Waiting for the 2009 Acura TSX

The 2009 Acura TSX will be an all new design and is certain to create a big stir when it arrives.  Our first look at the new TSX will be in early April at the annual dealer meeting for Acura dealer principals.  The car will appear in our showrooms shortly thereafter.

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Acura RDX Ride and Drive

The quick video below is from the RDX Ride and Drive I just attended in San Francisco. I'm literally writing this on a few hours of sleep and will add to this with my thoughts and comments later. It's kinda funny, I can edit a "rough cut" video faster than I can write a full review! My running commentary while I was driving were my honest first impressions from behind the wheel and it wasn't exactly a "Sunday Drive". It may sound like I'm criticizing the car, but in reality, I wasn't driving a CAR.... I was driving a 4000 lbs. SUV! It was remarkably easy to forget this, and perhaps my comments were unfairly comparing it to my S2000......?



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The 2005 Acura RL - Ride and Drive Review

I just returned from the Ride and Drive in San Francisco for the new 2005 RL and this car is pretty amazing. Luxury, performance and technology; this RL has it all. We had classroom sessions and an opportunity to test the car on a closed course in a controlled manner. We also had the RLs expected competition available for back to back comparisons. This meant that our impressions of each car were fresh in our minds as we moved from car to car.

As we left our classroom sessions at the hotel, we drove to the demonstration track in a bunch of RLs. As we negotiated the city streets, I was impressed how well the cars rode over the poor streets of downtown San Francisco. The cable car tracks were barely noticeable and I was beginning to become worried that the the talk about how well this car handled would be all hype. After all, how could a car be so composed over poor roads and still handle the twisty stuff?

The facilitators set up a pair of demonstration courses: The Luxury Track and The Performance Track. The Luxury Track was a relatively slow course with a number of obstacles and simulated road hazards. On this track we could compare the Mercedes E320 and BMW 530i to the Acura RL. As we drove over the sections of the course designed to simulate pot-holed roads, the compliance of the RLs double wishbone/multi-link suspension really came into focus. There we some sections that required turning and braking at the same time and here, the RL was composed and sure footed.

The things that really stood out in my mind were the way the Mercedes steering needed a lot more turns to negotiate the tight sections of the course. There was also a huge amount of body roll in the transient maneuvers. In contrast, the BMWs Active Steering made the same turns with much less drama. This system speeds up the steering ratio at low speeds to enhance responsiveness, and backs it off at higher speeds to reduce “nervousness” at highway speeds. Neat stuff, indeed, but the RL with it’s electronic power assisted steering was similarly nimble around this section of the course.

On the Performance Track we had the Audi A6 Quattro Turbo and the BMW 530i on hand for more vigorous run with longer straights, heavy braking areas into corners, and a beautiful sweeping turn with a decreasing radius that was taken in second gear. This was both fun, challenging and really gave us a chance to push the cars and experience the Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD) in the RL.
In the Audi, there was noticeable turbo lag as the car rolled off the line, then suddenly “whoosh” the boost comes on and the car really starts moving. Sadly this was the high point of the A6. Once you ask the car to stop or turn, things become less fun. The suspension is simply too soft for anything but freeway cruising. Lots of brake dive, body roll and understeer make this a poor choice if you’re remotely interested in performance.

The BMW had in interesting quirk in the throttle. If you stomp it off the line, acceleration is pretty “leisurely”. If you slowly “roll into” the throttle, it picks up speed much quicker. I was surprised how little power there was, could it be that the traction control was kicking in? It didn’t seem like we were overpowering the chassis but it sure wasn’t accelerating very quickly. Around the faster turns, I ran into a surprise. The steering actually seemed slower than the RL! I can only surmise that the higher speeds were conspiring to move the steering system into a lower ratio. Either that or I’m imagining things.

In the RL, I had a chance to try different driving lines through the decreasing radius sweeper. If you carry too much speed, and suddenly apply the brakes, you will get understeer (lots of it). Very safe and very expected. However, if you can steadily feed throttle through the corner, the SH-AWD will power the outside rear wheel to help point the nose of the car into the corner. At no time did it feel like the tail was going to come around. In fact, the only way you could tell the system was working was that the car made it around the corner when there was no reason it should have.

The computer will move torque to the back axle immediately as you accelerate so the feeling is no different than a normal RWD car. At 4000 lbs, the car is not exactly "tossable" but it feels light on it's feet and responds faithfully to driver inputs. Transient response is very good; compared to the others it changes directions much faster.
The key to "RL handling happiness” is following the "slow in, fast out" rule of thumb. You need to keep the power on through the corner in order for the SH system to work it’s magic. The final ranking of the cars is as follows.

