Acura has announced that the RL will get a makeover in summer 2008. Dealers do not have many details on changes coming for the brand’s flagship model, but they believe the changes will be dramatic. "I hear it will be a major facelift in the front and back — new sheet metal," says Jim Smail, an Acura dealer in Pittsburgh.
The redesigned RL was introduced in October 2004 and has sold poorly. Sales through October were down 47.5 percent from the same period last year.
A chief complaint is that the all-wheel-drive vehicle powered by a V-6 is not desired by luxury buyers, who may choose from a slew of rear-wheel-drive V-8s.
John Hawkins, an Acura dealer in the Los Angeles area said: "Dealers have said they want three things: They don’t like the styling, there is not enough rear-seat legroom and it needs a turbocharger or V-8."
