Zander Drives Cars

The joys of being a small independent automotive journalist become incredibly prevalent when Acura lets someone else sit inside the new Acura ZDX Type-S, but tells me they “don’t have the keys.” So, despite Acura praying on my downfall, I think we should take a first look at the upcoming Acura ZDX Type-S

The Exterior

I don’t know why I like the way this looks. Maybe it’s the low ride height, maybe it’s the general fondness towards Type-S Acura models, or maybe it’s the Tiger’s Eye Yellow Metallic. God, I love that color. Whichever reason is more rational is the reason I’ll choose to use. Anyway, it’s funny because this thing looks even more like the Chevy Blazer EV than the Honda Prologue I talked about yesterday, but I’m less mad at it. Could it be the lack of sleep? Potentially. I also might have just given up yelling about something I can’t change.

The Interior

Well, this is awkward. I can see the interior, it’s black and white. It also has marginally the same styling and (visibly, at least) the same materials as the Blazer EV, but I can’t go in and take a look for myself. What I can say, however, is that the low roofline looks like it’ll do a number on the top of my head if I’m in the back seat. Actually, I’ll go one further, maybe it’s just the front seat being far back, but the rear legroom looks tight.

I’ll also loop “the screens” in here as well. They look to be exactly the same as the Blazer EV and Prologue, and by that measure, they’ll be pretty good, and will still have CarPlay when General Motors axes it from their entire lineup.

Press photos to the rescue!

(Photos by Acura)

The Features

The ZDX Type-S is slated to feature everything Acura/Honda/General Motors has in their arsenal. The Type-S will get heated and ventilated front seats with a heated steering wheel, USB-A/C ports, wireless phone charging, adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist with a full BLIS system, forward collision warning and mitigation system, CarPlay, Google Assistant with Maps support, a B&O Soundsystem, and thankfully, no touch-pad.

The Drive… Not

Bold of you to assume that Acura let me drive a car they wouldn’t let me in the back seat of. So, specifications time! The Acura ZDX Type-S (and the whole ZDX line as well) is powered by a single-motor 102 kWh battery sending to the rear wheels, or a dual-motor sending power to all four wheels, as well as the rear wheels in the A-Spec trim. Power for the A-Spec variant is 340 hp, while Type-S will have “an estimated 500 horsepower,” so expect 496, or something like that. No torque numbers are available yet. The range for the ZDX will be 325 miles in the A-Spec trim (per, Car & Driver) or 308 miles for the Type-S trim.

In The End…

Maybe it’s just my mild impartiality towards ACura right now, but the ZDX seems like it’ll find its market. With prices starting at $64,000, it isn’t too bad of a deal considering that stuff like the MDX will go well above $70,000 if tricked out. I guess only time will tell.