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What was your favorite car that you drove historically or currently, what year and model? how many miles. What made it special to you? Anything else? Interested in answer from RLX audience.
Without a doubt, my favorite car is the RLX Sport Hybrid.
To echo many other owners...this car was made for me. I love the performance it provides so I can have some fun from time to time. I love the smooth quiet ride it provides to get me where I want to go in comfort. I love the room and comfort it provides to my passengers in the back seat - I bought a sedan for a reason and that is to be able to comfortably transport passengers...if I was only worried about myself, I would have bought a sports car. My RLX has been trouble free and that reliability is something I've come to take for granted but still covet a great deal. Finally, the mileage that the RLX achieves is a great bonus to an otherwise great car.
I'm the first to admit that I am a Honda loyalist (I have "Amore for Honda" as my board name suggests), and I really loved my '05 RL and my '95 6-speed Legend coupe, but the extra power, great handling and roominess of the RLX Sport Hybrid is by far my favorite so far.
Only because I have had my RLX SH for 6 months, I will say my former RL. I had never owned a car more more than 3-4 years so having the RL 10 years says a lot. Further, as documented on AZ, I was tortured to give it up.
That said, I wound up with the RLX SH as it was the ONLY vehicle that permitted me to part with the RL after YEARS of searching. Even though I had ordered an Audi A8, it was more car than I wanted and too large for my garage, I am even unsure I would have taken delivery.
Noe with that said, the RLX has most all of what I loved about my RL and the newness, additional features and amazingly sophisticated drivetrain has made a connection with me as did my RL. It feels like the organic replacement for what I cherished of the RL. I would expect, with more time (as the RL continued to grow on me over the years) in the RLX, it will prove as reliable, durable and timeless and will eventually supplant the RL as my all time favorite.
I believe the percentage of RLX owners here who were former RL owners will share some of my thoughts. Indeed we are a specific and select group that Acura was able to maintain appeal.
Last edited by TampaRLX-SH; 01-21-2016 at 12:14 PM.
hondamore and TampaRLX-SH have said everything I could say. I have owned Lergends and RLs for almost 30 years, but the Sport Hybrid is the only car that, after a year, I still look forward to driving every time I get into it. It is perfect. Please, Acura, don't screw it up!
As an adult, my favorite car was a 1986 Legend GS with a manual tranny. I kept the car for 9 years but around 80,000 miles things started to have problems -- new AC control unit, new compressor etc. Lots of fun miles.
Like Tampa my current ride, the Sport Hybrid is only 15 months old and i expect it will it will surpass my Legend but it is still "new". The best thing about the RLX is the way it drives. Nothing like anything I have ever driven. Superior luxury with the exception of the infotainment system.
My '95 RL would probably make my best ride list also. More luxury than the Legend but still fun to drive.....very reliable [10 years and 120,000 miles with little in the way of problems.] The back seat was on the small side though. Biggest repair was a new hard drive @ 100,000 miles.
Not that it is comparable but as a youngster my favorite car was a '65 Buick Wildcat. Had lots of enjoyable time as a teenager hauling around with that large, fast machine.
What was your favorite car that you drove historically or currently, what year and model? how many miles. What made it special to you? Anything else? Interested in answer from RLX audience.
As a child, I admired a car that I rode in sometimes, and I thought I'd like to own as an adult.
It was a mistake. :-)
1969 300 SEL 6.3
It was grand and quick in its way, but by the time I got old enough and well off enough to have one, the charm had worn off and the technology was old fashioned.
That air bag suspension that seemed so awesome in 1969 was eclipsed by modern, more simple systems.
If you tried to drive quickly into a U, you'd turn the wheel, there'd be ¼ s before the air suspension took its set, and this changed the car's tyre weights....
So if you wanted to drive the car fast, let's just say that counter steering at high rates of speed had to be something that didn't frighten you.
The "automatic" 4 speed planetary gearbox was a nightmare. Shifts were certainly...well, for charity's sake, let's call them positive. :-) Mercedes didn't have a manual transmission that'd take the power, and they weren't big believers in torque converters back then, so that was all there was.
Mercedes promised the world that the parts for these old cars would always be available.
That was great.
What they didn't promise you was that the parts would be cheap.
Just this evening while at dinner at Morton’s with some colleagues, one of them asked me how I was enjoying the Blackbird and another guy asked what he meant. After the explanation was provided, an immediate request for a ride was in order after coffee and dessert. We headed out and I explained how the hybrid drive works, how all of the technology works in synchronicity in such a seamless manner, and finally demonstrated the Jekyll and Hyde “personalities” of the car. After setting things up we entered one of our notoriously short entrance ramps onto a local parkway and off we went for a very quick 0-80 mph run, up hill mind you. He loved 1st gear, but really thought 2nd and 3rd gears were the most thrilling. I agreed.
Upon our return the others asked for similar rides, so I obliged. In the end all were adding the car to their bucket list. Acura has to build, market and sell more of these machines because not one person has been in the passenger seat and has not been wowed by the car. Old saying, you drive or get a ride in the Sport Hybrid, you will want to buy one.
As much as I enjoy being in my RLX, I find it interesting that I need to go downstream in the Acura brand to find the car I actually enjoyed driving the most - which was my 2012 TL SH-AWD.
That car just felt quicker than the RLX and had a more immediate throttle response, especially at highway speeds. Also, there is no comparison P-AWS vs. SH-AWD from a handling and overall driving experience. The TL was just always fun to drive. I enjoy driving the RLX and the presence it has, but fun isn't a word I'd use to describe it. I'm sure the Sport Hybrid would cure what ails me.
As much as I enjoy being in my RLX, I find it interesting that I need to go downstream in the Acura brand to find the car I actually enjoyed driving the most - which was my 2012 TL SH-AWD.
That car just felt quicker than the RLX and had a more immediate throttle response, especially at highway speeds. Also, there is no comparison P-AWS vs. SH-AWD from a handling and overall driving experience. The TL was just always fun to drive. I enjoy driving the RLX and the presence it has, but fun isn't a word I'd use to describe it. I'm sure the Sport Hybrid would cure what ails me.
I had a 4G TL, too. A 2010 TL 6-6 SH-AWD.
Enjoyed the hell out of it.
I think that except for the startling image it presented when it was rolled out in 2009, I believe that this is one of the best Hondas for its time.
Never missed a beat. And I'm not an easy driver.
No tech glitches, either.
And, you know what? It also had weather radar, something missing from the RLX line.
Let me tell you about another "collector" car that I was dreadfully sorry about.
1974 Chevrolet Laguna SS454.
Oh, my goodness.
The very worst of America. Unbelievable.
It was nowhere near fast enough or quick enough to justify the thirst, it jumped three feet to the outside of a corner if you hit a bump, and it could barely steer around itself even on smooth pavement.
And don't get me started on reliability.
Why would you put that much power in a car without any seat bolsters?
0_o
I guess it was *sort* of collectible, because it sold for quite a profit, but, oh, my goodness what an awful car!!
My 2006 3G TL 6-speed manual. By far the best, most reliable, most flawless, and most fun car I've owned in my entire lifetime of cars. Even the NAV was amazing.
Somehow 8 years later, I got a NAV that doesn't even compete...
Last edited by holografique; 01-22-2016 at 07:07 PM.
I really like my RLX, but of all the cars I have ever driven, my Honda S2000 was the best. Nothing even comes close to touching it. I re-learned how to drive in that car, including doing some HPDEs and autocross. I'll go even further: AP1>>>>>>>>>>AP2.....because nannies suck on a sports car, you must feel your environment to be an effective driver. We'll soon see if my "new to me" NSX measures up.
The Sport Hybrid allows me to do a FEW of the things I could in the S2000, but with electronic nannies meant more to keep me on the road. Then again, I've never, ever tried driving my Sport Hybrid at the limit and I likely never will (or at least intentionally, anyway). I'll leave that to the pros like George Knighton .
Hey holografique, I share your 3G TL love. It was, hands down, the best Acura of the last decade. I loved mine.
My current car, Cadillac CTS-V coupe, but my former 2006 RL comes very close.
Followed by my 2001 Acura TL and then my college car, a 1978 Chevy Impala 2 door. Not because of any performance or reliability, but more so for the memories I made IN that car.
I swear to you...the current RLX design is nothing more than that 2009 Accord Coupe turned into a 4-door sedan...
I can definitely see the resemblance between the two. I really really loved that Accord Coupe and would rarely drive the TL. And now that I'm looking at the pic of my 2009 TL, there is no way in hell the TLX makes a good TL replacement. The 4G was so big and bold with lots of road presence. Let's hope Acura can recapture some of that sexiness in the RLX refresh.
Without a doubt the favorite car in my history is my Porsche Carrera C4S I sold before buying my 2014 RLX. Was my third Porsche and only water cooled version and had the best suspension and handling characteristics of any car I have owned. Reliability and performance was everything it was "billed to be" . At 70 however, the entry and exit was not the most pleasant experience so went to the other extreme with the RLX and I must say barring the suspension "funk" it has been a great transition. No regrets.......
Demosan
Most high schools are 3-4 years. pcloadletter, you had a different car each year? Either you did them in, they did themselves in, or you got held back many times and spent 12 or more years chasing a diploma?
I think we all love our high school or college cars because of the freedom they gave us and the many great memories they were part of, but the cars themselves don't hold a candle to today's technology and I certainly don't miss them now.
That said, I certainly agree that my 1977 Ford Capri was a part of plenty of good times and will always hold a warm place in my heart because of it. As an aside, I worked my butt off to save enough money to pay for that Capri and it was the most pampered of my cars by far because of it.
