2009 Acura Tl Sh-awd Sedan 4-door 3.7l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Acura Precision Cockpit Concept is much more than a digital gauge cluster

Audi Virtual Cockpit is one of the single best pieces of technology on the market, bar none. It blends beautiful graphics, easy interaction, and loads of information in a way that similar all-digital gauge clusters from brands like Jaguar, Land Rover, and Cadillac can't match. Other brands might not stand even with Audi, but Acura is certainly going to try. The company is demonstrating its efforts at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show with the new Precision Cockpit. Like Audi, JLR, and Cadillac, Acura is using a 12.3-inch display in place of a traditional set of gauges that changes color schemes and animations based on the driving mode. A prominent central display joins the digital IP and features what looks like an evolution of the company's current infotainment software. But rather than a knob and dial or physical buttons, Acura is taking a page out of Lexus' book, using a touchpad to control the center display. View 7 Photos But before we lament the touchpad too much, it's worth pointing out how Acura says its arrangement is different. Using something called "absolute positioning," the touchpad behaves more like an actual touchscreen – tap a corner on the pad and whatever's in the same corner of the display responds. In that way, it sounds like Acura is trying to marry a touchscreen with a more ergonomically comfortable interface. Color us curious. Precision Cockpit also stands apart in how Acura optimized it, designing the system with semi-autonomous driving in mind. The company went as far as to use a real-time 3D graphics engine to display what the vehicle's sensors "see" inside the instrument cluster. There's even an advanced vision mode that allegedly shows "cars, pedestrians, cyclists, and other objects – even those obscured from vision – using artificial intelligence to predict future pathways." While Acura is calling Precision Cockpit a concept, the company confirmed in its official release that the Android-based system "will power future production cars." If it comes with all the tech Acura's promoting here, Precision Cockpit stands to be a significant step forward in the digitization of car interiors. Related Video: News Source: AcuraImage Credit: Acura LA Auto Show Acura Technology Emerging Technologies Infotainment Concept Cars Videos Original Video

2019 Acura RDX First Drive Review | Boringness banished

WHISTLER, B.C. — Things have come full circle for the Acura RDX. The compact crossover launched in 2007 with an all-new turbocharged four-cylinder engine and an all-wheel-drive system that was sophisticated enough for the brand to affix the Super Handling designation to it. It was a fun, sporty vehicle in a sea of boring competitors, and we liked it enough to write a eulogy of sorts when the second-generation RDX ditched the fun turbo engine in favor of a V6, and dumbed down its optional all-wheel system so much that they dropped the Super Handling name. Acura's mainstreaming of the RDX for its second generation turned out to be a smart play. Sales jumped 94 percent in 2012, the first year that the redesigned RDX went on sale, leapt another 50 percent the following year, and have stayed over the 50,000 mark for the past three years. It may sound surprising, then, that Acura is flipping the playbook back a few pages by swapping its V6 engine back to a turbo four and reinstalling Super Handling All-Wheel Drive. We think it's a smart move. The 2019 RDX is both sportier and more upscale than the model it replaces. It does more than just check boxes. It's interesting, boasts some cool technology, and offers a strong value proposition. The 2019 RDX's all-new 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine delivers 272 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. That's down a negligible seven ponies from the old 3.5-liter V6, but up 28 lb-ft, and it's tuned to provide the bulk of that torque in the heart of its powerband — peak torque plateaus between 1,600 and 4,500 rpm. An equally all-new 10-speed automatic transmission sends that power to either the front wheels, or, as was the case with the vehicles we tested, all four wheels. Jumping into a 2019 RDX for the first time, our main powertrain concern was that the 10-speed automatic would generate a ton of unnecessary, and distracting, shifts. This proved to be an unfounded fear. The gearbox does shift quite often under hard acceleration, but does so quickly and without any undue jerkiness. The sheer number of gearing options — the old six-speed auto had a 68 percent narrower spread of ratios — and the torque-rich engine combined to provide excellent straight-line acceleration in any real-world driving scenario we could conjure. The rest of the time we didn't really think about the transmission at all. We did, however, lament the push-button transmission interface.

2023 Acura Integra pre-orders are overwhelmingly manuals

Acura says that customers placing reservations for the 2023 Integra are overwhelmingly choosing the manual transmission over the standard CVT, with a take rate currently hovering above 70%. While this certainly bodes well for the early model mix, it remains to be seen just how well the 6MT Integra will sell over the course of its projected lifespan.  Fun Fact: 2023 Integra reservations are trending over 70% 6MT! For historical context, the MT was around 50% of sales (‘86-‘01). pic.twitter.com/G1tSVJuxQ3 — Andrew Quillin (@andrewquillin) March 17, 2022 If we've observed anything about enthusiast cars and manual take rates over the years, it's that early numbers are not usually indicative of the long-term trend. Even Acura's own parent company experienced this recently when it saw manual share of the current Accord plummet after spiking when it debuted. The more enthusiast-focused Integra should be able to hold on to its stick-shift buyers for longer, but we're skeptical that its long-term share will approach the 50% it enjoyed in previous generations.  That said, manual buyers are out there. Just look no further than Subaru, which absolutely shames every other mainstream automaker. Yes, Subaru — the company that decided to saddle the top-trim WRX with a CVT, of all things — regularly sees manual take rates of 75% (or more) for the BRZ and 90% for its WRX line. Rest in peace, STI.  Related Video 1999 Honda Civic Si | Retro Review