gooniac1

All wheel drive, almost 2 tons and not much torque. And the quarter mile is not the test of how well the car performs. In my opinion the way a car drives in everyday life. Some cars that may be fast on a track are not very usable on the street. From what I have seen the car do it is plenty quick. It scoots right along on the freeway and I have seen one pass a car really quickly on the highway. Even the older RL was a good car but the numbers really turned people off without giving it a chance in real world driving.

I sold Acura's for a few years and the people I sold RL's to didn't think they would be fast enough by looking at the numbers in magazines. But when I took them for a ride they were pleasantly surprised and usually bought it after the drive.I have yet to drive the new car but know it is very quick and a good solid performer like all the others have been. Don't get bamboosled by numbers in a magazine.

 

djlouie

Its because of the gear ratios.

Dutchman

Sorry to show my ignorance, but is the new RL engine a completely new engine built from the ground up?

It probably will go through a few upgrades in the future - some more HP, maybe a contemporary equivalent of the Type II with a higher revving engine, and a six speed, but not necessarily more TQ? The extra pep will then come from the engines willingness to pull to higher rpms, correllating with higher HP.

I don't believe Honda engines, traditionally are built to deliver low-down torque. Race-track inspired, the fun usually starts at higher revs. Look at the redline on the S2000 (9000)

As for the RL, I like it. I want a fast car, and as soon as I get my hands on an RL, I'm giving more lung capacity. Maybe by that time, a nice performance ECU chip will be available?

If I'm being ignorant please forgive me! I'm half daydreaming.

Pascal

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1995 Champaign/Gold 6-speed Legend LS Coupe

Totally stock right now.

Just bought the car, so mods are imminent!

BallinOnABudget

hmm....the '05 Honda s2000's only got 161 lb-feet of torque...and the HP peaks at 7800 rpm versus 8300 rpm in the '04 model...kinda of topic but they'll put this in the mags and people will get turned off cuz "it's only got 161 lb-feet of TQ". I can tell you, don't believe the mags...the S2000 for example, is a beautifully engineered car. And like gooniac said, the only way to get a feel for real world performance is to test drive it yourself. The automotive journalists get spoiled with all the high-performance cars they drive. Not everyone needs a 425hp 6.1L sedan, i.e. the Chrysler 300C SRT-8 (although with a $10,000 less difference than the RL, the Hemi ain't lookin so bad...). You should test-drive the RL. Then come back and tell me how much you liked it so I can prove to my girl why she should get one hehehe

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-1994 Legend L Sedan. Still hurt, but returning in Auto Luxury form


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ChrisK

The engine in the 05 RL is not a new engine at all. In fact, it is already an 8 year old design. The J series engines came out in the 1998 Accord and TL, and is also used in the Odyssey, MDX, CL, Pilot, and Ridgeline in vairous displacements. In fact, I personally believe it could be nearing its end of its potential. You can probably add DOHC and iVTEC to get a decent boost out of it, but that should be about its max. That also could be why some people think the V8 being tested in the Ridgeline could be put in the RL sooner than people think.

Also, not including muscle car V8's, but since when is 260 lbs ft of torque low?

kostas86

The RL is perfect for every day driving, has a nice interior and plenty of features to accomodate it's price tag.
Plus many people buying RLs aren't looking to keep up with a NSX or any other sports car, they are buying it for their luxury tastes.

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B+O

Believe it or not, the SOHC J-series engine is better performing than the C32B (the NSX engine" hell, it's more efficient all around than an NSX engine. there's nothing from the factory they cant do with SOHC that they can do with DOHC...when it comes to tuning is where DOHC is better, but the fact remains...who puts cam gears on an E46 M3? you cant and you dont want to with its double Vanos system. the Variable Valve systems dont require cam gears for tuning...it just requires computer intervention.

Let alone the cylinder heads are super narrow on the J series engine and you have to slide the camshafts out like you did with one of those old Pushrod engines. honestly, i dont know if there'd be enough practical room for i-VTEC and DOHC...not in the front of the global chassis. unless they did the cam gears like Lotus did their's on that 3.5L V8 in the Esprit...TINY cam gears.


EDIT:
For Pic of Lotus V8 engine Cam gears:


this was ingenious, the converted the cranks two rotations into one by a pulley then double belted that in 1:1 to all the cam gears from that secondary pulley....that's inventive.


I love the Esprit!!!

the british corvette

Kenso

The main advantage of the DOHC heads on the C32B is the use of VTEC on both the intake and exhaust cams. On the SOHC J-series, there doesn't seem to be sufficient room for the extra rocker arms and lobes to allow VTEC on the exhaust side. However, it's pretty impressive that the J32 in the new TL makes only 20 hp less than the C32B even though it only has VTEC on the intake side.

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B+O

think about this one to make it even more impressive.

the TL's 260 hp is extremely choked. if you've seen the heads on the older J32A2 (2002-04) you can see the manifolds on that make a 180 then another 180. before they acutally open out into the exhaust. which is then filled with a bunch of cripmed turns. if you just add "headers" and intake the engine will produce over 280-290 hp. with a full exhuast it's running over 300hp. the NSX with exhaust and intake and headers will make about the same power as the J32 but with shorter exhaust runs and less restriction.

it's just the build of the C...the C is not a very balanced engine. the 60 degree of the J is much better suited and has less harmonic vibratiosn that rob horsepower.

IMHO J32A2>C32B

kotetu

An old thread, but here's some interesting data. This is all from the Acura website, listed speeds are at 7200 rpm using stock 2005 RL tire sizes.

Gearing looks great.
Kenso, was I right to multiply the FD with F2? I wasn't sure if they were listing the FD as including the secondary or not. If I was wrong the gearing is:
Stock Type 2 5 speed, on RL sized wheels (245 50 17), for comparison.

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BrakeExpert

I have driven a new RL, and in the real world, it is pretty quick. If you're a "driver" its SO much faster than the previous RL. Since this is now a sporty car not a luxury car, its quicker, and that AWD system it has feels great getting on and off highways at high speed. I drove this and the new 530i, and this RL drives around quicker, brakes better, and accellerates in the real world quicker. Its a quick car for a "luxury sedan", especially compared to those cars in its weight class (the RL is over 4000lbs, feels pretty nimble for its weight, trust me.)

B+O

That it does.

Anyone want to confirm the ability to use the TL supercharger kit for the RL?

I've heard some speculation that the TL supercharger kit will fit/work with the RL...

If this is true, this would be the kick in the pants that some think the RL needs. It would indeed put it in the power realm of most of it's expensive counterparts.

kotetu

A guy on v6performance.net (02AV6) put together this monster:
'03 CL-S block
'02-04 Odyssey crank/rods/bearings
'05 RL pistons (11.0 CR)
'03 CL-S heads
'03 CL-S ported/polished lower manifold (injector base)
'04 S2000 fuel injectors (370cc)



He then supercharged it, intercooled it, and got it up to 9.5 PSI. Tuned to 331whp/273wtq and ran a 12.89@108.7mph.

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dgandul

thats a lot of work for 9.5 PSI and a 12.89..... what car is it in tho???

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murderotica

Frankenschtein motor... so beast.

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