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I am considering the Acura RL and the GS300. You touched on two of the biggest factors for me, head room and road noise. I am 6'2", will I be comfortable in both cars? Is the GS quieter than the RL? Do you know of any quieter AWD sedans?
Thanks
My first impression with regards to headroom is that I have more of it now than in my 2002 RL. Of course the seat is all the way down and I tend to tilt the back a little too far for normal folk.
As for road noise, I didn't notice much. What really got me was the windshield wiper noise at low speed. Sort of like a farm machine going full tilt right in front of me.
I'll comment further when I actually have more driving experience with it. Given the forcast, that should be sometime in early June.
Current re-sale market value of sum 10K; puts the $43K discounted 06 to shame. A real new car buff am I, but fastly losing my only claim to a vice. I've worked hard to become a citizen senior, AND I DON'T WANT TO GIVE UP NOW! Why couldn't the powers that be at RL have made my life more worth living, I wonder as I wander.
In a quandary if there ever was one (I really need help!),
GarNet
SeniorSquare.com
PS: Also own an '87 RX-7 turbo with the same 0-60 of 06. Sometimes I just can't win, you know?
Regards.
When you get a phonecall or such at home while watching a movie do you let it keep playing or pause it so you can continue later? I think most people pause the movie...
I would be interested in a quieter set of tires in the spring, all-season of course... Any suggestions?
Thanks!
I remember reading that a V-8 RL will intro aprox. early 2009, and not a moment sooner. Of course, as a surreptitious septuagenarian; I don't remember too good any more; "but trust me." Possibly, hybrid availability, in the cards. All that is wrong with the 06 RL, and life in general, may be tendered in 5 years. But at a price! Yesterday, did walk-around of RL's on dealer lot; seems like the car shrinks with each look-see, faster than me and my "forgotten war" buddies are, unlimited! Smaller windows than previous edition coupled with route 66 speed limit postings in less than large, senior- citizen-size numbers; is an accident with my name on it. And who took down all the Burma Shave signs, I can't help but wonder as I wander. (With a new RL, I'LL NEVER KNOW!) Let alone, that lower-in-the-seat view from the 06, which makes my driving by the seat of my pants even more challenging! (A threat, even!) When the trooper issues me still another ticket of many, how's he gonna see me sitting way down there? To make matters worse, the bug-eye headlights swatted out of hand by my lovely wife of 54 years. Seems the RL thinks small in every aspect. Even the Acura logo is indistinguishable from badge of smaller-still Honda Civic. Maybe a "small" $40K end-of-year clearance price on the Acura RL in January 06; would rectify all the short comings in one swell swoop--? Don't know about the rest of the world but I'm waiting...I'm waiting.
GarNet
SeniorSquare.com
You might be over using a cliché or two. I’m not sure because your posting is practically incomprehensible! :confuse: This isn’t a personal... I enjoy reading all postings.
I like performance cars and realize that this is still a $50k sedan and not a $100k Mercedes AMG or M5. Compared to my 2000 RL there is absolutely no comparison between the two. There is no way a front wheel drive car will handle like a 4 wheel drive car no matter what the HP or road conditions. The first thing I noticed was when accelerating you definitely knew you where not driving a front wheel drive car. This is especially noticable if you are pulling from a side street into traffic and even more so if it is raining. In the rain places where my 2000 would wonder a bit "hydroplaning" there is none of that in the 2005. This alone makes it a much safer car even if you don't live in a snow belt. Also, this was one of only 5 cars to receive 5 stars from both of the agencies that do the frontal crash ratings. Cornering with the car is night and day difference. With respect to the interior noise, I thought the 2000 was quieter than the 2005. I upgraded to the 18" Michelin Pilot sports and now think it is about the same as the 2000 with respect to road noise. The 18" wheels made a noticable difference cornering. The 0-60 time I believe is over 1 second lower and it noticable, but you are not going to feel like you are driving a Porsche. The headlights that turn with the steering are also a great upgrade. The braking is also much improved over the pre-2005 models. As great as all of this is, that is not why I traded up.
The interior and electronics of the 2005+ are IMO the best available. The real wood on the dash and doors was a huge upgrade (if you like wood). I was never really impressed with the audio system of the 2000. It sounded OK but I definitely wanted more. The 2005+ sounds great at pretty much any volume. The indash changer is great, the DVD audio is really good, the ability to play MP3's is huge and the now available iPod adaptor seals the deal. The blue tooth HFL works flawlessly and I would never own a car without it now. The navigation is also vastly improved. I now only use voice commands and they work incredibly well. This is huge safety consideration if you use the navigation while driving. The Nav traffic will be great in another year or so. I do still use it alot though and it is accurate about 75 to 80 percent of the time (I live in the SF Bay Area). I find the seats much more comfortable than the 2000. The ability to upgrade to the wood steering wheel also adds to the over appearance of the interior. I also really like the keyless remote, doesn't seem like much of an upgrade until you get used to it. The sun screens in the rear also make a huge difference when it is hot out.
