carbonTSEX

I figure it's time to start a build thread since the RDX is coming along. The wife and I purchased a 2016 White Diamond Pearl RDX Advance with Parchment interior about a month ago. This is her new daily as I sold my show built TSX and currently am building my 2014 Acura TL SH. All comments welcome. Enjoy!

Current mod list:

OEM Optional Roof Rails
OEM Optional Door Edge Guard
OEM Optional Rear Bumper Applique
OEM Optional All season mats front, rear and trunk tray
OEM Optional Sun Shade
OEM Optional Rear back seat cover
OEM Optional Cargo Net
OEM Optional Wheel Locks
OEM Optional Splash Guards

Aftermarket:

15% Tint to driver and passanger front windows/35% on top of factory rear tint
Morimoto XB (type S) 5000k LED standalone foglights

Future mods as of now: 20" rims/tires and one 12" JL Audio W7 with 1000/1 or more amp.

Pictures:



























My 2014 Acura TL SH AWD:

SlowLane

Congratulations. The new RDX looks great.

EFItech

iTrader: (5)

Looks good bro, i just put reverse HID's in mine. Installed all LED's but not sure what to do with the map lights

5 Acuras

iTrader: (1)

Two great looking rides!

carbonTSEX

Back seat cover and cargo net came in today so the wife and I installed them. Let's see how this over the top net works out. Also pictured in the first shot you can kind of see the rear bumper appliqué.



Cargo net:



Rear back seat cover:

EFItech

iTrader: (5)

I just put my rear seat covers this weekend and I regret buying them, They kill the interior of the car for me so I think I might sell. Love the Cargo tray though, I need to get that cargo net.

Off topic but you should look into intalling rear HID for the reverse Lights. Took me about 10min to install and they work great I try to post pics up tomorrow.

carbonTSEX

I have the backseat cover in my TL and it's a lot nicer because it's 1 piece minus the headrests. It covers the entire seat. The RDX is different because it needs to be able to fold the seats down and what not. Took the RDX camping for the first time and brought my nephew and it was extremely useful. I'd rather protect the leather seats. I got the net and rear seat cover for $200 with my discount. No complaints.

As for reverse lights. I'm looking into VLED's soon. I love the V3 Triton. Also planning to run them on my TL soon for switchbacks and reverse.

Pictures would be nice!

012TL-GLM

Carbon we have a similar family photo

EFItech

iTrader: (5)

VLEDS are good i have the 194s for the dome, trunk, and doors but IMO the Trittons are over priced for me. Here are the pics of the reverse HID's i got to get a shot of yesterday.

quick shots of the led interior (not sure what to do with map lights)



here's the HID's






my daily lurking in the background but you can see the spread of the lighting

Flipster23

iTrader: (15)

Nice pick up, at first when I saw the title and though you sold the TL and bought an RDX...

carbonTSEX

@Flipster23
Haha nah I couldn't do that. It's my baby. Had it since November of 2013 and it still is under 8000 miles. Just adding to the family of Acuras. Needed something new for the wife. I daily a 2000 accord v6 ex with 180k miles. Runs too strong.

@EFItech
Those reverse are crazy bright! Looking into options though. I do know the V3's are pricey I just can't short myself on quality for a brand new car.

carbonTSEX

You have good taste! Congrats on the purchase. I love the combination between the 2. I thought about another black vehicle but had to opted out and get the opposite. Keep going back and forth on the painted front grill. Even on the RDX.

EFItech

iTrader: (5)

Well, I though the first thing at first but in all honesty they're just bulbs. I have these on my TL currently for over a year now with no issue. I would understand to be put behind a brand name like VLED when if it were to come to a functional MOD that would compromise the car if faulty but I figured if the lights go out I'll just swap the bulb. Just my hope it helped.

carbonTSEX

That's true. I'm not knocking it at all. Bright as hell, I'm sure helps the backup camera. Thanks for posting that. First time I've seen hids for reverse lights.

