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I guess it's already too late, but my advice would be to wait for the '06 rather than getting an '05 now. The '05 was the first year of the new RL production, and from the boards here, there have been plenty of problems, mainly (but not only) electronics glitches. Consumer Reports magazine has done an analysis of their reliability data and found that reliability of cars increases markedly after the first year of production, on into the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc., as problems are corrected.
Also, I don't think you will have to pay $5,000 more for an '06. The RL has not been selling well, compared to the other luxury performance vehicles. And I imagine after a couple of months, the '06s will be selling at a tremendous discount (as were the '05s earlier in the year).
About the extended warranty, remember that you can shop around for the best price, just as you shop for the car itself. You don't have to buy the warranty from the dealer you bought the car from. That said, extended warranties are usually not worth it, especially for Japanese cars. I've never heard of getting a refund if you don't use it; that's like getting your insurance premium returned if you don't put in a claim. How can they make any money that way?
This is not consistent at all with my one complete year of RL experience nor reflective of the many posts by actual RL owners/drivers here and at other RL forums.
Most of the electronic discussion focuses on a topics related to XM receivers which are not an Acura product and the issues have been minor in nature, i.e. XM radio reception is fully functional and of excellent quality sound. Navtraffic though is still going through a beta test IMO.
I bought my RL in April and like most RL owners, have had no serious issues. I took the car in for its first oil change and had the dealer update my XM radio. The only problem was that it took 15 seconds to show the name of the new song. If I didn't know it was an official service bulletin issue I probably would have let it go. Now the radio changes information on the first beat of the new song. In my last car the radio didn't display the name of any songs so this is a major improvement either way.
Regarding price, the retail for 2006 will probably remain the same and will only be slightly discounted for the first few months. Compared to a 20% discount off retail for the 2005, it makes all the sense in the world to take the '05. Plus, who knows what kinks will be introduced in the first few months of the new model year. At this rate Acuralady will be having this same discussion next year at this time.
Finally, it has been a standard policy to refund part or all of an unused extended warranty. You ask, "How can they may any money?" Let's try this. Give me $1,800 while your car is under the original four year warranty. If you sell the car in three years I'll refund 100% of your money. I'll have made an easy 18%+ in interest on your money.
Dave
(The winter mats may not seem necessary in sunny So.Cal but take 'em anyway...they match the interior and are great in wet weather as well.)
When I got to finance, he said that the fully refundable warrantee may be about $495.00 more. I think they are just trying to get more money out of me. He will let me know tomorrow. If he tries to charge more, I will not buy the warrantee. I have shopped around, but no one else sells 8 year 120k warrantee. I still think it is way to expensive.
There is a small scratch in the back of the car. The salesman said that they will buff it out during detail and finishing touch. I hope it comes out. He said if I was not satisfied, then don't take delivery of the car. He said the contract is not good until you drive the car off the lot. I am nervous, because I did sign the contract. I wrote in full refund in the "No cooling off" section. I don't think it would be binding, since it is handwritten.
You might be right about the price of the 2006. In a few months they may have specials. I am not going to look back. I have the 2005 now. I also read the same article in Consumer reports
I have shopped around. My credit union offered 7 year/ 100K for $980 with a $100 deductible. Do you think I should take that one instead. I will probably hit 100K right about 7 years. I liked the extra 20K and 1 year the dealer offered as usually cars have major issues right after 100K. :confuse: I normally don't get extended warrantees, but since this is the first model out, and it has so many computers, etc. . I thought I would this time. It probably will be a waste of money, especially if they don't offer a refund. I agree, why would they offer a refund?
I rarely disagree with you, but I do here. My 99 RL was very reliable, but, I got my money's worth from my extended warranty. The following were replaced under my extended warranty - radio, $500; auto dim mirror, $500, very squeaky console, $450, navi, $500, and a couple of other more minor items that I don't recall at the moment - all not counting labor. The 05 RL has enough more gadgets, many of which will be expensive to repair or replace, that I would definitely recommend the extended warranty.
(the purchase price helps in the bottom line consideration.)
As does the length of time you plan to keep it, of course. I tend to keep my cars for six or seven years so an extended warranty makes more sense for me.
At this point in time I haven't decided how long I will keep the RL but I'd be inclined to say if I do decide to keep the car and did flip that coin it would be heads YOU win, tails I lose. :P Do you know the cutoff date to purchase an RL extended warranty? I understand AAA offers extended warranties also...maybe I should check with them as well.
JJ
( PS. The Wisconsin Badgers pulled off an incredible last minute win today in Minnesota!! at this time the Cornhuskers are beating Baylor 10 to 7 (2nd quarter)
Since you can already see used 2005 RL's showing up on cars.com for under $36-37K..it's a good bet they will drop slightly once the 06's are out.
My thinking - If you live in a state like New Hampshire (or any snow/winter state) why buy a TL when you might soon start to see $32-35K - used 05 AWD RL's with not too many miles on them..
