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Acura ILX + TL Drive to Death Valley National Park, California

Posted in California, ILX, National Parks, Nevada, Road Trip on July 20, 2014 by tysonhugie

Odometer (ILX): 89,689

Odometer (Legend): 530,150

Trip Distance: 901 Miles

“This could be scary,” Sofyan mumbled as we rolled our suitcases up the front walkway to Longstreet Inn & Casino in Amargosa Valley, Nevada. The hotel, visible for miles on Highway 373 in the barren desert, had loomed like an oasis on the horizon while we approached it (photo below). The sound of country music and horribly off-key karaoke filled the air while I and my 3 traveling colleagues checked into our rooms for the night’s stay. We were weary from a full day of adventure in Death Valley National Park, one of the country’s most oft-overlooked and yet most scenic landscapes. And the evening’s agenda was just what we needed to unwind: A dip in the pool, a home-cooked meal topped off by apple pie, and the clearest nighttime sky I’ve seen in a long time – with stars so visible it was as if we’d pulled them closer to earth.

“Death Valley” sounds like such an enticing place to visit in the middle of the summer, doesn’t it?

On July 10, 1913, a record 134 °F (56.7 °C) was measured at the Weather Bureau’s observation station at Greenland Ranch (now the site for the Furnace Creek Inn), the highest temperature ever recorded in the world.Daily summer temperatures of 120 °F (49 °C) or greater are common, as well as below freezing nightly temperatures in the winter^. July is the hottest month, with an average high of 115 °F (46 °C) and an average low of 88 °F (31C (reference).

The area was named a national monument in 1933 and became a national park in 1994. It receives nearly a million visitors annually. Death Valley got its name from prospectors who passed through the area in 1849 when the California gold rush took place, though reportedly only one death took place. My first and only experience with the area was in August 2011 in the Legend coupe when I paid a visit to a close friend and automotive spy photographer Brenda Priddy who spends her summers there.

Joining me for this trip were a few friends. Sofyan, host of the 2theRedline YouTube auto review channel, had flown in from Washington, D.C. for the occasion, and my local friend Peter also came along.

Our day started out in Las Vegas, a city that never sleeps. Glassy-eyed and a bit tired from a night out on the town, we made our way to Johnny Rockets for delicious Belgian waffles with strawberries & whipped cream. That sugar rush was enough to bring me to my senses. Jason Pawela from Driven for Drives arrived and we set out with his 2010 Acura TL and my 2013 Acura ILX in search of some adventures. Highway 160 – “Blue Diamond” took us westward toward Pahrump, Nevada. A slow-moving 65 mph limit felt like it should have been 85 mph: The arrow-straight highway made its way through the desert and Sofyan, who’s visiting from Washington, D.C., commented on the landscape. “So what IS a tumbleweed?” he asked. Oh, you city folks!

A little beyond Pahrump, we took a left on Highway 190 toward Death Valley National Park. A few brave travelers – most from other countries, it seemed – joined us at the entrance sign for pictures. Our first stop was at Furnace Creek. It’s a place with $5.56 premium Chevron gas and a breeze that feels like a blow dryer in your face. We were able to find a saloon/restaurant – “49er” — serving up lunch so we were grateful for the opportunity to refill our bellies. All four of us ordered the exact same meal: Turkey club w/o red onion. It hit the spot. A stop at the national park visitor center was in order, so we could pay our $20/car entry fee and legalize our visit. A sign inside the gift shop announced: Heat-Related Deaths Since April 2014: 2. That’s a sobering thought.

Peter, Sofyan, Tyson, Jason

Jason and I swapped car keys and headed out toward Badwater Basin, some 17 miles away. Badwater is the lowest elevation point in North America, at 282 feet below sea level. I enjoyed seat-time in the 305-horsepower TL with its 3.7 liter V6. Torque for days! The sound system and level of refinement were clearly superior to the ILX, but I did briefly miss the more nimble feel of my smaller sedan. Regading Badwater: Legend has it that a traveler once got to this point and was severely dehydrated. He could not even get his horse to drink from the shallow pool because the water was so salty. Thus the place was named “bad water” and it stuck. Receiving fewer than 2 inches of rain per year, Badwater is one of the driest places in the world. We hiked out a little and Jason filled a Ziploc bag with sand, then we gratefully sought refuge from the oven inside our nicely air conditioned Acura sedans.

