acuralvr1

There's no torque steer in this car at all. No under steer or over steer. It does not feel like a front wheel drive car.

The technology has no peer in this price range:
Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS). If one is driving over 40 miles an hour, cameras read lane lines and curbs and keep the car moving straight in it's lane. I took my hands off the wheel in traffic with encouragement from the sales guy. After a while a message light appears that requests the driver to grab the steering wheel again.

Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC). The driver maintains a safe distance between the car in front at all times automatically.

Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS). The driver could conceivably fall asleep at the wheel and the car would never hit a car or obstruction in front because of the automatic braking system.

Blind Spot Information (BSI) System. Orange colored lettering appear in the corner of the driver's left eye- close to the driver's side view mirror warning that there's a vehicle passing by. This with LKAS enabled, prevents the driver from changing a lane mistakenly and driving into a passing vehicle.

Precision All Wheel Steering (PAWS). The wheels toe in for better handling.

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) and Lane Departure Warning (LDW). More beeps and advisories to help people drive safely.

Front and rear parking sensors.

Yellow and orange lines appear in the rear view camera- above look or straight on. Super easy to pull into a parking spot for the terrible drivers that we all have as family members.

Electronic Valet Key. One types in a 4 digit pin and the glove box and trunk are now secure. The owner may also lock the navigation down too. The fob never needs to leave your pocket.

Text messages and emails may be sent and received through the car.

Comparing it to my 2007 RL:
19" wheels- hate my 17" wheels; way too small.
Heated rear seats with front and rear controls.
Power-folding side mirrors.
Better quality leather.
Hard disk drive for music storage.
Real time traffic- yes, I know later year RL's have this.
Navigation that continues to be one of the best out there. Now with 3D view.
Dual screens- one for music primarily and the other for navigation primarily- love it.
Michelin high performance all seasons.
Better gas mileage.
Brighter head lights- and very stylish.
More settings for driver's seat.
Phonebook may be downloaded to car- no more manual inputting.
Has a SPORT mode and feels the road better and handles better.
Paint job seems higher quality.
Bigger rear seating.

Still love:
Lots of Wood, very little shiny inside metal and other inside materials used.
Acura/Honda quality.
My local dealer- service, sales, everyone.
Location of dealer.


Negatives:
Disappointed the way the Krell speakers sounded with XM. Need to try with one of my CD's next time. For those of you that don't know, Krell makes true high fidelity audiophile quality speakers exclusively.

My DVD-A discs aren't compatible here. My 6 year old Bose 5.1 blows away what I heard earlier today.

Sport seats on 5 Series and Lexus GS350 F-Sport I'm looking out are more comfortable.

Wish it came with black headliner.

Wish it had a sport steering wheel.

Sport mode really didn't have it come close to Dynamic Handling of the 5 Series or regular GS-350. F-Sport blows it away in handling and feel for road.

Summary:
Great car on many levels and it will be a sales hit IMHO.
Will wait for RLX AWD Hybrid that's coming out this fall. My new car purchase may not be until next year. Since I've been driving my wife's new BMW X3 around, the fun driving factor is difficult to beat outside BMW. GS-350 F-Sport comes closest in this price range. Need an AWD for New Jersey winters.

Haven't visited this board in a while and need to update my signature line. nice to see that NeuronBob still runs a tight ship.

Glashub

Thanks for taking the time to write that up.

neuronbob

Great review.

Makes me want to go out and test drive one.

Imagine that: a front driver with minimal/no torque steer.

Edward'TLS

A 310hp front driver with minimal/no torque steer.

Hats off to the suspension development team for a job well done, and congratulate to Honda for continuing being the best in the auto industry in pushing the envelop for the max hp on a FWD vehicle while still maintaining excellent handling and drivability.

dwest1023

Nice review. FYI Krell does NOT make speakers exclusively. Krell is know for there very high quaility and expensive amplification. Krell only recently got into speaker making. I test drove the base RLX and I do not see this car being a sales hit. That interior is bare! If the target is an old mans car, then they may have succeded. Im hoping the tire had low tire pressure, beacause this is not the Acura Im used to. My 09 TL felt a LOT more planted then the RLX. I did not use the sport mode, so maybe that was the issue?

acuralvr1

Thanks for taking the time to write that up.
__________________
Former owner of 2010 Acura TL SH-AWD PMM


My pleasure. It had been a couple of years since I'd posted anything on Acurazine. Folks here have been so helpful to me before buying a TL, MDX, then RL.



Great review.

Makes me want to go out and test drive one.

Imagine that: a front driver with minimal/no torque steer.


neuronbob: you absolutely need to. Test drive the RXL with the advanced package so you can be half as wowed as I was with the new technology. LKAS is "sick" as my son likes to describe super cool gadgets.



Nice review. FYI Krell does NOT make speakers exclusively. Krell is know for there very high quaility and expensive amplification. Krell only recently got into speaker making. I test drove the base RLX and I do not see this car being a sales hit. That interior is bare! If the target is an old mans car, then they may have succeded. Im hoping the tire had low tire pressure, beacause this is not the Acura Im used to. My 09 TL felt a LOT more planted then the RLX. I did not use the sport mode, so maybe that was the issue?

dwest, I stand corrected; I mixed up Krell with another audiophile speaker manufacturer. So Krell provides the speakers and the amps to Acura, or just the speakers?

dwest: I disagree with most of your review on the other posting, and your other comments here. I believe the RLX will be an Acura big seller, it's not an old man's car at all IMHO. Old men are afraid of technology, don't embrace it.

I certainly don't find the interior bare: Plush leather seats, super luxurious dashboard with stiching, and tons of wood. Think of 5 or 7 series BMW.

