RDX vs. X3
09-13-2018, 05:06 PM
#1
RDX vs. X3
I test drove a 2019 RDX and 2019 BMW X3 yesterday afternoon. Both were 2WD, since neither BMW nor Acura stock a lot of AWD versions in Southern California. I drove them back to back, over the same route. I thought the BMW had a much better ride, and was much quieter and smoother, especially the transmission. The BMW was priced significantly higher, but BMW reportedly is offering bigger discounts. I am probably not going to buy either right now, but would probably go with the BMW if I were buying a car right now.
As usual, the sales folks knew little about the cars. I had read that forward collision warning was not standard on the X3, and the sales lady said that you needed a package to get that feature. Virtually none of the 70 plus cars in stock had that package, which seemed strange. When I got home I went to BMW's website and learned that forward collision warning is standard on the X3 for 2019 models.
As usual, the sales folks knew little about the cars. I had read that forward collision warning was not standard on the X3, and the sales lady said that you needed a package to get that feature. Virtually none of the 70 plus cars in stock had that package, which seemed strange. When I got home I went to BMW's website and learned that forward collision warning is standard on the X3 for 2019 models.
09-13-2018, 06:28 PM
#4
Suzuka Master
Similarly equipped X3 will cost more to buy, will cost more to maintain, and will cost more to repair.
And when its time to sell, depreciation will be higher than for Acura.
But it has nice BMW logo!
And when its time to sell, depreciation will be higher than for Acura.
But it has nice BMW logo!
09-13-2018, 07:57 PM
#5
Azine Jabroni
So the only thing you haven't considered here is how it is to drive...which is theoretically the biggest thing. Assuming 2WD, I'll take the RWD BMW. Now, if both are AWD I would have to try them.
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HotRodW (09-14-2018)
09-13-2018, 09:45 PM
#6
If all I cared about was cost and not the driving experience, I would get a Honda or a Toyota, not an Acura.
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HotRodW (09-14-2018)
09-13-2018, 10:02 PM
#7
Suzuka Master
Car choices depend on how much you want to spend on the car. Driving expirence is subjective. With all things considered I think RDX offers better value for your money in many areas: cost, performance, luxury, reliability. All that German ultimate driving expirence is a big hype IMHO.
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09-13-2018, 11:05 PM
#8
Azine Jabroni
Car choices depend on how much you want to spend on the car. Driving expirence is subjective. With all things considered I think RDX offers better value for your money in many areas: cost, performance, luxury, reliability. All that German ultimate driving expirence is a big hype IMHO.
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HotRodW (09-14-2018)
09-14-2018, 01:41 AM
#9
Sorry but German cars just drive amazing and nothing can touch that. The Germans just know how to perfectly balance things and let in all the good and keep out all the bad. When other companies try that, they either let in too much bad or keep out all the good (i.e either the ride is piss poor but handles well and is choppy with shitty NVH or we numb down everything and it drives like shit).
09-14-2018, 02:12 AM
#10
Team Owner
If the base warranty isnt enough, you can lump on an extended warranty on to your payments. You end up paying $15-30 a month more, or some shit, and have your car covered for as long as you’d wish.
But sure, if you walk away with 5k more in your pocket after 5+ years of ownership, so be it. I’d be more worried about owning the vehicle for those )
five years rather than what happens when you go to sell it. Enjoy the journey, don’t stress about the end point. I’m sure it won’t break you. I’m not even necessarily convinced the 3G RDX will hold its value as well as perceived. The days of Acura reliability are simply over and in five years new current owners MIGHT be facing what BMW owners have been facing for years. Who knows.
Anyway, yes, it costs more to buy a BMW. Not necessarily to own it. But you get what you pay for. There’s no such thing as getting a superior product for less money... no other manufacturer has figured it out and I doubt Acura is the first. And apparently you can get some good discounts on an X3, closing the price gap.
I dont think anyone should ignore the RDX. But I think it is worth comparing the two and decide what is more important. Price in itself shouldn’t be the only deciding factor. The other key points include how long someone intends on owning the vehicle, etc. Those numbers start changing quickly, up or down.
09-14-2018, 02:14 AM
#11
Team Owner
Also, any dick that can piss can change out brakes and do oil changes. It’s not rocket science, only requires basic automotive tools and saves you a ton of cash, regardless if it is an Acura or BMW. 
09-14-2018, 02:19 AM
#12
Team Owner
Car choices depend on how much you want to spend on the car. Driving expirence is subjective. With all things considered I think RDX offers better value for your money in many areas: cost, performance, luxury, reliability. All that German ultimate driving expirence is a big hype IMHO.
09-14-2018, 03:57 AM
#13
Drifting
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An AWD X3 comparatively equipped as an AWD Tech lists at $52500. The RDX Tech has a better sound system than the base X3, but I like the X3 nav system better.
