Not sure if this is accurate - this guy claims the new ILX is 6.1 zero to sixty with essentially the same powertrain as the i4 TLX.

click -> Unlike Most Of You, I Totally Understand The Acura ILX

Interesting what shaving a few pounds can do.

I know it's not going to impress your neighbors but I'm very satisfied with the performance my i4 gives me - maybe it's because I still recall my first Honda (1984 Accord LX) which put out 86 HP!

 

cheesey, please tell us you graduated high school.



weight : power

 

Honda's of yesteryear always had great weight to power ratios.

its only in this generation where car manufactures have been packing in technology and safety features that add weight to the cars, making them porky as hell.

It's great to see Honda going back to the smaller car formula.

 

I agree, I am very excited to see Honda once again putting down class leading power to weight numbers. The ILX is a really good place for them to start since it is relatively light to begin with. This powertrain was clearly the one intended for this car from the start. Being forced (for whatever reason) to start life with the 150 hp engine forced other compromises.

In my opinion, it's something of a domino effect. Clearly there are pressures, both internal and external, pushing for improved safety and other luxury content. Also, there are the feds pushing for ever stricter emissions and fuel economy goals.

"Lightness" in and of itself isn't difficult or expensive to achieve if you are willing to sacrifice safety and luxury. When you need to combine everything: lightness, performance, safety, and luxury, what gives? Price. Price is the final piece of the puzzle. Since we know that cars have to sell at certain given price points, all of these factors need to be put into a blender in order for the "right" car to come out.

At Civic price points for example, there is no budget for an aluminum hood. This means that something else has to go, thicker glass? Better sound insulation? You get the idea. At the ILX price point, they can afford to use aluminum and put the weight savings into other content. However, no amount of massaging could overcome the relative lack of horsepower.

While I wouldn't say that Honda of yesteryear had it "easy", I would say that everything came together really well for their philosophy and way of building cars. They were able to leverage their engineering expertise to generate outstanding horsepower out of relatively small engines by simply winding them higher. Although VTEC recaptured much of the low-end that was lost, they still weren't terribly torquey engines. This worked in a 2500 pound car and they were able to keep the weight down because the cars weren't terribly sophisticated or burdened by excessive sound deadening and safety gear.

As these factors changed, some by customer demand, some by federal mandate, Honda was forced to develop new engines that better meet their needs. However, engines like the K24 aren't the same as Honda motors of yesteryear although they are, arguably, better all-around engines. Thus, we are faced with a situation where many people on enthusiast sites wish that things were prioritized differently when they came out of the proverbial blender. Hopefully, a little dose of vitamin HP, will cure everything.

 

Turbo. Bro. Now you know.

PS- I'm starting my career as a rapper.

 

Clearly that's next, but I'm not terribly excited about it. I'd rather see them add electric motors as the way of adding torque. Especially if they follow the three motor SH AWD method. However, cost rears its ugly head again.

 

So the RLX Sport Hybrid and the NSX follow that model while the ILX and TLX eventually get turbo versions?

 

^^The NSX will have both Turbos and eSH-AWD. LOL, I think they covered their 'trickle down' tech bases pretty well.