phile

But what kind of wood is that? Stupid vtec had to watermark the bigger pics so you can't see them clearly, and the other pics are too small for details. I also don't believe 20" wheels.

biker

Like I mentioned in another RL thread the sketches were some early designers dream thrown on paper. Just like the M45 concept was toned down from the Fuga, the RL was toned down from that skecth - a bit too toned down.

From the outside it seems like Honda went the conservative route - it might still look good in 10 years but at the moment - I'm not feeling it. The interior seems quite nice - but you'd have to see that in person to really tell.
With those size specs it's one of the longest mid-sized sedans (the A6 is right at 193" I think) with the shortest wheelbase for that size (the M45 is 192" long but WB of 114"). I'm not sure the few inches make a lot of difference - the SHAWD system should help there.
Of course the questions is how much is this OK looking car?

Just think - you could have had a BMW 5/7 series kind of polarizing design. Instead it's just OK with most everyone. I'd consider it if it was available with an MT!

provench

Man - this is a SWEET car.

Traffic (and weather?) in real time on the NAV? Bout time someone did that (or maybe Acura isn't first, but very cool none the less).

Nice complement to the Acura line-up

biker

The 20 in wheels seems about right - Acura had to one up the M45 that comes with 19 as standard.

With those tires and SHAWD I can see this car getting 1G at the skidpad.

balata97

Is it me or are you guys excited to see this SH-AWD in a future TSX? me----->

And that real time traffic update on the navi is definetly a plus.

goodness.... hope some of this stuff trickles down to its other models...

jcg878

XM tracks where you're driving?? I guess Tony Soprano won't be adding it to his car.

ClutchPerformer

That's a good thought, but honestly I don't think the TSX has the guts to handle it. It'd be REALLY nice on the TL, though.

provench

Yep - they will have to mate SH-AWD + IMA to bring it to the TSX

TSX Hokie

Looks like the freakish love-child of a naughty 3-way between a Lexus ES330, Chrysler Concorde, and BMW 5-series....

...which should make it a hit with the empty-nesters they are targeting.

Acura needs to decide on one grille/headlight combo for all its vehicles (like BMW does). It is getting hard to pick out an Acura.

I think it will do well. Kudos to Honda for soming up with the SHAWD system; on paper, it looks like it should give Quattro and Infiniti's system a run for their money.

provench

Acura Keyless Access system ... anyone else catch that?? So is this anything new/special?

Junkster

Just wondering about this as I run through different forums rambling on about the new RL...

What part of this car will be a 'prototype' feature not translated into the production model? This car lists a huge list of features, some of which are very neat and creative, but would it skyrocket the price to a unreasonable levels? For instance, that whole XM tracking thingie, how viable is this to a production car? 20" rims, I could see possibly making it. And will the RL have real wood in the production car?

With only about five to six months before public launch, why are they revealing a 'prototype'? Why can't they either give us a total show car, or a total production car?

Honda just screws with my head every year.

Junkster, whose always thoroughly confused.

jiggaman

figghidibowdit

jiggaman

figghidibowdit

provench

Found my own answer on hondanews.com:

"The RL Prototype is the first vehicle equipped with the Acura Keyless Access System', which allows owners to lock and unlock doors, open the trunk, and start the car without using a key. "

Davediego

no stick??? f1 paddle style on the dash is still an AUTOMATIC, not SMG even. geez acura i thought you had become smarter than this. guess we wont really know the full benefit of SH-AWD until it shows up in the TL

fdl

Must be something like Lexus does with the biometric (fingerprint) authentication on door handles, etc.

leftride

iTrader: (1)

I think it is a good looking car, but I think the TSX and even more so the TL are great looking cars, they are new and different. I would say that the market the RL is going into isnt always looking for different.

Davediego

also i dont like how they went back to Bose for the speakers. They shuold have continued with ELS to make it a brand feature like mark levnsin or whoever in lexus and harmon kardon in bmw. whats with the GIANT knob in the dash? please dont tell me they've dropped touchscreen from the nav. rest of the interior is pretty nice, and the tech features sound cool. it woulda been nice to see a bump in resolution on the nav though

Jason

Unfortunately, say buh-bye to our beloved touch screen. In the plus side, I checked out a photo of the input method on the Acura mini-site and it doesn't look all that bad. With real-time traffic incorporated I think I'll get used to it.

jlukja

I'm guessing that the traffic info for the 20 metro areas they will cover will be beamed out on one of the XM digital channels. The info will not have to be updated very often to be useful (maybe once a minute?, or even every 10 seconds?) The GPS receiver that is already part of the navigation system will know your position. Its just a matter of updating the software to be able to superimpose the traffic data over the positioning data and add a little logic to select best routes. Sounds like a one-time engineering effort up front and not that expensive to reproduce in the navi units once designed. Just my

And, Tony Soprano, you won't have to worry about the XM system "beaming" your location info anywhere. Only you and your navi unit will know where you are at all times.