Just 85 miles from Badwater stands the tallest mountain in the contiguous 48 U.S. states, called Mount Whitney (14,505 feet). You may recall a trip from last summer when Jason and I drove the highest elevation paved road in North America: Mount Evans in Colorado, at 14,265 feet. I would have loved to visit Mount Whitney if time permitted.

We wanted to make sure and take home some Death Valley dust on our cars, and I knew just the place to find it. “20 Mule Team Road,” just a few miles from Furnace Creek, is an amazing one-lane, one-way dirt track that winds for 2.7 miles along some terrain that looks like another planet. Jason and I weren’t afraid of doing a little off-roading. In fact, after our first lap of Mule Team, we switched drivers. Sofyan drove the ILX and Peter drove the TL – and we did it all over again. Kicking up dust in style.

The last place I wanted to check out was Stovepipe Wells, a small settlement about 23 miles north of Furnace Creek. It’s nestled in between expansive sand dunes. As we approached, it was evident that the wind activity was high because of the wisps of sand sweeping across the roadway. Because of Death Valley’s notoriety as one of the hottest climates in the world, it is an optimal place for automakers to test out the durability of prototype / pre-production vehicles. Sure enough, as Sofyan pulled my ILX into the parking lot at Stovepipe Wells, we spotted 3 white 2016 model year GMC Canyon Diesels out for evaluation. I picked up 2 Gatorades for $3 – best purchase of the day by far. I was parched.

We made our way out of the park on Highway 127 just as the sun dipped down in the western sky. We got a few photos at the California/Nevada state line and then made our entrance into the Longstreet for the night. A great day with great friends.

Enjoy this video and the rest of these pictures from our trip!

Peter at the wheel of the ILX; Sofyan in the backseat

Backseat vantage point: something I’m not used to seeing!

Sunset over the Hoover Dam bypass bridge at the AZ/NV state line

View from our hotel in Las Vegas: Excalibur

Catching the water show at Bellagio

Saturday morning: A destination in mind

Ruins in an abandoned Nevada town

Next stop: Furnace Creek

Thanks to Jason for some awesome “rolling shots” of the ILX

We made it

Sign reads: CAUTION! EXTREME HEAT DANGER

Elevation: Sea level as we made our way toward Furnace Creek

How’s $5.59/gallon for Premium sound?

Lunch spot

A brisk 115 degrees Fahrenheit at the National Park Visitor Center

Although, the ILX only showed 113 degrees at the time

Shot of the ILX in the TL sideview mirror

Warning at Badwater Basin. “Walking after 10 a.m. not recommended.”

Checking out the sights, 282 feet below sea level.

Pit stop along the “20 Mule Team Canyon” trail.

Hitchhiking due to broken down Acuras. Not.

Stovepipe Wells

GMC Canyon Diesel prototype that was out for hot-weather testing near Stovepipe

Crossing back into Nevada from California for the night

Sunday morning’s return drive to Phoenix: Gigantic cow

And the world’s largest firecracker!

Thanks for coming along!

9 Comments »

Throwback Thursday: Nevada’s Extraterrestrial Highway & Area 51

Posted in Legend, Nevada, Road Trip, Throwback on February 20, 2014 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 528,689

Odometer (ILX): 67,694

Today, I’m digging way back into the road trip archives to bring you a vintage write-up from October 21, 2005. My Legend had “just” 194,392 miles on it at the time. I set out in the (very) early morning hours to experience a famous highway. Following is a post that I shared with the Legend forums nearly 10 years ago, and I still remember that road trip like it was yesterday.

“Four o’clock in the morning. Miles of road continue to unwind in the vast wasteland of southern Nevada. My headlights pierce through the pitch-black night and illuminate the painted road lines like neon against the asphalt. The road is Highway 375 – the famed Extraterrestrial Highway, so named for its proximity to Area 51. Destination: Rachel, Nevada. Rachel is the closest civilization to Area 51 and boasts a population of nearly 100. I’m getting closer but can’t help but be a little bit on edge because I am traveling unfamiliar highways in the middle of the night, and I haven’t seen another vehicle for the past sixty miles at least…”

This morning I traveled to Rachel, Nevada. The town is the closest you can legally get to Area 51. The round-trip was 400 miles.

