Acura RL

ivan_99 · June 2005

FWIW-Since were discussing important automotive issues like door locks

A few months ago (maybe longer, time appears to have accelerated) I watched a European Automobile television program. They demonstrated how key fob transmissions could easily be jammed. I forget what they used to jam it, it was something silly like a walkie-talkie.

The owners would walk away thinking they had locked their cars, while in reality they didnt. At this point the thieves would simply open the doors and have their way with your car.

It worked on all makes, even an 80K Porsche.

pat · June 2005

Interesting ... there are two very different locales where I park on a regular basis, and my fob will neither lock nor unlock the car when I'm parked in either location within about a 12-20 foot range in either place. No problems anywhere else. (This is not an RL, just a similar experience to what you saw.)

bodble2 · June 2005

That's exactly the situation I was thinking of when I said it should automatically lock. If you walk back to open the trunk, it would not lock on you since you would not be outsided the programmed range.

I think the current Corvette goes one step better. Not only does it automatically lock when you walk away, it automatically unlocks when you walk back to within range. Mind you, I think the auto unlocking is not really necessary since you'd have to grab the door handle to open the door anyway. I suppose the next step is to electrically open the door for you too! :shades:

bodble2 · June 2005

But you would think a visible or audible locking confirmation would avoid that possibility.

A more scary scenario would be for a thief to scan your key fob frequency when you are locking up. Then they can unlock your car and trunk after you've left. :mad:

jjacura · June 2005

an easy one to explain...you are near an electro-magnetic field and directly beneath the concrete surface where you park are thermo dynamic resonators leaking intermitant waves of synthetic but harmless radio-active threads that attract magnetically to the electronic mechanisms of the car's wiring. you need a ground...maybe run a copper wire from your tailpipe to the catalytic converter.

ama · June 2005

i have waited about 3 months for the rl to be delivered as i wanted meteor w/black interior with less than 10 miles on odometer. :confuse: after reading edmunds for several months, i was wondering if anybody could help convince me to purchase the car next week. :confuse: i have heard about bt, noise, brake, keyless entry and other problems and i asked the dealer (he refused due to privacy laws) to please get me names and numbers of any purchasers that have owned the rl for at least six months so that i can contact them to ask of any problems and if they would purchase the car again. any comments would be greatly appreciated. i currently own a 2003 acura mdx with 39,000 miles and it has been flawless. i enjoy mountain biking and kayaking and i am wondering if i am crazy to trade in the mdx for the rl. i prefer sedans over suvs. thank you for your help.

washdcguy · June 2005

I've owned my RL since its introduction last October (mid-month, actually). It's been flawless. Not one problem, minor or otherwise; easily the finest car I've owned. (That includes the especially troublesome Mercedes E Class I had previously.)

I can't speak for everyone, obviously, but I can for my folks (who also got one, upon my recommendation) and for friends (who got one after shopping it against Infiniti's M45 and the Lexus GS). They've also had zero problems with their RLs.

That makes three winners out of three. Not bad, Acura, not bad at all.

ama · June 2005

thank you for letting me know the good news. i appreciate your response. i called today to see if a hitch is possible for attaching mountain bikes to the rl and it is. so my concerns are dwindling. i also test drove the lexus gs and i was disappointed that my head was hitting the roof unless i had the seat in an almost reclining position. i believe that it is due to the new design. i refused to purchase the gs for this reason and i've decided to proceed with the rl.

jjacura · June 2005

"It's been flawless."

DITTO!

7,000 MILES OF

FLAWLESS PERFORMANCE

FOR US
:shades: SINCE NOVEMBER!

tayl0rd · June 2005

Do you spend a lot of time with your friends? And are more than 1 of them over 5'7"? If so, you'll be punishing them if you make them ride in the back seat. You may want to check into that before you commit.

liferules · June 2005

"I've had to walk back near the car on a number of occasions and activate the key fob lock to make sure it was locked because I couldn't remember whether I locked it or not."

The Audi A6 key fob is programmed to let me know whether my car is locked or not. When I'm too far away for the lock button to work on the car, pushing the button will cause a light to blink...slowly if the car is locked and rapidly if it isn't. I find this helpful and comforting for those exact situations when you get all the way into the office then wonder if you locked the car.

