Thinking about a 09 rdx turbo
 

Im a member of the 3rdgen tl forum and i have come to respect the knowledge found here. Im looking at a 2009 rdx turbo with 100k miles in silver. What would be some things to look at and ask about. Its a turbo too, any guidance would be awesome.

Where are you getting it from that will make the check list different...?

Its from a small used car dealer but im not familiar with honda turbocharged systems. I believe they might have a timing chain so no check needed there.

Yes, timing chain!



They're great! They have some small issues, but overall, they're great! :)



252K miles on my 2007! My A/C clutch may be going out again. Having it serviced next week!


Keep up on preventative maintenance and they are good! Turbos are rock solid in these!

i dont think you have rust where you are do you?

only thing i would look at other than cosmetics and how it drives, noise etc, is the turbos actuator shaft, give it a jiggle and see if there is play in the shaft. it can be adjusted, and the joint can be replaced, or the actuator can be replaced, but most places would tell you to unnecessarily replace the turbo.

This is great info, are they comfortable?

I've had my '10 RDX AWD for 10 days now and I also moved on from a 3rd gen TL. The ride is a bit stiff but i knew that comming in since the engineers wanted it to drive like a car. The steering is real tight in a great way though.

fuel economy is #1 complaint,

but gas is cheap in the states and the rdx's drive is worth it

I feel it is MUCH stiffer than a base 3G TL!

I hated my fuel economy at first... But now, doing like 60/40 highway/city, I've been averaging around 22 mpg.


But it can range from 11 mpg to 28 mpg depending on what kind of driving you're doing!

I bought my 08 RDX brand new. It's been very reliable and nothing has actually broken on it. I follow all maintenance by the book. Currently at about 80,000+ miles and it drives well. Be aware that this generation of RDX is stiffly sprung and the turbo is not fuel efficient at all.

Great car
 

I have a 2007, with 153,000 miles. The first generation RDX’s with the turbo I believe were the 2007-2009. I don’t think the 2010-2012 had turbo. You aren’t really buying this car for its turbo. You are buying it for its drive and reliability. These cars are not like your typical SUV. The body is wider than most compact-mid sized SUV’s. This gives this SUV its insane handling. I can take turns at 80-100mph. And it feels solid. Very responsive. I have never had any engine or trans problems. I change the oil every 3000 miles with mobil1 synthetic, and always use 93 octane fuel. As that is what it calls for. I maintain it well. Other than brakes, rotors, shocks, struts, oil, trans flush. I have not paid for any major repair. No oil leaks, or other fluid. I need to replace the catalytic converter at some point. Then again I have 153K miles. I financed this car in 2009. And I have not had a car payment since 2013. Just make sure you buy one with 70-100K miles. This way the last owner had no choice but to make a decent amount of repairs, and maintenance. As there is no way the spark plugs, tune up etc were never done at least once. Whatever you do, do not buy a 2013-2018. They are all for the trash ! Its almost like two different cars. It was a re design, no turbo, different trans etc. Acura woke up from that nightmare, and put the turbo back in the new 2019 design. It will take a few years before people regain Acura confidence.

All 1st gens ('07-'12) have a turbo. The '10-'12 was the mid model refresh where a FWD option was also debuted.

The 2013-2018 (2nd gen) was much more successful in terms of sales, so something was done right. It had better levels of luxury and a V6 engine which some people preferred. However, the sporty factor was dialed way down as it was softly sprung and had no SH-AWD (it had the primitive AWD that the CR-V has). The 1st gen's turbo has quite a bit of lag. The 1st gen also has no real "luxury." But it's still fun to drive and once the turbo spools up, it accelerates pretty fast.

I paid cash for my 2008 RDX brand new, so I never had a car payment. :thumbsup: