2006 Acura Rl on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Honda trademarks 'CDX' nameplate

Less than two weeks ago, we discussed the possibility of an Acura-badged version of the sure-to-be popular Honda HR-V. Now, Acura has gone ahead and registered a new trademark that fits in perfectly with its two other crossovers, the RDX and MDX. Our friends at Auto Guide report the company has reserved the name "CDX" with the US Patent and Trademark Office, with the trademark covering "automobiles and their structural parts." While it's true that these kinds of trademarks are filed regularly, the timing in this case is indicative of something more than simply covering bases. After all, it seems very, very unlikely that we'd have comments from Acura on a premium version of the HR-V on February 5 and a trademark filing for a name that fits the brand's CUV nomenclature less than two weeks later, only for it to not go ahead and build an actual vehicle. Adding to that logic is the simple fact that the compact CUV market, both on the premium and mainstream level, is arguably the hottest in the auto industry right now, and it seems like a virtual guarantee that we'll see an HR-V wearing the Acura CDX name in the not-so-distant future. Should that come to pass, look for the CDX to challenge the near-premium Buick Encore, as well as a potential compact CUV from Infiniti. Featured Gallery 2016 Honda HR-V View 25 Photos News Source: Auto GuideImage Credit: Honda Government/Legal Acura Honda Crossover Economy Cars Luxury trademark honda hr-v

2017 Acura NSX First Drive [w/video]

The 2017 Acura NSX is heavy. It outweighs the original 1990 car by more than 800 pounds and is over 300 heavier than a Chevrolet Corvette Z06. The NSX is insanely complicated, with an assist motor between the twin-turbo V6 and the nine-speed dual-clutch transmission, plus two torque-vectoring electric motors at the front axle. And the NSX is expensive. It will probably cost $170,000 when it goes on sale in Spring 2016. Commence trolling. If you hadn't guessed, the new NSX isn't much like the first generation built from 1990 to 2005. But the two cars share a common philosophy. Both are Acura's interpretation of what a modern, everyday supercar should be. Based on the new car, things have changed a lot in the last 25 years. For project leader Ted Klaus, the original NSX was one reason he started working at Honda. At the 1990 Detroit Auto Show, "I sat watching that car for a while. A really long while. Even just looking at that car I could see the deep, advanced, functional beauty." The most difficult thing with the new NSX, says Klaus, is to explain how a heavier and more complicated car can outperform other cars in a way that feels like traditional lightweighting. View 33 Photos This is not the way the NSX was supposed to be at first. The original plan was a transverse-mounted, naturally aspirated engine just like the first car. The NSX has a giant bag of neat tricks, but to understand them takes a lengthy explanation that starts with the Sport Hybrid SH-AWD powertrain. Behind the cockpit is a 75-degree, twin-turbocharged, 3.5-liter V6, made specifically for the NSX. On its own it puts out 500 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque. The rest of Honda's lineup uses a 60-degree layout, but the wider angle here lowers the center of gravity. Behind the engine is the rear assist motor, with 47 hp and 100 lb-ft. Hanging off the rear of that is the nine-speed dual-clutch, developed in-house. In between the front wheels is the Twin Motor Unit (TMU), a pair of 36-hp, 54-lb-ft electric motors that add or subtract forces to their respective sides. The Power Drive unit manages the electronics, and sits in the center spine of the car like a traditional prop shaft. A lithium-ion battery pack is behind the pair of seats, on the cold side of the firewall. Total system output is 573 hp and 476 lb-ft. This is not the way the NSX was supposed to be at first. The original plan was a transverse-mounted, naturally aspirated engine just like the first car.

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.