5 Acuras

iTrader: (1)

Looks good! What are you using for brake and turn signal lights?

012TL-GLM

I think I'm going to hold off on painting the grill. They finally got the grill design right. Only mod I'm planning is tinted front windows. Gotta get them ASAP, can't stand the sun heating up my legs every morning! I get a lot of use from the ventilated seats

EFItech

iTrader: (5)

For brake and turn signals those are oem leds.

carbonTSEX

Yeah the grill is a lot cleaner. Tinting the front was a must. I had my guy tint over the back and tint the fronts. OEM Sun shade is legit too.

carbonTSEX

Great news, window visors arrived today which was quicker than expected. Very happy with the final outcome as the are exactly like my TL's.


Product: Window Visors
Brand: Wellvisors
Fitment: '13+ (fits my '16)
Price: $82.99 w/free shipping
Website: www.wellvisors.com
Installation time: 10-20 minutes

Kit includes: 4 window visors, 2 alcohol pads and 2 decals



Visors have a "dummy" chrome trim:







Only fitment issue, same with my TL but I ended up forgetting about it.



Final product:








Final overview:

For there not being ANY options on window visors and I and probably a select other few have, I am very happy. They are stylish and functional. Installation is easy and don't need instructions. They are affordable and have free shipping. On the flip side, fitment could be a tad better. Also I only received and invoice and not a tracking number this time so they arrived to my surprise. I would have felt safer with one but happy to see they arrived.

5 Acuras

iTrader: (1)

Looks good, I didn't realize they came with the chrome strip. I was wondering how the stick on ones would look if they covered the chrome, seems they took care of that. What fitment issue are you concerned about?

javp

Looks very good. I always have doubts on how the rear piece sits. I think that isn't a fitment issue but a gap is needed allowing to open/close the rear doors with the window visors.

I tried to find the visors online, but they don't have anything available. Did you emailed/called them to place the order?

At last, do you mind posting pics with all windows lowered down (half and fully) from away showing the full car on the side?

Many Thanks!

carbonTSEX

I agree that it's so the rear door can be opened fully without the visors coming into contact. I never had this with my Mugen visors for my TSX. Just new to me.

I contacted them on Instagram first and asked them when that were planning to have some and got a response. I then sent them 2 emails via their website but no response. I just happen to randomly check and it became available. As soon as i purchased they were taken off the site.

I can take some pictures sometime this week. Ill have to use my digital camera this time and get some quality shots.

Due_Diligence

Finally saw a new RDX on the road and it looks much better! Congratz on the purchase I look forward to seeing the mods.

The only thing that looks odd in stock form are the small rims otherwise it's money. Acura did a good job on the makeover.

banana13

Nice Build Carbon! Update us if you plan on doing any further mods!

How is the detail business going for you ?

Man I hate to admit it but, today I parked beside a advance 16' RDX , and it sure does make me jelly lol. It makes my RDX look like a potato like others have also said.
Screw that , I'll just wait another 2,3 years . Too tempting .

carbonTSEX

Only part I have added recently was the OEM cargo cover. I do have a buddy throwing me some LEDs for reverse and license plate lights on Sunday. In the process of getting air suspension for my TL. Have to hop back and fourth between the builds.

Detail business is great! Thanks for asking.

Yeah I have seen 2 '16 RDX's on the road. One Advance and one not. Still uncommon which I love!

abanytime

carbon, I saw in the reverse lights thread you replaced yours. What did you end up using? LED?

carbonTSEX

Yes I swapped to 5k LED's. Got a ton of LED's from a friend for free. Not sure if they are the vleds or ijdmtoys pair.

