neuronbob

I've had my RL for a month and I promised a terminal review of my 2004 TL and brief comparo with the RL. For reference, here are my previous reviews on the TL:

One month
Three months
Six months
Nine months
One year
Fifteen months
Eighteen months
Two years, w/pics
2 1/2 years

The TL part is pretty short. My TL was in for routine service in August. While there, I had an odd rattle checked out. This metallic rattle came from the engine compartment and was intermittent. It occurred only on acceleration. I thought it might be a loose heat shield. The service rep couldn't replicate the rattle, but had the staff inspect the underbody of the car (heat shield was fine but they loosened it, then retightened it anyway, kudos to them) and the engine. They didn't find anything.

Other than that, I had a valet incident in which the rear bumper was scratched. My TL was very reliable. I took care of it very well and the next owner will get a clean car with a lot of mods. Still sitting on the dealer's lot, though.

I really loved my TL, but traded it in for an RL a month ago for the following reasons:

1. Offered wife a new RDX or MDX so she could fit our baby's stuff more easily. She declined as she loves our beat up, paid-off 2001 Accord so much. This increased my personal car budget a bit (thanks, honey! ). She also didn't want my TL , otherwise would have a TL AND RL in the garage.
2. I love the RL as much as the TL and was already drooling from afar.
3. RL not selling well + end of model year=hot deals on the RL that may not be as easy to come by now there there's a 2007 base RL without navi.
4. Got an awesome trade deal on my TL (would still be in the TL if I hadn't gotten this deal)
5. 2007 TL-S great car, but not worth upgrading to from a 2004 TL....really wanted SH-AWD at that price.
6. The fact is, there are a lot of great options in cars nowadays and it's hard for me to stay in a car for very long. I also looked at the M35x but found it lacking in refinement.

Thread announcing my upgrade.

Here's my RL with A-Spec suspension and "Ebony Chrome" wheels. The picture was taken under challenging light conditions and the picture of the other side was worse.


TL A-Spec vs. RL A-Spec:

The TL without the A-Spec dips, squats, and rolls. With the A-Spec, all these movements are controlled. There is a similar effect in the RL. The RL A-Spec drops the RL more than it does the TL (1" vs. 1/2"). This just about gets rid of the dip and squat on acceleration and all except the hardest braking. The ride quality is still really smooth except on the bumpiest roads, on which the standard suspension is better. While the TL with A-Spec and Comptech RSB rode almost as if on rails (it was that good!), the RL with A-Spec doesn't give the same effect. Even so, the RL kicks ass in a curve. Because of SH-AWD and my Toyo Proxes 4, i can take a decreasing radius onramp far faster than in the TL. I can't wait to test it in the West Virginia mountains. While I didn't think the torque steer on the TL was overwhelming, it has been a very interesting experience NOT feeling torque steer in the RL.

Interior:

The interior of the RL blows the TL's away except that the center stack is more cluttered than the TL. The TL's center console has large buttons that are logically placed. The RL uses smaller buttons that, until you are accustomed to their location, are harder to use. I thought I would miss the touch screen of the TL, but the joystick on the RL is quite intuitive to use, so it's not so bad. I'm still learning voice commands, so I still have to look at the controls frequently. The leather is better, the wood is tasteful, and the fit and finish are better. I'd expect that for MSRP of $15k higher than the TL.

Tech:

The Music Link sucks--I got mine as part of the original deal with the car. I hear that there's a new version of it coming out, so it doesn't matter that mine is so finicky with my 5G video iPod. HFL works flawlessly with my Treo 700p, except if there's an SMS screen showing--in that case the HFL never connects.

Driving:

The tranny has already adjusted to my chosen shift points. Once the car is warmed up, I don't notice the small difference in 0-60 acceleration in the RL vs. base TL. The car really can get up and go despite its weight. The big difference comes with passing. I have to mash the accelerator to get the tranny to shift down enough to accelerate. The TL had a pretty much instant response in this regard. I note the lack of torque steer above. The brakes are mushy and require lots of effort compared to the TL. Then again, this is what I expect with a luxury car like the RL.

Bottom line: The RL is not a sports sedan, but with the A-Spec setup is more sporty than at baseline. I await the 2009 TL in two years.....and will hopefully convince the wife that she needs one as her grocery getter. (grins evilly). My TL days are probably not over and I may yet have an RL and TL in the garage.

Edit: I love my RL and am not sorry I traded the TL. I was one of those who doubted that the RL was $15k more a car than the TL. I have been disabused of this belief after a month in the RL. Actually, I changed my mind after only ONE day in the RL!

zeezz

great writeup as usual. good stuff to hear

deke

I cant believe that a thread mainly about an RL has me set in stone on my suspension tweaks.

Objective. Informative. Logical. Maybe thats why your name is bolded

richpearl

Neuronbob, thanks for your excellent review and comparisons!

Just to comment on a very minor point you made:

"The Music Link sucks--I got mine as part of the original deal with the car. I hear that there's a new version of it coming out, so it doesn't matter that mine is so finicky with my 5G video iPod."

Same here. Well, almost the same--my original deal including the ipod link was on an 06 TL 6MT. I had high hopes for the link, but it just doesn't have a good feature set. In fact, I've found it frustrating enough that I disinstalled the software from my computer. Problems for me included (1) difficulty in using the controls to select specific songs, artists, albums, or playlists, and (2) absence of any information on car's displays showing what is playing. So now I use the link, but usually just set it to shuffle. It's easy to skip a song if I don't like it. Maybe I'll make a few long playlists just for driving.

Thanks again for your very informative review and comparisons.

--Rich

your_mom

Thanks for the infromed review. I've got 4 more years until my TL is paid off and looking forward to an upgrade. I wish the RL was available with 6MT.

AcuraTL06

Great review.