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Acura has rediscovered its efficiency facet, beginning with the return of the NSX and persevering with with the reintroduction of the Integra and the model’s Sort S designation. The RDX, nonetheless, has largely watched from the sidelines, regardless of being Acura’s bestseller. Our take a look at car, which mixed all-wheel drive, the highest Advance bundle, and the sporty A-Spec trim, proved to be a succesful all-arounder, nevertheless it does not attain so far as the performance-oriented compact crossovers accessible from German automakers.
The current RDX is now in its fourth mannequin yr, having been redesigned for 2019. The A-Spec is the sportiest-looking iteration, with blacked-out exterior trim, 20-inch wheels in darkish grey, and enormous spherical twin exhaust retailers. Inside, it options two-tone crimson or white leather-based with black suede accents (or, for the terminally boring, all black decor). Mix it with Apex Blue Pearl paint, as in our take a look at automotive, for max visible influence within the grocery store parking zone.
RDX Journey and Dealing with
A-Spec styling could be had with the mid-grade Know-how bundle or—new this yr—with the Advance bundle. Whereas the high-level Advance trim brings many niceties together with a head-up show, a surround-view digicam, heated entrance and rear seats, plus a heated steering wheel, its chief dynamic benefit is adaptive dampers, that are reserved for this trim. Our take a look at rig was so outfitted, and the newly retuned dampers present a way more tolerable experience than the stiff-legged commonplace setup. And but, with the power to toggle into Sport mode, they keep the RDX’s cornering acumen. So, too, does the accessible all-wheel-drive system, which sends 70 p.c of the engine’s torque rearward and might additional shunt one hundred pc of that complete to both rear wheel. The chassis is responsive, and physique roll will not be a lot of a difficulty, even when the 0.83 g of grip is lower than we measured in the Audi Q5 45 and the Volvo XC60 B6.
The steering is quite mild and simple however corporations up when the automotive is switched into Sport mode. The difficulty with Sport mode, although, is that it successfully locks out the transmission’s prime gears, so that you typically end up ready for upshifts that by no means come. Sadly, there is no customized mode to combine and match the parameters to your liking.
Turbo-4 Gas Financial system and Efficiency
The unique RDX had a high-strung turbo 4 that was changed by a naturally aspirated V-6 within the second-generation mannequin. At the moment’s RDX once more sports activities a turbocharged four-cylinder, though it isn’t as peaky as that early engine. In comparison with equally configured rivals, its 272 horsepower is greater than some (Audi, Infiniti), lower than others (Alfa, Genesis). Identical with its 280 pound-feet of torque. Name it midpack for compact luxury SUVs.
Midpack might additionally describe the Acura’s 6.2-second dash to 60 mph, although it’s higher than the 6.6 seconds we measured when this mannequin first got here out. That quantity places the RDX forward of the Cadillac XT5 and the Volvo XC60 B6 however behind the Audi Q5 45 (5.5 seconds) and the Genesis GV70 2.5T (5.6)—to not point out brawnier six-cylinder machines like the BMW X3 M40i and the Mercedes-AMG GLC43. Stops from 70 mph took 180 toes, a bit greater than in opponents shod with comparable all-season footwear.
The RDX’s engine pairs with a 10-speed automated. Ten ahead speeds are loads, and underneath mild acceleration, the programming typically appears overly involved with giving every gear a flip, though the shifts are easy sufficient that the majority drivers in all probability will not discover. Nonetheless, the transmission’s downshifts may very well be snappier. The turbo 4’s engine sound is electronically enhanced, with opinions divided on how pleasing was the end result, which rang our inside sound meter with 73 decibels at wide-open throttle.
We noticed 26 mpg on our 75-mph freeway fuel-economy take a look at, precisely matching the EPA estimate for the RDX with all-wheel drive and the A-Spec bundle. (Skipping the A-Spec bundle raises the EPA freeway estimate to 27 mpg, and front-wheel drive bumps it as much as 28 mpg.) The RDX A-Spec’s EPA rankings of 23 mpg mixed (21 metropolis/26 freeway) are simply behind these of all-wheel-drive opponents such because the BMW X3’s 24 mixed (21 metropolis/28 freeway), Infiniti QX50’s 25 mixed (22/28), and Audi Q5 S line’s 25 mixed (23/28).
Inside House and Infotainment Know-how
Stretching 187.4 inches in size and sitting astride a 108.3-inch wheelbase, the RDX is usefully sized with out feeling bloated. Inside that tidy footprint, nonetheless, the RDX is genuinely roomy. The entrance and rear can simply accommodate six-footers, and the flat ground in again makes three-abreast seating viable, at the least for brief journeys. The RDX sits simply excessive sufficient to afford simple ingress and egress, with out huge door sills to step over. Baggage quantity is 30 cubic toes, expandable to 80 cubes through handy levers within the cargo space that drop the rear seatbacks.
The inside design is extra modern tech than conventional luxurious (solely one of many six trim ranges options wooden trim), and match and end is strong. Befitting a member of the group it runs with, the RDX comes commonplace with a panoramic sunroof, heated entrance seats, 12-way power-adjustable entrance seats, and adaptive cruise management. Though this RDX is in its fourth mannequin yr, Acura hasn’t let the in-cabin know-how get stale, as wi-fi Apple CarPlay and Android Auto at the moment are readily available together with wi-fi charging. The primary person interface for the ten.2-inch middle show, nonetheless, stays a touchpad. Not like the system that Lexus is starting to maneuver away from, it does not use a cursor; as a substitute, the geography of the touchpad corresponds to that of the display screen, and the pad floor is curved to supply a way of the place your finger is simply by really feel. Contact the decrease proper nook of the pad, and also you hit a button within the decrease proper portion of the display screen—normally. The pad additionally permits finger-drawing of letters and numbers, akin to for a navigation vacation spot, however spelling these out is a gradual, error-ridden course of. Higher to make use of the voice recognition for inputs. There is a second, smaller pad alongside the primary one that permits for swipe motions to manage the correct facet of the break up display screen. We’re joyful for the quantity knob, at the least, and the up/down audio tuning buttons, though a tuning knob could be higher nonetheless.
We additionally like how the surround-view digicam reveals two views without delay, however it might be extra helpful if there have been a button to summon it. Blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert at the moment are commonplace, and each are welcome additions given the RDX’s massive rear-quarter blind spots.
At a beginning value of $41,795, the RDX is available in a number of thousand {dollars} lower than its European opponents. The as-tested determine for our A-Spec Advance mannequin, $54,295, places it extra within the thick of issues with regard to the remainder of the sector. However that is near as a lot as you’ll be able to spend on an RDX (solely the hand-assembled PMC Version is dearer at $55,295). Store elsewhere and prime trim ranges will normally value you extra. So, whereas Acura is leaning into efficiency, worth stays the RDX’s energy, even in its sportiest tune.
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