Been there, worked for AT&T 20 years. AE for network and equitment. Sold services,we were cheaper than No one. Higher than Everyone. True that any salesman will sell you if you let them. It's their job $$$. That does not mean that you may not get A-1 service though.

Back to the Acura. I think anyone that drives that car will love it. I thought the same thing when I saw the RL, a big copy of the Honda Accord. The car is a drivers car all the way. I still think if they advertised it more it would sell better. At $45 - $49K looks aside nothing else comes close. I remember how I just was not feeling the style of the 1st Gen GS300 Lexus years ago. . But it grew on me. I still think the TL and RL are kinda a long way that Honda/Acura have come. They don't have some thing that other cars in the class have but, they do have some things that no other cars have. BTW I think Lexus copied the intergrated exhaust cut out on the new LS460 from the TL.

 

HAHAHAHAHA. you don't want to go there....

I have a feeling that this thread is not going to die anytime soon...

 

Everyone copies each other. Who cares. As long as it works well with the design of the car there is nothing wrong with it. Heck, in reality, didn't everyone copy Henry Ford when it all begain

 

but but but....lexus > all so therefore Acura stole the design and put it on their TL before lexus used it! oh noes!!


EDIT: oh wait..the LS460 "borrowed" some styling cues from the BMW 7-series too. heh.


*flame suit on*

 

Well I proved that theory wrong of the LS copying the TL here.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...6&page=2&pp=15

Two totally different designs and approaches.

You can pay me later

 

I believe he was talking about the A-Spec Package TL. While the shape and everything is different, both the A-Spec TL and LS have basically the same integrated bumper/exhause thing going on. No big deal. I kind of like the flater shape on the LS better than the triangle like shape on the TL. Anyway, you can clearly see that both have the chrome surround as part of the bumper and the exhaust tips within them.

 

I had one and its a POS. The first time i opened the sunroof the whole headliner fell because it was held by velcro and the wind tore it up. The subwoofer started rattling. The transmisson went at 3,000 miles. The shifter started rattling soon after. The leather seats started to rip and mind you i am only 170lbs. Then the glovebox came loose and started rattling. Both front speakers became distorted and needed new ones. The whole time there were flatspots and hydroplaning with the tires and they wouldnt change the tires until i slapped em with a lawsuit, oh and as soon i slapped them with a lawsuit, all of a sudden they decided to take my car with 15,000miles and replace it with a new one!!!! I said no thankyou and got my money back and bought a bentley! What a car!

 

You should post at acurazine.com and let them know your complaints. Since its the first time I see some one that has a long list like that. That car supposely has high reviews.

 

I think Acura desperately needs to do something to the RL if they want it to sell. Currently the Avalon and eventually the new Camry will both rape it in sales. You can get near equal luxury in the Avalon (not to mention Toyota quality) vs. the RL for 20k less. No wonder the Avalons are selling like hotcakes and the RL is left to bite its dust.

 

Is comparing the sales of the RL to a Camry or Avalon fair? That would be like saying "The Accord is spanking the GS300 in sales". Now, commenting that the GS300 sells twice as many RLs - that would be more appropriate me thinks.

Also, I do not think that the current Avalon should be your example of Toyota quality.

As for Acura, their current plan is to sell a version w/out Navi. Unless they plan on selling it for $39k, I do not see how that is going to help. It really looks like Acura just threw this RL out there bc they already had it made for other countries & they do not care how it does in the US.

 

$39K for an RL even without navi is too cheap. I mean, even the ES350 and IS350 can top out a good deal over $40K and the RL is a step up above in class. I'd say about $44K for non navi and $46K for navi would have been a good MSRP for the RL.

 

I think the RL's main problem is the TL.

They're both based on the same platform
TL has a bit more room inside
TL has better acceleration
TL arguably has more "edgy" styling
TL's interior is almost as nice as the RL's interior
TL's stereo is almost as nice as the RL's stereo

The RL's main advantage is the AWD and better handling, but the TL is FWD anyway, so it does decently well in snow.

So people go into an Acura showroom and think to themselves, why should I pay $12,000 more for the RL?

There's a reason why the TL is a best-seller in its segment, and the RL is a worst-seller in its segment.

 

I don't see why the new Avalon would not be considered Toyota quality? I own one and I can say nothing bad about it except the transmission lag that was present with all of these Toyota 5 speed auto trannies...and is the Avalon not in the same boat of luxury as the RL? What about performance? Both cars offer a 3.5L V6 that outputs close to 280/290 horse. The only difference is drivetrain, FWD vs. AWD. I don't see why these two cars cannot be compared? When we purchased our Avalon, we looked at the RL as well and could not justify the price of the RL over that of the Avalon.

I don't think its at all equivalent to saying the Accord spanks the GS, they are completely different cars. The Accord is not nearly as luxurious as any GS. I think the fact that Toyota was able to make a luxury car here that compares equally to the RL even in performance for a lot cheaper is grounds for comparison. The accord doesn't ride like nor have the luxury that the GS does, and you know it. Maybe the top of the line Accord has similar performance, but its nowhere near a GS. The differences between the Avalon and the RL however are not that vast, the largest difference lies in pricing.

Perhaps my comparison to the Camry was a stretch, but I certainly think its fair to compare the Avalon to the RL. I know Acura lost our bid for the RL to the Avalon, and I'm sure we weren't the only ones to choose the Avalon over the RL.

 

When I said $39k, I did not mean MSRP but the price that they would actually let it go for. Right now, RLs (w/ Navi) are being sold below invoice & I have read about some people getting it for like $42k. I figure if people are buying the version w/ Navi for that price now, they better sell the non-navi version next year for a lot less.

As for the Avalon, the reason I question its reliability is bc of this thread

 

I am going to close this because this is one beat, dead horse.