From an online article about Rachel:

Rachel, Nevada takes us to a small town 110 miles from Las Vegas, site of a formerly secret US Air Force installation known as Area 51. The base develops new planes such as the stealth bomber. The secrecy shrouding Area 51 has given rise to suspicions over the years, earning the town of Rachel (primarily a collection of trailer homes) the title “UFO Capital of the World,” and Nevada State Highway 375 “Alien Highway”. The film focuses on the everyday people of Rachel, once left alone to service the military, now the center of tourism and a publicity boom. There are enough stories and photos to persuade even the most die-hard skeptics that something extraterrestrial may be going on.

There’s not much to take pictures of. There is the ever-famous “Little AL-E-INN” that I had to get pics of. And then there are the Extraterrestrial Highway signs which are pretty cool. I forgot to get a picture at the gas station, but it only had one pump and only 89 octane.

On to the pics I did take. I used the same backgrounds a lot because I didn’t have much else to work with.

No gas for 110 miles!

Rachel, Nevada

Population: Humans – 98, Aliens – ?

I wonder how much a room at the A’Le’Inn costs.

Prepared to take flight

LOTS of open space without any people, buildings, or anything!

The spaceship has landed!

And of course, I did park there!

When the movie Independence Day was filmed in 1996, they put a time capsule in front of the A-LE-INN. Here’s the placard and monument.

The next picture is (according to my map) one of the dirt roads that leads to Area 51. Had I gone any further, I would have been approached by armed security guards in Jeep Cherokees, and probably fined $600.

Current mileage as of today

That’s it!

On a related note, is anyone out there looking for a “500k-miler-in-training”? I’ve got a couple of nice options for you. First up is this absolutely pristine one-owner 1995 Legend LS coupe automatic in rare Cayman White Pearl with only 107,000 miles. My friend Josh from TSX Travels gave this one a look-see for us and took the below 3 pictures, as well as many others which I posted here on the Legend forums.

The other option is this “twin” car to mine. It’s a 1994 Legend LS coupe 6-speed in Desert Mist Metallic. It’s got a clean title and is only halfway broken in at 226,000 miles the odometer. Ebay shows the current bid at just $2,000.

Somebody buy it!

Check out this awesome 6-minute time-lapse video of a cross-country drive from Hollywood to DC. Thanks to my friend Ian for sharing it.

4 Comments »

ILX Drive: Nevada’s “Valley of Fire” State Park

Posted in ILX, Nevada, Road Trip on February 12, 2014 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 528,606

Odometer (ILX): 67,000

Trip Distance: 423 Miles

Despite the fact that the trip between Phoenix, Arizona and my hometown in Southern Utah is one that I’ve driven hundreds of times, it’s still chock full of hidden treasures waiting to be discovered. I decided to make a side-trip on my drive home to Arizona last Sunday in my 2013 Acura ILX to change things up a bit and see some new turf.

Instead of taking I-15 through Las Vegas as I usually do, I stayed far east of the city on two-lane back roads. Interstate travel can be so mindless and rudimentary. Next time you’re cruising a freeway at 75 miles per hour and worried about getting around that next 18-wheeler, consider taking a state highway sometime. I guarantee you’ll find that there are charming places to see and experience, even if it means slowing your pace a bit. Between Mesquite and Las Vegas, I took a detour from Interstate 15 at Exit 93 and headed south through the small towns of Logandale and Overton on Moapa Valley Boulevard, also known as Highway 169. My destination: Nevada’s oldest state park.

Valley of Fire State Park was named in 1935, but the formations in the park itself date back much, much farther into the past. In the age of the dinosaurs, the shifting of sand dunes resulted in the creation of dramatic red sandstone formations which have the appearance of being on fire in the sunlight. The park covers 42,000 acres which were once inhabited by ancient Pueblo peoples from 300 B.C. to 1150 A.D. Their petroglyphs can still be found in various places inside the park, remarkably well preserved.

