[ifonline]

I stopped by Acura this afternoon and took a look at a ZDX with the Advanced Package and the Umber interior. Damn. I really wish I hadn't done that. I kept telling myself as I walked away that I only wanted to see. I only wanted to see. I'm not buying. Just looking.

*sigh*

I think I know what my next car is going to be. The question is... when?

 

[mav]

Too pricey, I had to settle for the Cross tour, LOL. I'm happy with it.

 

[CCT]

They are nice aren't they Ian..... and on the '10, up here Acura is discounting them by $12k! on remaining stock.....

C.

 

[ifonline]

Too pricey, I had to settle for the Cross tour, LOL. I'm happy with it.

They are expensive, but the wife and I are going to have our credit cards paid in full at the end of the year. No more revolving credit. Next year, my goal is to have the Goldwing paid in full, and maybe even her Harley. At that point, trading in the CT for the ZDX will make the purchase of the ZDX more reasonable.

They are nice aren't they Ian..... and on the '10, up here Acura is discounting them by $12k! on remaining stock.....

C.

I got out of a Mercedes to get into the Crosstour and don't regret it. That being said, however, there is a significant difference in the little details that Acura has included on the ZDX that Honda didn't on the Crosstour. Very impressive.

Right now, I'm thinking that I will look to move on an 11 at the end of next year when the 12s are on the floor. We'll see.

 

[Army Dad]

I stopped by Acura this afternoon and took a look at a ZDX with the Advanced Package and the Umber interior. Damn. I really wish I hadn't done that. I kept telling myself as I walked away that I only wanted to see. I only wanted to see. I'm not buying. Just looking.

*sigh*

I think I know what my next car is going to be. The question is... when?

...and this is why we avoid car lots. Thanks Ian, now I have to go look. They are sweet though, aren't they?

 

[ifonline]

Yep. If you do go check it out, be prepared. I found it very interesting what they included that Honda didn't on the Crosstour. For example, the power hatch (both up and down) is a very welcome addition. The compartment door in the floor of the trunk will keep itself open (has gas/air lifts like the hatch on the Crosstour) so that you can put stuff in the compartment without fiddling with the cover. The seats are heated and cooled.

The seat senses your seating position and will fire (or not) the airbags accordingly in a crash to help avoid injury from the crash (obviously) or from deployed airbags. In other words, if you are sitting too close to the steering wheel, the steering wheel airbag won't deploy in a crash to avoid injury from the airbag itself. The same goes for the side curtain airbags. If you are leaning in your seat towards the driver's window, the side airbags won't deploy. I don't know what the tolerances are to determine if the airbag goes off or not, but that's pretty slick thinking.

The steering wheel is power adjustable. This is something I miss from the Mercedes. When you use your key to open the car, the seat and mirrors adjust to your memory position (like in the Crosstour), and so does the steering wheel. No fighting with the wife any more!

The cruise control is adaptive so that when the traffic in front of you is slower than you have set the cruise control, the car will slow itself down and maintain a set distance from the car in front of you. When that car moves out of the way or you change lanes, the cruise control will resume your set speed. Nice.

Oh, and the rearview camera... it has three views. Normal (like the Crosstour), wide, and top-down. Top-down would be great for backing into a spot where you want to get extra close, or when you are backing up to a trailer. Also very nice.

Put that and more (such as the all glass roof, twin moonroofs, AWD, blacked-out radio controls when the radio isn't on, instrument cluster display screen, keyless start, etc.) into the Crosstour, and restyle the interior significantly (and the umber interior is amazing... two tone black/brown) and you have the ZDX.

 

[kobayashi]

...Starting at $45,495*

 

[ifonline]

Yep. The one I am interested in is $49k.

 

[pgarci01]

Those cars are sick! Honda probably leaves things out of their Honda models on purpose to push Acura sales. In Japan, the Accord sedan is known as the Honda Inspire and fully loaded it can cost more than 50 thousand dollars with all of Acura's creature comforts that people here complain about the Accord not having. And the TSX is the Honda Accord over there. They add HIDs,push button start, luxurious materials, and all that good stuff because there's no such thing as Acura in Japan, they're all Hondas lol.