I think we all love our high school or college cars because of the freedom they gave us and the many great memories they were part of, but the cars themselves don't hold a candle to today's technology and I certainly don't miss them now.
That said, I certainly agree that my 1977 Ford Capri was a part of plenty of good times and will always hold a warm place in my heart because of it. As an aside, I worked my butt off to save enough money to pay for that Capri and it was the most pampered of my cars by far because of it.
You're absolutely correct. My first car, in university, was a low mileage 1986 Toyota Corolla LE. It had a sewing machine engine in it but gave me no problems at all. I too worked hard and saved enough doing landscaping summer jobs to pay for it all myself - the freedom it gave me in return was priceless.
Best car ive ever owned or driven was my 94 Legend LS 6 speed with the 3.5 hybrid engine, headers, magnaflow exhaust. Work was done by Matt up in Connecticut. That woman was beast on the road, Matt took me out to show me what i could with the car and thats when i learned what Vtec can really do. Worst mistake i ever made with a car was selling it to someone who didnt appreciate the engine and the work put in. Will never do that again.
Well, I don't have an RLX, yet. My purchase has been delayed by helping a daughter get started in life. But, I cannot miss a chance to describe that my favorite car has been an '88 Acura Legend Coupe.
At the time I bought it i was moonlighting a lot around the Cleveland area, and this car was the first fruits of my labor, since the German car I had before, a Merkur XR4Ti (undeniably fun to drive), was in the shop every 2000 miles to have the front brakes done under warranty, or to have myriad other things fixed. I traded that car on the Legend coupe, and constantly heard from others how beautiful the car was. Other staff doctors raged at me that I was able to purchase such a car when they couldn't afford one like it (they didn't know it didn't cost as much as their cars).
All the while I owned it I kept it looking good, and was constantly asked if I wanted to sell it. Finally, I did after 9 years, and it was torn from my hands. The buyer kept it another 10 years after that, before he sold it and I lost track of it. (the buyer was the owner of a restaurant I frequented often).
What I most remember about the car was the elegance/beauty that everyone constantly noticed, and for years I would think that there was no other car I really wanted (except for the next generation Legend that came out in the 90's, I do wish I had had the money to upgrade, but I got married instead). The car never broke, and made all my miles traveling while I was moonlighting a pleasure rather than a chore.
As an aside, I tend to name my cars in alliterative fashion. Freddy Fiesta, Roxy Rabbit. By the time I bought the '88 Acura I was in my rheumatology fellowship, and named the car "Lupus", which means wolf, by the way, but pertains to the medical illness treated by Rheumatologists. The name was most appropriate because, well, women were attracted to the car, so much so that I was left wondering if it was really me they wanted. (My wife assures me it wasn't the car, but she is stuck with me, now, and is maybe protecting my feelings.)
As an aside, I tend to name my cars in alliterative fashion. Freddy Fiesta, Roxy Rabbit. By the time I bought the '88 Acura I was in my rheumatology fellowship, and named the car "Lupus", which means wolf, by the way, but pertains to the medical illness treated by Rheumatologists. The name was most appropriate because, well, women were attracted to the car, so much so that I was left wondering if it was really me they wanted. (My wife assures me it wasn't the car, but she is stuck with me, now, and is maybe protecting my feelings.)
Not an RLX owner either, but I certainly did love my 2G Legend Coupe MT. After owning the car 18 years, I sold it to a young Legend enthusiast who was about to graduate from college and drove over 500 miles to pick the car up.
I purchased the car new for 27,700 and sold it for over 7K. During the time I owned it, I replaced tires, brakes once, the timing belt/water pump at 90K and a wheel speed sensor. The car still looked close to new the day I sold it. I really hope my TL will provide a similarly trouble-free experience.
While I do absolutely love the RLX, I still do miss driving my CLS that I had to give up after 278,000 miles and 11 years of driving. That car just stuck to the ground no matter what...ever since then Acura has been afraid to stiffen the suspension up on even the TL SHAWD (both that I had).
If we could get some sort of adjustable magnetic dampening system in our RLXs and as in the NSX a "Quiet" ev-only mode...my trusty Blue might just be beat.
For me it has to be my 2003 Honda Accord EX-L with Navi 4cyl. I bought it new and in three and a half years i had put 363,000 miles on it.......only regular maintenance, brakes, and a the catalytic converter ($800!!!). That was one reliable car! Unfortunately there was a flood in 2007 and it was a total loss:-(.
For me it has to be my 2003 Honda Accord EX-L with Navi 4cyl. I bought it new and in three and a half years i had put 363,000 miles on it.......only regular maintenance, brakes, and a the catalytic converter ($800!!!). That was one reliable car! Unfortunately there was a flood in 2007 and it was a total loss:-(.
!? Even driving at 80 mph that translates to 1296 hours a year in a car.
That Accord may have drowned itself.
01-21-2016 | 11:05 AM
Great story.
!? Even driving at 80 mph that translates to 1296 hours a year in a car.