Handy Auto Guide

Erik B. Johnson writing over at the Automobile Magazine reviews the features of the 2007 Acura MDX sports utility vehicle. 'The first-generation MDX was carefully tailored for a specific customer that Acura called "Stylish Mom," a familiar archetype you might know better as "Soccer Mom." The company's goal for MDX version 2.0 is to keep her in the fold while also convincing her husband-a guy dubbed "Executive Dad"-that an MDX is a good idea. For Mom, Acura would retain or improve upon the first MDX's utility, seven-passenger capacity, and all-weather capability. But to secure Dad's vote, Acura would need something else: performance.'

The 2007 Acura RDX small luxury SUV has been reviewed over at CNET. 'Acura chose to make the RDX a tech powerhouse, including a similar Technology package to the one available on the Acura RL, a previous winner of our Tech Car of the Year award. The Technology package includes Bluetooth cell phone integration, voice recognition, and navigation with live traffic information. But the RDX takes it a step further by adding an excellent stereo system. While we like all of this technology, Acura didn't do a good job of making the interface very usable, mounting buttons wherever they fit around the dashboard and steering wheel.

CNET have published their review of the 2007 Acura MDX luxury-crossover SUV. 'The 2007 Acura MDX, a significant model upgrade over the previous year, reinforces the tech roadmap the company set forth in its RL and RDX cars. The MDX is an SUV, complete with three rows of seating, yet it takes on Acura technologies such as Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD) and live traffic reporting used in the RL and the RDX. While there are some slight interface improvements for accessing the tech, the car drops behind the competition in some significant ways.

The 2007 Acura MDX receives an excellent rating from the folks over at Business Week following their review of the SUV. 'The base-model 2007 MDX starts out at $40,665, which is far from outrageous when you consider what you're getting for your money. Standard gear includes a powerful 300-horsepower V6 engine; fancy, electronically controlled all-wheel drive; a five-speed automatic transmission with a sequential-shift manual mode; Xenon headlights; power and heated front seats; a moonroof; 18-inch wheels; cruise control; and an eight-speaker, six-CD MP3-compatible audio system with an auxiliary jack for your iPod. Standard safety features include braking assist, stability control, side airbags, and full-length side curtain airbags.

CNET have published their review of the 2007 Acura TL Type-S entry-level luxury marque. 'For our tech test of the Acura TL Type-S, we decided to focus on the car's real-time traffic XM NavTraffic information service. Offered for the first time in the TL for the 2007 model year, XM NavTraffic uses the same satellite infrastructure as XM Satellite Radio to deliver what Acura calls "up-to-the-minute" traffic information. The system's most prominent feature is its color-coded highway information, which informs drivers of the current speed on major routes with different colors indicating different traffic speeds: green for speeds more than 40mph, orange for speeds between 20mph and 40mph, and red for speeds of less than 20mph.

CNET have published a review of the 2007 Acura RL sedan. 'The 2007 Acura RL occupies an odd place among its competitors. As the top of Acura's model line-up, it should be the best the brand has to offer. But the cabin isn't particularly luxurious, the body style unremarkable, and the performance mediocre. However, it comes loaded with more technology than most, and feels like a solid, practical car.Although it has a few nice touches on the interior and exterior styling, the RL doesn't look like an expensive car. Its profile is especially bland, similar to a Honda Accord. The way the front-end dips down gives it a little swagger, reminiscent of the Mercedes-Benz SL550. The similarity carries over to the tightly framed, trapezoidal grille. The cabin feels well-built, with decent leather and some good-looking wood trim, but it lacks the luxury feel found in the less-expensive Lexus IS 350.'

The Autoblog have published a "test driven" review of the 2007 Acura TSX sports sedan. 'Once the road went wobbly, the TSX's sports sedan credibility was officially put to the test. Grade: B+. There's no slop on initial turn-in and smooth inputs into the wheel accompanied by progressive pressure on the accelerator cause the TSX to track confidently through corners. Out-and-out understeer when throwing the long pedal to the floor is easily dispatched by the slight intrusion of the traction control system, and when disengaged, a light left foot on the brake brings grip back from the brink. High-speed sweepers are dispatched with poise, bordering on boredom. It certainly doesn't pretend to be a sports car, but it could be confused as a GT if you forget about the additional doors behind you.'

A review of the 2008 Acura TSX sedan has been posted over at CNET. 'According to Acura's press materials, the navigation system understands 653 voice commands, no small undertaking to learn. But the vast majority of these are "add-on" commands that extend a much smaller set of main action words. Once this latter list is in the driver's arsenal, controlling the main interior functions of the TSX is pretty intuitive and responds to a few natural-language questions ("How far to the destination?") as well as its more restrictive set of specific commands ("driver temperature 72 degrees"). After a couple days of really making the effort to learn the system, we began to enjoy the feeling of ordering the car around rather than pressing buttons. Even the commands that take substantially longer to say than it would to reach out to the touch screen begin to make sense to use when in heavy traffic, at highway speeds, or other situations where the driver's eyes should remain on the road.'

Inside Line have published their “First drive” review of the 2009 Acura TSX. ‘Based on the slightly smaller European-spec Honda Accord, the 2009 Acura TSX still presents as a 7/8ths scale 2008 American Accord. This time around, the TSX's new-look body is a mix of slab-sided doors, the customary (and ubiquitous) pronounced wheel arches and a high rear deck. It won't be mistaken for either our Amer-Accord or the sleeker 2008 Acura TSX. While the new styling is different, it's not particularly lust-worthy, especially in this market segment.

PaddockTalk have published a “test driven” review of the 2008 Acura TSX sedan. ‘The TSX is the entry-level car in Acura’s stable in the U.S (in Canada the CSX is the entry-level Acura). Based on the smaller European Honda Accord, the TSX promises to be sporty, as well as good value for money in the sub-luxury department. Considering the TSX is up against the likes of the BMW 3-series and the Audi A4, it’s competing in a very cut-throat part of the food chain. As is customary of Acura, the TSX is thousands of dollars cheaper than the car/vehicle it’s up against in the marketplace. Acura have a knack of pricing themselves just between two levels of near-luxury or luxury vehicles and the TSX is no different. Sometimes the Acura is a bargain, and sometimes it’s over-reaching. Which one is the TSX?’

BusinessWeek have published a review of the new 2009 Acura TSX luxury sedan. 'Like most redesigned models these days, the new TSX is bigger and roomier than the old one; three inches wider, 2.2 inches longer, and 160 lb. heavier. Given the TSX's increased size, Acura could have plunked a V6 engine into the '09, dramatically increasing horsepower. Instead the company did something radical. It cut the power rating of the 2.4-liter, four-cylinder engine by four horses. As a result, the TSX's engine-power rating remains among the lowest in the premium compact sedan segment.