Also, the ZDX shares its platform with the MDX where the CT shares its platform with the Accord, I guess because of the SH-AWD system. So other than the similar shape, the cars could not be more different lol...

 

[CCT]

They are expensive, but the wife and I are going to have our credit cards paid in full at the end of the year. No more revolving credit. Next year, my goal is to have the Goldwing paid in full, and maybe even her Harley. At that point, trading in the CT for the ZDX will make the purchase of the ZDX more reasonable.



I got out of a Mercedes to get into the Crosstour and don't regret it. That being said, however, there is a significant difference in the little details that Acura has included on the ZDX that Honda didn't on the Crosstour. Very impressive.

Right now, I'm thinking that I will look to move on an 11 at the end of next year when the 12s are on the floor. We'll see.

I haven't looked yet but I'll bet the A. has 'paddles', power hatch, better stereo, more versatile 4wd, and more gears than 5. (if it doesn't, it will next year). Heck our new a/t Fiest SES has 6 and it's half the price of a CT!

I love Acura too -- had a few Si type rockets and loved every one......If I'd had the extra green I would have defintiely gone with the ZDX.

I love my Honda but she ain't no Acura. Whether they're worth it or not is a personal thing. I think so.

, but right now we're happy with the 'Bean'..

C.

 

[drumslinger]

Yep. If you do go check it out, be prepared. I found it very interesting what they included that Honda didn't on the Crosstour. For example, the power hatch (both up and down) is a very welcome addition. The compartment door in the floor of the trunk will keep itself open (has gas/air lifts like the hatch on the Crosstour) so that you can put stuff in the compartment without fiddling with the cover. The seats are heated and cooled.

The seat senses your seating position and will fire (or not) the airbags accordingly in a crash to help avoid injury from the crash (obviously) or from deployed airbags. In other words, if you are sitting too close to the steering wheel, the steering wheel airbag won't deploy in a crash to avoid injury from the airbag itself. The same goes for the side curtain airbags. If you are leaning in your seat towards the driver's window, the side airbags won't deploy. I don't know what the tolerances are to determine if the airbag goes off or not, but that's pretty slick thinking.

The steering wheel is power adjustable. This is something I miss from the Mercedes. When you use your key to open the car, the seat and mirrors adjust to your memory position (like in the Crosstour), and so does the steering wheel. No fighting with the wife any more!

The cruise control is adaptive so that when the traffic in front of you is slower than you have set the cruise control, the car will slow itself down and maintain a set distance from the car in front of you. When that car moves out of the way or you change lanes, the cruise control will resume your set speed. Nice.

Oh, and the rearview camera... it has three views. Normal (like the Crosstour), wide, and top-down. Top-down would be great for backing into a spot where you want to get extra close, or when you are backing up to a trailer. Also very nice.

Put that and more (such as the all glass roof, twin moonroofs, AWD, blacked-out radio controls when the radio isn't on, instrument cluster display screen, keyless start, etc.) into the Crosstour, and restyle the interior significantly (and the umber interior is amazing... two tone black/brown) and you have the ZDX.

Did you take it for a spin, Ian? How does it ride? Wind/road noise? I may add this to my list, as I am still shopping.

 

[ifonline]

I haven't looked yet but I'll bet the A. has 'paddles', power hatch, better stereo, more versatile 4wd, and more gears than 5. (if it doesn't, it will next year). Heck our new a/t Fiest SES has 6 and it's half the price of a CT!

Yep. Paddle shifters, power hatch, excellent stereo, some sort of adaptive AWD, although I'm not sure about the number of gears.

Did you take it for a spin, Ian? How does it ride? Wind/road noise? I may add this to my list, as I am still shopping.

No. No test drive. I didn't want to go that far as I was only looking.

 

[drumslinger]

I am going in Friday for a test drive. From reading about it on the website, it looks like a more fully developed and, dare I say, better (and pricier) Crosstour.

Should I buy the ZDX, wouldn't it be ironic if the moderator of the Crosstour site were responsible for steering a prospective buyer away from the car?

 

[Army Dad]

I am going in Friday for a test drive. From reading about it on the website, it looks like a more fully developed and, dare I say, better (and pricier) Crosstour.

