nore03

I tend to babble sometimes so sorry this is soo long. I just love typing.

Well i'm sure this debate comes up alot but I need some advice. Its about that time to get a new car. I had my heart set on an Acura RL. Its a great car dispite all the criticizism it recieves and I really wanted it. I was going to go with a GS but naw i dont think i want it anymore plus my bestfriend is getting one and that wouldn't work to well. Well i had my mind made up and then i made the mistake/non-mistake of coming to this forum and reading all the post so i did some research so now i think the Acura is in second. My main concern is in snowy and wet conditions. How will the IS350 handle? The Acura has all wheel drive so that is what is still pulling me in that direction as well as the navi. I should mention that i am buying either one used. I really dont wanna buy anymore new cars, feels like a waste of money when u can get better deals on used ones. I did a search but couldnt really find any info on the IS350 as far as slippery conditions. I don't wanna go with the IS250 awd because it doesn't have enough power. The RL has about 300 hp and the 250 has like 204 so it has to be at least the 350. I am young and i need a car that i will enjoy driving but if the 350 is bad in snow i don't know if i will be able to handle it especially since i have never owned a RWD car before. I know that both cars are in different classes and the TL is a better match to compare but the TL is waaay to common on the roads. Its like they are all over the place. My mother has a Toyota Camry so i know that Toyota products are good but i just wanna make sure that i can have this car as a all year round car rather than just a car i can use for 3 seasons. Living in Connecticut we get iffy weather and you have to be prepared. Last year we has 1 day that was about 4 feet of snow and my car made through that pretty good. my current car is a 2002 Mitsubishi Galant which is a FWD car and it handles the snow great no matter how bad my tires were. I am also curious about the Nav system. I have an Avic in my car now and i cant live with out a nav system. How well is the voice recognition does it work with the bluetooth as well? Anyone coming from an Acura can you please tell me if the Lexus's Nav is up to date with Acura's. Thank you in advance for any post that is made.
p.s. if there is maybe old posts or information about what i am looking for can u please stare me in the right direction.

AM1

iTrader: (6)

the one thing about the rl which will be good for you is that they are not very popular cars, so if you can even find a good used one you should be able to get a huge discount on it.

IS_Mine

Well..

I have read in numerous magazines while I was on the hunt for my car that Acura had pretty much one of the best NAVs on the market. That was what I read.. I saw the NAV in action but I never used it personally (At my last job my boss had a TL).

Personally! The Lexus NAV is nice. Touch screen is wonderful. Takes commands well, has found some pretty outlandish roads, and has used them as shortcuts (and they were really shortcuts btw!). LOL Named streets for me that I had no idea what they were for about 12 years -- no street signs! I always just called it the "Squirly road" people knew what I was talking about. Heh, come to find out its called *Shortcut* road.

Anyway! Personally I think the NAV is great, never had any problems with it.. Always gets me home easily! The car itself is wonderful, then again I can't tell you how it is in the snow but in torrential rain and flooding its a champ! I came from FWD and this car has enough safety features on it to keep you in line!

I think once you see the IS series in person it'll sway you a bit more!

Bichon

Use the "search" feature of this forum, you'll find plenty of reading material about how the IS350 handles in wintery conditions. The bottom line is that you'll need to replace the summer performance tires with snows (or least all seasons). With the right rubber, even people in snowy climates in Canada are doing fine.

Have you driven the RL? It didn't feel like a 300 horsepower car. It seemed kind of bland - competent but not exciting, and just didn't push the right buttons.

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

two different animals, the RL will be a lot more comfortable on a commute as the IS is more geared towards a sporty feel. IS is definately faster, handles better, but wont have all the goodies the RL has. IS is much smaller interiorwise than the RL obviously. A set of good snow tires will let the IS handle well in snow, people depend on the drivetrain configuration too much, you can switch a mode in the IS to ECT SNOW which will limit the throttle and rpm so you dont put down too much power down in the snow to lose grip

Depends what you want

Technique

Acura does have a better nav, plus you can use all the features of the nav while the car is moving, but in the Lexus they disable a bunch of functions while the car is in motion... You can do some wire cutting to bypass this, but it's a big MINUS in the Lexus column...

As far as snow, there is no comparison... The IS350 is a rear wheel drive car = TERRIBLE in the snow

The RL is All-wheel drive = GOOD in the snow

bagwell

RL is a nice car and there's not a lot of them on the road which is a plus --- but as others have said....its more like a ES350...not as sporty as the IS...but you should be able to get a great deal...huge discounts.

socalJD

Yes, the RL's Nav with Real Time Traffic is better than the Lexus GenV Nav, but the IS's VGA screen is clearer & sharper. The RL also has XM radio standard, but if you're buying used, no guarantees that the subscription is still active. The IS's ML audio is better than the RL's Bose, and if you have ML/Nav you *can* watch Dvd movies in the car.

The RL is a midsized luxury sedan, the IS is a compact sports sedan, so you need to carefully consider this when deciding. Swapping the HP summer tires on the IS with quality all season tires may solve your winter driving concerns, but the interior space and tight backseat cannot be changed. In terms of service, I feel that Lexus dealers provide better service overall than Acura dealers, but then again, with both these cars, you really shouldn't be seeing the service dept very often.

Bichon

Unfortunately, in the Northeast you don't find many IS's with ML, as they have never been included in any of the standard dealer allocations for this region. And from what I could tell from the short test drive, the Bose in the RL sounds better than the base stereo in the IS.

IronPhoenX

Still give the 250 AWD a test drive. Mash down on the gas all the way down and it might be quicker than you think. I use to switch snow/summer tires back and forth my RSX and it was a chore. After several years, I got lazy and started to take off my winter tires midway into the summer.

15951

Applies and oranges. The RL is a much larger car. If you want a larger car with AWD, get the Acura. If you want a smaller/sportier car that is fast but sucks in the snow, get the Lexus. Take a look at the AWD IS250 if you want the Lexus but don't want RWD.