Unfortunately, Sport Mode doesn't do all that much to the RLX performance. Sports Mode in my BMW X3 makes it growl on the road. RLX offers a whimper. Maybe Fall AWD version will differ.

dwest1023

Auralv1, I believe both amp and speakers are provided by Krell. Compared to my TL the RLX interior was bare to me. In fact when I got back in my TL I thought I was in the cockpit of a jet plane compared to the RLX. The RLX's ride IMO does not invite spirited driving as my TL does. I prefer a firm suspension, and that has been an Acura hallmark. The RLX did not fit that bill to me. I am not a fan of cushy ride, and the new RLX seem to lean that way. After driven the RLX it helped me to realize how good the TL is. I'm happy that you liked the RLX and it moved your emotions. I expected it to do the same for me, but I was very disappointed.

acuralvr1

I'm going to go back and bring a CD with me to test out the Krell sound system again. My 5.1 Bose with DVD-A discs in my '07 RL blew away what I heard on Friday. Doesn't make sense.

Maybe the Hybrid AWD version this Fall with have the kind of handling you and I are looking for.

Jerzyboi

I don't think the RLX was aimed directly to those who love the handling of the TL. Believe it or not their are people out there that are probably turned off by it. I wouldn't be surprised if the Sh2-AWD pleasures everyone who feels the ride is average. IMHO it feels like they are going to the last gen lexus type of feel. Even 5 series has softened up a bit( based on the 7 series).

XM/Sirius sounds horrible in every high end system from the reviews I've read. I just wonder how many others with satellite subscriptions will be turned off by this.

acuralvr1

The way to truly compete with the BMW 5 and 7 Series with the RLX is give people various options for handling like BMW does: Eco, Comfort, Sport and Sport+. It's on demand performance and handling options. This way everyone's happy! You can go from couch on feels to 4 door sports car with a flick of a switch.

terdonal

I have to agree with this. Only bearable for its range and variety imo. I don't subscribe to it myself only use the 3 months free and then it is gone.

dwest1023

Keep in mind that Krell is about accuracy. Garbage in garbage out. The XM receiver in our Aura's are terrible. The best way to hear the Krell will be with CD and then IPOD. I only had the opportunity to hear the Krell with FM, which was not a very good test. I could still tale that the Krell system is special.

neuronbob

Expecting that compressed XM/Sirius signal to sound great even in lesser vehicles is not realistic. dwest says it correctly, GIGO.

KeithL

To me the biggest mistake was not having DVD-A in the Krell, both ELS systems have it and then that would make the Krell shine. Sure the discs are rare, but I have collected a modest set since I had my first TL in 2004.

dwest1023

Krell has never bought into DVD audio. They are a prurist outfit. I would have liked the DVD audio myself, but i understand why Krelll did not add it. Keep in mind that th krell system has a seperate discrete amp for EACH speaker plus a class D amp for the sub. Krells objective is a accurate sound stage. I hope the Krell will be available in the next TL. The RLX just does not do it for me.

weather

^^^ and any audiophile will tell you that this is the BIGGEST problem/advantage with high quality audio equipment. Its designed to deliver the music in a very transparent fashion..meaning good quality "stereo" recorded material will sound exquisite as it will not use gimmicks to mask the audio, but give it poorly recorded material and it will reveal how bad it is!! That is the true meaning of transparency....you can see through it! Garbage will sound horrible on a system like Krell....and that is why XM sounded so bad.

acuralvr1

I'll bring my ipod and cd's and give the Krell system another listen.

acuralvr1

I'm dissappointed over this too.

I have a FWD TL loaner for 2 days. I reminded myself what the major reason I upgraded to RL from TL in 2006- Wind Noise. OMG, might it be the loaner I have or are all the TLs this bad. On a non-windy day driving at a modest speed I ahve to crank up the stereo to try to mask the wind rushing through! I can TL you that my '04 TL had bad wind noise. I guess it's a bit relative, but I could never go back to a car that didn't have a quiet cabin.

RLX is super quiet!

acuralvr1

These are good points. I'm reminded that about 10 years I bought a high end plasma tv set. With HD programing our family and friends jaws dropped in amazement when they saw the picture. The stunning clarity especially since so few people were used to seeing it was dramatic. Then, I put a kid's movie in from our VHS recorder and all's that the eye could see was intense grain.

I hope you don't have the kind of wind noise eminating from your TL that I'm experiencing with a TL loaner because you wouldn't be able to appreciate the Krell sound.

dwest1023

Acuaralv1. I have NEVER had a problem with wind noise is all the models of Acura I have owned. when I say this, I mean is never been an issue. My highly modified Miata makes so much noise(intake, exhaust, tires, top down) my Tl seems like a tomb to me. I don't even listen for any noise when I test drive. I did not notice how quiet the RLX was. I do remember my 2006 RL was quiet with that noise canceling feature. I don't need or like quiet. I love to hear the sound of the exhaust and intake. In fact my TL has a short ram intake that would make your hair stand on end when I'm wide open on the throttle. My miata can be heard 3 blocks away from my house. I value handling over comfort. The Krell will alllow you to drown out the noise and not sound distorted. It looks like Acura is getting away from it sporting routes and leaning toward comfort.

JonFo

Regarding lack of DVD-A, while disappointing to me as well, it is hardly surprising, as both DVD-A and SACD killed each other off with their silly format war.

Most new high-rez audio is now on BluRay, so if I were to lament anything, it would be that the player is not BluRay audio profile capable.

BTW- best current audio quality ever is to be found on Steven Wilson's " " on BluRay. it is a multichannel masterpiece of ProgRock (even engineered by the great Alan Parsons).