123456SPEED

All the Acuras I've had were dropped during, after, and even before I bought em. 1G/2G Legend coupes, 2 CLS coupes, and a Prelude. kinda expect it. The RL shoulda been dropped at least in 08, that 'flagship' needed sinking, sales were already but it's the only Acura left I'd consider. (I want a real coupe)

What bothers me more is Honda never kept a committed direction for Acura since the (unexpected?) smash debut of the Legend sedan and I was dismayed of Tier 1, V8, V10 talk etc. This is not the Acura I wanted or bought at all.

For me, Honda/Acura lost belief producing gas guzzling, SUVs, and cars. Their core is simple, efficient, safe, innovative, reliable and a fun and techy drive hopefully with a shifter. Businesses are for making $ and sales, but Acura lost something trying to sell escalating 'premium' cars and SUVs like the other guys with Euro accents. I think they should jump big into hybrid/alternative efficient cars, and find their niche...and throw away the ugly stick and 16mpg models.

but what do I know, I never had a SUV, or even a sedan, so maybe they were thinking of me with the sedan/SUV chop, the ZDX. The coupe buyer in me was at first intrigued, but the mpg, weight, and price does not work for me. I've had only Acuras since the 80s, but my next car may be something else.

TSX69

US Emission Rules Spur Latest Honda Green-Car Blitz

Honda Motor Co. CEO Takanobu Ito says stricter U.S. emissions standards are the biggest factors driving Honda's push toward more environmentally efficient vehicles.

Last Tuesday, the company announced plans to launch an electric car and plug-in hybrid in the United States in 2012. It also plans to introduce "multiple" small-car hybrids, starting with a hybrid version of the Fit, Honda said. The next-generation Civic Hybrid will get a lithium ion battery.

"Our main technological target has been the U.S. zero-emission-vehicle regulation from the beginning," Ito told reporters here while unveiling his midterm business plan. "With the U.S. regulations, particularly California's ZEV regulations, you need to respond by around 2012 or 2013. It is a reality that we will need more cars responding to it."

About 6 percent of Honda's current overall production is devoted to hybrids. But Executive Vice President Koichi Kondo said the automaker plans to boost that to more than 10 percent in 2013.

Separately, Ito denied a Japanese press report that Honda plans to kill the Japanese version of the Acura RL sedan or that it is re-evaluating the future of the model in the United States.

"There is absolutely no reason for us to stop it," Ito said. "It is clearly necessary in the United States."

Honda's reported plan to drop the model in Japan, where it is known as the Honda Legend, raised speculation about its future in the United States.

Acura has sold only 872 RLs in the United States through the first six months of this year, while Lexus sold 5,650 of the LS sedan and Infiniti sold 6,602 of its M sedan.

"When we deliberated domestic strategy, certainly there were some opinions opting to tentatively halt the model or to replace it," Kondo said of the RL. "However, it is still our flagship, our top-of-the-line model that has been with customers for the past 20 years. We can't scrap it."

neuronbob

"We can't scrap it". That's good news for this Legend/RL fan.

The next news I want to hear is that everybody likes the way it looks and it's not polarizing. Then I want to hear about an improved drivetrain. Dual-Note FTW!