Does the RL have any similar key fob mechanism?

nebraskaguy · June 2005

The Audi A6 key fob is programmed to let me know whether my car is locked or not. When I'm too far away for the lock button to work on the car, pushing the button will cause a light to blink...slowly if the car is locked and rapidly if it isn't. I find this helpful and comforting for those exact situations when you get all the way into the office then wonder if you locked the car. Does the RL have any similar key fob mechanism?

That sounds like an excellent idea. I've read the entire owner's manual and I don't recall any mention of something similar for the RL. I'll check it out, though.

nebraskaguy · June 2005

The Audi A6 key fob is programmed to let me know whether my car is locked or not. When I'm too far away for the lock button to work on the car, pushing the button will cause a light to blink...slowly if the car is locked and rapidly if it isn't. I find this helpful and comforting for those exact situations when you get all the way into the office then wonder if you locked the car. Does the RL have any similar key fob mechanism?

Unfortunately, no. I checked it out at lunch and there's no similar feature.

bodble2 · June 2005

So the Audi remote has essentially a 2-way communication function? What's the max range on it? Is this only available on the new A6? Seems like an excellent idea though. I'm telling you, age does strange things to your memory. Not so much about actually forgetting to do things, but recalling whether you've done it or not. Not only about things like locking your car, but sometimes I'd be driving halfway to the office and can't recall if I had closed the garage door or not!

jjacura · June 2005

Ah yes Bodble...I live on an upgrade and am surrounded by trees but there is a point about a hundred yards away where I can check the rear mirror and see if my garage door is open or closed......seems I'm always checking to make sure its down. :sick:

jjacura · June 2005

5'7" :confuse:

I have 2 frequent back seat riders in my RL and have yet to hear either of them complain. One is a 6 ft athlete type and his wife is 5 ft 10 in.....in fact she was quite complimentary about the comfort level, the pull down arm rest and the quality of the air control. To add another adult body to the back ...yes, that might make things a bit uncomfortable.

liferules · June 2005

All smart keys are in 2-way communication with the cars. Audi just added a little light on the key fob to blink and let you know the status of the lock. I am not aware of this being present in any of the C5 A6's, just the new ones. May be in the new A4's...

Yeah, I have to say I really like it. One of those features you never thought about but like when you find it...

bodble2 · June 2005

Well, then I would say 50 lashes with a wet noodle for Acura! :mad:

This simple, yet useful, feature should have been implemented to make people's lives (especially for us aging baby boomers) a little easier!

fowler3 · June 2005

How about remembering you didn't stop at a store on the way home, and restart the engine to back out of the garage after lowering the door -- CRASH! Done that once.

I'm always worrying about leaving the garage door open and have returned home several times to be sure. Of course, there's the problem some doors have of immediately going back up through no action on your part. THAT's what I check.

The ultimate absentminded error is trying to make a U-turn in the garage.

fowler3

jjacura · June 2005

"The ultimate absentminded error is trying to make a U-turn in the garage."

it's possible in my garage with my wife's car outside...I just do a "wheelie" with the RL and make sure all the tools and garbage cans are out of the way! :P

bodble2 · June 2005

You guys must have some awfully big garages! :surprise:

jjacura · June 2005

I don't have one of those sophisticated back-up sensors like Acuraphile...

larry6 · June 2005

We have owned an Acura 05RL since early December and have clocked about 9,000 miles. Except for some relatively minor issues -- I love the car... especially on long drives (11 hours) to visit family. Like anything else that I have experienced that is largely wonderful... it has some quirks... but reliablity and the secure feeling on a variety of roads is steady. All those quirks were minor problems... and Acura has been pro-active in taking care of them. Yes, given our experience to date, I would buy another one in an eye-blink.

jjacura · June 2005

Larry ...thanks for getting us back on track and it's good to read your posts again. Yep I would agree...it was a major purchase...about 2 times as much as it cost to build our first home including the land in '73. (Only difference is... that little ranch is worth 12 times as much today!) But you gotta love the RL. We just returned from a mini trip to Libertyville, Illinois (a cute little suburban town Northwest of the Windy City). The car performed extremely well on the crazy busy roads we were on during a busy drive time. Whew...glad we don't have to be on those roads everyday.

bmgpe · June 2005

I just picked up my meteor silver RL last week. Powerful, comfortable, quiet, fun. It's truly a starship. Flawless.

I let my son drive it while I sat in the back seat. At 6' 1", 235 lbs. I had plenty of room. Special recessed area in the roof interior gave me 2" to 3" of head room.

