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Comments
Peak Torque: 265 lb.-ft @ 5000 rpm (95% or more from 2500 rpm)
Redline: 6800 rpm
Curb Weight: 3850 lb.
0-60: 6.2s-6.5s
Skidpad: ~0.85g (assuming Acura is aggressive with rubber)
Top Speed: 150+ mph (also depending on tires, if Acura chooses to go with higher rating)
Wheels: 17"
Peak Torque: 280 lb.-ft @ 5500 rpm (85% bofore 2500 rpm)
Redline: 6500 rpm
Curb Weight: 3500 lb.
0-60: 5.6s-6.0s
1/4 mile: 13.6s at 106 mph
Max land change speed: 65 mph
60-0: 150 feet
70-0: 160 feet
Skidpad: 0.90 g (I wish it would be 1.00 g)
Top Speed: 160 mph
Wheels: 18" performance tire
Estimate mpg: 20 city, 22 freeway
Anyway, my take (I base my numbers on TL's and my BMW 540iA's).
Peak Power: 300 HP
Peak Torque: 270 lb.-ft
Redline: 6500 rpm
Curb Weight: 3750 lb.
0-60: 5.6s-6.0s
1/4 mile: 14.0s
60-0: 120 feet
70-0: 160 feet
Skidpad: 0.90+ g
Top Speed: 160 mph
Wheels: 17" standard, optional 18"
Estimate mpg: 20 city, 25 freeway
jrock65, my previous number about GS sales was wrong. I took the Lexus car sales number and deduct ES/LS sales from it. I forgot the IS sales entirely. My mistake. Your number seems right. However, it further reinforce my point. Achieving 1000 unit sales for new RL is not an easy task.
I'm with the pro-Acura crowd. I liked most of their offerings: most notable exception being the re-badged Isuzu Trooper.
The '05 RL is my kind of car, a good balance of style, power, features. Even their limited color choices are sufficiently appealing (I'm color-blind, anyway).
I may opt to wait and pick up a "pre-owned" one after its owner tires of it or is persuaded to trade for the next new toy .......
Peak Power: 300 HP @ 6300 rpm
Peak Torque: 265 lb.-ft @ 5000 rpm (95% or more from 2500 rpm)
Redline: 6800 rpm
Curb Weight: 3850 lb.
I'm also expecting 0-60 times in the low 6 second range. Despite the weight, I think the SH-AWD design will help the car hit 0.88 or 0.90 on the skidpad. 60-0 braking will probably be about 130ft. Hondas tend to have mediocre stopping distances.
Peak Power: 333 HP just for bragging rights
Peak Torque: <200lb-ft @ any sane RPM
Breaking: 60-0: 166 ft
MPG: best in class
Acura will make up for this by offering everthing including fridge and kitchen sink as standard.
I do see your point.
But even though the GS only sells about 800 per month now, it did sell about 2500 per month for a couple years.
Anyways, it's all conjecture at this point. A lot of it will depend on pricing as well.
My predictions:
price: $48,000
horsepower: 300
torque: 270
0 to 60: 6.0s
average sales per month: 1300
"That is incorrect. RL comes with Burl Camphor Wood (and, like everything else, it is not an option)".
What model year? The models I saw were made of plastic and the dealer comfirmed that fact.
"Meanwhile, the center console is covered in burled camphor wood."
Confirmed fact? My boss drives a 2002 RL and it has burled camphor wood trim.
In the Japanese market, Honda doesn’t shy away from offering a choice of real wood in its vehicles. The following are interior pictures of Honda Inspire (similar to American Accord)
With Walnut Trim
With Brushed Aluminum Look
Inspire’s interior is similar to Acura TSX’s.
ksso
I'd rather have plood. A good plastic wood facsimile does the job for me. As long as it looks real, I'm happy.
Most burl woods come from harvesting old growth trees. These trees are hard to come by and often serve a strong role in their environment. Chopping them down for car interiors doesn't seem like a good plan to me. Especially since the manufacturers protect the wood with a thick plastic coating anyway. Might as well be plastic!
As long as I'm chiming in, I'll say that I agree with what someone was posting earlier. Wood and brushed metal are accent materials. They should not cover the whole dash.
110k miles now
1)4 automatic window opener broken(All four glass)
2)radiator broken
3)passenger side door handle broken.
All others work wonderful.
Aesthetically, I do have a small objection to the metal console in the 2005 RL. The two lines of metal that frame the side, extend too far and seem to go nowhere at the bottom; IMHO, they should have ended at the bottom and framed the entire enclosure.Instead, they hang like two lines holding up a goal post.The lines need "resolution."
My Thoughts on Prospective Specs:
Horsepower: 300
Torque: 275
0-60: 6 sec.
Rims: 18 inch (17 inch not "progressive" enough.
Price: $49,000
I agree with previous posts that assert that the new RL, though not dramatic in it's styling, can endure. "Refined" and "somewhat bland" are descriptions that don't provoke heated controversy; mild dismay, perhaps, but not real contention. If the RL's innards prove to be powerful, sophisticated and ergonomically comfortable, this could dilute any prospective disappointment with the exterior. Can hardly wait!
One word ...... PLASTICS!
ksso
when they tell you they are using some chickory dickory wood in your car, they are not using solid chiseled blocks of wood... its just veneers or veeneers, however they are spelled...
ksso
'05 rl mpg (my guess) will be more like 19 city, 28 highway based on what I've seen acura deliver with their 5 sp auto in the tl and tsx. it should be tracking about 2000 rpm at 75 mph and with it's decent aerodynamics, give a nice highway return on gas. hauling around awd and a bigger body than the tl, it will deliver less in stop-and-go.
