Has anyone tried to dyno the newer 2018-2020 RLX Sport Hybrid? Acura claim of 377HP/341 lb-ft Torque seems very conservative to me. No way 377HP is able to move this elephant at 4400lbs that quickly. I've been reading up on an older thread by @RLX-Sport Hybrid about his attempts dyno his 2014 "Blackbird". But I guess he couldn't complete the dyno due to all the electronics nannies on-board. He guestimate his car is producing over 429HP and 421 peak lb-ft of torque. Is it safe to assume my 2020 RLX SH drive-train is the same as his 2014 RLX and thus produces same power? It's all a guess as nobody have published any definitive dyno numbers for the RLX.

Here's the old thread if anyone is interested: https://acurazine.com/forums/third-g...hybrid-926956/

 

I was looking at an old brochure for the pre-MMC RLX and it stated the 2017 RLX had 377 hp/ 377 tq: https://www.auto-brochures.com/makes...20RLX_2017.pdf

Not sure why Acura couldn't figure out the hp/tq numbers for the RLX hybrid powertrain that hasn't changed since 2014?

 

So I can safety boast I drive a 400HP vehicle?
Ya, no idea why Acura didn't bolster more impressive HP/Torque numbers in publications. While the RLX can't compete with the German's TT V6 and V8, this thing is not slow by any stretch of the imagination. I haven't yet tried Sport mode with manual paddle staring in M1. I'm actually scared of this thing LOL.

 

Try not to worry about the numbers. For me the main thing is having power that can be delivered meaningfully to result in practical acceleration. Maybe you could call it "tractable power". My immediately preceding car was a 485hp Dodge Challenger. 305mm wide tires, rear drive, and when I really got on it at any realistic road speed the options were to either let the traction control throttle it back, or else convert rubber rather massively into smoke. The AWD, and electric low end torque more than compensate the lower raw numbers I have with my RLX. More "go", less "burn", if you can make sense of that. Speed without drama.

 

I've done Sport mode with 1st gear downshift a few times just jacking around. Hard to get the front tires to hook up for that 4.9 second 0-60 run without A LOT of tire squeal. My MDX hybrid also does a pretty good job off the line and mid-range punch at city speeds of 25-50 mph. I wish my MDX had the RLX 3.5L engine because the RLX still pulls hard into the triple digits while my MDX is done at +80 mph.

 

I've too had lots of tire spin when smashing the pedal. I wonder if going upsize +1 to 255/40/19 would help with front traction. Michelin just release a new AS4 tire to replace the AS3+. I looked but couldn't find 255/40/19 size for our cars. I'm really contemplating about replacing with wider tires soon.

 

Tire compound might mean more than a slight increase of width would. Does your local climate make summer tires practical?

 

Yeah, I'm in SoCal, I can run Summer tires year-round. I could upgrade to Michelin PS4S but it's much too expensive for this car. I think AS3+ or AS4 would offer great traction at a reasonable price. I had AS3+ on my GS, loved it, no complaints.

 

Hey folks I understand the HP/TQ numbers the RLX SH make is back in the loop. So yes I tried to dyno my Blackbird as I called it fairly early on after I bought it. I got one shot at it before the Christmas tree of lights came on so I didn't validate it with another run. This was with a dyno that attaches to the wheel hubs with the tires off on all 4 corners. I don't remember what type that dyno is, but that is what was used. It was calibrated correctly so this is what it produced:

RPM TQ HP
6500 468 429
6000 478 424
5500 483 409
5000 491 399
4500 483 384
4000 478 359
3500 480 337
3000 475 314
2500 473 298
2000 468 280
1500 463 261
1000 448 241

I am not an engineer. I can only report what it did. I can tell you that selecting M1, brake hold and sport mode, then flooring it in the dry with the traction control on produced 0-60mph runs of 4.9 sec time after time after time. That was with 255/40/19 tires on it. In the wet there was way too much wheel hop to do the same thing. What I find interesting is my Volvo XC90T8 produces the same result yet feels totally different. I can't explain it.

 

Wow, those are impressive numbers. Wish we had an Acura/Honda engineer in here to make sense of all this. Regardless, I know the car is way under-rated for whatever reasons and poorly marketed by Acura. Too bad what a gem it would have been if Acura continue development.

 

I agree with the assessment. The TQ at idle was what I found to be the most impressive. It was a basically flat TQ curve since the EV motors torque filled and added to the total where the ICE engine was lacking. The initial hit of TQ feels the same in my Volvo as it did in the RLX SH. Again completely different systems but I suspect the Volvo's TQ curve is very similar, just at a higher level to offset the 700lbs differential in weight.

 

Wow, pretty amazing numbers...

 

Now that I am thinking about it further, I am not remembering if those numbers were the numbers from the print out or if they were the estimated "at the crank" equivalent. It is from 2014 so I don't remember at this point. Regardless even if we reduce them all by some arbitrary percentage for driveline loss from the ICE engine and zero percent from the EV motor numbers as there is no driveline loss there since they are directly connected without a transmission in the way, they are still quite impressive. Results are results. No spin here.

 

I was perfectly happy with the hp/tq and mpgs of my 19 MDX hybrid until I got behind the wheel of the RLX hybrid. I had a hard time believing .5 liter difference in the N/A 3.0L -vs- 3.5L V-6 was the reason for the noticeable increase in power AND mpgs. I'm beginning to think Acura programed the 3 electric motors for additional power delivery and longer EV operation for the RLX (or powered down the MDX hybrid electric motors)? I have to think hard about upgrading to a +2022 MDX hybrid if Acura keeps the same N/A 3.0L+hybrid powertrain.

 

Not only difference in engine cc size, but it also matters how the car is tuned, put together, what was the idea behind it, etc...
Example: Camaro SS has the same exact V8 engine as base Corvette V8 - but driving experience driving these two could not be more different... I assume some of that logic applies on MDX And RLX