There are a couple things I miss from the 2000. The larger trunk was nicer. It doesn't feel like the interior is any smaller. If you often travel with 5 people in the car the center seat in the pre-2005 was better, but the other two in the back are more comfortable. The rear cupholder is also alot better (although I liked the front cup holder better in the 2000).
All that said the 2000 was a great car, I had about 85,000 miles on it with very few problems. I also had a Legend prior to that with about 100,000 miles on it when I got rid of it, also with very few problems. Both drove pretty much like new when I parted ways with them.
Hope this helps anyone with a pre-2005 RL that is considering a change. I have owned my RL for about 4-5 months and have a little over 5,000 miles on the car. The scheduled maintenance coming up will be the first trip back to the dealer since I bought it. I considered the Mercedes E Class, BMW 5 series, Audi A6, Lexus GS and the Infinty M35 & 45 when before purchasing the RL and have not once regretted my decision.
Also the pricing did effect my decision. I got a 2005 with 18" chrome wheels, rear spoiler lip, splash guards, wheel locks, back up sensors, wood steering wheel and shift knob, trunk mat and net, and next week the iPod interface all for several thousand less then the MSRP of the base model. In addition, this was able to get a lease with a 2% money factor. I plan to buy the car at the end of the lease, so I ended up with a good tax write-off on the lease and with really cheap financing. My only regret was I did pay too much for an extended warranty, but do like the dealer so I am not too excited about that.
I enjoy this car more everyday that I drive it!
Kris
Kris
I live in the SF Bay Area as well, and am thinking of purchasing a 2006 RL. Would you mind sharing the name of the dealer you purchsed it from and perhaps the price paid?
thanks.
-madrambler
Here's what you get. There's a wire in the glove box which connects to your 4th or 5th Gen iPod and the sound is absolutely wonderful, as good as CD's. The problem is there's no way to navigate. There's software you load onto your computer which tags your play lists and albums with voice tags (sounds horrible when it occasionally works) which is supposed to help you navigate the contents.
It doesn't work, it is impossible to navigate and it's a big disappointment that other cars show the ipod contents and Acura does not. There's not much available as alternatives, there's no other way to get ipod audio into the car without an FM modulator-adaptor, which sounds terrible.
I am debating asking for my money back because then I would have no ipod connectivity instead of good sound and no way to select what I am listening. There are some basic navigation controls using the Disc buttons, such as the ability to move to the next song, select shuffle songs or albums and you are supposed to be able to browse playlists, but that does not seem to work.
Chrysler just announced full ipod integration. Harmon-Kardon has a $200 setup that mounts a display on your dash and a joystick on your console with full integration.
If there were a female cable adaptor that would let you go direct in with audio, you could move the ipod to the cup holder and see what you are playing but no luck, the connector disables the screen on the ipod.
Anyway, if someone has any suggestions I would welcome them. If you are considering the ipod upgrade, make sure you know what you are getting for your money.
http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-10846_7-6213124-1.html
Does anyone know if these can be turned down? Or, better yet, does anyone know who is making aftermarket rotors?
Thanks for the info!
David
Seriously, dealers are complaining that the car is not selling well because of the price point. They want something that will sell in the mid-$40K range. But something doesn't make sense.
I bought my RL new a few months ago for $42K and in today's market, an RL can be purchased for $43-$45K in most larger cities. Acura would be making a mistake 'downsizing' the car. They would be better off adding (yes,..adding) more features for a few dollars less. They also need to advertise more in print and television media. Dealers are not getting the support from corporate that Infiniti and Lexus are giving their dealers (i.e. media exposure).
But, if sales are slow due to a lack of a V8,...
I think the lite version will devalue the RL and make it even harder to sell the higher priced version.
Same problem, IMO, plagues the Audi. Both are great cars, just poor publicity...
This stunning bit of automotive stupidity ranks with Acura dropping the Legend name, and squandering the nearly insurmountable lead it had in the premium Japanese car market. It's will kill RL resale value.
Acura has to decide which market the RL is in. If it wants to compete with the Lexus LS, it has to build a first class large V8-powered car. If it thinks it's a BMW 5-series, Audi A-6 or a Mercedes E-Class it has to build a better car than those. It can't build a tarted-up Honda Accord, put a fancy interior into it, and ask for twice the money. As it has learned, there aren't enough rich, stupid people out there who will pay that kind of money for a smallish car with a high-winding, low torque six-cylinder motor that's hard on premium gas. The RL is barely superior to the TL, for $25,000 more.
The Autoweek article may be accessed here.
