It is also notable that Honda makes only 3 or 4 Acura vehicles yet still maintains a dealer network. Lexus transitioned into a full-line Luxury brand and offers the full luxury dealer experience to its customers.
In an age of click and deliver, this seems an oxymoron.
Not to the 50 & up clientel that loves the schmoozing by a sales person in a suit & tie.
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So nobody is going to mention how new tech used to show up in Acura and trickle down to Honda, and now it’s the reverse? I think that Honda is maintaining Acura for the die hard fans who just can’t fathom leaving. It’s the same people buying the MDX over and over again even though MDX became a minivan in 2014. Frankly looking at their commercials and how they operate in the dealerships, they are to the Automotive world what Sprint used to be to cell phones.
Same thing with Infiniti, I was shopping for my first car 2 years ago and when I leased my q50 I thought I got a bargain since it had 300 hp and the lease was only 329$ a month, but then you receive the car and realize why no one buys them, they are marketed towards 3 different groups of people, the interior was built for a retired couple, the engine was built for a kid like me, and the legroom is for a family of 5. Hence why I switched to an m550 as soon as I could
I don’t think it ever trickled down. It trickled across the console. As in you get a Power driver’s seat in the Pilot, if you want a power passenger seat you have to get an MDX.
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Genuine question: what was the new tech?
For SUVs, Acura MDX is new for 2022. The Pilot is still the old model, and it will probably get updated in 2-3 years. The current CRV is still based on the old platform (5th gen?) and not the current RDX which has been out for like 3 years.
Lexus is the opposite on SUVs. The Highlander and Rav4 got updated, but the current RX and NX are based on the old platform. 2022 NX (coming out this fall) will be based on the new platform.
Honda got Apple CarPlay and Android auto before Acura did. Panoramic sunroofs came to Pilot before MDX. I’m sure there were others.
I know it’s new, but it’s also “meh” at the best. There was a whole thread here already on this subject so no need to re-hash. The tech in Acura leaves a lot to be desired. What kind of BS is “Initializing voice control” and then thinks forever just to say it can’t understand anything? The navigation is borderline retarted and hasn’t gotten any smarter in the past 7 years.
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To me - Acura and Infiniti for whatever reason, a lack of investment, bad brand direction, etc. are both a step behind their closest competitor Lexus, which I think clearly has put itself in a class with the German makes. Genesis proves that it is possible to break into this space well. I think Volvo’s resurgence proves that. Buick only exists for the Chinese market now, and even the styling and design language of the vehicles is totally catered to that. Which makes sense, the Chinese market is huge and growing and they love Buick. I think GM thinks they can sell a few in the US along the way, but I don’t see the US as Buick’s long-term focus at all.
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[TLX type S] Competes against the S4 and M340i and would get stomped by both.
An interesting, and sort of related, article from Motor Trend just popped up today:
https://www.motortrend.com/features/acura-nsx-lexus-ls400-history-review/
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in what sense? the MDX is a better car than the RX. The TLX is miles better than the IS, and the RDX is better than the previous gen nx (i haven’t seen the new one to be able to comment). IMO there are the germans + Volvo. and then there are the japanese and koreans.
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In terms of sales?
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you saying it in every thread doesn’t really make it so. In what sense is it better? Except for the AWD system, can’t really find anything that it does better.
Are they the same class? IS would be ILX no? I’m not sure where TLX would fall against Lexus, it was always somewhere between a GS and ES I guess, but not really inline with either. And now there is no GS anymore.
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To be fair, the RX and IS are very long in the tooth. It isn’t exactly a high bar to outpace them
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Doesn’t every brand think they are premium right now?
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There are only a finite number of people who want non-European reliable luxury and I think Lexus has that market cornered right now but Genesis is trying hard to get a piece of that pie.
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That’s a win by default as the RXL doesn’t have a proper third row. Why it doesn’t is baffling.
True, but MDX managed to be all new and outdated at the same time, which is a feat to itself.