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Sedans Acura RL Acura RL
7333 messages, Last post on Nov 03, 2009 at 9:42 AM
You are in the Acura RL Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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Replying to: jjacura (Aug 12, 2005 5:17 am) 1) I disagree with your analogy about owning an RL and going to an LS 430 forum. An RL and LS are really not comparable. Different features and buyers. Same reason I wouldn't compare my LS to an S class or 7 Series (different prestige levels and buyer needs). Like it or not, the RL is much more comparable to the Avalon Ltd. than to an LS430. The cost difference between an Avalon Ltd. and RL is only about $10k - this is less than many option packages in the V-8 luxury class. 2) You can make this about money (ie, settling for a TL or Avalon) but that really isnt the point. If Honda were to make an Accord that is faster, roomier and similarly equipped to the RL, the RL wouldn't be a better car just because it cost twice as much. I don't understand your Bluetooth comment. You can buy an $18k car with BT- hopefully this single feature doesn't define your car or your buying experience. Even Car & Driver admits that the $49k RL msrp is higher than they would expect for similarly equipped v-6 cars. 3) The subject matter in the forum relates to Dealer Service - which is exactly the context of my last post. I had every intention of buying an RL a month ago, it is a FINE car, BUT, if based on multiple trips to the Acura dealer I am underwhelmed by their experience, courtousy, and technical knowledge -- I'm not going to buy a car from them just to find out for sure that the dealer is not so good!!
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Replying to: jhuton (Aug 12, 2005 8:08 am) |
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Replying to: delmar1 (Aug 12, 2005 8:01 am) I didnt care for the features of the Avalon Touring or LX, but the Avalon Limited model is remarkably similar to my LS (absent fewer pieces of wood trim and maybe a couple extreme Lexus features like the power back seat messagers and fridge in my LS). I conclued owning another loaded LS at $65k wasn't prudent for a few extra bells or as a second car. And, ES really reminds me of Camary (not to imply in any way that Camary is a bad car). See earlier comments as to Acura dealership service. No need to repeat poor experiences. (sales is acutally part of customer service last I checked) As far as the comment about Toyota dealership care being as fine as Lexus, I agree that you get what you pay for but I am willing to give up the free Starbucks at the Acura and Lexus dealerships for my 2nd car. The $9k that I saved from not buying the RL will buy me 5,625 cups of Starbucks (tall, black coffee at $1.60 per cup) OR 450 hand car washes (  $20 a pop) - but I guess that's not a fair comparison since the Acura dealer near me doesn' hand wash anymore anyway. (Lexus does!)
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Replying to: jhuton (Aug 12, 2005 8:08 am) Uniformity and absolutism are rare commodities in our environment. I have owned nothing but Honda products since 1966, when I bought my first Honda motorcycle. That was followed by three succeeding bikes, three Accords, one Legend, and three RLs. Contrary to your presumption, (anticipating poor service based upon some level of inquiry that didn't ring of intense scrutiny), I have had nothing but the best experience with the three Honda/Acura dealerships involved in my past purchases. What would have led me back continually for thirty nine Honda/Acura years if my experience hadn't been in such sharp contrast to what I had received from other manufacturers over the years? To be honest, I've never found a car salesman, regardless of what badge he represented, who knew a damned thing about cars. I walked into my Acura dealership prepared to discuss nothing but price and delivery; I had already learned what was necessary. However, the service managers and mechanics have been nothing but outstanding. Now, having said all that, can one stumble into an Acura dealership and be treated poorly by witless, uninformed service managers and technicians? You bet yer boots! But back to my opening line: there are no absolutes, and it's obvious that Darwin didn't assure  us of the Survival of the Fittest, but rather, sprinkled in a strata of aimless, incompetent, inconsiderate cretons just to keep us on our toes. "BUT, if based on multiple trips to the Acura dealer I am underwhelmed by their experience, courtousy, and technical knowledge -" I don't mean to sound contentious, but what knowledge, precisely, did multiple trips yield? Were the salesmen rude or uninformative? Did the Service Managers respond poorly to well directed questions by you? In fact, what credentials do you bring to your questions that produce such negative impressions. I'm just fearful that hyperbole sometimes plays a hand, and is the Viagra of cynicism. I regret that you can't envision sharing the fine expeience I've had being a satisfied Acuraphile.
