1997 Acura Cl Premium Coupe 2-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Junkyard Gem: 1996 Acura 3.5 RL, Rocky Mountain Rambler 500 Edition

Honda had a good sales run with the Acura Legend, the first of the luxury-marque spinoffs from well-known Japanese carmakers to appear on our shores, but times change and the RL replaced the Legend as Acura's flagship starting in the 1996 model year. Here's one of those first-year RLs, found in a Denver boneyard covered in decorations from the Rocky Mountain Rambler 500 road rally. The Rocky Mountain Rambler 500 involves a lot of punitive off-road driving, so cars that have no business on the dirt seem to get coolness points. That makes Honda's most expensive vehicle of 24 years ago a fine choice of ride. I can't determine how well this car did, but the drivers looked optimistic during the inspections last month. Since the ignition key is still in the switch, I'm assuming it wasn't running so well after the rally and the team decided to bid farewell to their Acura in the lowest-hassle way possible: sell it to the nearest U-Pull-&-Pay. The team appears to have gone for a Pirates of the Caribbean theme with their big land yacht. The evil-looking wheel covers looked sharp. However, the Lord Humungus-grade roof spikes really make this car stand out, both on the rally and, now, in the junkyard. It seemed very clean, with the original owner's manual still in the glovebox. The MSRP on this car came to $41,000 in 1996, which amounts to about $69,000 in 2020 dollars. A new Lexus LS 400 cost $52,900 that year, though the $45,700 Lexus GS 300 was more likely to have battled for the money of potential 3.5 RL buyers. The 1996 Infiniti Q45 went for $53,520, while the J30 cost $39,920. The 1996 BMW 530i had a $42,750 price tag, but your Mitsubishi dealer had $25,525 Diamantes that year. Built on the idea that luxury doesn't have to be boring. Take that, Lexus!

2024 Acura RDX is another model dropping front-wheel drive

After Acura made small changes to the RDX for the 2022 and 2023 model years, Honda's premium arm is carrying the 2023 version nearly unchanged into 2024. There's a familiar drivetrain tweak that we've covered across the automaker spectrum, though, with Acura dropping the front-wheel-drive option that had been available on the base, Technology, and A-Spec trims. For now, every RDX comes fitted with Acura's Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD). The effect is also familiar: Compared to 2023 RDX pricing at launch, the minimum price for the entry-level base and the Technology trims is up $2,300, the A-Spec price climbs $2,000. MSRPs for the RDX lineup including the $1,195 destination charge, and their changes from 2023 launch pricing, are: RDX Base: $45,245 ($2,300) Technology: $47,895 ($2,300) A-Spec: $50,895 ($2,000) Advance: $53,045 ($500) A-Spec Advance: $55,045 ($500) Now for the small print. We specified launch pricing because the 2023 RDX has already gone up in price by all but $100 of the increases noted above. Meaning, if you wanted to configure a 2023 RDX on Acura's website instead of a 2024, you'd only save $100. Also, the automaker didn't put out a press release for the coming model year, but it did publish a fact sheet. The first footnote of the fact sheet explains, "Destination & Handling charge for sedans (excluding PMC Edition) and SUVs (excluding PMC Edition) is $1,400." At the time of writing this post, destination charges are still shown as $1,195 on the 2024 Acura RDX Build & Price page. Take this as warning that the brand's cars could get at least $205 more expensive soon. Every RDX is powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder making 272 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque, shifting through a 10-speed automatic and sending power to both axles. We've had nothing bad to say about the RDX, praising its gutsy engine, responsive chassis, quality interior, sharp styling, spacious interior and plentiful standard features. And even with the price bumps, the RDX remains either much less expensive or notably more powerful than the luxury competitors Acura wants to challenge with the RDX. 

2021 Acura TLX Review | Back to the future

The best-selling luxury car used to be an Acura. The brand's combination of reliability, quality, design and driving dynamics clearly resonated with buyers. In the past decade-plus, however, those last two elements stopped resonating, while the Acura brand subsequently lost its luxury luster. Simply put, the 2021 Acura TLX is intended to turn things around. Its look is bold and athletic in a way not seen since the best-selling TL of the 2000s, while its long-hood/short-deck proportions are like no Acura that's come before. Although they're usually indicative of a rear-wheel-drive luxury sedan, the TLX remains based on a front-wheel-drive architecture with Acura's brilliant Super Handling All-Wheel Drive system. A return to a double-wishbone front suspension ensures truly charismatic handling. That architecture is also unique to Acura as opposed to being related to the Honda Accord. All of the above adds up to a new TLX that's a far more compelling and competitive luxury sedan. If you're considering a BMW 3 Series, Audi A4 or Mercedes-Benz C-Class, it's definitely worth expanding beyond the German borders and giving Acura a try. It's different to be sure, but different can be good, especially for driving enthusiasts who've seen some zest ooze out of the 3 Series in recent generations. Even its interior is suitably luxurious in quality and distinctive in appearance – it looks like nothing else out there and, importantly, doesn't give off the vibe of an Accord in dress pants. While we're not ready to declare it any sort of class leader, it's worthy of playing with the big boys. What's new for 2021? The TLX was completely redesigned for 2021. What's the TLX interior and in-car technology like? The TLX cabin has a modern, high-tech look that won't be confused with something in a European luxury sedan. Materials quality is excellent, while padded simulated leather on the dash and doors provides an undeniable air of luxury. There are style differences between trim levels as well, most notably the open pore wood trim and ambient lighting in the Advance (above left) and the A-Spec's sport gauges, unique aluminum trim and available red leather (above right). There's still some switchgear shared with Honda – particularly the annoying push-button shifter – but at least Honda makes some nice switchgear.  There are notable, Acura-only exceptions to that. First is the large silver knob prominently placed on the center stack that controls the car's driving modes.