Test Drove AWD in Rain
Thread Starter
Suzuka Master
iTrader: (4)
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 5,679
Likes: 12
From: New York, USA
Test Drove AWD in Rain
My dealer rang my yesterday to let me know that the AWD cars arrived and my pre-order was in there. I went down to test drive their demo AWD. Dealer handed me the key so I had an unrestricted test drive. Last night we had on/off heavy rains, and the roads were soaked.
Initial impression on the drive while taking it easy:
-Very easy to drive, not threatening at all. I felt very comfortable after 5 minutes.
-Shifting was more aggressive than I expected... but I was the very first to drive the car. So it felt like the ECU was still learning itself and figuring things out.
-Suspension was stiff, but not invasive at all. Car did not feel like a boat or floaty.
-Steering was extremely responsive, very light on the steering, almost no effort at all.
-QUIET... it was raining and I took it on the highway doing 75-80, QUIET.
Now for some gas:
-I let it go WOT for a bit, but I didn't hit redline at all. It moved quite nicely, faster than the GS350 AWD and a lot faster than the FWD.
-The car had a lot of low end torque, I didn't have to floor it to get it to move around cars, I could just drop it down 1 gear and the engine response was nice.
-AWD, i let it go WOT coming on/off ramps and WOW, amazing! I cannot get over what engineering was accomplished, the thing NEVER skidded or lost traction.
-When in VTEC - car sounds LOVELY.
Needless to say, I'll be picking mine up tonight.
First mods are already planned, color match center grill, some debadging, window tints, and tinting the red reflectors on the rear bumper.
If you haven't driven the AWD, I highly suggest it.
Initial impression on the drive while taking it easy:
-Very easy to drive, not threatening at all. I felt very comfortable after 5 minutes.
-Shifting was more aggressive than I expected... but I was the very first to drive the car. So it felt like the ECU was still learning itself and figuring things out.
-Suspension was stiff, but not invasive at all. Car did not feel like a boat or floaty.
-Steering was extremely responsive, very light on the steering, almost no effort at all.
-QUIET... it was raining and I took it on the highway doing 75-80, QUIET.
Now for some gas:
-I let it go WOT for a bit, but I didn't hit redline at all. It moved quite nicely, faster than the GS350 AWD and a lot faster than the FWD.
-The car had a lot of low end torque, I didn't have to floor it to get it to move around cars, I could just drop it down 1 gear and the engine response was nice.
-AWD, i let it go WOT coming on/off ramps and WOW, amazing! I cannot get over what engineering was accomplished, the thing NEVER skidded or lost traction.
-When in VTEC - car sounds LOVELY.
Needless to say, I'll be picking mine up tonight.
First mods are already planned, color match center grill, some debadging, window tints, and tinting the red reflectors on the rear bumper. If you haven't driven the AWD, I highly suggest it.
Three Wheelin'
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 1,775
Likes: 3
From: Chicago suburb, IL
My dealer rang my yesterday to let me know that the AWD cars arrived and my pre-order was in there. I went down to test drive their demo AWD. Dealer handed me the key so I had an unrestricted test drive. Last night we had on/off heavy rains, and the roads were soaked.
Initial impression on the drive while taking it easy:
-Very easy to drive, not threatening at all. I felt very comfortable after 5 minutes.
-Shifting was more aggressive than I expected... but I was the very first to drive the car. So it felt like the ECU was still learning itself and figuring things out.
-Suspension was stiff, but not invasive at all. Car did not feel like a boat or floaty.
-Steering was extremely responsive, very light on the steering, almost no effort at all.
-QUIET... it was raining and I took it on the highway doing 75-80, QUIET.
Now for some gas:
-I let it go WOT for a bit, but I didn't hit redline at all. It moved quite nicely, faster than the GS350 AWD and a lot faster than the FWD.
-The car had a lot of low end torque, I didn't have to floor it to get it to move around cars, I could just drop it down 1 gear and the engine response was nice.
-AWD, i let it go WOT coming on/off ramps and WOW, amazing! I cannot get over what engineering was accomplished, the thing NEVER skidded or lost traction.
-When in VTEC - car sounds LOVELY.
Needless to say, I'll be picking mine up tonight. First mods are already planned, color match center grill, some debadging, window tints, and tinting the red reflectors on the rear bumper.
If you haven't driven the AWD, I highly suggest it.
Initial impression on the drive while taking it easy:
-Very easy to drive, not threatening at all. I felt very comfortable after 5 minutes.
-Shifting was more aggressive than I expected... but I was the very first to drive the car. So it felt like the ECU was still learning itself and figuring things out.
-Suspension was stiff, but not invasive at all. Car did not feel like a boat or floaty.
-Steering was extremely responsive, very light on the steering, almost no effort at all.
-QUIET... it was raining and I took it on the highway doing 75-80, QUIET.
Now for some gas:
-I let it go WOT for a bit, but I didn't hit redline at all. It moved quite nicely, faster than the GS350 AWD and a lot faster than the FWD.
-The car had a lot of low end torque, I didn't have to floor it to get it to move around cars, I could just drop it down 1 gear and the engine response was nice.
