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We drive the Acura TLX-GT racecar

Don't break the car. As you can tell from the video, that's the theme of the day at Gingerman Raceway in South Haven, MI. After two short lapping sessions in the Acura TLX-GT fear gave way to familiarity, and a second theme emerged: this is awesome. The anxiety was appropriate. There are only two TLX-GTs in the world, and both were at Gingerman that day. A mishap would potentially put either Ryan Eversly and Peter Cunningham out of contention for the subsequent Pirelli World Challenge race. I did not want to be that guy. But back to the awesome part. The TLX-GT is barely TLX, but more Acura that you might expect. The wheelbase, roof, and doors are all stock dimensions, although all the bodywork is carbon fiber. Out go the front MacPherson struts, in goes a special double-wishbone suspension. All-wheel drive comes from an XTRAC six-speed sequential transmission originally developed for Dakar Rally vehicles. The side mirrors are stock. Under the hood lies a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 with a stock block, head, crank, and throttle body. "Under the hood" is a generous term, though, because half of the engine sits inside the cabin. The front end of the block is aft of the front axle - the rest of the hood is taken up with radiators and hoses. To service the turbochargers, the RealTime mechanics remove the top of the dashboard. The front-mid engine location pushes the driver's seat back to the B-pillar, so you sit like Hightower from Police Academy. Only with less visibility. This does not calm the nerves. Nor does the din of 600 or so unmuffled horsepower. My first laps were understandably timid. But the TLX-GT is actually easy to drive. You get used to the low, rearward seating position almost immediately. Once rolling you don't need the clutch for shifts - just bang the right and left paddles to go up and down. I even became accustomed to the acceleration. At more than 3,000 pounds curb weigh the TLX-GT is quick, but not as explosive as cars like the Chevrolet Corvette Z06. Where the TLX-GT blows away road cars is in grip and braking, neither of which I fully exploited. The brake pedal is so hard you feel like you're standing on it just to get the pads to bite. Once engaged, they're like an endless well of deceleration, with ABS somewhere down at the bottom of the abyss. Second lapping session over, car returned intact and adrenaline high in full effect. I had the uncontrollable urge to get back behind the wheel. I mean, I barely had time to get up to speed.

Honda issues 'do not drive' order for older cars with recalled Takata airbags

Honda and Acura instructed owners of more than 8,000 cars built from 2001-2003 to park them until they can have their Takata airbags replaced as part of the ongoing global campaign to eliminate millions of deadly inflators. Honda says the "Alpha" generation Takata inflators can fail at rates as high as 50%, causing potentially fatal injuries from flying shrapnel in the event of a collision.  Honda and Acura models with the "Alpha" generation Takata airbags include:  2001-2002 Honda Accord  2001-2002 Honda Civic  2002 Honda CR-V  2002 Honda Odyssey  2003 Honda Pilot  2002-2003 Acura 3.2 TL  2003 Acura 3.2CL "Approximately 8,200 Honda and Acura vehicles with the most dangerous airbags are still being driven today. Honda has replaced or accounted for more than 99% of Alpha inflators, but it is absolutely critical that these remaining vehicle owners act now to protect themselves and their loved ones," Honda's announcement said. "These vehicles are 20 to 22 years old now, and the risk to vehicle occupants is dire. Alpha air bags are some of the oldest under recall, and they have a 50% failure rate. If the inflators rupture, the metal fragments ejected toward the driver’s face could kill or leave them with devastating, life-altering injuries." Honda and Acura are far from the only brands whose models were built with defective inflators. A campaign has been underway for the better part of a decade to replace millions of the devices worldwide as drivers continue to die from injuries caused by exploding inflators.  All such repairs are free of charge to customers. Acura/Honda Customer Service can be reached at 888-234-2138 or by visiting their Takata website.   Recalls Acura Honda Ownership Safety Takata airbag recall

2024 Acura ZDX price starts at $64,500 before destination, incentives

When the Acura ZDX was revealed in August, we wrote the A-Spec will be in the $60,000 range and the Type S in the $70,000 range. Official pricing shows that to be the case, the entry-level A-Spec with rear-wheel drive starting at $64,500 before destination. Acura charges a $1,350 destination fee for the RDX and MDX, it's two current SUVs. We'll use that as a placeholder sum for the ZDX, resulting in these MSRPs: A-Spec RWD: $65,850 A-Spec AWD: $69,850 Type S: $74,850 Type S (Perf. wheel & tire): $75,850 Before we get to the comparisons, let's recap what buyers get for the money. The A-Spec comes standard in rear-wheel-drive, its single motor making 340 horsepower. A dual-motor AWD version costs $4,000 more; Acura didn't specify a difference in output, it could be the same 340 hp no matter the number of powered axles. The Type S comes with dual motors producing 500 horsepower to share among the four wheels. The suspension here is upgraded from the A-Spec's multi-link independent with fixed-rate shocks and springs to height-adjustable air springs and adaptive shocks. The brakes go from 12.6-inch rotors to 15.6-inch discs clamped by Brembo six-piston calipers. The A-Spec sits on 20-inch wheels, the Type S wears 22-inchers on tires that are 10 millimeters wider. And that Type S gets the option of Double Apex Blue Pearl from the Precision concept or Tiger Eye Pearl from other Type S models. Inside, there's a a low dash with slim air vents and a pair of split screens for instruments and infotainment; 11 inches and 11.5, respectively. The steering wheel and climate controls come from the related Blazer EV, this being Acura's version of a battery-electric SUV sitting on GM's Ultium platform. Unlike a GM product, though, Acura's back end runs on Google Built-In, and there's an 18-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system as standard equipment. Assistance features include rear emergency braking with rear cross-traffic and pedestrian detection, blind-spot monitoring with steering assist, automatic parallel parking and, thanks to being based on a GM platform, hands-free highway driving assist (Super Cruise by any other name). Every ZDX is powered by a 102-kilowatt-hour battery, the onboard charger capable of 190 kW of DC fast charging. Every unit's CCS charging port can plug in at places like Electrify America and EVgo, Acura dealers will provide free NACS adapters for use at Tesla Supercharger stations.