The automatic headlight off system worked properly, starting the timer only after the car's system confirmed I was finished using the vehicle, ie. ignition off and driver's door closed.

I would advise anyone considering an RL to ignore posts in the forum written by people who own many opinions, but do not actually own an RL.

tayl0rd · June 2005

I would advise anyone considering an RL to ignore posts in the forum written by people who own many opinions, but do not actually own an RL.

Of course you would, Jim, er, David, er, bmgpe. :-))

Heads up, though. Spamming the boards is frowned upon.

bodble2 · June 2005

" I would advise anyone considering an RL to ignore posts in the forum written by people who own many opinions, but do not actually own an RL."

Not a fair comment. You don't always need to own something to have a constructive opinion on it. In fact, some of the more meaningful comments have come from unbiased "third party" observations.

kyfdx · June 2005

Only read my posts...

bmgpe · June 2005

Continously posting opinions not supported by a factual basis is probably the definition of spam, isn't it?

kyfdx · June 2005

Opinions don't have to be supported by facts...

That is why they are opinions...

pat · June 2005

Opinions are just that - and facts are objective. Opinions are not necessarily objective, but they all are welcome whether from an owner or an interested observer.

On the other hand, posting a message in more than one place is defined as spam and your terms of use ask you not to do that.

pat · June 2005

Neither kyfdx nor I intend to be "piling on", we just had a similar reaction at the same time.

Enjoy your new ride.

bmgpe · June 2005

Like any other design, a car is a final product of many ideas, systems, considerations and mechanisms. Understanding the thought process and application of engineering features requires more than just a 10 minute test drive, or reading articles written by others. Only after driving the vehicle for an extended time and under various circumstances can one begin to understand the vehicle as a unified system. Without this extended time period to understand the car, spot observations and comments are often miopic. I base this assessment on the fact that I have a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a Professional Engineering license in the State of New Jersey, and have designed mechanical and electronic systems since 1977. I rebuild cars and motorcycles as a hobby.

pat · June 2005

Maybe you are misunderstanding what we are about here -- we're here to discuss cars and car-related issues and how we feel about those things. The things you itemize in your message are not required for folks to participate.

How about we just move on now?

Enjoy your new RL - it's a fine vehicle, I don't think anyone here will question that.

msu79gt82 · June 2005

I would advise anyone considering an RL to ignore posts in the forum written by people who own many opinions, but do not actually own an RL.

Not meaning to pile it on here; but a couple of comments are in order. First one need not be a rocket scientist to formulate a useful opinion about a vehicle. I am here to help make a purchase decision between an RL, a GS, or an M. Therefore I value opinions from owners of each one (as well as others). Second, many (most?) posts do not even indicate ownership in them; and even those who do claim to own a particular car may not in fact own one.

Opinions are just that - opinions and long time internet forum users usually have pretty good spam and BS sensors.

bodble2 · June 2005

I guess it's true --- great minds think alike!

bodble2 · June 2005

Well, I have a master degree in quantum physics, a PHD in aeronautic engineering. I have been working for NASA for the past 20 years. And as a hobby in my spare time, when I'm not dispensing sage advice on Townhall, I do brain and organ transplant surgeries! :P

And I built my TL in my own garage using a blueprint pirated from Honda by hacking into their secured website! :P :P

On top of that, I grow my own vegetables and raise cattle for meat, in my backyard! :P :P

jjacura · June 2005

bmgpe....We as owners have invested much time and money on this vehicle and like most owners I feel the need to defend the RL from some of the "MIOPIC" opinions that we read in this forum, and do, but I do feel that there are sincere, credible opinions that reach this forum from people that know what they are talking about and don't own the car. Some opions are not subjective and can be refuted easily and it might take an owner to recognize that...but maybe not. The hard thing for some of us is to keep our comments from getting too personal...guess I'm guilty there and Pat will keep the forum from getting out of line. Hope you enjoy the new RL. (You have just experienced BODBLE2'S sense of humor in the post ahead of mine and I guess...that's allowable too.) :surprise:

bodble2 · June 2005

jj, you know me too well!

Have a good weekend. I know you'll be out cruising in your RL. :shades:

aggie76 · June 2005

Didn't you stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night?

jjacura · June 2005

Hmmmmmmmmmmm...Bodble....(Somebody recognized you ... :P

satire · June 2005

Lease offered to me today from Prestige Acura in Santa Rosa, CA. $3,300 down plus title/license. Still didn't take one home. Not sure why.

kyfdx · June 2005

48 months is a long time to commit to a lease...

