I have a
love-hate relationship with the 2010 Acura ZDX. Mostly
hate.
First, because
I'm a romantic, the love. The radically styled luxury
hatchback is eye-catching from every angle, and lovely
from most. The interior is swathed in sumptuous
materials. The sporty and expensive crossover SUV is
nearly identical to a dramatic concept car Acura sprung
on an unsuspecting public about 18 months ago.
Sadly, Acura
forgot that while concept cars only have to look good at
auto shows, production vehicles must do mundane things
like carry people and their stuff.
Thus, the hate.
The Acura ZDX may be the least space-efficient vehicle
I've ever driven. It looks good on paper, with five
seats and a practical hatchback layout.
At 192.4 inches
long and a broad-hipped 78.5 wide, the ZDX eats up more
garage space than roomy SUVs like the Chevrolet Equinox,
Ford Escape and Toyota RAV4. It's also larger than
sportier and more exciting cars and SUVs like the Audi
A4 and Q5 and BMW 335i and X6.
The striking
and powerful ZDX is not intended to be practical. It was
designed to be Acura's flagship for style and
performance. That does not excuse flagrant
impracticality, however. The ZDX's shape badly
compromises the driver's visibility, rear passenger
space and cargo room.
As a fast and
stylish luxury vehicle with one foot in the world of
sport sedans and the other among SUVs, the ZDX has few
direct competitors. The lovely BMW X6 and Infiniti FX 35
probably come closest, followed by sport-luxury
crossovers like the Audi Q5 and Cadillac SRX turbo.
Prices for the
ZDX start at $45,495. All ZDX models come with all-wheel
drive, a 300-horsepower 3.7-liter V6 and six-speed
automatic transmission. Adding the technology package, a
suite of features including navigation, ELS sound system
and sport seats, raises the price to $49,995. Layer on
the Advance package — adaptive cruise control,
collision alert, blind-spot warning and more — and the
price rises to $56,045 for the top-of-the line model I
tested.
The parking
assist and blind-spot alert should be standard
equipment. The ZDX's fancy shape creates a very limited
field of vision, with large blind spots and poor
visibility out the small rear window.
The coupe-like
body's low roofline constricts rear headroom as if the
backseat were shrink-wrapped. Small and oddly shaped
openings for the rear doors make it difficult to get in
and out.
The ZDX's SUV-like
8.2 inches of ground clearance and wide sills exacerbate
its poor accessibility, making it hard to step into. The
front seat offers good room, but the low roof leads to
an odd sports car-like seating position in which your
legs stick nearly straight out in front of the seat
rather than down into a conventional footwell.
The seats are
extremely comfortable. All the controls are legible and
easy to reach.
The hatch
offers 26.3 cubic feet of space behind the rear seat.
That's less than the Q5 and SRX, but more than the FX 35
and X6. The cargo opening is small, narrow and has a
high liftover. With the rear seat folded, ZDX's capacity
increases to 55.8 cubic feet, smaller than all four.
The interior is
beautiful. Acura used top-quality materials and arrayed
them in a pleasant design marked by sweeping curves and
pleasantly contrasting colors. The fits are excellent.
Acceleration
and handling are adequate but unexciting. The ZDX I
tested suffered from a 4,462-pound curb weight. The
vehicle's nose-heavy weight distribution also works
against sporty handling.
The ZDX scored
an EPA fuel economy rating of 16 mpg city/23 mpg
highway/19 mpg combined. That trails the Audi Q5, but
beats the SRX turbo, FX 35 and X6. All five require
premium fuel.
As a perceptive
woman friend of mine observed about a boorish patron at
the Balcony Music Club in New Orleans: "You know
the type: Patent-leather stilettos and a piercing voice.
Thinks she's special, but she's not."
Looks alone
aren't enough.
———
2010 ACURA ZDX
ADVANCE:
—All-wheel
drive five-passenger hatchback luxury SUV
—Price as
tested: $56,045 (excluding destination charge)
—Rating: Two
stars out of four stars
—Reasons to
buy: Styling, interior look and feel, features
—Shortcomings:
Passenger room, cargo space, rear visibility
