2019 Acura RDX - Best Luxury CUV?
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Date: 2019-05-30
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Comments and reviews: 9
Petros Bezirganyan
Test drove 2018 BMW X3 XDrive 30i (4 cylinder turbo, 2019 Volvo XC 60 T5 Inscription and 2019 Acura RDX. Acura beats both BMW and Volvo in luxury, technology and overall performance. It is absolutely no-brainer which one to buy in the category of compact luxury SUVs under 50K. Acura delivers on torque, on smoothness of delivery of torque and power, in cornering and overall maneuverability, it has the best steering wheel out of all three vehicles, with the right amount of heaviness, heft and road feedback. It has the best road noise isolation, and the best seats and leather upholstery, beating even the newly redesigned Volvo. The only place where Acura falls short is fuel economy--it has pretty thirsty engine, but it can run on regular gasoline unlike the other two (I know, I am leasing 2019 RDX Tech package. Sure, one can buy more powerful engine, like turbocharged 3. 0 V6 in BMW and both turbo-charged and supercharged T6 in Volvo, or even the 400 hp T8 hybrid system in Volvo, but the actual fun factor of driving the vehicle is not going to change much in my opinion, with Volvos power delivery being very lumpy (turbo-lag, its steering being very light, and with BMWs long hood and aggressively bolstered, hard bucket seats. Also, price and cost of ownership, including the maintenance and long-term reliability, is always a factor, where Acura, again, delivers big.
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Test drove 2018 BMW X3 XDrive 30i (4 cylinder turbo, 2019 Volvo XC 60 T5 Inscription and 2019 Acura RDX. Acura beats both BMW and Volvo in luxury, technology and overall performance. It is absolutely no-brainer which one to buy in the category of compact luxury SUVs under 50K. Acura delivers on torque, on smoothness of delivery of torque and power, in cornering and overall maneuverability, it has the best steering wheel out of all three vehicles, with the right amount of heaviness, heft and road feedback. It has the best road noise isolation, and the best seats and leather upholstery, beating even the newly redesigned Volvo. The only place where Acura falls short is fuel economy--it has pretty thirsty engine, but it can run on regular gasoline unlike the other two (I know, I am leasing 2019 RDX Tech package. Sure, one can buy more powerful engine, like turbocharged 3. 0 V6 in BMW and both turbo-charged and supercharged T6 in Volvo, or even the 400 hp T8 hybrid system in Volvo, but the actual fun factor of driving the vehicle is not going to change much in my opinion, with Volvos power delivery being very lumpy (turbo-lag, its steering being very light, and with BMWs long hood and aggressively bolstered, hard bucket seats. Also, price and cost of ownership, including the maintenance and long-term reliability, is always a factor, where Acura, again, delivers big.
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Norm T
RDX Lows: Touchpad tribulations, stiff ride, lethargic transmission The performance is more b-spec then see spec. Acura needs to free up the RDX Hardware to do its best work. Compared with last generation RDX, this new one requires an extra point for second to reach 60 miles per hour. Tires help increase skidpad grip by. 04 G / last-gen, but this Utes. 81 G still Trails almost everything else in the class, and the new tires howl when pushed. They only managed a 177. From 60 miles per hour also on the underwhelming end of the segment with soft brake pedal makes smooth stops tricky. About a spec branding is over promise to RDX is highly impressive stuff. It needs to be liberated. Car and Driver
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RDX Lows: Touchpad tribulations, stiff ride, lethargic transmission The performance is more b-spec then see spec. Acura needs to free up the RDX Hardware to do its best work. Compared with last generation RDX, this new one requires an extra point for second to reach 60 miles per hour. Tires help increase skidpad grip by. 04 G / last-gen, but this Utes. 81 G still Trails almost everything else in the class, and the new tires howl when pushed. They only managed a 177. From 60 miles per hour also on the underwhelming end of the segment with soft brake pedal makes smooth stops tricky. About a spec branding is over promise to RDX is highly impressive stuff. It needs to be liberated. Car and Driver
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Kopernicus67
Nice review and nice car. Just MHO, for all the quality and performance, the dash and controls are really for a 20-something. Not tasteful, too much trim, too noisy, too plastic-y looking. That gaping slot all for a knob to control the driving dynamics is a little much taking up 1/3 of what could be useful space. Volvo does it in a far better way for a wide range of age-drivers with the XC40. BMW, MB and Audi also do that annoying design that looks like someone melted an iPad into the dash. Doesnt look integrated, looks like an afterthought. Nice vehicle, but not a place I want to sit.
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Nice review and nice car. Just MHO, for all the quality and performance, the dash and controls are really for a 20-something. Not tasteful, too much trim, too noisy, too plastic-y looking. That gaping slot all for a knob to control the driving dynamics is a little much taking up 1/3 of what could be useful space. Volvo does it in a far better way for a wide range of age-drivers with the XC40. BMW, MB and Audi also do that annoying design that looks like someone melted an iPad into the dash. Doesnt look integrated, looks like an afterthought. Nice vehicle, but not a place I want to sit.
