The Acura RL is considered as the flagship Acura luxury sedan. But is has never been impressively large and roomy. It has only ever offered a V6 as the only possible engine option and it does not have an outstanding design or style. So what does the Acura RL have to offer? It has all-wheel drive, a classy interior, many standard features, superb quality, excellent stereo and an intelligent tech interface. Contrast that with the downsides of unimpressive style, no V8 engine option and subpar distances for braking. For those who prefer Acura the RL is definitely a capable luxury sedan, but overall it is not the top of its class.
Features for 2011 Acura RL
- 24 mpg Hwy2, 300-hp, 3.7-liter VTEC V-6 engine
- Super Handling All-Wheel Drive
- Available Collision Mitigation Braking System
- Starting at $47,200
Acura’s Super Handling All-Wheel Drive
Acura has created its innovative Super Handling All Wheel Drive to improve the handling on dry roads while still keeping the all-weather capabilities of regular AWD. The system constantly directs engine power to correspond with the vehicle’s current conditions such as weight distribution and available traction. The effect is effortless transitions and incredible agility.
As much as ninety percent of the power can be directed to the front wheels when driving along a straight route. This is important for improving the gas mileage.
The system continually decides the optimum level of power sharing between front and rear wheels, and also between the rear wheels from monitoring the steering angle, wheel speed, lateral G-force and yaw rate.
When the weight shifts to the rear of the RL during hard acceleration the Super Handling AWD system transfers up to 45 percent of the power to the rear wheels. This makes the most of traction coming from the back tires.
When turning and quickly accelerating, seventy percent of torque can be sent to the back, all of it can go to the outermost tire to enhance cornering. The power is directed to where the weight has been transferred which improves agility.
The result is that the Acura RL will rotate into the curve which considerably lessens understeer and gives improved stability on fast turns.
information sources: acura.com, edmunds.com
