I drive all of them. I'm a tech in a dealership.... the S4's are good, but significantly more expensive than I can see justified for the performance.

the sh-awd is what makes the rdx feel better handling. a4's to me just don't have anything................... the B8 is significantly better than the previous cars, but still not anything to be excited about.

 

I've driven the RDX and I own an A4 Avant with S-line suspension and for a car that weighs as much as it does, the A4 (w/sport suspension) still handles remarkably well. It's unfathomable to think that a car that has a sport suspension, sits lower than the base model A4 and much lower than the RDX, and does not have as much turbo lag as the RDX has handling capabiliites worse than the RDX.

The curb weight reported by edmunds is approx 3,549 lbs for the quattro A4 compared to the weight of the RDX which is 3,924. Nearly 400 lbs more! Something just doesn't sit right with what you and your girlfriend think about the handling characteristics of these two vehicles.

The ONLY thing I can think that would hold merit for what you are saying is that the B7 A4 has really bad understeer problems (but an rs4 sway bar can help fix that).

 

I think you really need to decide on what level of performance you really want. A CR-V is much slower and doesn't handle as well as an RDX. It's trump card is practicality. The RDX was designed to sacrifice practicality for performance.

On a side note, I really like the balance of size and interior space of these vehicles. You have decent cargo space in a compact vehicle based on a Civic platform. The turning circle in my CR-V is great, much better than my CL had. My realtor drives a Chrysler 300c, and when I follow him, I have to wait for him to back up and turn when we make u-turns, when the CR-V usually can clear the u-turn without correction.

 

I'm not really concerned about performance and handling at all. Houston, TX is flat and straight. Most of the driving I will do is highway driving and I manage just fine in the civic that I am currently driving (2000 LX sedan).

I know it is the smartest decision, I just keep getting funny reactions when I tell peopole that is what I'm going to get. Then for the price of a CR-V there are many other used cars that I can get with higher miles (FX35, Lexus GX, Houston Supercharged TL in the blackmarcket section, etc.). It is just very annoying that used CR-V's are going for damn near the same price as used ones and on top of that I really want one that is white w/ grey interior which makes my used car search a little more difficult. All in all, I will finalize my decision in the next 3 or so weeks....

It would also make things easier on me if I could find a forum with used CR-V's for sale that have been modified nicely, but all the forums I have seen have absolutely no members selling their CR-V's. I guess that is a good sign though.

If the RDX had the same engine as the CR-V as an option I think I would lean more towards it simply because of the few tech features that it adds, but I think I can do with the CR-V EX-L with Navi and a parrot bluetooth A2DP system.

 

I work for Honda and I don't see a "engine option" on the CR-V. the engine for the RD-X is pricey to build. for 2 reasons. #1. we don't run that many. like maybe 60 a night TOPS. #2. they had to re-lay out or line to put in the turbo "dress line." just for the RDX.
just the v-6 in the RDX makes more sense(for the next generation) than the turbo 4.
plus our v-6 line is only running 1 shift.
i'm trained to run both v-6 and 4 cylinder but i haven't ran v-6s in about a year.

 

Sounds about right.

 

sounds about right

 

Who shops a CR-V against an RDX? If you even have to ask I think you should go to Honda.