Jason

I'm no conspiracy theorist, but I think you are deluding yourself if you don't think the Govt. will take advantage of this technology.

jlukja

The system has the ability to receive signals but not to broadcast signals. In order to broadcast to a satalite you would need a pretty accurate antenna and a pretty powerful signal, neither of which is the RL will have. Besides, the Govt. already knows where you are if you carry a cell phone that is on.

biker

Talk about a marketing gimmick - I can see now:

Acura salesman: Yes the paddle shifters are just like the one in the [insert real paddle shift car here]
Buyer: That's great

Every one will think they're getting BMW SMG like technology when in fact it's just a remote for the SS operation of the shift lever.

provench

Maybe ... but paddle shifters are on a LOT more cars that are pure auto w/o SMG like trannies. But I will say Acura sportshift is getting quicker and quicker with every rev. Plus ... SMG isn't free and wouldn't make sense on an RL ... now on a TL ... mmmmmmmmm

fdl

The car doesnt need to communicate with the satellite to broadcast its location. It can triangulate its location based on the incoming signals and then send out its location over some other medium. This is probably how GM's Onstar works.

Davediego

are you serious no touch screen??? theres a reason why honda/acura navs are the best on the market, BECAUSE THEY HAVE A TOUCHSCREEN. text input with a stick is just idiotic compared to an on screen touchpad. what the hell are they thinking

picker

People stick to cars. Cause you don't know jack about gps and sat radio. They are PASSIVE SIGNALS. THEY DONT SEND OUT ANY INFORMATION. So please go back to looking for black helicopters and stop talking about things you dont understand.

firedc5

daMNN!!!!!!!!!

TSX Hokie

Ya know how hard it is to type stuff in using a gamepad? Anyone that has ever renamed an entire team of players in a Nintendo football game knows what I am talking about. I can see using that big knob to control the navi screen being equally tedious.

If they aren't going to have a SMG, why not go CVT? It's much smoother than a discrete-gear AT, and since it can produce an infinite number of gear ratios, the paddles could change the aggressiveness of the gearing, ie. top paddle for more 'economy' (tall ratio), bottom paddle for more 'sport' (short ratio).

EDIT: Even cooler, you could make the paddles pressure-sensitive (like a 'gear throttle' if you will). Firmly tug on the bottom paddle for a surge of power by dropping the gear ratio dramatically, a tap on the top paddle to get a touch better fuel economy on the highway.

Hokie, who thinks CVTs are really cool when implemented properly. (sorry to gank your style Junk )

fdl

I guess you missed my post above. You dont need to be able to transmit back to the satellite to give away your position. Something like a cellular transmitter will do just fine.

tuan209

not very impressed w/ the ext. Doesnt look like a flagship car to me, but its suppose to attract a different crowd. So far ive been very disappointed with new RL, GS, and 5 series.

picker

Fdl. Which means that sat radio, and GPS means NOTHING to the government. They dont need to use those things against you and they cant. All they need is to throw a cell phone in your trunk and they can track you.

I am specificly addressing those who are talking about the government hijacking their NAVS and SAT radio to spy on them. They dont need to and they dont want to. Its so much simpler to hook a stand alone device to your car where you cant see it. Then to rig some wierd macgyver set up to interface with your sat and nav to track you.

Sorry if i came off rude in previous post.

jlukja

Dude, I was about to fire back at you, but I got distracted by your avatar.

Now ... uh ... what were we talking about?

Oh ... yeah ... its cool.

dom

From Jeff at TOV.

"nicely finished trunk, however the hinges are still not the articulating kind."

I take it this means the trunk has hinges similar to our TSX? If thats the case, what a joke.

phile

Me too, but to be fair, I still have not seen it in person. I think it's better than the GS, though. Can't wait to see the Infiniti M45 too!

justinjsw

The site is hopping. I wonder why?

As with most Honda/Acura products their cars look much better in person. Its diffcult to judge the lines and depth of the car from the pictures. With that said the new RL's exterior did not overwhelm me even in person. IMO the car has clean elegant lines...bordering in the boring department. Don't get me wrong its a good looking, clean vehicle but there are no lines to set the car apart from whats out there now or whats to come. I was expecting more after so many year with this current RL.

The interior is amazing...but I don't think it goes well with the exterior. The outside says refined...the inside says sporty and spaceage. Its high tech but with a cold feel to it.

I have heard a mock up of the DVD sound in the new RL...and its like sitting in a concert hall or in the TL but boosted up a few watts.

There are a couple more surprises they have not released yet for the RL.

BTW I was not impressed with the new GS or 5 Series either.

Jason

You are a wicked, evil man.

T-R

Are they big surprises or small surprises like.... LED taillights ....or.... passenger memory seat? I mean those are not big surprises IMO.

Can you at least confirm:
if the rear seats are power?
if the front seats are climate controlled?
Are there power sun shade(s)?
Those are good surprises IMO.

Also, do you know if Honda is working on 6-speed auto tranny?
Thanks

justinjsw

No
Yes
Yes

Don't know

Vans

lets hope so for the 6 speed tranny - a 5 speed is a little disappointing.