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060221/FREE/60221002/1024/L- - - - - ATESTNEWS
1. Exterior appeal - it's an average looking car, it is not a head turner. The TL is outselling the RL not because of price, but because of the slick exterior and it is also roomier in the back middle seat.
2. Acura just does not have the brand recogition of BMW and Mercedes. Lexus and Infiniti also have brand recognition. I am not sure why Acura can't at least get the recogition of Lexus and Infiniti.
My father bought a used Jag for $25,000 and I bought the RL. No one is impressed when I say I bought an RL, but when my father says he bought a Jag, everyone wants to go outside and look. I would never buy a jag myself - bad repair reputation.
Big mistake on Acura's part to drop the Legend name.
They outta resurrect the 2nd generation Legend similar to how Ford resurrected the 1969 Mustang.
JJ
Among those posting regularly, Mark Cincinnati, a most knowledgeable engineer, made a fine contribution to the Forum as he contemplated the purchase of an RL versus an Audi. His postings were technical, informative and unbiased. Other postings of a similar nature followed - all intended to shed light on the new RL and to evaluate it alongside the competition. Then, a new factor was introduced and it's still evident in recent postings.
This is an open Forum, and providing that the language and rhetoric remain civilized, everyone is welcome.However,what is "unwelcome," IMHO,is the tedious criticism of the RL's purported resemblance to the Accord, coupled with disparaging, snide comments about pricing and the aesthetic and performance edge supposedly held by BMW, Audi and Lexus. As Host Pat suggested, there is another Forum in which more general and critical comparisons can be made. This Forum seems to be attractive to many who have no interest in the RL other than to disparage it. These postings are nothing but destructive and cause one to wonder as to motive.
JJAcura and I have been posting since the get-go and have noted the contention fostered by disgruntled outsiders who have no interest in the RL other than to deprecate it. What is an "outsider?" An "outsider" is a poster who has never test-driven an RL, has never read the specs, and has never had any intention of purchasing an RL. Knowing the welcoming nature of this Forum,the "outsider" - perhaps compelled by some personal unhappiness - tries to taint the happiness of others. He's welcome - but his comments are unwelcome.
I've put 10K miles on the RL's odo and have not had one defect appear. I loved the car from the outset and hope that other RL owners share my (and JJAcura's) feelings.
My RL shines like a gem and behaves like a thoroughbred.
- George
PS "Cheeseheads" reminds me of only one thing. (Great football fans!)
And welcome to our new member!!
I just need to make an administrative note here - it's a really bad idea to post your email address on a public webpage and we actively discourage that (see note about it atop the post box). You expose yourself to all kinds of unwanted abuse that way. If you want other members to have your address, just make it public in your profile. That way it is protected from the automated webcrawlers which collect addresses for malicious purposes.
And the other thing, equally important, is that we are an online community and thus wish to sponsor online exchanges that will benefit all of our community, now and in the future. So we routinely remove posts containing email addresses, which indeed I had to do.
And with that comment, class is dismissed.
Welcome new members and those temporarily MIA alike!! Nice to have you all here again.
You have to look at the RL board on a different slant. It's sort of like if someone went into your home and started pointing out all the flaws in it. You may or may not know they're there, but you certainly don't want someone else pointing them out. Comments such as yours (and many others all over the 'net) are met here with eloquent prose that is nothing more than a backhanded way of telling you to get lost. Funny thing is, I can't help visualizing the guitar vs. banjo scene from the movie "Deliverance" every time I read one! :P
Opinions are also welcome. That's what a forum is all about.
But he was referring I think to the inane person that takes the cheap shot without ever having spent the time to drive the car or read the specs. The person that looks for a flaw and has nothing contructive to base the opinion on other than to bash the product. Having said that many opinions are SUBJECTIVE anyway. But bottom line, there is no way any forum can keep the trolls out permanently... It's just part of the woodwork. And those of us that are big fans of the car will usually try to keep a certain amount of class going forward.
For example, the BMW 5 series includes about 6 different versions only two of which, the 530 and 530xi, are truly competitors of the RL. Same with the Infinit M and Audi 6 as there are about 3 versions of each combined into the sales report for each.
While the RL sales are certainly nothing to brag about, the sales reports are not as bad as some seem to be taking them. I could only find a breakdown of the February BMW sales by model version and the RL is pretty competitive. For February, 06, BMW sold 902 of the 530s and 710 of the 530xi, whereas the RL was 712 units.
I still enjoy the relative uniqueness of driving the RL, of which I am 100% satisfied with, although I see at least another RL on the road every day now but not like the TL and MDX which are everywhere. I very rarely see an Infinit M on the road and to my eyes in my driving environment the M seems more rare than the RL. Same with the 06 Lexus GS which is not very common either.
I am sure that Acura would rather sell more RLs but I frankly don't care either way. I chose to buy my RL almost 1.5 years ago now and would make the same choice today.