Adaptive cruise control with the 6MT

 

This is ILX, rebadged to cash in on Integra legendary name. However, the previous ILX was a better car. I'll take 2.4 DOHC VTEC and 8DCT over 1.5T CVT anyyyyyy day, all day. And the 6MT is just a Civic Si slapped with $10K markup.

 

SG review, overall pretty overview and @ 0.57 show the Integra exclusive chassis/body/structure design including A/B/C pillars

 

AoA review

 

Reviews of it are pretty great, though.

And don't compare that shitpile ILX to a car you haven't driven.

 

 

C&D was oddly lukewarm about the car
https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...integra-drive/

MT was more positive
https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2...-drive-review/

Sounds like the CVT is good enough for normal people, and so I expect it to sell well. Everyone seems to love the 6MT as expected, but the big price jump over the Si (not to mention getting eventually sandwiched by the Type S) may be an issue for the 6MT. I get they they don’t want to cannibalize Si sales, but I suspect after the initial surge of 6MT sales from hardcore fans tapers off, maybe then they’ll offer the 6MT on lower trim levels too. Or maybe they’ll say “see, nobody buys manuals” and just kill it off like the Accords 6MT.

 

Interesting commentary from Mark when someone asked him why they didn’t use the RSX nameplate:

 

It's nice they had a 1G Integra at the event, still have great memories of my wife's 1G Integra LS 5MT

 

 

 

Sofyan out there with a Racebox got 7.1s 0-60 for the 6MT and 7.4s and 7.48s for the CVT

CVT at 26:30: it does have fake shifts but it still sounds pretty droney and a bit uneven near the top of "2nd gear". Shame this couldn't be paired with the 10AT or 8DCT (yeah, yeah, cost I know).

 

They axed Navigation!? I just checked the site and it appears so. Wow, interesting move and for a built in system Acura Navi is decent. I get that many people use AA/CP but more cost cutting going on.

 

I wouldn't be surprised if it had to do with the chip shortage moreso than cost.

 

Reviews of people who get room, board, flight, hotel, meals and merch from OEMs to review their cars? Those reviews? Do you know what happens if they shit on the car? They don't get them anymore. Which means no more videos. Which means no more clicks. Which means no more money. They make their living off of these reviews. You actually believe Sofiyan or Alex or Kirk are not biased? If someone flew you to their launch event, you'd eat shit out of their hand, let alone sing their praises.

 

I don't know if any reviewers had mentioned this year, but I feel like in reality this car might actually be more of a successor to the TSX than to the Integra. Yeah, it shares the same platform as the Civic, but both the Civic and Accord now ride on the same modular platform, and dimensionally it's about the same size as the TSX was. From a passenger space perspective, this car is categorized as a small mid-size, which is exactly what the TSX was. And sure, this does have the same engine as the Civic Si, but so did the 2G TSX at the time. Of course, the TSX nameplate wouldn't generate nearly as much hype, but I think expectations would be more properly aligned.

 

My Accord has adaptive cruise with 6MT. Honda had this tech 5 years ago. This is nothing new.

 

Same deal with the Nissan Altima, for what that's worth.

 

Agreed! I perceive them as being compromised, which I suppose was bound to happen given the hustle that YT channels tend to be. It's no wonder why I've been drifting away from 90% of mainstream YT auto reviewers.

 

Mark and Jack are probably as honest as they come. He did get blackballed by Honda/Acura for a while, but it seems like he's back in their good graces. For some of the other ones, you have to read between the lines. Alex will tend to focus on the specs and details without the commentary if it's a car that isn't to his liking. Some of the others will use a compliment sandwich were the bread (compliments) aren't all that strong. And then you have Joe who is basically a paid shill so admittedly there's really not a whole lot from him...

Most of them won't outright lie about something, so if a particular segment is missing or glossed over really quickly, it's a pretty good sign that they don't have good things to say about it but can't really say how they actaully feel about it.

 

For few years now, they all drop videos at the same exact second (embargo by OEM) of the same exact car, filmed at the same exact location!

 

I know them personally and live in the town next to them. The red Accord 6MT they reviewed is my car. They were blackballed for years, until they got a new rep (Jessica); she came on and they agreed to go easy on their products (since 2018 RDX review).

 

 

65% of of Integra buyers buying 6MT? I wonder if part figure was Acura offering of the CVT auto?

 

Manual:


CVT:

 

Not one of those reviewers who were in TX to film this stuff asked Acura why did they opt for 1.5T CVT instead of 2.4NA 8DCT.

 

https://webcache.googleusercontent.c...&ct=clnk&gl=caTLDR. They used the DCT to soften the blow of no longer offering 6MT in the ILX. And also the DCT is no longer in production. Now, whether one likes this explanation is another story. It is what it is I guess.