I came from a BMW 535, and have test driven the X3 extensively and was very interested in it, and, IMO, it does drive better. Not a whole lot better, but better. Not $10K better, IMO, but better. However, in order to get all the modern driving aids, you need two drivers assistance packages, and they were not available anywhere, and the driving aids were important to me.
It is very easy to climb the cost ladder, especially with BMW, and get ‘better’. I know. When I got my 535 I started the ladder with a 328 and ended up with a much more expensive 535. When I configured a 5er the way I wanted it, it was just shy of $70 K. Yes, it would have been better. Not worth the price difference to me, but better. Get an X3 xDrive30i? Why? The X3 xDrive40i is much better.
If price did not matter, and I wanted an SUV, why would I choose a crummy BMW or Land Rover instead of a Bentayga?
I came from a BMW 535, and have test driven the X3 extensively and was very interested in it, and, IMO, it does drive better. Not a whole lot better, but better. Not $10K better, IMO, but better. However, in order to get all the modern driving aids, you need two drivers assistance packages, and they were not available anywhere, and the driving aids were important to me.
It is very easy to climb the cost ladder, especially with BMW, and get ‘better’. I know. When I got my 535 I started the ladder with a 328 and ended up with a much more expensive 535. When I configured a 5er the way I wanted it, it was just shy of $70 K. Yes, it would have been better. Not worth the price difference to me, but better. Get an X3 xDrive30i? Why? The X3 xDrive40i is much better.
If price did not matter, and I wanted an SUV, why would I choose a crummy BMW or Land Rover instead of a Bentayga?
09-14-2018, 06:00 AM
#14
Suzuka Master
Acura reliability is a figment of your imagination, from years gone by. Don’t fool yourself. Look at the 3G RDX section and see how many issues there already are for completely brand new vehicles. You think it’ll get better as you own the vehicle? Ha! Just wait until the tech starts eventually shitting the bed. It WILL eventually fail, no two ways about it. Acura is also notoriously slow to fix well documented issues. It took them 3 years to address the shit automatic transmission in the 3G TL. Didn’t stop them from selling close to 200k units in that time, though.
I test drove x3 few years back, it was nice, but not enough for me reason for me to buy one.
Everyone is different, if bmw delivers something special for you that Acura does not have, than perhaps bmw is a right choice.
09-14-2018, 06:04 AM
#15
Suzuka Master
09-14-2018, 08:05 AM
#16
Azine Jabroni
I drove my 2001 CL for 10 years, my 1st gen 08 rdx has 170k miles now and trouble free. I’ve been pretty happy with Acura reliability so far.
I test drove x3 few years back, it was nice, but not enough for me reason for me to buy one.
Everyone is different, if bmw delivers something special for you that Acura does not have, than perhaps bmw is a right choice.
09-14-2018, 08:30 AM
#17
I test drove a 2019 RDX and 2019 BMW X3 yesterday afternoon. Both were 2WD, since neither BMW nor Acura stock a lot of AWD versions in Southern California. I drove them back to back, over the same route. I thought the BMW had a much better ride, and was much quieter and smoother, especially the transmission. The BMW was priced significantly higher, but BMW reportedly is offering bigger discounts. I am probably not going to buy either right now, but would probably go with the BMW if I were buying a car right now.
As usual, the sales folks knew little about the cars. I had read that forward collision warning was not standard on the X3, and the sales lady said that you needed a package to get that feature. Virtually none of the 70 plus cars in stock had that package, which seemed strange. When I got home I went to BMW's website and learned that forward collision warning is standard on the X3 for 2019 models.
As usual, the sales folks knew little about the cars. I had read that forward collision warning was not standard on the X3, and the sales lady said that you needed a package to get that feature. Virtually none of the 70 plus cars in stock had that package, which seemed strange. When I got home I went to BMW's website and learned that forward collision warning is standard on the X3 for 2019 models.
09-14-2018, 09:14 AM
#18
If similarily equipped BMW X3 is the same price as of Acura RDX, I would choose X3.
Things that tips it over for me are:
Better camera and Nav systems: resolutions, 360 degrees, 3D view, familiar iDrive
Better drive dynamics: Despite how much RDX has improved over last gen.
Dynamic ambient lighting (awesome fun for kids)
40:20:40 split seats, larger cargo when folded, etc.
Of course, before anyone knocks me here, there are features in RDX that best the X3 such as seats and rear seating space, better HUD, more posh interior etc.
However, that's just not a realistic comparison since the same car will cost 7k-10k more @ MSRP (Advance model comp). Even after heavy discounts on BMW, you are still looking at low 50s. The redesign RDX is one of the best selling cars in Acura line up right now, so it hasn't hit the usual Acura discounts. When it does, the price gap will remain consistent. Of course, you can always forgo features to fit your budget but you might be compromising features such as driver assistant safety that Acura has as a standard.