It was about 7:45 in the morning when I arrived at the east entrance self-serve pay lot in the ILX. I exited the car and looked around me. I was standing in the middle of 360 degrees of gorgeousness. And not another person or car in sight. I paid $10 in an envelope and geared up my backpack for a short hike to Elephant Rock, the park’s most-photographed rock formation. I failed at finding it. Miserably. I was so focused on looking far in the distance for the rock formation that I didn’t realize I walked right past it! For a solid 45 minutes, I trudged through red sand in my sneakers in search of anything that looked remotely like Elephant Rock. Feeling defeated, I got back to the parking lot and continued my journey. But I’ll go back and conquer that rock formation for sure next time.

The rest of my visit to V.O.F. was a windows-down, spirited cruise in the ILX through some of the fun twisties. This kind of view (pictured below), I contend, is better than any front-row seat at a sporting event. It’s better than a view of a nighttime cityscape from an urban penthouse. It’s a panoramic view of the natural world in its colorful, untouched condition aside from an immaculate ribbon of blacktop cutting through it. I was in my element.

I took a right on Mouse’s Tank Road and headed to the White Dome Trailhead about 6 miles up the road. There were several dips in the road where floodwaters collect during rainy seasons, but they made some really fun rollercoaster-like ups and downs for my sport sedan.

After I’d had my fun, Highway 169 took me to the small town of Overton on the north shore of Lake Mead Reservoir. Lake Mead, by the way, is the largest reservoir in the United States. It covers 247 square miles of surface and holds 28 million acre-feet of water when filled to capacity! I weaved my way along the lake until arriving at a junction with Highway 93 and the rest of the drive was familiar territory. It was a phenomenal drive and I’m glad I took the time to experience Valley of Fire in all its glory! Below are the video and photos from the drive.

Morning departure from St. George, Utah

For once, went “old school” and used printed directions from Google Maps

Exiting I-15 in favor of roads that were far more scenic and exciting

Overton, Nevada. A town so small I wasn’t even able to find out its population.

But just a few miles beyond city limits: Home to the largest reservoir in the country.

Nearing my destination

Pull off the road for a quick pic? Don’t mind if I do.

I’m sorry, but what font is that where the “F” is capitalized and everything else isn’t?

Not another soul in sight.

Elephant Rock – 1/8 mile away. Should have been easy to spot, right?

Two or three miles later, I crossing a rickety metal bridge. Where was that darn rock?

Working up a sweat.

Onward to do some more exploration

Years and years of erosion have made the landforms into stunning shapes.

The Vistor Center looked like a McDonald’s, just without the golden arches.

“Look northwest.” Well, I tried that, and I still didn’t see Elephant Rock.

Displays inside the Visitor Center

Cruising up Mouse’s Tank

Like a playground

15 mph? C’mon. These hairpin curves beg for at least 25 when you’re in a car like the ILX.

Sights of the road

Moonroof open, sun streaming in

Next stop: Lake Mead

Las Vegas Bay – I wonder if there’s a slot machine to be found

Lake Mead in all its glory

That’s a wrap!

Check out Acura’s latest commercial: “Let the Race Begin.”

17 Comments »

SEMA Show 2013: ILX Trip to Las Vegas

Posted in Car Show, ILX, Nevada, Road Trip on November 8, 2013 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 527,770

Odometer (ILX): 58,970

Some people are never content to leave well enough alone. My brother Bentley is one of those. I don’t think he had put more than 500 miles on his then-new 2008 Ford F-250 pickup before he had the entire thing in pieces, awaiting suspension upgrades. “Stock” just wasn’t going to cut it. That’s why Bentley is exactly the type of automotive enthusiast who fits in at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. Vehicle upgrades & modifications are a big deal around there.

Products in this $27.8 billion-a-year industry include performance and racing components, cosmetic and functional accessories, wheels and tires, mobile electronics, safety products, restoration parts, handling equipment, drivetrain parts and more. The industry covers muscle cars, classics, luxury vehicles, sport compacts, street rods, light trucks (off-road and sport trucks) SUVs and recreational vehicles.

