It might be taller than the average sport sedan, but for those yearning to venture down life's unconquered highways keep in
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| According to Honda's luxury division, they're chasing the "creative types with active lifestyles." (Photo: Acura Canada) |
mind that this vehicle is going to be a sporty crossover, about as rugged as a four-star chalet in Banff, with the benefit of ample closet space. And I'm guessing Acura is angling for the kind of people who spend time at these chalets, and other retreats like Sun Valley, Aspen, Whistler and the Hamptons. According Honda's luxury division, they're chasing the "creative types with active lifestyles." Creative enough to handle orange, fake-crocodile skinned new-age chairs, I guess.
Finally, Acura has one more ACE up its sleeve. Advanced Compatibility Engineering has helped the RL achieve the highest possible rating in NHTSA frontal and side crash tests, and it will be featured on the RD-X as well. ACE helps Honda engineers design vehicles that better protect driver and passengers during a frontal collision. Not only that, it reduces the amount of damage to the other vehicle involved in the accident.
In the end Acura will probably sell as many RD-Xs, or should I say RDXs, the dash gets removed when its concepts turn into production vehicles, that it can build. The SUV market is in the process of downsizing and small luxury 'utes are in short supply, with a pricy BMW X3 and a poorly built Land Rover Freelander
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| The SUV market is in the process of downsizing and small luxury 'utes are in short supply. (Photo: Acura Canada) |
filling out the segment. I suppose you can add the Jeep Liberty to that mix. While not a "premium" product per say, it's a heck of a lot nicer than the Freelander when optioned out with leather. For that matter, add the Kia Sedona or Sportage to the luxury segment if Freelander makes a case for premium status, they're better built, offer higher performance and nicer interiors too. Audi (Q5), Mercedes-Benz (B-Class) and Volvo (X50) have announced new compact premium SUVs as well, which should come along sometime in the near future, ready to do battle with the production RDX; and to be fair the next generation Freelander will share general architecture with the new Volvo, so it should be a lot better.
