Threxx

RL


LS


I guess maybe pictures just don't do the difference justice, but to me the LS, if anything, looks more matte in the various pictures I've seen and from what I remember from looking at them in person.

mmarshall

You're correct....that is a somewhat more matte finish than the one I saw the other day. My LS460 had the Brown Walnut trim in American-market trim. The LS460 brochure shows three different wood finishes for the American market version.......Brown Walnut, Dark Gray Bird's-Eye Maple, and Dark Brown Ash Burl. The Dark Gray Maple is more or less like the darker wood you see in Jaguar R-Type vehicles, if you have ever seen those.

Also...the model you posted, with the right-hand drive, does not appear to be an American-market version.....it is apparantly either for the home Japanese, British, or Australian markets.

Gojirra99

The pic above of the LS460 interior shows the Dark Brown Ash Burl wood trim that comes with the Alabaster leather interior. It is available for the American market.

mmarshall

Yes... it is available here. Like I said, the brochure confirms that. That was not the trim in the car I had the other day, though, which was the Brown Walnut.

Anyhow, no use going on and on about just the wood trim.......that is a matter of personal taste, anyway. You, me, and Threxx probably each have three different opinions of what kind of wood we like and don't like. ( The new Subaru Legacy / Outback, for instance, even though it is real wood on the steering wheel and well-matched fake wood trim in the rest of the interior, has some of the best stuff, considering the 25-33K price tag, I have ever seen ).

But the LS460 and Acura RL are both superb cars no matter how they trim the interior. You really have to see them and drive them to appreciate just HOW well they both are done.

spwolf

Nice review! I am not sure if anyone mentioned (6 pages is a lot to read), but 460 will have awd version...

marshmallo

RL???? It's a slap in the face of the LS to put these cars in the
same line unless that line looks like this :

LS >>>>>>>>> RL

That's why Acura sells 700 a month.

The RL is a joke as a flagship.

mmarshall

Apples and Oranges....the two cars are in two different price classes. Almost $25,000 separated the RL that I reviewed from the LS460......$49,000-$73,000. The RL, true, compares more closely with the Lexus GS AWD series than directly with the LS460. But I disagree with your conclusion that the RL is a joke. Have you driven one? It is a superb vehicle....and even outdoes Lexus in a few areas, such as door and and interior hardware solidness and in the sophistication of its SH-AWD system.

I give both of these cars their due....which they have both richly earned. Doing so to one is not a " slap in the face " to the other.

The main reason why the RL does not sell more is the V6 engine and the negative press that it gets for not having a V8. The V6 that it DOES have, though, is pretty potent (290 HP and 267 ft-lbs), and trying to stuff a larger V8 into the front end, which would be pretty difficult to start with, probably would not turn it into a dragster anyway....the V8 would still have the extra weight and drag of the AWD.
In fact, that is one of the reasons why the LS460 beats the RL hands-down to 60 MPH in track tests...it only has to deal with RWD and not the burden of AWD. However, IMO, the acceleration and mileage penalty of AWD is worth its added sure-footnedness on slippery roads......I still think Lexus should offer it as an LS460 option.

marshmallo

If the RL were an appealing car to me believe me, I would say
so and I would've bought it over my GS. I never drove one
because I was not impressed enough with its styling or its fit
and finish. It felt completely near-lux to me and that cheap
looking Bose system in the middle of the dash was a complete
buzzkill.

The sales for the last month speak for themselves.

LS 3613
RL 731

To put it in perspective the LS outsold the RL by a 5 to 1
margin last month with a huge price disadvantage...

mmarshall

Sales figures alone, though, don't tell the whole story. Like I said before, the RL's lack of a V8, even though it doesn't really NEED one, has definitely kept it from selling more.

And look at the huge sales figures of the Ford Taurus. For years it battled with the Camry and Accord for first place among passenger cars. But you know as well as I do that the Taurus could not compete, quality-wise, with either the Accord or Camry.....it was clearly a cheaply-made car inside and out.

Och

iTrader: (3)

Guys, I was very sceptical about the RL at first, in fact I went to Acura's showroom to test drive the TSX and TL, and barely even glanced at the RL. But when I read mmarshalls review of the RL, I made it my business to come to Acuras showroom again and test drive the car.

Wow! After the test drive, I can honestly say that RL is much superior to the GS and mostly on par with last gen LS, better in some features, not as good in others. It's just amazing how that car is built, how the doors close, how beautiful the interior is. I love the wood on the dash, unlike Lexus wood, that quite frankly feels like plastic, the wood in RL is solid, and I love how the vents are cut into it, with such level of precision. And even though it does not have certain luxury features than the new LS460, it's interior is better built. All new Lexii, LS460 included, are rather flimzy inside. When I went to Taste of Lexus event in October, one of the LS models that was on the floor already had some of the interior pieces falling off, and the front doors already felt loose and didn't have that premium closing sound. The GS450h that I test drove had the entire dash squeaking and rattling like it was about to fall apart. My GS430 doors sound like rattle cans compared to RL, and the door armrests are squeaking when you rest your arm on them. The RL however... just look at these doors.





The only Lexus that car remotely approach that is current SC430. It is much better built than any of new Lexus models.

encore888

^^^
I wanted to mention that the LS 460s at Taste of Lexus are battered up and abused, you'd have to compare to an RL having gone through the same abuse and mistreatment.

I have to disagree with the assessment of the RL vs. LS. IMO the LS is far better, with the interior quality designed and put together in a more intuitive fashion than the RL. And the LS has a touchscreen...I also like the wood appearance and design on the LS--marble-like--above the wood in the RL...and looking at the door design, the LS like the rest of the vehicle interior is more elegant.



I would definitely get the LS or GS far before getting an RL. Mind you, I respect the RL's high level of technology and overall appearance, but I don't think it has Lexus-like levels of refinement.

And the LS 460 is being built to SC levels of quality, fit and finish--according to Lexus themselves.

mmarshall

Thanks, Och. Those are some real nice pictures you posted.
Having reviewed both cars, I'd say you've described the RL very well...it is a superb machine, and hard to beat that SH-AWD. The LS460, to be fair, though, does trump it in some areas, as would be expected of a $73,000 car......the Mark Levinson stereo, the V8's power, the tomb-quiet sound insulation, and the self-parking feature.

And thanks for your picture, enigma. The LS460, I agree, is more plush inside than the RL, but the interior hardware and doors do not feel quite as solid as the RL's.


And while the LS460, at $70,000-plus with options, does outdo the RL in some areas, ( as I stated, the LS460 is the best RWD car I have ever reviewed ), when you take the RL's price tag and value per dollar, I don't think there is a better car on the market for $45,000-$50,000 than the RL, though the Lexus GS350AWD comes close.

marshmallo

I can accept that the RL competes with the GS and may very
well be much better than the GS, but the LS is FAR superior to
either the RL or the GS.

I've sat in all these cars and the LS is just in another league.

My honest opinion is Lexus missed the mark a bit with GS and IS,
but hit homeruns with the LS and ES...

mmarshall

It IS far superior to the RL in some things...not in others. But it is obvious that we are not all going to agree on the RL-LS-GS comparison, so let's just agree, like gentlemen, to diagree on some of the comparisons and move on.

silversprucesc3

BTW....

This thread got "off topic" because I requested impressions of the RL from Marshall.

Sorry for getting this thread off topic. Marshall and Threxx were answering my posts in regards to the RL. This was not intended to "debate" the 2 cars or even compare them, but better help me evaluate the RL since it fit my price range.

They are different animals in different markets.... We ALL agree that the LS460 is the "shiznit"...