2012 Acura Tsx 2.4 on 2040-cars

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Hondata's 2019 Acura RDX tune brings the mid-range torque

One of the big advantages to the era of turbo Hondas is that there's plenty of horsepower and torque left on the table for tuners to take advantage of. One of those companies is Hondata, and following its upgrades for the Civic and Accord, it's now tuning the Acura RDX luxury crossover. The RDX uses a turbocharged 2.0-liter engine similar to those in the Accord and the Civic Type R. In stock form, it makes 272 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. With Hondata's Stage 1 tune, the company says that horsepower increases by about 10 across the rev band. Looking at the dyno graph, it also appears that peak horsepower increases by about 5 horsepower, and peak torque is up by about 15 pound-feet. Peak torque also appears to arrive sooner, and most of the torque curve seems to be up by 10 to 15 pound-feet. The increases in power and torque are available in all four of the RDX's drive modes. The Stage 2 tune increases power torque even more in Sport and Sport+ modes, and keeps Snow and Comfort modes at Stage 1 settings. Peak horsepower looks to be up about 10 over stock, but the mid-range sees as much as a 28-hp increase. Peak torque sees a huge jump of about 45 lb-ft over stock based on the dyno chart, and it's available even lower than the Stage 1's peak torque. If this all sounds good to you, you can order up a Hondata FlashPro computer for your RDX right now. It costs $695 and comes with the handheld computer for uploading or removing tunes. RDX owners in California should note that neither tune is currently CARB legal. Related Video:

Acura spotted testing high-performance TLX sedan

Back in January at the Detroit Auto Show, Acura promised to dust off the old Type-S moniker to inject some much-needed performance credibility into its current line of sedans and crossovers. At the time, the Japanese luxury brand co-announced a new turbocharged V6 engine and said it would be paired with its Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD). Now, a new set of spy shots has us wondering if an Acura TLX Type-S is right around the corner. It's obvious that the TLX seen in these photos has been blessed with some performance goodies. Large-diameter wheels are shod with low-profile tires, and there's a good chance the suspension has been lowered to match. Most of the camouflage is focused on keeping the fascia and hood covered, which means there are probably some air intakes and bodywork bulges to keep hidden away from prying eyes. Below this prototype's grille is what very well could be an intercooler, which bolsters the notion that there's a turbocharged engine sitting under the hood. And at the rear, we get a very clear look at the car's dual exhaust system. What kind of performance should enthusiasts expect from the Acura TLX Type-S? We'll have to wait and see, but the vehicles accompanying this prototype on its testing runs might offer up some clues. An Audi S4 (354 horsepower) and a Mercedes-AMG C43 (362 hp) were along for the ride. Since that's the case, we'd expect more than 350 ponies if the TLX Type-S is going to compete on at least equal footing. Related Video:

2023 Acura Integra First Drive Review: Just what we wanted

AUSTIN, Texas — Getting caught up in the hype machine of retired car names pulling a Tom Brady is easy to do these days — there are so many examples to point at, and they just keep coming. The 2023 Acura Integra adds to this growing list. Expectations are high; unreasonably high if you listen to internet commenters. An entire generation grew up, got their driverÂ’s licenses and graduated high school in what weÂ’ll call the Integra Drought that began when the last Acura Integra rolled off the line for the 2001 model year. And while Acura likes to think of the 2002-2006 RSX as the “fourth generation” since it was called Integra overseas, itÂ’s meaningful that it was not called that here in the United States. You can tell how meaningful it is by observing how big of a deal Acura is treating the revival of the “Integra” name today — at this point, youÂ’ve surely seen one of its numerous advertisements. In short, it symbolizes AcuraÂ’s serious return to a small, sporty and enthusiast-focused compact car. The outgoing ILX never captured the zeitgeist of sport compacts in the 2010s, and it faded into the background of a much larger and better small luxury car scene. It wasnÂ’t an Integra, and Acura never pretended that it was.  To sort out what the new 2023 Integra is and isnÂ’t, Autoblog sent me (a longtime and current 2001 Acura Integra GS-R owner) to Austin, Texas, where I was able to drive it in the city, on wide-open Texas highways and through winding switchbacks. Unlike some new Acura models that were largely developed in the U.S., the Integra was developed in Japan. The design was handled at the Wako Studio outside of Tokyo, engineering work was done in Tochigi. Meanwhile, production is exclusively taking place in Marysville, Ohio, on the same line as the TLX. Many of those involved in the development of the new Integra also worked on previous generations of the car, so you can trust that Acura/Honda developed the new one with its history being top-of-mind. Just like Integras of the past, everything starts with the Civic. It shares a 107.7-inch wheelbase with the Civic, as both cars ride on the companyÂ’s Global Small Car Architecture. However, donÂ’t think that the Integra is just a Civic Hatchback with an Acura badge on it. Every single body panel on the car is 100% exclusive to the Integra, and the carÂ’s overall length and width are larger than any Civic — itÂ’s 6.8 inches longer than the Civic Hatchback and 1.8 inches longer than the Sedan.