-AWD, i let it go WOT coming on/off ramps and WOW, amazing! I cannot get over what engineering was accomplished, the thing NEVER skidded or lost traction.
-When in VTEC - car sounds LOVELY.
Needless to say, I'll be picking mine up tonight.
First mods are already planned, color match center grill, some debadging, window tints, and tinting the red reflectors on the rear bumper. If you haven't driven the AWD, I highly suggest it.
You couldn't resist it, could ya? Congrats and enjoy!
Racer
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 397
Likes: 1
From: Mass
My dealer rang my yesterday to let me know that the AWD cars arrived and my pre-order was in there. I went down to test drive their demo AWD. Dealer handed me the key so I had an unrestricted test drive. Last night we had on/off heavy rains, and the roads were soaked.
Initial impression on the drive while taking it easy:
-Very easy to drive, not threatening at all. I felt very comfortable after 5 minutes.
-Shifting was more aggressive than I expected... but I was the very first to drive the car. So it felt like the ECU was still learning itself and figuring things out.
-Suspension was stiff, but not invasive at all. Car did not feel like a boat or floaty.
-Steering was extremely responsive, very light on the steering, almost no effort at all.
-QUIET... it was raining and I took it on the highway doing 75-80, QUIET.
Now for some gas:
-I let it go WOT for a bit, but I didn't hit redline at all. It moved quite nicely, faster than the GS350 AWD and a lot faster than the FWD.
-The car had a lot of low end torque, I didn't have to floor it to get it to move around cars, I could just drop it down 1 gear and the engine response was nice.
-AWD, i let it go WOT coming on/off ramps and WOW, amazing! I cannot get over what engineering was accomplished, the thing NEVER skidded or lost traction.
-When in VTEC - car sounds LOVELY.
Needless to say, I'll be picking mine up tonight. First mods are already planned, color match center grill, some debadging, window tints, and tinting the red reflectors on the rear bumper.
If you haven't driven the AWD, I highly suggest it.
Initial impression on the drive while taking it easy:
-Very easy to drive, not threatening at all. I felt very comfortable after 5 minutes.
-Shifting was more aggressive than I expected... but I was the very first to drive the car. So it felt like the ECU was still learning itself and figuring things out.
-Suspension was stiff, but not invasive at all. Car did not feel like a boat or floaty.
-Steering was extremely responsive, very light on the steering, almost no effort at all.
-QUIET... it was raining and I took it on the highway doing 75-80, QUIET.
Now for some gas:
-I let it go WOT for a bit, but I didn't hit redline at all. It moved quite nicely, faster than the GS350 AWD and a lot faster than the FWD.
-The car had a lot of low end torque, I didn't have to floor it to get it to move around cars, I could just drop it down 1 gear and the engine response was nice.
-AWD, i let it go WOT coming on/off ramps and WOW, amazing! I cannot get over what engineering was accomplished, the thing NEVER skidded or lost traction.
-When in VTEC - car sounds LOVELY.
Needless to say, I'll be picking mine up tonight.
First mods are already planned, color match center grill, some debadging, window tints, and tinting the red reflectors on the rear bumper. If you haven't driven the AWD, I highly suggest it.
Congrats! Acura should be giving us new owners some perks for all this free advertising. Can't wait to see some pics and hear more! I may be picking mine up tonight as well. What dealer did you get it from?
Three Wheelin'
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 1,391
Likes: 4
From: Washington, DC
Racer
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 353
Likes: 0
From: Toronto
Hey guys...been lurching on here for a while so I've decided to finally sign up. Our dealership finally recieved an AWD the other day - damn skippy it's like night and day comparing the FWD and SH-AWD. I always thought the paddle shifters were useless on previous models but on the TL with SH-AWD...look out!
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6G TLX-S
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 10,229
Likes: 1,184
From: YVR
Don't get too carried away. Even though an AWD car has better accelerating and control in the wet and on snow, it's braking performance is exactly the same as any other high performance FWD car in the wet and on snow.
Thread Starter
Suzuka Master
iTrader: (4)
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 5,679
Likes: 12
From: New York, USA
I guess that's why this car uses 13.2" rear brakes?
Intermediate
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 42
Likes: 0
From: Northeast
My dealer just got an AWD demo car in and I test drove it today. One word: amazing. A lot more power than I expected - and just for fun I accelerated through tight curves in a drizzling rain and the car hugged the road - very sweet ride. And I'm getting used to the beak. Waiting for them to get some inventory in so I can see what kind of deal I can get.
Safety Car
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 4,217
Likes: 39
From: Northern VA
How true. Physics always rules. Grip on the four wheels is limited by the contact patches. You get better traction/acceleration because you are using all four patches instead of two...When you stop, the same four contact patches are in use. There is no additional advantage conferred by two extra contact patches as when you are accelerating.
6G TLX-S
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 10,229
Likes: 1,184
From: YVR
How true. Physics always rules. Grip on the four wheels is limited by the contact patches. You get better traction/acceleration because you are using all four patches instead of two...When you stop, the same four contact patches are in use. There is no additional advantage conferred by two extra contact patches as when you are accelerating.
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