Acura RDX continues to be a value luxury car. It pretty much has all the features (they may not all be the best across its class) you would want on a today's modern car without crossing the 50k mark. It is truly a bargain at its category. And Acura knows that all too well and banks on it.
Things that tips it over for me are:
Better camera and Nav systems: resolutions, 360 degrees, 3D view, familiar iDrive
Better drive dynamics: Despite how much RDX has improved over last gen.
Dynamic ambient lighting (awesome fun for kids)
40:20:40 split seats, larger cargo when folded, etc.
Of course, before anyone knocks me here, there are features in RDX that best the X3 such as seats and rear seating space, better HUD, more posh interior etc.
However, that's just not a realistic comparison since the same car will cost 7k-10k more @ MSRP (Advance model comp). Even after heavy discounts on BMW, you are still looking at low 50s. The redesign RDX is one of the best selling cars in Acura line up right now, so it hasn't hit the usual Acura discounts. When it does, the price gap will remain consistent. Of course, you can always forgo features to fit your budget but you might be compromising features such as driver assistant safety that Acura has as a standard.
Acura RDX continues to be a value luxury car. It pretty much has all the features (they may not all be the best across its class) you would want on a today's modern car without crossing the 50k mark. It is truly a bargain at its category. And Acura knows that all too well and banks on it.
Last edited by acuraada; 09-14-2018 at 09:24 AM. Reason: added advance model to price comp
09-14-2018, 11:29 AM
#19
Acura reliability is a figment of your imagination, from years gone by. Don’t fool yourself. Look at the 3G RDX section and see how many issues there already are for completely brand new vehicles. You think it’ll get better as you own the vehicle? Ha! Just wait until the tech starts eventually shitting the bed. It WILL eventually fail, no two ways about it. Acura is also notoriously slow to fix well documented issues. It took them 3 years to address the shit automatic transmission in the 3G TL. Didn’t stop them from selling close to 200k units in that time, though.
09-14-2018, 11:32 AM
#20
X3 and RDX - They are both great cars. I only briefly drove the x3 months back and went with a RDX. One thing though, is that driving the RDX for a full day I was far blown away vs just test driving it. WIth the X3 i can see the Idrive and cameras being better for sure and the driving experience being more direct, but as someone who keeps cars for 10 years, having to pay $80 a year for apple car play is so obnoxious that its almost a deal breaker on principle, Also since i keep cars far past warranty , not going to risk it with BMW.
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acuraada (09-14-2018)
09-14-2018, 11:59 AM
#21
Suzuka Master
Bmw and audi depreciate very quickly after warranty is over becasuse no one wants to deal with it.
09-14-2018, 03:23 PM
#22
Acura reliability is a figment of your imagination, from years gone by. Don’t fool yourself. Look at the 3G RDX section and see how many issues there already are for completely brand new vehicles. You think it’ll get better as you own the vehicle? Ha! Just wait until the tech starts eventually shitting the bed. It WILL eventually fail, no two ways about it. Acura is also notoriously slow to fix well documented issues. It took them 3 years to address the shit automatic transmission in the 3G TL. Didn’t stop them from selling close to 200k units in that time, though.
Personally my definition of reliable is having it function properly 99% of the time with few minor repairs. Failing shocks, brakes....etc doesn't constitute an unreliable car to me whereas others call that unreliable...etc. You can't win.
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ZipSpeed (09-14-2018)
09-14-2018, 04:40 PM
#23
X3 and RDX - They are both great cars. I only briefly drove the x3 months back and went with a RDX. One thing though, is that driving the RDX for a full day I was far blown away vs just test driving it. WIth the X3 i can see the Idrive and cameras being better for sure and the driving experience being more direct, but as someone who keeps cars for 10 years, having to pay $80 a year for apple car play is so obnoxious that its almost a deal breaker on principle, Also since i keep cars far past warranty , not going to risk it with BMW.
But hey, you are right. I just realized they changed the Apple play to subscription in 2019. I agree, that's so obnoxious of BMW. Even Mazda offers both Andriod/Apple play without paying extra subscription fee. the X3 just dropped to bottom of my list due to this (on principle as well)
I hope this is not a start of an industry trend.
09-14-2018, 04:55 PM
#24
I've owned both BMW and Benz, passing 10 years, they are not trouble-free but nothing major like friend's Audi. And knowing a trusty mechanic helps.
But hey, you are right. I just realized they changed the Apple play to subscription in 2019. I agree, that's so obnoxious of BMW. Even Mazda offers both Andriod/Apple play without paying extra subscription fee. the X3 just dropped to bottom of my list due to this (on principle as well)
I hope this is not a start of an industry trend.
