Motoring: Acura RSX, say ‘Goodbye' to a perfect 10

Dear readers, I am afraid I have some very bad news this week.

The Acura RSX is dead. This is bad news because anyone who has spent any time with this car will tell you it's one hulluva motorcar.

OK, in all honesty, no one will or should miss the regular RSX, while a decent car, it wasn't anything special.


However, the Type-S version was just that, it was “special.”

What made the Type-S special was not the smart alloy wheels, or those fabulous seats. What made it special was the engine. A 2.0-liter, 16 valve, double over head cams with Honda's famed i-VTEC (variable valve timing with intelligence) system, that made 201 hp. Yes, that puts it in that very rare category of an engine that achieves more than a 100 hp/liter.

Numbers can only tell you so much about a car, for the RSX it was the way the car revs and performs which makes you fall in love with it.

Most cars in this category have redlines around 6200 rpm, but not this one. At 6200 rpm, this engine just wakes up, and then with ear-splitting assault it pulls all the way to 8300 rpm. This engine is so fantastic that I get emotional just talking about it.

To say “I love” the way this car goes is an understatement. This car is just magic. I love the six-speed gearbox, I love the driving position, and I love the positioning of the pedals, all of which makes driving this car fully enjoyable.

Normally I get to keep a car for a week to test, but I had this one for 10 days, yet I would have been more than happy to keep it another 10.

The interior is perfectly designed too with everything positioned towards the driver. It also has all the right options, like power windows/mirrors and sunroof. You get a very good stereo system, which not only had a CD player, but also a tape player. Only thing some people might be looking for is the navigation system, which is not available, but who cares, go buy yourself some maps.

Then on top of it all, it even looks great, so does this car have any faults?

Yes, but just minor ones. Due to the hard revving nature of the engine, even when you are cruising, it is quite noisy, which starts to get to you after awhile.

And.... well that's it really, I can't think of anything else.

The RSX even has great fuel economy. Despite the fact I drove like a maniac at times, it still returned about 10-liter/100 km in combined city and highway driving.

So it even pays off at the pumps, but how much would you have to pay to own one?

The base price for the Type-S model $33,400, which I admit is a lot of money, but it is a lot of car too. Buy one new now, because its days in the showroom are numbered. RSX Type-S, you will be sorely missed.