$500-$600 per month is still a lot of money...

A lot of cars to choose from in the $40K-$50K price range...

Feel free to use any of the above....

bodble2 · June 2005

LOL. As a matter of fact.....

jjacura · June 2005

Leasing has been around for a very long time and I know that for business reasons many business people find ways to write off the expense but it appears that maybe in the last 15 years or so leasing has become common place. Most of the ads show lease rates instead of leader prices. Buying it seems has been replaced by a lease and that monthly rate allows the potential Accord buyer to step up to a TL lease for the same monthly nut. Somebody explain to me the advantages (Besides the upgrade) of leasing if you can't write off the expense for business. :confuse: (Old fashioned thinking?)

mvc_jones · June 2005

A few advantages of leasing:

If done properly, never have a car out of warranty.

Having been in several accidents (knock on wood none lately (others fault), never own a car that has been damaged and doesn't run perfectly right (this got me out of two cars that never drove right again)

When leasing is done properly with no down payment, use your capital for better purposes (this takes a responsible person to handle)

With safety features being upgraded often, always own the safest car without having to constantly trade cars.

I have leased 3 vehicles and plan to go back to owning because I drive very little these days (9000 miles per year) so I can deal with a 5 year old car with 45k on it. But leasing has served me very well, although I have chosen cars that offered great lease deals (i.e. Nissan, SAAB, VW) where I had no money out of pocket and paid about $325/month of a 3 yr 12k lease.

This adds up to an expense of about $12,000 for 3 years. If I bought any of these cars, the break even point of lease vs. buy is around 5-8 years (i.e. lease cost over 6 years is $24k, purchase would be about $30k with interest, maybe car is worth $6-8k at 6 years, about break even). I generally don't think most people own cars that long and the cost of carrying with out of warranty repairs presents some risk.

That is my perspective.

kyfdx · June 2005

Really... Leasing is just an alternative way to finance the purchase of the car..

The business write-off for tax purposes is just a glitch in the system that favors leasing for expensive vehicles.. and really doesn't have any effect on the average buyer....

Some manufacturers really load the incentives onto the lease side vs. the purchase side.. When they do, it just makes financial sense to take advantage of them.. If you are the type of owner that trades every three years, you would do yourself a disservice to not explore leasing....

If you typically buy a car for cash, and keep it for 5-7 years... then leasing is probably never going to work out in your favor..

There are no absolutes when it comes to leasing vs. purchasing...

At this time, the lease deals on the RL are nothing special... I'd recommend a purchase... If you wanted a BMW 330ci coupe, then my recommendation would be the complete opposite... You'd be crazy to buy it... The lease incentives are that good....

regards,
kyfdx

rajabhat · June 2005

Hi all,
We've now got 4000 miles on our 2005 RL. Would I buy it now having owned it so far? Absolutely. There were some problems, all resolved:
1. Awful metallic rattle when going over ruts/bumps. Was a loose brake pad.
2. Awful loud squealing of the brakes at times. Dealer replaced brake pads and adjusted rotors. Just fine now; even brakes better than before.
3. Verizon phone on the Onstar system would not accept incoming calls. Dealer replaced the entire unit, which gave it a new phone #. I notice that Onstar gets Verizon to only give easy-to-remember phone numbers! (so the customers will be tempted to keep it after the one year free connect!) For instance this one's phone # is 52 444 52; the previous one was an easy # also.

Navigation system is superb and voice commands work fine. For example, "Find nearest Chinese restaurant." Some smaller streets are mapped inaccurately here and there but mostly accurate. Handling is outstanding. Suspension is tight, but I'm fully used to it now. Sound system with XM Satellite is the best car stereo I've ever heard.

I'm not *entirely* sure I'll keep Onstar next year at $15 a month..I'll have to think about it. But the cellphone built into it works just great.

Yup, I'm certainly pleased with the car!
Raja

msu79gt82 · June 2005

So OnStar is $15 / month; XM is $12 / month, and NavTraffic is $3 / month - cost of monthy "service" fees in the RL - $30.

nebraskaguy · June 2005

So OnStar is $15 / month; XM is $12 / month, and NavTraffic is $3 / month - cost of monthy "service" fees in the RL - $30.

And your point would be? Other than NavTraffic which isn't available on other cars, as far as I know, the other fees are exactly the same as on any other car.

Acura RL

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