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Replying to: satire (Aug 10, 2005 2:06 pm) I continue to encourage everyone to seek other opinions as well. ... Sorry my dears, I don't have time for such hypocrisy and self-righteousness. I'm not the one who claimed that CR's automotive engineers also worked in the dishwashing detergent lab. I could care less what anyone's opinion of CR is, but I do care about facts. And anyone who thinks CR evaluates cars by the same folks who evaluates soap IS deluded. Clearly you have an agenda against CR and that is fine, as long as you are honest about it. FWIW: I never claimed that CR was any "god", nor have I recommended folks rush out to buy their recommended cars. I do claim that CR is a credible source of information and whose automotive reviews are just as "worthy" as other sources of information (e.g. Edmunds). |
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Replying to: washdcguy (Aug 11, 2005 1:06 am) Why is CR useful for "household products" when evaluated by "household product" experts, but CR automobile reviews are "laughable" when evaluated by automotive engineers?  Why are household product (e.g. washing machines) frequency of repair records useful, but car frequency of repair records not useful? Are JD Powers reliablity studies useful? Are their checkoff lists more acurate than CR's? How is Car and Driver (or Automobile) Magazine's evaluations any more objective that CR's?? C&D gets free use of "conditioned" vehicles to evaluate, whereas CR goes to the dealership and buys one off the lot. I am not here to defend CR. I am here to research cars (I may buy one soon). I really would like an answer to my question! WHY should I trust Car & Driver (or Automobile, Road & Track, Edmunds, etc) any more than CR? |
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Replying to: acuraphile (Aug 12, 2005 8:53 am) First impressions go a long way, however, and I have been buying luxury cars for over 20 years and know when a salesperson doesn't know what they are talking about. If I really liked the RL after I test drove twice- you are right I probably would have gone to another dealership and hopefully had a better experience. The salespeople werent rude, they just werent very smart about the car's controls and operations (particularly during my 2nd test drive). On my first visit a different salesperson spent the entire time telling me how Acura is so much better than Lexus - which really wasnt helpful or very professional. Maybe my expectation was too high. Not knowing how to demonstate the Nav system is a pretty fundamental flaw in this price range. Lastly the service manager gave all kinds of excuses/caveats when I asked about loaner cars that didn't impress me. At lexus if I pull up and if they dont have a loaner, they take a car off the lot to drive with out question (even when i dont have an appointment such as oil change). By the way, my response is only to the others in the forum that have experienced dealer problems too. I'm not here to Acura bash. |
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Replying to: jhuton (Aug 12, 2005 8:53 am) My Acura dealer hand washes the car at service time and the Starbucks flows but the service is exceptional before and after the sale. The free loaners are brand new TL's...fun cars to drive. 
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| My Audi A6 lease is up soon, and I've decided to go Japanese this time. I'm torn among three choices: 2005 Acura RL, 2003 Lexus LS430, and 2006 Lexus IS250 AWD. I don't want to spend more than $40k. I found a RL with 8K miles for $39.5k and a LS430 with 25K miles for $40k. Pricing for the '06 IS250 AWD is not out yet, but I was told a loaded one will be around $39k-40k. I'm leaning toward the RL, my wife likes the LS430, and I've never bought a used car before. Which would you choose? | |
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Replying to: dwongswong (Aug 12, 2005 7:42 pm) If you want gadgets, the RL. If you want full sized ride, the LS. If you want speed and a smaller car, the IS. It's pretty simple IMHO. Also, Bluetooth is such a great feature that could preclude the older LS. Side impact airbags, latch system, XM could also be an issue to you. |
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