The All-Electric 2024 Acura ZDX Has Some Type S Soul
Acura set a high bar last year when it introduced the Integra Type S. It is a throwback of sorts: the sort of analog, internal combustion engine, sport sedan us car nerds have long craved. It was instantly beloved. A 3219-pound, 320-hp front-drive car that embodies all those virtues Honda and Acura have traditionally delivered.
The new 2024 ZDX Type S couldn’t be much more different than that. It’s a big, family crossover conceived to meet the regulatory and market challenges that no products from any manufacturers are quite overcoming. It’s an all-electric, dual motor, 500-hp beast that comes in with a listed curb weight of 6052 pounds. The many virtues it does have aren’t traditional ones. Type S, it seems, is a malleable concept.
And, yes, the new ZDX is Acura’s first Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV). It’s also the first Acura assembled by members of the United Auto Workers. That’s because the ZDX is put together at the General Motors plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee alongside its brother on the Ultium platform, the Cadillac Lyriq. That’s Spring Hill as in the plant where Saturn built its vehicles. So, not only is this ZDX nearly a Cadillac, it’s almost a Saturn.
The GM and UAW production means that the ZDX is eligible for the $7500 electric vehicle federal tax credit.
It's also Acura’s third crossover SUV. Bigger than the RDX, but lacking the MDX’s third row. “One of the big mistakes that we’ve seen is trying to overcharge premiums for BEV products in this market. Our goal is to position it, pricewise, almost on par with where the MDX is,” explains Emile Korkor, Assistant Vice President of Acura Sales. “So the customer basically has a choice when it comes to it with equal payments. You’re not paying an ultra-premium.”
The new ZDX will also be offered in A-Spec trim with rear- or all-wheel drive. The single motor rear-driver is rated at 380 hp and the not-Type S dual motor all-wheel drive at 490. That 10-horse deficit on the A-Spec from the Type S? That may have more to do with marketing than engineering. At a press event in Santa Barbara, California only the Type S was available to sample.
I live in Santa Barbara and, coincidentally, the press drive route laid out by Acura was exactly the route I used to run generating fuel economy numbers. It’s a simple, unchallenging loop up the 101 freeway then back across route 154 across the San Marcos Pass. It’s just about 100 miles, which wasn’t anywhere near long enough to test Acura’s claim of 278 miles range for the ZDX Type S. It does however have some nice freeway cruising, a few gentle cornering opportunities, and a lot of altitude changes. Also, 154 likely has the highest concentrated presence of California Highway Patrol Dodge Chargers in the state.
Acura gets credit for making the ZDX look like an Acura. Sharing proportions with the Lyriq, the wheels are pushed out to the corners with a long 121.8-inch wheelbase. That’s the same as the Lyriq, but a full eight inches longer than the MDX’s wheelbase. At 197.7-inches overall, it’s 0.7-inch less lengthy than the MDX, but at 64.4-inches tall the ZDX is 2.4-inches lower. Throw in burly shoulders defining the 77.0-inch width and this is the most muscular looking machine Acura has sold. But with an electrified and dimpled riff on the trapezoidal Acura grill up front and carved shanks, it's dang good looking.
Yes, those are 22-inch wheels encased in 275/40R22 Continental PremiumContact 6 summer-spec tires which bring some spirit with them. For those wondering about BEV tire consumption, according to the Tire Rack’s site, these carry a chunky 280 tread wear rating with A ratings for both traction and temperature tolerance. They’re V-rated for speed up to 149 mph. The site also lists them at $322.17 each, which isn’t unreasonable for such huge donuts.
Inside there’s a mash up of Acura and GM. The overall look is Acura with familiar switch shapes, truly lovely perforated leather chairs with embossed S Type logos, nice dash shapes, and a flat-bottom steering wheels that’s perfectly squishy to grip. Below the interior upper sight lines, however, the quality of plastics drops somewhat. It would be nice if, for example, the glove box were lined. And the nose is filled with whiz-bang electronica rather than having some secure storage area.
That in mind, the Bang & Olufson sound system both bangs and olufs spectacularly.
Inevitably, there are screens on the dash. There’s an 11-incher in front of the driver and a 11.3-incher atop the dash center. The graphics are very phone-like and if they’re not phone-like enough, both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay can be plumbed in through a USB-C port. This is a good moment to note that while the ZDX and even the Ultium-based Honda Prologue can get CarPlay, their GM counterparts on the same Ultium platform don't. GM wants to keep buyers in its own in-house design subscription service. One element that GM has done well for decades, though, is heads-up displays, and a HUD is part of the Type S. And yes, there is a volume knob.
Like other current GM products, the only way to turn on the headlights is through the center screen. Yes, the headlights work just fine in “Auto” mode and the driver doesn’t have to diddle with turning them on when it gets dark. But one peculiarity if being on a press drive is shooting photos and vehicles look better with the lights on. So it was kind of a chore getting the lights on, even if it’s peculiar to this profession.
On the easygoing route of this media drive, the ZDX Type S proved mannered, quiet and always composed. All that is completely unsurprising.
What is surprising was uncovered during an impromptu blitz up nearby Figueroa Mountain Road. During this tight, twisty rise to the mountaintop the ZDX proved agile, powerful and precise. It’s a big thing, so it fills a small road pretty completely, but it never gets discombobulated either. Maybe there’s even a hint of Integra S Type in its soul.
Surely with some effort the 102-kilowatt hour battery pack could be drained rapidly during an ascent, but it also seemed to fill back up efficiently using regenerative braking on the descent. And using that braking, the ZDX is a solid one-pedal drive that will come to a complete stop.
The suspension system is, no surprise, in general specification to that of other vehicles on the GM Ultium platform. That means multi-link suspenders at each corner with the Type S getting an adaptive damper system. It seems to work well, but again, there was little opportunity to truly test this during this drive. It was also impossible to test the “Snow” mode driving during late April in California, and detecting a difference between “Normal” and “Sport” modes wasn’t easy. A longer, freer exposure to the ZDX should allow a more robust pushing of the performance envelope.
Retail deliveries of the new ZDX have already begun with the sales experience leaning heavily into online marketing. Prices start at $65,745 including destination for the single motor A-Spec. The juicier dual-motor Type S is tagged at $74,745.
One more thing. Yes, this is the second vehicle to wear the ZDX name. Do you remember the first? If you do, congratulations.
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