4th Audi A6
This car was the only one in the group with forced induction and because if this there was a lot of turbo lag. The car also ha too soft a suspension that induced lots of body roll all made this car my least favorite of the batch. Somehow the car managed to have a lot of roll without gaining a truly comfortable ride. On the plus side. straight line acceleration was the best of the bunch, but only by a hair.

3rd Mercedes E320
The Mercedes was characterized by really slow steering response, lots of body roll and a distinct lack of power. This made the E320 only slightly better than the Audi. The user functionality was also lacking. There were a bewildering number of buttons scattered all over the dashboard and in the proudest German tradition, none were labeled with regular words like "Air Conditioning"!

2nd BMW 530i
The results might have been different if this had been a 540 with the V-8, or a 530 with the sport package or even a 530 with a manual transmission. However, this car wasn’t equipped like that and as a base 530 it was not a better car than the RL. If it was a 540 to get closer to the RLs power output, there is little doubt it would have been close on price. Let's face it, the BMW is not a bad car, on the contrary, it's a pretty good car. Nearly everyone hates the i-Drive user interface, and after trying to get comfortable with it, I tend to agree that the controller could have been better executed.

1st Acura RL
Did this car win because I sell them and I wouldn’t pick our new car as the loser? Am I biased? It’s really difficult to say. I try to view the cars objectively and logically, but once you’re in this price range, there are always a lot of emotions that come into play. Logically, this car is the obvious winner. It out performs all the intended competitors in ride quality, quietness, acceleration, and handling. Comparably equipped, it out performs them in value but this is nothing new. What is new is a willingness by Acura to give up their insistence that all our cars be front wheel drive. The Super Handling All-Wheel Drive system demonstrates Acura's technological leadership and Mr. Honda's philosophy that we are innovators not followers! I hope you’ll join us as we expand our automotive horizons


The 2004 TL "Ride and Drive"

Our previous Ride and Drive events that I have attended were held at an old Navy Airbase in Alameda (RSX), a parking lot for a horse racing track (CL), and California Motor Speedway (TSX). The 2004 TL was going to be held at a beautiful hotel in downtown San Francisco, Hotel Nikko! What was Acura trying to tell us about the new TL?
 
It turns out that they were planning a new experience for us. They wanted to underscore the fact that we need to move ourselves and our stores in a more professional direction for the new clientele our ’04 TL was designed to cater to. Our new car is designed to appeal to exiting TL owners, and more importantly, “steal” a few buyers from other brands.

Opening Session
Our opening session was in one of the conference rooms decorated with frames artwork displaying the TL and some of its new technologies. The facilitator introduced himself and outlined our planned schedule for the days events. For many of us, it was going to be the first chance we’d have to see the car in person after seeing so my “spy photos” on the internet.

The TL showcases Acura’s commitment to efficiency. It all starts with aerodynamic efficiency. The TL has one of the best drag coefficients of any Acura vehicle, slicing through the wind with a 0.29 rating. This means increased fuel economy at highway speeds and also a quieter cabin. The addition of a front windshield with an acoustic inner layer and side glass that is 5mm thick (compared to 3.5 mm), reduce wind noise at highway speeds by a staggering 10db compared to the 2003 model.
 
Under the car, you’ll find extra care has been given to “air management.” There are covers under the engine and strategically placed panels to help smooth the air flow under the car. There’s even a genuine rear diffuser between the mufflers to aid high speed stability and enhance fuel economy. Inside the rear wheel wells you’ll find a unique material lining the insides of the fenders. It is an acoustic “carpet” material that dampens road noise better than the previous plastic liner.

The “Blinking 12”
What the heck is the “blinking 12” we wondered when we saw the index tab in our participant guides? We got the answer about 2 minutes into our session on High Technology. Remember the last time the power went out in your house? How long was it before you corrected the clock on your VCR to reset the time and get rid of the ‘blinking 12:00”? Did it take you so long because you’d forgotten how to do it? This was the point of our technology session.

It would be important that we assist clients with their new TLs and insure they are comfortable with the systems in the car, or they might get frustrated. The two systems that would need the most explaining are the Bluetooth HandsFreeLink and the Multifunction Display.
The Bluetooth HandsFreeLink allows users to link a compatible cellular phone and use the car as a “microphone and speaker”. This is how it works. A pairing process is used to “introduce” the car and phone. From this point on, the car will recognize the owner’s cellular phone whenever they get into the car, and link together. The owner can then dial and receive calls using Voice Commands and not have to take their hands (or eyes) off the road. You can even talk directly to the car by pressing the “talk” button and saying, “call 2 5 5 – 1 2 5 5” and the car will recognize the numbers and place the call!
 
