My fifth Acura.....love the brand!!

hondamore

I am also disappointed in Acura for abandoning the Sport Hybrid technology. That said, I can understand some of the reasons that Acura let the hybrid tech go:

1. I understand that sales of Acura Sport Hybrids was poor and the reason that we received substantial discounts from MSRP for my 2014 RLX-SH and my wife's 2018 MDX-SH was because they had sat on the lot for a long time. Part of the blame for the poor sales was Acura's focus on the gas mileage of the Sport Hybrid in the little bit of marketing they did rather than focusing on the improved performance and adding the improved gas mileage as an added bonus.
2. As has been discussed on this forum for years, the Acura name simply lacks the "snob appeal" of other brands, so when prices get north of $50,000, many buyers want a brand that screams money and wealth. Regardless of the amazing technology that Acura develops, they are saddled by many buyers as being "just a Honda" making it difficult to move volume at higher luxury car prices.
3. Honda/Acura is one of the smaller auto makers and simply lacks the corporate strength and financial clout to continue to make "niche" market vehicles. They are limited in their production capacity and are hesitant to retool production lines to make low volume models that can be highly profitable, or can be money losers if they sit on the lot and require huge discounts to move.

Like DanL07RL, I love my Sport Hybrid and I also keep my Acuras for a long time. I'm almost 10 years into ownership of my 2014 RLX-SH (I bought it in March of 2015) and I would normally be looking for a replacement by now. Acura has nothing that excites me and, while I have browsed over on the Lexus website a few times, I am still going to wait another year or two to give Acura a chance to bring something new to the table. Note: I don't consider a GM-made EV at all exciting. My hope is that the 2026 model year will bring some new Acura technology that is not an EV. If not, I may be forced to go to the dark side and look at the Lexus models.

One final note: I have had at least half a dozen offers from people to buy my RLX-SH, so there definitely is a niche market of loyal Honda buyers who have coveted the Sport Hybrid models from afar and would love to drive one.

wstr75

Thanks for these comments. My timeline is to buy a replacement to my RLX Hybrid in the next two years before the leading edge of hard regulations kick in for 2027 and to then hold that vehicle for ten years. By 2037 surely the grid, charging stations and the larger EV situation will have been sorted.

in the meantime, Toyota is killing with its fleet of hybrids and PHEVs. Yes, our RLX hybrid sold poorly during 2014 - 2020. Here in late 2024 it is a wholly different market and hybrids are the rage. I may be crazy, I think Acura could modernize the head unit electronics and start making 2020 version RLX hybrids and would see profitable sales as a 2025 release. In the meantime, put the RLX/MDX hybrid drive train in the MDX and Ridgeline plus probably the Pilot platform to immediately increase customer demand. I have friends and relatives who are waiting in line and paying list prices for hybrids and PHEVs as evidence of strong consumer demand for these fuel efficient and low range anxiety vehicles.

kareshi

I think Honda knows. I am pretty confident that they will come out of a new RLX sport hybrid in the near future. Rather it's going to be what we expect, that's another question.