Spied 2013 Acura RSX??

VTEC.net posted some images of what is supposedly the 2013 Acura sub-TSX. Some people are referring to it as the RSX sedan. But wait a minute, I thought the TSX was a "RSX sedan". Rumor has it that this future model is based off the Civic platform. But wait a minute times two! An Acura based off the Civic?? Isn't that just an Acura CSX?? My head hurts. My little brain is not powerful enough for Honda and Acura's ingenious ideas...

[TSB] 3rd Gear Problems for some Hondas & Acuras

SYMPTOM
The 6-speed manual transmission grinds when shifting into 3rd gear, pops out of 3rd gear, or is hard to shift into 3rd gear.

NOTE: These symptoms can be intermittent and sometimes more noticeable in colder climates.

PROBABLE CAUSE
The transmission has a faulty 3rd gear synchronizer or 3-4 shift sleeve.

CORRECTIVE ACTION
Replace the 3rd gear set.

VEHICLES AFFECTED
2003–07 Accord V6 with M/T: ALL

2008 Accord V6 with M/T 2-Door:
From VIN 1HGCS218.8A000001
thru 1HGCS218.8A003478

2006–07 Civic Si 2-Door: ALL

2008 Civic Si 2-Door:
From VIN 2HGFG215.8H700001
thru 2HGFG215.8H701973

2007 Civic Si 4-Door: ALL

2008 Civic Si 4-Door:
From VIN 2HGFA555.8H700001
thru 2HGFA555.8H702465

2003 Acura 3.2CL with M/T

2002-06 Acura RSX with six-speed

2004-08 Acura TL with M/T

[Source] AutoBlog.com

Link to Honda PDF / Link to Acura PDF

Can I Use Regular Unleaded In My Acura?

This is straight from the Winter 2008 Acura Style magazine:

"Acura's Client Services (ACS) has thoughts on ill-advised owner attempts to beat stratospheric premium fuel prices by using regular unleaded instead. In a word: don't. Your Acura is designed to operate on 91 octane premium unleaded gasoline. If you're stranded and can't access premium, then 87 octane regular unleaded will see you home, but don't make a habit of using regular gasoline. You want the best possible performance from your Acura-and peak performance demands the correct fuel."

Here is a USAToday.com article on using Regular Vs. Premium gas. Highlights include:

"I personally use regular even though my owner's manual says you'll get better performance with premium," says Lewis Gibbs, consulting engineer and 45-year veteran at Chevron oil company. He's chairman of Technical Committee 7 on Fuels, part of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Fuels & Lubricants Council. Gibbs knows gas.
The main advantage of premium-grade gas is that it allows automakers to advertise a few more horsepower by designing and tuning engines to take advantage of premium's anti-knock properties. But auto engineers generally agree that if you use regular in a premium engine, the power loss is so slight, most drivers can't tell.

"I go back and forth, and I'm hard-pressed to notice" whether there's regular or premium in the tank, says Jeff Jetter, principal chemist at Honda Research and Development Americas. He drives an Acura designed for premium.Import brands, especially, use premium fuel to distinguish their upmarket models. Most Toyotas, for instance, are designed to run on regular or midgrade, while the automaker's Lexus luxury brand prefers premium. Same with Honda and its Acura luxury line.

Today's engines use highly evolved versions of a device called a knock sensor to adjust settings automatically for low-octane gas. And more engine control computers have adequate memory to allow separate sets of instructions for various octanes. The engine control computers keep pushing to maximize performance on whatever grade of fuel is used.

The only modern engines that should really need premium are those with superchargers, which force-feed fuel into the cylinders. "You're driving along and just tramp the gas and the knock sensor cannot sense the knock fast enough in some cases," because the supercharger boosts pressure so fast, says Bob Furey, chemist and fuels specialist at General Motors.

Burning regular when the owner's manual specifies premium won't void the warranty, nor damage the engine, even the most finicky automakers say. "You're giving up perhaps just a little bit of performance that a customer wouldn't really even notice, it's so slight," says Furey.

Automakers say they don't test premium engines on regular to check the difference, but some auto engineers estimate that power declines roughly 5%.

HONDATA Breaks Four Landspeed Records

Co-founder of Los Angeles-based Hondata, Doug Macmillan, set 4 new records at the Bonneville Nationals Speed Week in his Acura RSX. The modded RSX had 2-liter front wheel drive 2003 Acura RSX in the G class altered coupe and competition coupe classes, competing in both gas and fuel categories. One of the records set was a highest one-way speed of 190.1 mph (305.9 km/h) in the G/FCC class (with nitrous oxide) and 172.mph in the G/GCC class (naturally aspirated). The K20 engine, built by Prototype Racing makes 270 HP naturally aspirated and 390 when running on nitrous oxide.

[For more details - vtec.net]

[Rumor] TSX Couple and SH-AWD for next TL & TSX.

Rumor floating around on Acura forums that it is has been confirmed by an Acura dealer that the next generation Acura TL & TSX will definitely have SH-AWD, however still questionable on a turbo TSX.

I am an Acura dealer and have had confirmation from our rep that the TSX re-design will be for the 2009 model year. AWD is definite and no confirmation on Turbo yet (not sure if that will only be on Type S or not). RSX will come back same time as TSX Coupe. I have also been told this release will happen earlier than Fall 08, and more along the lines of the original TSX release (Spring 08)

This will also coincide with the TL re-design (Fall 08) for 09 model year with AWD as definite and 3.5L and a mid-model re-design on the RL.

Current generation Acura TL

Speculations about SH-AWD being a feature for all Acuras have been around since the introduction of the Acura RDX and redesigned MDX. Front wheel drive only cars won't cut it competing in the luxury segment, so SH-AWD in all their cars make sense. Although, there is a good portion of the Acura population that would like to see a rear wheel drive option, this is unlikely to happen, at least in 2009.


Honda Sports 4 (rumored to be next gen TSX)

Not everyone is excited about a turbo TSX because of the poor gas mileage seen in the RDX (19 city - 24 highway). The RDX's fuel economy may be due to it's size and weight, a turbo sedan makes more sense. Still, only time will tell if the next TSX will see Acura's new force induction technology, maybe only on the TSX Type-S? There are some people out there who would like a small naturally aspired V6 instead of a turbo 4 cylinder.


Acura RSX

Currently, there are no coupes in Acura's lineup ever since they dropped the NSX and RSX. A brand that pushes luxury performance vehicles, yet doesn't have a sports car to sell sounds kind of like an oxymoron. There also have been some rumors of how Honda is going to drop the Honda S2000 so that Acura can pick it up. Either way, Acura needs a coupe soon.



Honda S2000

[Source of Rumors] Acurazine.com

Realtime racing video...

Here's a short clip of Realtime racing, an Acura only racing team, leading the way in the Denver Gran Prix.