I took my Acura ILX to Sin City for the 2nd year in a row to see the latest. Last year, I got up close & personal with the ILX Thunderhill racecar and also the “Street Build” ILX finished in Fathom Blue. This year, the attractions were just as exciting.

Acura had 3 vehicles on display:

2014 RLX VIP Sedan
2014 RLX Urban Luxury Sedan
2014 ILX Street Performance

All 3 vehicles were very highly modified, but my focus was on the ILX.

MAD Industries put together this build. You can’t miss this car – its matte copper metallic 3M Scotchprint film screams for attention. Outside, the Acura OEM lip kit is paired with 19″ TSW Max wheels and high performance tires. MAD achieved an aggressive stance by dropping the ILX on Tein Super Street coilovers.

The “go factor” was enhanced by a supercharger from CT Engineering and an ECU tune with Hondata’s FlashPro, with a Greddy exhaust rounding out the package. This build is good for 250 wheel horsepower – an impressive gain over the stock 2.4 inline-4’s output.

Powertrain Modifications

CT Engineering supercharger kit
CT Engineering intake
Hondata FlashPro
Greddy SP Elite prototype exhaust
K&N high performance air filter
AMSOIL Dominator motor oil

Chassis/Suspension Modifications

19 x 8.5 TSW Max matte black wheels
245/35R-19 Nitto NT05 Max tires
Tein Super Street coilovers
Stoptech Big Brake kit
MPG custom satin black caliper covers

Look at that aggressive stance!

Would love to see this copper film “pop” in the daylight.

The back end has been accented by a contrasting color.

Enjoy the rest of the photo gallery below for my trip experience.

The city that never sleeps: Las Vegas is non-stop entertainment.

After catching some Z’s at the Mandalay Bay casino, I woke up to bright skies from the 18th floor.

My friends Rustin and Lance needed a lift to Planet Hollywood, but we swung past Excalibur for a quick picture. I think Excalibur is my favorite casino for its exterior design.

The “Strip” was remarkably quiet at 8:00 in the morning. Everyone who’d been out partying the night before was probably still in their hotel rooms crashed out.

I paid my $10 parking and walked a few blocks to the Las Vegas Convention Center on Paradise Road.

My identity, for today only, was that of my brother. He hooked me up with a “Buyer” entry pass. SEMA is open only to industry colleagues and not the public.

Here’s the entrance to one of 3 separate halls. We’re talking about thousands upon thousands of square feet of display space.

Inside, it was a circus.

The cars just got a little more wild with every turn. This Lexus IS is a highly modified 2014 model year car.

Tucked back into the Center Hall was the booth for Honda and Acura.

The booth was staffed by these fine folks from the company’s Torrance, California headquarters. Left to right: Tyson, Nina, Rey, John, and Randy. Nina saw the name on my entry badge and her first comment was, “You’ve taken on a stage name so nobody knows who you are!”

Here’s a unique ride. Anyone see the “Mean Mower” ad awhile back from Honda? You’re looking at a lawnmower that’s capable of 133 miles per hour and a 0-60 mph time of about 4 seconds. This is the type of rig that Tim Taylor from Home Improvement would be proud to own. MORE POWER!

Among the exciting things in the Honda booth was the 2014 Civic Si with its newly-revised design.

This awesome 6-speed Accord Coupe was finely tuned with goodies from Honda Performance Development.

My friend Erik flew all the way out from Madison, Wisconsin for SEMA. He runs the Project 130R website which is a great resource for Acura Legend owners and more.

The trio of Acuras lined the far wall in the convention hall but saw plenty of foot traffic throughout the day.

My favorite car on display was this stunning “VIP” Acura RLX.

Quad exhaust tips from an Evasive Motorsports exhaust system provide rumble to this refined luxury sedan.

21″ AVS Model F15 wheels and a Tein coilover suspension give this RLX a mean, custom look.

This is an extensive project, with even the brakes having been upgraded. For more pictures, check out the gallery on Acura Connected.

Can I have the keys?

