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I picked up my AWD Tech this past Saturday and finally had time to get it suited up. Nothing major on this, but I've had the windows tinted to 20% all around, splash guards installed on front/rear, and the brake calipers painted black. Here she is;
How are you enjoying the SH-AWD??? Please share your thoughts with us! :-)
So far I have 0 complaints! I haven't had a chance to really test the AWD handling other than my commute to and from work (Straight drive, 6 miles each way) so I'm not one to critique it much yet.
I did notice as everyone said that the driver's side vent tends to reflect in the window, but unless you're intentionally staring through the window and hoping to see it, it's not a deal breaker. Obviously putting 20% tint on the windows also helped resolve that.
I'm happy I had the calipers painted black, as with the 09' TL (Believe it was an engineering flaw) they constantly rusted out even after being painted.. Now this should alleviate that problem.
I've been driving mostly on ECO mode this week trying to determine if in fact it's saving me any fuel. I'll say for certain it's hard as a grown man to use that driving mode as it feels like I'm driving a 1950 Volkswagon bug! So far I'm at about 200 miles and still have a half-tank of fuel left. Later on I'll check my average mileage on the city roads and see how it's performing in that regard.
The USB music tends to be the best bet in my opinion. I've tried (2) thumb drives, one a 16gb and one a 2gb. The 16gb had a # of other files on there for my use and yet the car (after about 1-2 minutes) still located the MUSIC folder I created and started my playlist without issue. Seeing how many songs I can slap on that sucker, I find myself almost not using the Satellite radio much. I also created the Acuralink account before driving off the lot which was neat. Although I only opted for the standard package which provides the 3 years of live traffic on the GPS free of charge, they still give you the rest of the packages for a 3 month trial. I'm sorry to tell everyone I have not tested the Acuralink collision notification system!
Saturday I'll be off all day so I plan to put this into Sport mode and take a nice drive on the back roads, country roads, and highway. Maybe after Saturday I can follow up with a better review but as of now, I have 0 complaints about the car. If you have any questions about the AWD that an average guy like myself and answer, feel free to ask. It is pretty neat knowing I received 1 of only 3 AWD models that were delivered in this area. I know mine and another were sold prior to delivery, with the 3rd being sold later on Saturday I believe.
I just picked up my AWD Tech yesterday and was planning getting tints in a few days. What brand tint did you use and what color is your interior?
Thanks.
Appreciate it. I'm told by the company that did this for me it's White Box Tint 20%. My last 09' TL I had black interior, hence I did a 31% tint. This time it's 20% due to having GRAY interior which is actually very bright.
Congrats! very sharp looking ride! I'm waiting on my GLM/Ebony Sh-AWD Advance to arrive. My salesman told me it was in 'build status' as of 10/13. So hopefully I won't have to wait much longer. I plan to tint my windows as well, so I can appreciate seeing your pics for a visual. Enjoy her!