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2022 Acura MDX Type S First Drive Review | Spicy-enough family hauler

NAPA, Calif. — First things first: The 2022 Acura MDX Type S is not the Honda premium brandÂ’s attempt to create a BMW X5M. Then again, at $67,745, it comes in 30 grand under the storming German SUV. So while the Type S carries the imprimatur of high performance, it is priced more in line with the entry-level BMW X5 xDrive40i, plus the Audi Q7 55 TFSI and Mercedes GLE 450 4Matic that have upgrade engines but fall well short of being considered high-performance models. Acura makes a more convincing showing of it with the Type S, but you still get what you pay for – and sometimes paying less is OK. What Acura has created is an upgraded midsized SUV that gives sufficient sportiness to enthusiastic drivers, without clamping down on handling and braking harder than ThanosÂ’ gauntlet. HereÂ’s what to tell your friends at the bar: Acura ripped out the stock 3.5-liter V6 for a 3.0-liter sequential twin-scroll turbo that adds 65 horsepower (to 355) and 87 pound-feet of torque (to 354), and beefed up the 10-speed automatic transmission with a new torque converter, stronger gears and improved clutches to handle the increased power. It was also reprogrammed for improved response, especially in the new, Type S-exclusive Sport+ mode. Brake upgrades include four-piston 14.3-inch Brembos up front. And Acura claims its first-ever air suspension – courtesy of supplier Continental – delivers both improved ride and dynamic performance. What does that mean when youÂ’re actually behind the wheel? On a rainy day in Napa, California, marked with intermittent drizzle that turned the narrow two-lane roads greasy and slithery, the MDX Type S revealed its beefy size on occasion but also comported itself confidently. Most confident on corners marked “35 mph” or above, the Type S felt a bit bogged down in slower corners – especially when getting on the gas too early. Acura claims that its torque-vectoring Super Handling All-Wheel Drive will help round off corners when accelerating out of an apex, but the laws of physics and slippery roads still apply. Hitting the gas earlier in a wet cornerÂ’s apex can result in some bonus wheel slippage and mini-rotations thanks to SH-AWD, which is great fun if you are expecting it from this 4,741-pound beast.

Acura NSX is industry's first supercar with a female design lead

Michelle Christensen. Unless you've been casting about the web for some behind-the-scenes takes on recent exotic car launches or were unusually curious during the early days of the sport crossover trend, her name probably means nothing to you. She grew up in Northern California, where her family drag-raced. Venerables like the 1932 Ford, Plymouth GTX, and Dodge Super Bee rolled through her family garage. And Christensen grew up designing prom dresses for friends and dreaming of working in a pit crew. In fact, she didn't even realize car design was a real profession until junior high, when her father pointed out Chip Foose at a car show. After that, she was hooked, so she went to Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, where she reimagined the Plymouth Barracuda as her senior project. Today, Christensen can add the title of lead exterior designer on the 2016 Acura NSX to her resume. The first woman to lead the shape of a supercar, Christensen actually opened up her "First!" account with Acura in 2005 when the company swooped her up the night of graduation and she became its first female exterior car designer. Her first sketch on the job was a concept for the ZDX, and the bigwigs chose her design for production. She joined the NSX team after the mid-engined concept was introduced at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show, replacing the front-engined V10 concept (we encourage you to go back and look at what was versus what is). Christensen thereafter led a crew of eight through a rework of the sheetmetal, with the focus being to keep the "emotional, 3-D kind of feeling." Reminiscing about her family's utterly unadorned '32 Ford hot rod, she said the NSX team was committed to keeping the design simple and light. Wind tunnel work led to larger bumper, hood and side intakes for better airflow on the production model. That, along with a switch in engine position, gave them a chance to go aggressive and to not only "punch more holes in it and make it more exotic," but also "take it to the gym and beef it up." In line with its decidedly un-retro rebirth, the third brake light that runs across the decklid is about the only nod to its predecessor. At age 34, we're certain we haven't seen the last of Christensen or her designs. Related Video:  

A look inside Honda’s “Safety For Everyone” research and development operation

RAYMOND, Ohio—As part of its long-running “Safety for Everyone” campaign, Honda has established the audacious goal of what it calls a “zero-collision society.” But rather than making big claims about developing a fully-autonomous vehicle, which Honda hasnÂ’t done, the company is trying to chip away at the more than 37,000 vehicle-related fatalities that occurred in the U.S. in 2017 with a multi-pronged approach. Here in central Ohio, engineers are working with state-of-the-art facilities and equipment to boost active safety systems like its HondaSensing suite of safety technology with old fashioned passive systems like structural steel frames or new airbag designs that protect passengers in a crash. Honda provided members of the press with a rare tour inside its Honda R&D Americas headquarters this week. Honda officials say that increasingly, safety — and specifically, third-party ratings from the likes of the National Highway Safety Traffic Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety — figure into the top three factors consumers weigh when purchasing a vehicle. Honda and Acura have 10, 2019 models that have earned IIHSÂ’s Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ ratings, and all 15, 2019 model-year Honda and Acura vehicles that have undergone NHTSA crash testing have earned a 5-star overall rating. And Honda prides itself on its growing list of safety firsts, including the first upward-deploying front passenger airbag, in 1990 in the Acura Legend; first omni-directional crash-test facility, in 2000; and the first autonomous braking system, in the 2006 Acura RL. It hopes its new three-chamber airbag goes industry-wide and joins that list. “ItÂ’s part of our companyÂ’s culture,” said Art St. Cyr, business head unit and vice president of auto operations for American Honda Motor Co. “We have a philosophy at Honda that we want to be a company that society wants to exist. That means we have to protect our customers. ThatÂ’s part of the whole mantra of doing this.” Opened in 1984, the 1.6 million square-foot Honda R&D Americas facility, located in the countryside about 45 miles northwest of Columbus, employs around 1,600 people and is HondaÂ’s largest research-and-development facility outside of Japan. Its Advanced Safety Research facility opened in 2003.