Acura RDX — A concept that will soon go into production

By Christopher A. Sawyer
The Virtual Driver

(January 29, 2018) Though displayed as a concept at the Detroit auto show, the Acura RDX Concept is a near production vehicle. How near? At the annual Honda Christmas party weeks prior to the auto show, the RDX chief engineer said: “The [production version’s] mirrors are bigger, the standard wheels are slightly different, and there are some other very minor differences. That’s about it.”


Hallelujah! There’s nothing as frustrating as seeing a sexy concept on the stand and coming back a year or two later to see that the production version has been dumbed down significantly. That shouldn’t happen with the RDX.

Nor should it be the safe crossover the second generation had become with its V6 replacing the turbocharged four of the original, and a softer more luxurious suspension tune. The third-generation RDX changes all that with the latest version of Honda’s Super Handling All-Wheel Drive, a return to a turbocharged four (a more powerful version of the 252 hp, 270 lb.-ft. 2.0-liter from the Accord mated to a 10-speed automatic), and more.

Acura says this is a unique platform, but insiders also admit that, if there’s a new CR-V, it soon will be followed by a new RDX. And so it is with the 2019 RDX.

The big change is that the wheelbase is longer than before, and — though we will have to wait for the official dimensions when the production model is introduced (probably at the New York show) — the RDX looks to have a longer wheelbase than its CR-V cousin.

It also has a nicer interior, and one designed around maintaining driver focus. Which means that there is no touchscreen that causes you to divert your gaze and shift position as you try to input information. Instead, Acura has fitted a controller that mirrors the screen real estate.

Place your finger on the flat touch surface located on the center stack, and the same area on the screen is activated. It is simpler than it sounds, and is one of the more usable interfaces thus far.

In addition, there are switches and buttons for discrete functions, all within easy reach, and they provide the ease of control and tactile interface that a touchscreen can’t.

The Virtual Driver