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goinxnginx
If I thought crossovers were really sharp and good looking cars, I would really go for the 2019 RDX. It is sort of like choosing the best looking and most athletic larger size girl from the lineup, I guess. I am not trying to be funny or mean. I just prefer the svelte look of coupes and sport sedans to crossovers. If they improve the TLX as much as they have improved the RDX, it will also be a real winner. And they should start all over with the MDX and whatever they call their flagship sedan as well (RLX.
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If I thought crossovers were really sharp and good looking cars, I would really go for the 2019 RDX. It is sort of like choosing the best looking and most athletic larger size girl from the lineup, I guess. I am not trying to be funny or mean. I just prefer the svelte look of coupes and sport sedans to crossovers. If they improve the TLX as much as they have improved the RDX, it will also be a real winner. And they should start all over with the MDX and whatever they call their flagship sedan as well (RLX.
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CurbsideUnderwood
Alex you are just awesome. Though not really my cup of tea, I have never liked Acura until this car(Aside from the crappy wood trim) overall this is an outstanding vehicle. I thought it was awesome you are listing to Rebecca st. James The Mercedes AMG GLC is still best in class here, but costs more than twice as much maxed out lol, but if money is no issue, get the Mercedes, but then again if money is no issue, then absolutely get the Lamborghini Urus. Awesome review
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Alex you are just awesome. Though not really my cup of tea, I have never liked Acura until this car(Aside from the crappy wood trim) overall this is an outstanding vehicle. I thought it was awesome you are listing to Rebecca st. James The Mercedes AMG GLC is still best in class here, but costs more than twice as much maxed out lol, but if money is no issue, get the Mercedes, but then again if money is no issue, then absolutely get the Lamborghini Urus. Awesome review
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jerryjday36
Exterior is improved. Interior is insulting for a 2019 year model. wheel is garbage and unattractive. center gauge cluster is worst in class. Infotainment is years behind the competition. absolutely no reason to waste your pennys on this outdated overpriced poor value and subpar warranty high maintenance costs. I test drive the top of the line model and didnt need any more distance than the dealers lot offered. buyer be warned I hate to say I told ya so
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Exterior is improved. Interior is insulting for a 2019 year model. wheel is garbage and unattractive. center gauge cluster is worst in class. Infotainment is years behind the competition. absolutely no reason to waste your pennys on this outdated overpriced poor value and subpar warranty high maintenance costs. I test drive the top of the line model and didnt need any more distance than the dealers lot offered. buyer be warned I hate to say I told ya so
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Trades46
If there is one thing I like, is Acura refuses to not put button on the center console which is a godsend when you dont have to poke & swipe a hundred times to change the climate control and do frequent commands. Also bonus points for the underrated physical volume knob. The SH-AWD is a welcome return. However this particular model with its small wheels look absolutely terrible - modern cars have to have large enough wheels to balance out their design.
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If there is one thing I like, is Acura refuses to not put button on the center console which is a godsend when you dont have to poke & swipe a hundred times to change the climate control and do frequent commands. Also bonus points for the underrated physical volume knob. The SH-AWD is a welcome return. However this particular model with its small wheels look absolutely terrible - modern cars have to have large enough wheels to balance out their design.
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Karl P
I started with Honda as a consultant 5 weeks ago, so for the first time have been looking at how they package their vehicles. It seems that Honda like to keep things simple for the buyer. Three grades of trim/equipment and two engines choices for the petrols. Outside the three grades, there arent too many options to pick because each grade has very intelligent equipment bundling at that price point. What you want at that price point is there already.
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I started with Honda as a consultant 5 weeks ago, so for the first time have been looking at how they package their vehicles. It seems that Honda like to keep things simple for the buyer. Three grades of trim/equipment and two engines choices for the petrols. Outside the three grades, there arent too many options to pick because each grade has very intelligent equipment bundling at that price point. What you want at that price point is there already.
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David Qin
Hey Alex, great review as always. However, the new Q5 introduced in 2018 (and the 2017-Present A4/A5 manual & all Allroads) no longer has the good Quattro with a 40: 60 torque split Torsen Type-C differential (SQ5 still has the Torsen, replaced by Quattro Ultra which is essentially a Haldex-like multi-plate clutch installed in the rear of the transmission to send power to the rear. Torque split is 100: 0 until power is needed at the rear.
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Hey Alex, great review as always. However, the new Q5 introduced in 2018 (and the 2017-Present A4/A5 manual & all Allroads) no longer has the good Quattro with a 40: 60 torque split Torsen Type-C differential (SQ5 still has the Torsen, replaced by Quattro Ultra which is essentially a Haldex-like multi-plate clutch installed in the rear of the transmission to send power to the rear. Torque split is 100: 0 until power is needed at the rear.
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