The Multifunction Display allows users to customize the operation of the convenience features to their liking. For example, one driver can set the car to have the interior lights stay on for 15 seconds and have the doors automatically lock when they shift from park. A second driver could select a 30 delay on the interior lights, and have the doors lock when they reach 10 mph. The car recognizes each driver by which key fob was used to disarm the security system.
 
The display also shows the owner when they should plan scheduled maintenance. It takes data from the cars computer to calculate when it’s time to change the oil, rotate the tires, replace the coolant and even a timing belt. The system is smart enough to schedule maintenance items together to minimize trips to the service department.

The Driving
After our two classroom sessions were finished, we headed to a dozen cars to drive “caravan fashion” to Candlestick Point and the test track. As we piled into the 12 cars, I was fortunate to get to drive one of the TLs. It was a 12 mile (I think?) drive but traffic extended the driving time to around a ½ hour.
 
When we arrived at the Point, there were two sides set up for driving; one side had the comparison cars and the other the gymkhana course. Ah yes the gymkhana, my favorite part. A little back story is needed here. If you are a regular reader of my page, you may recall that I had the best time in our class (actually the whole weekend) at the RSX Ride & Drive. I also set the best time at the TSX Ride & Drive. Our manufacturers’ rep told me that a few of the sales consultants at his other dealerships were asking about me. I guess someone coming all the way from Hawaii for a half day class is easy to remember, especially if they do well. Anyway, we weren’t sure who would be going up for this trip, so up until a week before, I wasn’t certain I would attend, but it was always a possibility.

The comparison part of the track had Acura’s primary competitors: the Lexus ES300, BMW 330i, and the Infiniti G35. It’s now time to give you my performance assessment and personal preferences. Remember this based on MY VALUE system, and I value performance.
The TL won. There I said it! You can now crucify me for being biased, but before you do, let me explain.
 
4th Place: Lexus ES300
Let’s face facts, all Lexus product is well made. Fit and finish are excellent and better than the higher ranked G35 by leaps and bounds. Why is this car last? Frankly, someone had to be last, and since I bias my opinion towards performance, the ES 300 was at the back of the pack. It had the least horsepower, and was the second heaviest car and this resulted in poor acceleration. I was the slowest and it felt like it. In the handling department, the softly sprung McPherson struts provided a nice ride, but were much too soft for the kind of driving we were doing and probably too soft for any enthusiast

3rd Place: Infiniti G35
Like all the reviews say, this car has some pick up. It wasn’t as dominating as I was expecting but it did do a good job of getting the car away from a stand still. I hate to keep complaining about the same thing, but Nissan/Infiniti interiors are still substandard in materials and workmanship. Rattles, creaks and all kinds of extra noises abound. What a huge contrast compared to the ES300 and the TL. The legroom on the G35 was pretty good, probably due to the long wheel base of this car compared to the others. However, the cabin did feel very narrow, and this is probably due to the fact it shares its chassis with the Nissan 350Z sports car. Overall a good car, but with the same complaints we always have with Nissan product.

2nd Place: BMW 330i
This was a close one, since I love small cars and the nimble feel of the BMW. I love the feel of the steering in this car. It’s pure and direct but I wish the car had more power. Sorry, I meant to say I WISH THIS CAR HAD MORE POWER! If we were driving manual transmissions, the lower power might have been offset, making the BMW a better choice for the enthusiast driver. Personally, I still find the Dynamic Stability Control too intrusive, cutting in and spoiling all that rear wheel drive fun just as it’s getting started. Some people may find the interior a bit cramped, this is partly due to the smaller over all car, and the fact that the RWD drivetrain takes up more space. Personally I have two major objections to this car, one is the lack of horsepower, and the second is the significant price difference when equipped equally. Now if this were an M3 the order would be very different

1st Place: Acura TL
I agonized over this for quite some time; however, I feel the car speaks for itself. The TL manages to meld features not normally found in this price range into one smooth refined package. It even manages to add a few new tricks that are not available anywhere else (for now). Dynamically, the car handles with precision, with lots of feedback in the steering wheel, and only a slight hint of torque steer in the automatic transmission model

The new 6-speed shifts quickly and easily through very short throws and the clutch effort is phenomenally light. Granted, with full throttle applied, you will feel the standard limited slip differential tugging a bit on the wheel, but it’s not too distracting for the driver who is prepared for it.

Once inside, you are greeted to one of the finest interiors I’ve seen recently. The fit and finish is superb, the quality of the materials is excellent. The design and ergonomics is up to Acura’s typical high standards. The car is quiet inside, and offers excellent space for all occupants.

