2007 Acura RDX

As the SUV market matures, it's getting sliced and diced into finer and finer sub-segments. What started long ago as a tiny niche of backwoods log-hoppers has evolved into a great swath of sport utes covering a myriad of uses. SUVs now range from tiny, tough off-roaders to huge, station wagons on steroids, minivans in mountain boots and quite literally everything in between. In the considerable gap between those extremes are dozens of variations and thousands of buyers, with more behind them. Acura's research projects 23 percent growth in the luxury SUV segment in the next five years and a 500 percent increase in entry premium crossovers—a number made slightly less jaw dropping when you stop to consider that, at the moment, that class is a class of two: the BMW X3 and the new Acura RDX.

Styling

The latest Acura is pitched at a very specific group of buyers: mostly male, 30-ish professionals; ambitious, urban dwellers, with an outdoor-active lifestyle. These buyers appreciate quality and technology. To that end, Acura crafted the RDX as a crossover with street smarts and "valet cachet." Yet, it's also intended to have enough flannel shirt and backpack in its DNA to hold your mountain bike or kayak, and get you to the trailhead or lake and back, with no traction anxieties.


Though it shows a facial resemblance with the MDX, that's really all that the sibling SUVs share. The RDX is noticeably smaller, lighter, lower and tilted in a more road-going direction. Underneath its hybrid skin, the RDX rolls on a substantially new platform. It's highlighted by a fully independent suspension (MacPherson struts up front, multi-link in back) and an all-wheel-drive system with a host of standard, electronic traction aids. The AWD requires no input from the driver, and channels upwards of 90 percent of available torque to the front wheels under normal conditions. However, it will shunt up to 70 percent to the rear as traction conditions dictate, and virtually all power can be transferred from left to right if needed to get a grip.

Performance

The Acura that RDX most closely resembles in terms of attitude is the TSX. This is mostly due to the drivetrain. RDX is powered by a 2.3-liter, turbocharged, intercooled four-cylinder engine. Rated at 240 hp @ 6,000 rpm and 260 lb.-ft. of torque at 4,500 rpm, it's coupled to a five-speed automatic, with a paddle-shifter, manumatic function. RDX makes the trip from 0-60 mph in about 7.5 seconds. The freewheeling four-cylinder engine makes some noise getting the job done, more so than a like-powered six. However, Acura expects that its new luxury clientele, raised on high revving, performance fours, will harbor no audio antipathy toward the turbo's soundtrack. And too, using the four allowed Acura to extract a wee bit more mileage out of the two-ton RDX. EPA estimates peg the new Acura's mileage at 19 mpg in city driving, 23 on the highway. Our test in mixed driving conditions resulted in an average of 20 mpg.


In handling, RDX takes a midway position between the two siblings. Though not low enough to truly hunker down to the road, TSX style, RDX is far more car-like and entertaining to drive than MDX; and maintains the ride comfort that buyers expect.