Should I buy the ZDX, wouldn't it be ironic if the moderator of the Crosstour site were responsible for steering a prospective buyer away from the car?

Enjoy, get what pleases you. Let us know your findings and feelings toward the car after the ride.

 

[ifonline]

Should I buy the ZDX, wouldn't it be ironic if the moderator of the Crosstour site were responsible for steering a prospective buyer away from the car?

Eh... definitely get what you want. I love the Crosstour, and I'll be keeping it for a while, but seeing the ZDX showed me just how much more refined the Crosstour could be if there weren't two different segments (Honda v. Acura).

There is definitely nothing wrong with the Crosstour, generally speaking. There are, however, things I wish the Crosstour had that the ZDX has, such as the power hatch (at the very least a remote open), adaptive cruise control, and blind spot indicators.

The biggest thing to consider, as I see it, is whether the additions to the ZDX warrant the extra $10,000 +. That's a significant financial gap to overcome when considering the Crosstour versus the ZDX.

 

[drumslinger]

The biggest thing to consider, as I see it, is whether the additions to the ZDX warrant the extra $10,000 +. That's a significant financial gap to overcome when considering the Crosstour versus the ZDX.

I agree. Another thing I do when car shopping is ask my insurance agent the rate for the car(s) I am looking at. The ZDX is significantly higher (about $100/yr.) than than the others. That's the same dilemma I am facing about the Lexus RX450h. It rides like a dream, but the cost...oh, my.

I'll be driving the Crosstour and ZDX nearly back-to-back (Venza in between) this Friday, so I hope I'll have a better handle on an answer afterwards.

 

[ifonline]

I would be interested in your opinions on handling, although I suspect the ZDX with its wider tires and advanced AWD will handle better.

 

[K3RMiTdot]

i wish they offered some of the tech the zdx got, like the blind spot detection. i love the interior of the zdx, although its not very practical

 

[drumslinger]

Yep. If you do go check it out, be prepared. I found it very interesting what they included that Honda didn't on the Crosstour. For example, the power hatch (both up and down) is a very welcome addition. The compartment door in the floor of the trunk will keep itself open (has gas/air lifts like the hatch on the Crosstour) so that you can put stuff in the compartment without fiddling with the cover. The seats are heated and cooled.

The seat senses your seating position and will fire (or not) the airbags accordingly in a crash to help avoid injury from the crash (obviously) or from deployed airbags. In other words, if you are sitting too close to the steering wheel, the steering wheel airbag won't deploy in a crash to avoid injury from the airbag itself. The same goes for the side curtain airbags. If you are leaning in your seat towards the driver's window, the side airbags won't deploy. I don't know what the tolerances are to determine if the airbag goes off or not, but that's pretty slick thinking.

The steering wheel is power adjustable. This is something I miss from the Mercedes. When you use your key to open the car, the seat and mirrors adjust to your memory position (like in the Crosstour), and so does the steering wheel. No fighting with the wife any more!

The cruise control is adaptive so that when the traffic in front of you is slower than you have set the cruise control, the car will slow itself down and maintain a set distance from the car in front of you. When that car moves out of the way or you change lanes, the cruise control will resume your set speed. Nice.

Oh, and the rearview camera... it has three views. Normal (like the Crosstour), wide, and top-down. Top-down would be great for backing into a spot where you want to get extra close, or when you are backing up to a trailer. Also very nice.

Put that and more (such as the all glass roof, twin moonroofs, AWD, blacked-out radio controls when the radio isn't on, instrument cluster display screen, keyless start, etc.) into the Crosstour, and restyle the interior significantly (and the umber interior is amazing... two tone black/brown) and you have the ZDX.

It does have all those creature comforts and more, but what struck me were some glaring omissions and puzzling design choices. One of the omissions was a rear wiper. They chose superficial looks over function. The same goes for the child-sized back seat. Tough to get into and out of, and if you're over six feet, be prepared to bang your head on the roof and crush your knees into the front seat back. On those two counts, at least, the Crosstour is superior.

 

[ifonline]

I had noticed that the ZDX appeared to have a smaller rear seat, but I wasn't sure. I never looked close enough (or got in the back seat) to verify. Interesting that it would be smaller.

And truth be told, I never even noticed the missing rear wiper. That is odd.