If you are an experienced rear wheel drive pilot and are willing to really push a car, you could generate better lap times (on a race track) with the BMW 330i with the performance package. In everyday driving the TL offers a better blend of features, performance and price.


The 2002 Acura RSX - Ride and Drive Review

Thursday, June 21. 2001

I'm just back from the Acura Ride and Drive introduction and I've got to say this is a very impressive new car. Our agenda was comprised of several "stations” including a street drive, test drive with slalom, emergency breaking, NVH test area, and a timed gymkhana (like an autocross course). There were also several classroom sessions that gave us more in-depth details about the RSX and the RSX Type-S. This review of the day is pretty long so I hope you have a broadband connection. Without further adieu...

The Classroom Sessions:
This is where things got pretty interesting (for a gear head like me), as the instructors would delve into some of the details of the new i-VTEC head and it’s application in the new RSX as well as the “improvements” to the suspension. In the standard RSX the cylinder head is a Dual Overhead Cam (DOHC) design. However, the VTEC and VTC only operate on the intake valves. A second camshaft drives the exhaust valves but this is a conventional design. This motor uses a 9.8 to 1 compression ratio and breathes through a new two-stage induction system. The net result is 160 hp @ 6500 RPM and 141 lb.-ft torque @ 4000 RPM.

The Type-S engine shares the same basic block, but the internals are beefed up for better strength at high RPM. This motor also uses a DOHC layout, but now VTEC is used on both the intake and exhausts. The VTC is used on the intake only. This motor uses an 11 to 1 compression ratio and needs premium gas to run it’s best. The cast aluminum intake runners are short and straight to maximize high RPM breathing and look very similar to the intake runners on the Type-R Integra and S2000. With a strong 200 hp @ 7400 RPM, and 142 lb.-ft. @ 6000 RPM, the engine is free revving and very smooth.

The overall project engineer worked his way up through the ranks and spent the years between 1988 and 1992 building the 1.5 liter V-6 Turbo that produced more than 1000 horsepower. He would later follow up with a normally aspirated V-10 and V-12 that powered Honda to six Constructor's Championships, five Driver's Titles and 71 Grand Prix victories.

We also discussed the suspension changes that make the Type-S a better handler (than the RSX), these include stiffer rate rear springs, more rebound and compression damping on all four shock absorbers, a larger front stabilizer bar, and a standard strut tower brace. Combine this with the new stiffer (over 100% stiffer in bending rigidity than the Integra) chassis, larger 16” alloy wheels and the new car has all the pieces to both handle better and ride smoother. I (like many of you) am still concerned about the use of MacPherson Struts in the front suspension replacing our unique double wishbone design. We reviewed the details of the suspension and the reasons for the change (improved safety and better space utilization) and waited for the driving to see for ourselves.

The Street Drive:
This allowed us to drive the car and pay attention to the things that make a car a good daily driver. The controls are easy to see, though the small diameter steering wheel may block the view of the gauges for taller drivers. They will, however, benefit from the additional headroom the new car provides. At first I had some reservations about the decision to move the mirror controls to the dashboard (instead of the easy-to-reach door location on the Integra), but this proved to be no problem since the bottom of the dash is angled and "pushed" out toward the driver. This is also true for the CD/radio and A/C controls. They are all very easy to reach. The "feel" of the A/C controls are remarkable, they are smooth, silky and have just the right amount of resistance to make them easy to use in a moving car.
The soft textures on the dash pod are matched in appearance throughout the interior including the headliner. The metallic faced gauges in the Type-S impart a high-tech appearance but they really come alive at night when you turn on the lights because they are backlit with a pleasing amber glow (naturally all the radio and A/C controls match the dash lights).

The car has two large cup holders in the front, two in each armrest area for the rear seat passengers, and one large cup holder where the drivers arm rest “should be.” I say, “should be” because this appears to be a glaring omission in a car so well equipped. While we're on the subject, I wouldn't mind the addition of a passenger grab handle to assist exiting the vehicle. The rear seat folks seem to have a bit more space than the G3 Integra coupe, but I still think that the G2 coupe was the best in this regard. I especially liked the longer rear seat cushion; this should allow the rear occupant to "slouch" down if they are hitting their head on the glass.
The standard moonroof seems to be an inch or two larger than the current Integra coupe and like the Integra it is an outward opening type. Other nice touches include a lighted glove box, a cancel feature on the cruise control, and the simple but effective A/C vents. These small things always impress me, but I really noticed that the new car is “miles” ahead of the Integra in terms of refinement. The new engines purr quietly below the VTEC threshold but take on a sonorous sound as the revs build. The wind noise is more subdued than in the Integra and this is aided by the curious little “dimples” in the inside of the side view mirrors. These disrupt the laminar flow over the side glass just enough to help quiet the car at highway speeds.