I picked up the RL today after the 3 updates and the first thing I had to do was reset my XM preset buttons. Then as I left the dealer the first thing I noticed was the smoothness in the movement of the transmission through the gears. My car heretofore would also feel drag under say 25 to 30 mph...that's gone. I thought it might have had something to do with the SH AWD...but apparently the PCM update eliminated whatever was creating it. It's a good feeling. LMBRL to my friend Acuraphile....and "Hope to hear from you soon buddy"
Wow, that's a pretty steep depreciation hit in one year for a $50K car!! :surprise: So much for that "Honda value" thing. Then again, a large margin of consumers felt it was overpriced to begin with. If what the lady mentioned a few days ago about finding a brand new '05 for $40K is true, I might have to look into it again. I've recently come to not need as much rear seat room as before. I just have to try to get used to the overly subdued exterior styling.
Anyway, the RL has a fabulous roster of goodies, albeit some of them are a bit buggy, and the interior is top notch. However, the other half and I both still feel the exterior is a bit laid back. It just doesn't have that road presence like cars of its class should have. We're finally starting to see more of them on the road (after a year!) and we haven't much changed our opinions. But I'm willing to give anything the benefit of a doubt, from Kia to Bentley.
I am one of those who felt the '05 RL was way overpriced. Unlike the MDX and the TL (I have owned both, and still have an MDX), I could never bring myself to consider the RL a "best-bang-for-the-buck" car that I associate with being an Acura.
BTW: There are apparantly no significant changes to the '06 (apart from optional Tech Package); thus I do not see how the '06 will be able to go for much more than low-mid $40s. If I can get an '05 today for under $40 (and I can) then why pay more than $43-44 for an '06 :confuse:
IF '06s are going for ~$44 in a few months THEN '05s will be worth no more than mid-$30s
with thier captive lease special
Im ready to pull trigger now on new RL
The wood knob is at least in the same family of colors. Although it is burlwood (swirly) and the wood grain on the dash is straight lines. It does not match exactly but it blends. I am really worried about the red steering wheel.
Make sure you talk to only the Internet Managers at the dealerships. You can get their names and numbers from Acura.com. In case if you don't live in the area, try zip code 92806.
:confuse: Every internet manager I have ever dealt with let me test drive the car. I've never had to go to another salesman for a test drive.
Actually an '06 RL with Tech and Rear-Camera will MRSP at $54,210 :surprise:
Compare that to the fully loaded M35x (Premium, FSS) at $54,570.
Note that this exceeds the RL equipment list (Premium includes rear DVD w/ rear heated and reclining seats).
What was Acura thinking? :confuse: Or perhaps they weren't
One way to look at it is english units vs. metric; which is correct 1" or 2.54 cm?
I think it depends on how many '06 they manufacture. Some are speculating a production cut; if true then that will help keep prices up. If they do indeed limit production then early '06s could go close to MSRP. If production stays at '05 levels then I don't see how they can be that high.
Lots of info here going back to the '05 RL release in Oct '04. It would worth your while to take the time and read through the material. You will find there have been some first year issues with the RL; it has not been a trouble-free release. Study the issues and see if you can live with them. I used to own an '04 FX35 as well and have owned three Acuras (2 MDX and TL-S). In my experience Infiniti service is equal to or better than Acura; neither is as good as what I read about Lexus.
Pricing depends on where you live. In California and Texas NEW '05 RLs with 12 miles on the odometer are going for $39,900 to $40,800 or so. However when the '05s are gone then these deals are gone. In any event based on what I read on this and other boards I would not pay $38,900 for an RL with 12,000 miles on it. Good luck.
On the other hand, I've logged 7700 miles without a hitch - not one problem.. It's unreasonable to expect every '05 RL to be trouble-free. "Reliability" is based on frequency of repair and if you examine those bar -chart comparisons, not every Lexus is trouble free - furthermore, the difference in reliability on those charts, between Lexus and Acura, is hardly noteworthy. As far as service is concerned, I would pit my dealership's service department against Lexus anytime - appointments are kept promptly, loaners are available and when I leave my dealer after a service visit, I have every reasonable expectation that I will not have to return for a do-over. Are there Acura service departments that are flawed? You bet.
I believe them to be the exception. Acura has always been associated with reliability. The three RLs that I've owned have proven to be no exception.
George
When I was researching I looked at the RL, the M35, and the GS300. The RL MSRP had a $5000 markup over Invoioce, the M35 had a $4000 markup, while the GS had an $8000 markup :surprise: So yes I do believe that Lexus treats customers like royalty; however they are BUYING that customer service
When I said that it was my experience that Infiniti customer service equaled Acura, that was not to imply that either was bad. On the contrary I have been satisfied with my Acura dealer (bought 3 Acuras there) and my Infiniti dealer (bought 2 Infinitis) :shades:
BTW, there is nothing extremely wrong with the OEM tire, it is just a bit noisy and not the greatest traction but it is a low resistance tire aimed at max gas mileage. Get the RL and get a tire upgrade for quiet and handling. That's my recommendation from Scottsdale this weekend. Now back North to my RL. Can't wait, although Scottsdale in October is very nice.