The 2019 Acura RDX is a needed breath of fresh air for the Acura new vehicle lineup.
The MDX has always done well, but the Japanese automaker needs the Acura RDX to do well if it wants to keep up with its German rivals. We wouldn’t have any reservations about recommending the 2019 RDX to anyone as we noted in our review, and this is how we’d do it if we were to buy one.
Engine
Not much choice here, we have to go with the 2.0-liter, four-cylinder turbocharged engine that develops 272 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. Lucky for us, this engine is among the most powerful you can get in a luxury compact SUV and you don’t have to pay extra for it.
It comes with a 10-speed automatic out of the gate so nothing to decide there either, and all-wheel drive is standard.
2019 Acura RDX 2019 | Photo: Olivier Delorme
Version
The 2019 Acura RDX doesn’t skimp on standard features with Apple CarPlay, panoramic sunroof, power tailgate, 19-inch wheels, 4G LTE Wi-Fi capability and Acura’s ACURAWATCH active safety package being standard all for $43,990.
That said, we’d go with the A-Spec package offered at $50,290. It gives you the heated steering wheel like the Elite model, but you also get ventilated seats, a more aggressive design and 20-inch wheels for just 300 $ more. You also get an exclusive exterior color option which we will discuss now.
Color
We’re getting the A-Spec model and we have to make sure people know it. So, we’ll go with the model’s exclusive Apex Blue exterior color which is a $500 option. That said, Performance Red works well here too if the dealer doesn’t have that particular blue in stock.
2019 Acura RDX Apex Blue | Photo: Acura
Lease or Finance?
We’re not convinced of the 2019 RDX’ resale value, especially the A-Spec model. Models like that don’t tend to do well on the used car market, so we won’t take any chances and we’ll lease it. The new RDX also gets a ton of new technology including a new track pad to control the infotainment system, which we are not a fan of but will learn to live with.
There are ton of extended warranty options offered on the new RDX, but because we are leasing it we won’t add any of them.
There are very few stand-alone options, just accessories, and because we plan to tow with the RDX we added the Towing Package 1 which comes with a 2″ ball. We stayed away from some of the packages Acura offers to protect the interior because they offer a lot of stuff we don’t want like illuminated side sills which jack the price into the four digits. We’ll just get a set of winter mats for the interior and cargo area and we will be good to go.
Total price with everything included except tax comes out to $55,351. That includes $2,371 worth of accessories, $500 for the Apex Blue color and $2,075 for freight and delivery.
We’ll go for a 36 month lease which is offered at 2.9% APR as opposed to the 3.9% offered on the 48 month lease (at time of writing). If we were to finance it, the APR would be 4.74 % which is too high given the RDX’ unknown resale value.
Monthly payment comes out to $834,20 before tax which is less than $100 more than a 48-month lease at $757 before tax. We’ll be allowed to drive 20,000 kilometers for the duration of the lease.
2019 Acura RDX Images