The Test Drive Course:
This was our opportunity to compare the Type-S to the RSX in back to back drives over the test course. The first section was a straight-line run to demonstrate acceleration. There was a radar gun and display set up to show our speed and I managed to get the Type-S up to 48 MPH before I had to brake for the sweeping turn. My best run in an RSX was in the 44 MPH range. The ‘S felt much more stable in the high-speed sweeper probably due to the suspension improvements and better tires.
The track progressed over a strip of tires and rope to show the NVH improvements and the car really showed how rigid the new chassis is! There was no hint of flexing in the chassis or unusual vibrations through the steering wheel despite the rough pavement. The course then took us through a “4 cone” slalom to show the reflexes of the steering and suspension. There is lots of safe understeer in the RSX and a hint of understeer in the Type-S, though I think careful selection of tire pressures can help balance the car.
There was wonderful control and they were very easy to modulate if the ABS cycled on during the hard braking maneuver at the end of the test circuit.At this point, I must admit I could not detect any real drawbacks from the MacPherson struts up front, the car stayed planted and stabile during all the transitions we threw at it. I’d also like to say the new 11.8-inch front brakes really felt good!

The Gymkhana:
This allowed the participants to experience the handling of the RSX and use the Sport-Shift 5 speed automatic in a timed and competitive event. The facilitators set up a small autocross type course and we were allowed 2 timed runs to compete for the fastest time. The winner would get a RSX windbreaker and the runner-up a travel bag.
If you’ve looked at the rest of my web page, you know that I’m an avid Autocrosser, and the “sea of cones” sure looked familiar to me! The track was designed to be a 1st and 2nd gear track and the posted times were spread over a large range from a fastest of 23.01 seconds to well over 28 seconds for the slower drivers. There was a one second penalty for hitting a cone and a 5 second penalty for stopping out of the Stop Box at the end of the course. The track started with a straight that ended in a quick right-left-right kink. The last right hand fed into a sweeping 1st gear decreasing radius turn, followed by a very tight left. You only needed 1st gear from here on, a tight series of right-left-right and you were back at the finish line and the stop box. The new generation Sport-Shift does not perform an automatic up-shift in any gear until you’ve bumped on the rev limiter for 5 seconds! Five seconds! This seems like an eternity when your engine is “sputtering” along. This is welcome news to any enthusiast driver, since it gives you more control over the transmission than our other applications (TL, CL and NSX) of this technology.

Naturally, we were all disappointed that we were not racing the Type-S, but the RSX with the standard suspension was still impressive. To start my run, I settled into the deeply bolstered seat, gave the seatbelt a twist and buckled up. I tried to stage as far back from the timing light, unfortunately the instructor (Scott, a former race driver with experience in everything from karts to Indycars) knew what I was up to and kept moving me forward ;-). For my first run, I ran through the straight, and tried to hold first gear the entire way, even hitting the rev limiter at the end. I did this on the reasoning that it would be faster to try that, than up-shifting only to need an immediate down shift back into first. This strategy was not the best, but I still managed to run a pretty fast 23.25.
On my second run I got a better launch, and Scott suggested I could hold more speed through the kink, so I made a quick shift into second. I tried to hold it longer before braking for the sweeper and just managed to ride the ABS through the first part of the sweeper. I nailed the apex just right and got on the power and slipped though the esses and into the stop box. As I tooled back to the start, the time was flashing a 22.85! This was the fastest time of the day for both class sessions, faster than the best time from the two sessions the day before, and earned me an RSX jacket.

Since we had some extra time, Scott decided to take a run through the course and posted the exact same time, 22.85. I was surprised that he offered me an opportunity to beat our times of 22.85, so I strapped in again and concentrated on carrying speed through the sweeper and not overdriving the corners. When I came in, I saw a 22.65! It was too bad I hit a cone at the apex of the sweeper! Scott later told me that he managed a 21.70 during lunch. Oh well, so he beat me by a whole second, at least I beat the other four classes of fifty people each!
And Finally:

I feel this car is going to be impressive in the market place. The pieces are all there: great styling, impeccable build quality, and improvements in all the right places over the Integra it replaces, and a lot of value for the money. Please remember, although it is my job to sell these cars, I am an enthusiast at heart. If you’re in Hawaii, give me a call at 255-1255 or e-mail me at colin@satoauto.com. I’d love to meet with you to tell you more about this car in person, and provide an opportunity to see the car up close as our inventory arrives.