Oh yeah, agree with this no-brainer, '04 tl takes the '04 rl in less than 2 rounds.
spent the weekend bombing around northern OH and western PA with old friends in an a4 1.8 quattro with 5 sp and loved driving it. was pretty impressed with a 1.8 litre 4 delvering smooth power up and down the curve. interesting in that it only gets around 26 mpg highway but revs were well over 3 grand at 75 mph. still, it hummed along nicely. my other partner has a new clk 320 and it was very fine too. but nothing compares to the 35' sailboat we launched from Catawba island sailing the weekend around the Erie Islands -- never thought 8 nauts could be that much fun. 1st mate duties require large amounts of food and drink too, was clocking about 3 beers per afternoon high seas, 2-3 glasses wine docked.
With old growth trees, it's a bit more complicated than just replanting. The environments where these trees survive tend to be those where mankind has not yet intruded. The trees are very old and, even if replanted, will not reach the maturity of an old growth tree for well over 100 years.
Okay, eco-rant over. Sorry about the topic shift.
I think it looked great.
Glass is made with sand and heat. A well run glass works can be very eco-friendly.
I'm thinking of putting more in as the W-T-W carpeting wears out.
In cars, I don't think that the wood vs. plastic veneer for accent trim is that big a deal.
uh oh!
Hey Jeff, what's going on? On the other hand, I'm thinking of making a Seattle to Jersey drive in a free '96 A6....
ksso
http://money.cnn.com/2004/08/24/news/international/honda_ceo.reut- /index.htm?cnn=yes
It has a intelligent night vision technology is capable of picking out pedestrians in the dark using two sensors below the headlight and here's the second tid bit of information, it will use a head's up display, like some GM luxury vehicles. This is all debuting on the Honda Legend, which we all know is the Acura RL here.
lets see if it really makes the light of the day.
Ksoman - Thanks for the link. If Acura moves forward with that, I doubt we'll see it here in NA. In Japan, and to a lesser extend Europe, pedestrian safety is a bigger concern. They do a lot more driving in cities with bicycle and pedestrian traffic. Here in the US, we tend to stick to highways.
Intelligent cruise control (something that we expected to see in 1999 TL since 1998 TL-X concept had it) will definitely be offered. I would like to see Acura offer CMS/e-Pretensioner though another feature that is offered in Japanese Accord and Inspire. CMS (Collision Mitigation System) uses radar to detect potential accident and starts with a warning to the driver. If the driver responds, brake assist “assists” the driver to a safe stop. If the driver doesn’t, and it is too late, the seat belt tightens up before imminent collision and the CMS takes over the braking task and applies full braking force.
I just read that Toyota’s version may be offered in the new GS as an option.
“The center display, located at the bottom of the windshield to minimize driver distraction, incorporates an arrow navigation display to indicate branches in the road ahead, and night vision, which uses an infrared camera to detect pedestrians. The image is then processed and displayed to the driver.”
Ksso, just drop off that "free" a6 here in Houston and take my company car with you. I won't say a thing...
The mdx has fake wood and it does not appear to be too bad. the pre- '04 tl had it too and the black/gray stuff looked much worse than the plastique found in the saddle interior version. how does the new tl look with the fake wood accent? the old '96 rl looked really good to my eyes especially on the board section on the passenger side and over the cupholder.
jeff, i'll make sure i drive atleast 1000 miles away from you.
ksso
The V6 versus V8 is not about the 0-60 times but the RL will be lucky to do 7.5 seconds at best because of it's weight. It's almost 800 pounds heavier than your TL.
The V8 is all about "torgue" in a "luxury" car. When you have 4 adults in it, you will miss the low end pull that a V8 gives the car.
Again, the new RL is a great car but for us Canadians,eh, way over priced.
Babs
Is best guess delivery time early October, at earliest?
Has there been a comprehensive comment on the paddle shifters in a previous post? Any strong feelings about them?
My salesman told me Sept 7, I believe. And other posters have said about the same.
I wouldn't want to go up Sh*t Creek Road without 'em!
;-)
My salesman told me Sept 7, I believe. And other posters have said about the same. <<
That's precisely what the salesman at Keyes Acura in Van Nuys, California told me yesterday. Right after the holiday they are going down to Honda HQ and will see and drive the car.
When the dealership will get some to show or sell he could not say.
i just realized, those leases are not cheap. considering acura's hold their value, leases are supposed to be cheap...
ksso
Burma Shave.
2005 Acura RL - Coming Soon
Scheduled Release Date: October 14, 2004. More info to come in days!
However, if that's the case, he should have cut and pasted, just as I did and spared us the rest of the e-mail.
Gosh Mark, I haven't seen the words "Burma Shave" since I was a kid many moons ago, and it was posted in ad signs along the highway. I wonder if we are of the same vintage!!!!! I was certainly amused when I saw it.
I am trying not to be too biased by the pictures that have been released of the 2005 RL--I was one of the first to comment that I thought the rear of the car looked more like a Honda Accord than the present RL. Maybe I will change my mind when I see it. I would hate to pay the large premium for a 2005 RL if it really resembles the Honda Accord that closely. I also don't like the center of the dashboard with all of that silver colored metal (whatever it is)--I still like the rich look of wood. However, in the end analysis, it will be how I feel behind the wheel that will one of the most important considerations.
I love the discussions by those who are considering defecting to other Japanese cars (e.g., Infiniti M) or some European car. Until we can make actual comparisons side by side and also hear what the experts say about the new cars once they hit the market, it is just a fun debate not to be taken too seriously!