On a different note. Picked up a JL Audio W6 12" sub woofer in box and a JL Audio 500/1v2 amp. Installing today in the RDX. Tired of no bass so had to step it up.

yesrdx

^
I'd love to see photos of the placement and setup for the amp and speaker.

carbonTSEX

It's a pretty basic install. Nothing special set up wise but damn does it pound. Really clean sound.

carbonTSEX

Since my wife didn't want to sacrifice trunk space I have the sub facing the same way as in the picture. This thing pounds and I have it tuned way down for her. Setup is 12" W6 in ported box, JL Audio 500/1v2 amp, Rockford Fosgate amp kit and Pac Hi Lo converter. Amp was mounted to the side of the box closest to the back seat. Keeps the trunk free of wires. It's tapped into the factory amp as well as the hi Lo taped into the factory sub. The RDX needed it. It's definitely a neck breaker setup.



Not many places to mount the amp. Was also planning to use a truck box and replace the spare tire but the mount for the tire makes it impossible. All in all, I love it and so does the wife. At different levels of course. Haha

yesrdx

Thanks for the update. Would it be possible to swap the 8" factory with a custom fiberglass box to fit the 12"?

I would have installed the amp on the rear of the backseat instead of the cargo floor, so you can maximize the cargo space when the seats are up.

carbonTSEX

That is not how it's mounted in the picture and I am not one to put holes in the seats either. I have it mounted to the box in between the rear seat and side of the box. So you can't see it. I maximized the space as much as possible. All you can see is the sub sideways like in the picture. The amp is not mounted to the floor. That picture is just to show my setup before it was installed. I can take a picture of the setup tomorrow.

As for replacing the factory 8" sub, I have seen someone drop in a aftermarket 8" sub and amp in the factory location. To run a 12" in there would be tight. You'd have to see the setup of the 8" to understand. Anything is possible though but it wouldn't be running at its max potential.

yesrdx

Ah, that makes much more sense. lol. Thanks for the clarification.

carbonTSEX

Here's a picture if the installed setup. I swapped out my Pac SNI-35 hi Lo converter for the LC2 today for better quality. Also cleaned up the install.

carbonTSEX

Thought I had added my photos from my LED upgrade but I guess not so here they are. More to come. Will be upgrading the reverse lights and tailgate lights coming soon with the same build/type. I'll include the link if you're interested in high quality LED bulbs.

License plate/door puddles/tailgate lights:

5K WHITE 4 LED HIGH POWER BULBS 194 168 158 160LM | 1 PAIR - 194 - 168 - 158 LED - Shop Bulb #

Reverse lights (coming soon):

5K WHITE 15 LED HIGH POWER BULBS 917 918 920 921 922 923 579 500LM | 1 PAIR - 921 LED - Shop Bulb #

On to the photos:





Comparison:





Sorry for the low quality night photos. Hard to capture clearly since the LEDS are so bright.

carbonTSEX

Just a random photo:



and a couple throwbacks from day 1:

carbonTSEX

Spent 5 hours last night with the wife doing an exterior detail. Washed, clayed, two stage polish and hit it with Gtechniq's Exo hydrophobic coating. Looks better than when we first bought it. Here's a couple pictures but they don't do justice since I took them this morning. Water and dirt repellent and last roughly 12-18 months. Now it just needs a hand wash whenever it's dirty and it'll look new everytime without waxing. Highly recommend it!

carbonTSEX

The first A1 service was completed yesterday at 7000 miles. 1st oil change was complimentary and they did an inspection. I guess they noticed the brakes had a light squeak so they replaced front rotors and pads. I never noticed the squeaking brakes at all but glad they replaced them anyway.

While waiting for the car the wife and I were checking out the showroom floor and saw the advance running boards. We decide to pull the trigger and purchase them. Out the door was under $600. That will be my next install now.



I will update my post after I install them.

carbonTSEX

Found some time today to install the advance running boards. Install wasn't bad at all. I did take pictures so I'll post of DIY thread on the install process tomorrow. Better pictures to come when it's nice out. Love how they look and function. Much nicer than the sport running boards.



Next mod must be wheels. Besides the cross bars.

carbonTSEX

Been MIA since it's spring and been busy modding my TL for the show season.

Here's a couple of more shots of the RDX currently. Haven't changed anything but I will be upgrading my amp from JL audio 500/1v2 to a 600/1v3 tomorrow on my day off.