Honda Legend: Euro market Acura RL says no to front-shield

Ever wonder how the North American market 2009 RL (see here) would look like without that gaudy ‘armor shield’ that Acura likes to call a front grille? Then check out the European market Honda Legend facelift that was unveiled at the Moscow International Auto Show. The new grille fits nicely to the revised front-end giving the luxury sedan a more classy appearance. Other than that, the Legend is nothing more than a rebadged 2009 Acura RL. On the outside, the most noticeable changes of the facelifted version are the new lights, bonnet, front wings, boot lid, bumpers and the adoption of standard 18″ wheels. -Continued

Mechanical changes include the new 3.7-liter V6 VTEC engine that replaces the previous 3.5-liter V6 unit and is coupled to an all-new 5-speed gearbox with revised steering wheel mounted paddle-shifters and new gearbox software. According to Honda, the new Legend can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 7.1 seconds, 0.2 seconds quicker than before. Fuel economy and CO2 figures have also been improved over the previous model. In terms of chassis upgrades, while the Legend’s SH-AWD system remains unchanged, the settings for the suspension have been altered to improve the ride and handling.

Honda also refined the Legend’s cabin by equipping it with a suite of NVH reducing technologies, the most advanced of which is the Active Noise Cancellation system (ANC), which cancels out low frequency noise by playing the opposite wave form through the Bose sound system. The 2009 Legend also gets new Active Head Restraints and heated rear seats while the Bose Audio system now has a USB socket enabling the connection of an iPod.