One thing though, is that the 1.5CVT combo is rated much more favorably in EPA ratings than the 2.4DCT combo:
ILX: 24/34/28 city/hwy/combined
Integra: 30/37/33 city/hwy/combined

According to EPA, based on 45% highway, 55% city driving, 15,000 annual miles and current fuel prices, the ILX would cost you $2800/year and the Integra would cost you $2400/year. The ILX's EPA ratings would have put it the worst in class compared to a FWD 228i, A3, and A220. The Integra on the other hand is best in class.

 

The question then is how the 1.5T/8DCT combo would have performed. In the CDX, which I believe is the only application of the 1.5T+8DCT combo, it's advertised as 6.8 L/100km which translates to around 34.6MPG.

 

IMO it works both ways.

There's definitely "incentives" to leave a good review given that your trip is paid for for the most part. On the other hand, car enthusiasts like yourself aren't stupid either. If a reviewer keeps lying about a car, you will see through the lies eventually and u stop following him. He will then start losing subscribers and $$. It's a fine line to walk I guess. Many of these YT reviewers have lots of subscribers and I'd say they can afford to leave a not so stellar review if the car is really bad. I think it works much the same way with car magazines too. We can say car magazines can't talk negatively about a car as otherwise the car company won't spending advertisement money with it. But we've seen negative car reviews before.

Here are some examples of Sofiyan's reviews that aren't that positive, using words like "midpack," "ordinary," "compromised," "not worthy," "underpowered", etc:

 

It's hard to know as Chinese ratings are different than EPA ratings. But if the transmission is out of production, it's a moot point perhaps.

 

I don't buy the "concession prize" argument. The 2.4/DCT combo was already available from the TLX (the only case where that argument would work, as it was replacing 2 models with 6MT's), and any alternative would've incurred higher cost when they were already trying to save $$$ by consolidating the various pre-refresh powertrains.

To refute this argument further, the '13-15 ILX also offered a traditional AT in addition to the 6MT - but again it was a case of cost/convenience moreso than fan service, as it was already mated to the same engine in other Honda models. And the 8DCT being out of production? It's too bad SavageGeese didn't mention the CDX...

They can spin the BS wheel all they want, but at the end of the day 1) the priority was cost savings and not performance (with improved fuel economy as a convenient byproduct), and 2) the Integra formula is no different from the ILX's, but with a less frumpy exterior/interior and better platform to start with. If not for the liftback design alone, they'd have an even harder time convincing everyone why they used that name.

 

I don't think anyone of these reviewers went and gave 10/10 to Integra because they were invited by Acura and had lunch and dinner. Of course each of them has their own opinion, but the reviews were pretty fair. Is it the most powerful car? No. Is it a lot better than Civic? NO. Most reviewers said, this is a great value when compared to the German competitors. Which is 100% true. You don' need a degree to know and understand that!

AoA summarized it well at the end. Are you willing to pay $8-10K more for a a competitor? The decision is yours. As I always say, you don't have to buy a car because AoA or I say it's good. We have so many options out there. You do your research and decide it for yourself. It's clear that the new Integra is a great car for that price but if you don't care for the badge, premium material, adaptive dampers, ELS sound system (one of the top 3 systems out there at this price point) and 5 doors, then go buy the Si! Case closed! I only can understand if someone absolutely needs AWD, then for sure Integra is not the right choice regardless of the price.

 

The CDX is out of production as Acura in April already announced that they are pulling out of the Chinese market. And the ILX formula was no different than the original Integra formula.

 

I have to say, I don't fully get the head-long rush (by all companies) to convert to these small turbo fours. The 1.5 in the new Integra is very responsive, spools up nicely, and sounds good. But the same could be said for the 2.4 Earth Dreams NA four in our Accord, with 6MT. That car routinely pulls 40+ mpg in the warmer months on the highway (EPA said 34 mpg!), and will run 0-60 in about 6.6. I would have kept that motor for the new gen Civic and Integra and paired it with the DCT and 6MT. The EPA mileage test protocols must favor the small turbo motors, but in the real world it seems the better naturally aspirated fours do as well or better.

 

In a lot of countries (including Japan) cars are taxed based on engine displacement.

 

Interesting take from BMWBlog on the M235i GC vs Integra. Can't say I'm surprised; the M235i GC (and all 2 Series GC) is hated on pretty hard by BMW enthusiasts. 6MT Integra vs M235i? I'd absolutely take the Integra. And for the price of the M235i, you could get an Integra Type S which will absolutely crap all over it.

https://www.bmwblog.com/2022/05/29/a...gra-bmw-m235i/

 

What German competitor? Who are they competing against with 1.5 CVT? Name one German car in that segment with that type of underpowered powertrain. This will compete with Corolla XSE, at best.

 

ahahah! ya sure. It competes with Rickshaw!

 

In case you missed it in the other thread