But hey, you are right. I just realized they changed the Apple play to subscription in 2019. I agree, that's so obnoxious of BMW. Even Mazda offers both Andriod/Apple play without paying extra subscription fee. the X3 just dropped to bottom of my list due to this (on principle as well)
I hope this is not a start of an industry trend.
09-14-2018, 09:57 PM
#25
Agreed. I feel the same about the annual fee for remote start using the app on the RDX. My daughter has a new Chevy Equinox, and she also has remote start using an app, and there is no annual fee to use it.
09-15-2018, 01:47 AM
#26
I've owned both BMW and Benz, passing 10 years, they are not trouble-free but nothing major like friend's Audi. And knowing a trusty mechanic helps.
But hey, you are right. I just realized they changed the Apple play to subscription in 2019. I agree, that's so obnoxious of BMW. Even Mazda offers both Andriod/Apple play without paying extra subscription fee. the X3 just dropped to bottom of my list due to this (on principle as well)
I hope this is not a start of an industry trend.
But hey, you are right. I just realized they changed the Apple play to subscription in 2019. I agree, that's so obnoxious of BMW. Even Mazda offers both Andriod/Apple play without paying extra subscription fee. the X3 just dropped to bottom of my list due to this (on principle as well)
I hope this is not a start of an industry trend.
I also hope this is not an industry trend, but I read on an european auto news site that according to an interview with a BMW chief, BMW feels that iDrive is the way they want to go in the future and they eventually want iDrive to permeate and control most if not all aspects of the driving experience of BMWs so they want to move to a closed eco-system where no third party apps are allowed (how ironic for Apple). So it seems like they want to eventually stop CarPlay and Android Auto never had a chance. Contrast with Audi which has both included at no extra charge. Different philosophies, let the market decide.
09-15-2018, 04:01 AM
#27
I totally forgot about that. I think that's also so stupid. Why include it and then make people pay for it each year. Especially when companies like chevy offer it permanently. Really makes you scratch your head on which bean counter convinced them to do that. Oh well, guess we've been paying for Sirius for over a decade, I guess people really are willing to subscribe to features in their cars. For the record I have never subscribed to Sirius and would rather play music off my usb/phone. My brother who is about 8 years older and missed the generation of Ipods gets Sirius on every car he owns immediately.
09-15-2018, 08:17 AM
#28
Burning Brakes
GM must have changed their philosophy about that. My '14 Cadillac had it as complimentary for the first year as part of OnStar but after that the advanced features were subscription only.
09-15-2018, 10:56 AM
#29
I also hope this is not an industry trend, but I read on an european auto news site that according to an interview with a BMW chief, BMW feels that iDrive is the way they want to go in the future and they eventually want iDrive to permeate and control most if not all aspects of the driving experience of BMWs so they want to move to a closed eco-system where no third party apps are allowed (how ironic for Apple). So it seems like they want to eventually stop CarPlay and Android Auto never had a chance. Contrast with Audi which has both included at no extra charge. Different philosophies, let the market decide.
This reminds me what George Hotz said, “This is really about whether you actually own the hardware you paid for”
Last edited by acuraada; 09-15-2018 at 10:59 AM.
09-16-2018, 01:14 PM
#30
I test drove a 2019 RDX and 2019 BMW X3 yesterday afternoon. Both were 2WD, since neither BMW nor Acura stock a lot of AWD versions in Southern California. I drove them back to back, over the same route. I thought the BMW had a much better ride, and was much quieter and smoother, especially the transmission. The BMW was priced significantly higher, but BMW reportedly is offering bigger discounts. I am probably not going to buy either right now, but would probably go with the BMW if I were buying a car right now.
As usual, the sales folks knew little about the cars. I had read that forward collision warning was not standard on the X3, and the sales lady said that you needed a package to get that feature. Virtually none of the 70 plus cars in stock had that package, which seemed strange. When I got home I went to BMW's website and learned that forward collision warning is standard on the X3 for 2019 models.
As usual, the sales folks knew little about the cars. I had read that forward collision warning was not standard on the X3, and the sales lady said that you needed a package to get that feature. Virtually none of the 70 plus cars in stock had that package, which seemed strange. When I got home I went to BMW's website and learned that forward collision warning is standard on the X3 for 2019 models.
09-17-2018, 09:02 PM
#31
The steering feel varied depending on what mode you were in. I also dislike it when the steering is too light, and I do not recall either vehicle being too light. The RDXs steering wheel was thicker, which I preferred.
09-18-2018, 08:05 AM
#32
Also drove both back to back, taking them from local stop and go to highway at over 60mph.
X3 is definitely heavier on steering and more direct. The vehicle I drove did not have the optional sports variable steering.
X3 is definitely heavier on steering and more direct. The vehicle I drove did not have the optional sports variable steering.
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