RDX excels in all weather
Don Adair
Marketing Department Columnist
Don's Take
Talk about good timing.
I had the ideal rig for last week’s Big Snow. Acura’s compact, entry-luxury RDS crossover is built like a bunker and incorporates every safety system possible.
More to the point, it gets its traction from an all-wheel-drive system called Super-Handling All-Wheel-Drive or SH-AWD.
Buyers can choose from an abundance of excellent AWD systems, but I haven’t tested any I’d rather drive in difficult circumstances. It’s also available on Acura’s midsize CUV, the MDX, and in that form has proven it to me in some of the most bodacious conditions imaginable.
And beyond all that, the RDX is plain and simple a pleasure to drive, a small CUV with the instincts of a sport sedan.
The Basics
The RDX is a “five-passenger” rig that comfortably accommodates four. Rear seat legroom is very good, although interior space is not this rig’s strong suit; it has the smallest cargo hold in its competitive set. Still, it’s big enough to carry a couple of bikes with the rear seats folded.
Like most of its kind, the RDX is not meant to shine off-road, nor does it boast big-time towing numbers.
Plain and simple, it was designed for young owners, most likely male, for whom AWD is a lifestyle choice. The RDX is happy as a puppy in deep snow, and on clear roads handles better than most “sporty” sedans.
Contrary to the industry’s affinity for platform sharing, the RDX rides on a purpose-built platform, which enables its purpose-built, all-independent suspension. Beefy font and rear stabilizer bars minimize body roll during cornering.
Some may find the suspension settings too taut; I found them ideal.
Smart Interior
The RDX is available in a single trim level, with one upgrade package.
The base trim (from $33,910) is fully equipped. Standard equipment includes leather seats, moonroof, full power accessories, heated seats, power driver’s seat with memory, 36-watt seven-speaker audio system with a six-disc CD/MP3 changer, satellite radio, input jack and steering wheel-mounted controls, automatic dual-zone climate control, Bluetooth connectivity, xenon headlights and 18-inch alloy wheels.
The RDX Tech adds the $3,500 Technology package, which includes navigation with real-time traffic updates (in large markets only), a rearview camera and a 10-speaker surround sound audio system.
If you’re looking for flash, you won’t find it here. Handsome and well built, the interior is designed for efficiency, not status. Yes, a fine grade of leather covers the sport seats (which are themselves supportive, comfortable and well-bolstered), but trim bits are fashioned of simulated alloy.
Quietly classy, the interior is also utilitarian. Unlike some luxury-oriented CUVs, it doesn’t invite one to remove one’s snowy boots before climbing aboard.
Another welcome touch: Acura has resisted the temptation to create a single, overly complex user interface for the controls. Climate control, navigation and audio controls are well segregated and operate intuitively.
You can get in this rig and drive, without needing a training session.
Spectacular Mechanicals
Honda, which is Acura’s parent corporation, is engineering-centric. Again and again, it has devised simple solutions to complex problems.
Two are important here.
For the RDX, Acura developed the industry’s first variable-flow turbocharger able to withstand the heat of the exhaust stream that powers it. Its variable-flow designs allow the turbo to spool up quickly for good low-end acceleration, while providing outstanding flow for the engine’s upper reaches.
The RDX Scoots.
Sadly, the benefits don’t extend to fuel efficiency; the 2.4-liter four requires premium fuel and earns EPA ratings of 17 city/22 highway, competitive in the class but nothing to celebrate.
SH-AWD is the other groundbreaking technology. Under normal conditions, it sends power to the front wheels. Like most AWD systems, it apportions power front-to-rear when it turns slippery out.
Unlike other systems, it can also distribute power back and forth between the rear wheels.
During cornering, SH-AWD “overdrives” the outside rear wheel, turning it faster to help the rig pivot around its axis. Only when the rear end threatens to slide, does the stability control system apply the brakes to counter the skid.
The typical stability control system acts pre-emptively.
Here’s how it works in real life: Early one morning, I drove up Ben Garnett Way in deep snow. Approaching the curves at the top of the hill, where I would normally slow down in slippery conditions, I progressively increased throttle pressure. As the RDX built speed, the rear end stayed planted, as if by magic, as the outside rear wheel turned faster and faster to compensate.
When I finally nudged the throttle past the point of no return, the stability control system took over, applying the brakes and preventing a skid.
Obviously, the standard warning applies: The vehicle does not exist that can’t be driven too fast for conditions. SH-AWD provides an extra margin of safety – but it can’t overrule the forces of nature.
Don’t buy an RDX if you seek the ultimate in utility, size or price; do buy it if you want a high-quality rig with outstanding ride and handling and an AWD system that scoffs at even the snowiest of Inland Northwest winters.