On my 5-hour return trip to Phoenix today, I took a moment to pit-stop in Boulder City, Nevada for a bite to eat with my good friend Jessie who’s driving a Chevy Sonic LTZ these days.

The ILX got me home safe and sound, and with amazing fuel economy to boot. In the 615 miles since I filled up on my way to Las Vegas yesterday in Wickenburg, Arizona, it’s averaged 35.2 miles per gallon.

Thanks for coming along to the show!

10 Comments »

SEMA Show Recap

Posted in ILX, Nevada, Road Trip on November 4, 2012 by tysonhugie

Odometer (ILX): 18,367

Two million square feet of automotive accessory exhibits. Can you imagine how crazy I was to think I could experience all that the SEMA show had to offer in just one day? Not happening! But, I did have the chance to see the “core” booths that I had most looked forward to visiting. Among them, the Acura booth. If I’d gone all that way and seen nothing BUT the Acura booth, my trip still would’ve been a great success. In only 4 days since my most recent Drive to Five update last week, the ILX and I traveled 964 miles from Phoenix Arizona, to southern Nevada and southern Utah. Here is how the adventure played out. Be advised, there are a ton of pictures in here!

I arrived in Las Vegas after the 300 mile drive on Thursday evening. The 4,750-room, 45-floor Wynn casino is where I stayed the next two nights. There’s even a Ferrari dealership inside the main level near the gaming area! This is truly a high rolling kind of place. My friend found a great rate when he booked it way back in February. View from the hotel room at the Wynn (and my reflection!):

The Las Vegas Convention Center which hosted SEMA is just a few blocks from the hotel (and visible in the above picture), but after having walked a few miles on the Strip on Thursday night, I wasn’t about to do any more hiking. On Friday morning, we drove over in the ILX and left it in a $10 parking space while we wandered with wonder through as much of the SEMA show as we could possibly see.

Thanks to my brother for allowing me his entry pass!

Arriving at the convention center.

After a solid 20 minutes of hunting (and trying to decipher a 4-page SEMA directory) I finally found the Acura booth, #24987, right behind the Honda one.

Matt and I acting like we run the place, behind the Acura Concierge counter.

What do you spy in the background here?

That’s right, the star of the Avengers movie: Tony Stark’s car.

It drew a ton of crowd attention!

But the cars I was more interested in seeing were modified Acura ILX’s.

This one is going to compete at a 25-hour endurance race called Thunderhill. It’s been built by Team Honda Racing – West, which is based in Santa Clarita, California.

No heated seats or leather in here! This car is all about weight savings & speed.

The bars on the hood are high power LED lights for nighttime racing.

The Thunderhill “Endurance Racer” is a sweet ride, but it’s the blue “Street Build” ILX is the one that has me wanting to make some modifications to my car. Pictures do the car no justice; it’s absolutely stunning in person. The upgraded Tein Coilover suspension alone runs $874! Well out of my budget reach for now — which is probably a good thing, because if I did anything with my suspension it’d void the car’s warranty anyway. Here’s a walkaround video of this gorgeous Fathom Blue ride.

I reconnected with Daniel Yong who works in Auto Accessory Marketing at Acura’s Torrance headquarters. The last time I had seen Daniel was in June when I got my ILX.

Some other goodies in the Honda area. 2013 Accords, all tricked out.

There were some interactive displays.

Here’s the race-ready Honda Fit that Acura Senior Manager of Public Relations, Sage Marie, took first place in recently. He participated in the SCCA National Championship Runoffs in the B-Spec class.

Some other sights from around the show.

Loved this Lexus LF-CC coupe concept car.

Ran into my friend John Bazay who’s helped me with some photography in the past. John was working the Giovanna wheels booth.

Nice name for a transmission company!

There was a drifting event going on outside.

Fighting traffic on Las Vegas Blvd (“The Strip”) after leaving the convention center. Thank goodness for a light-effort clutch!

On Saturday, I set my sights on southern Utah for my next destination. A birthday party and a wedding reception awaited me there. But I took a moment to snap a shot of the ILX in front of the Trump tower and the Encore casino – adjacent to Wynn.

On my way out of Las Vegas, I had to pay a visit to my friend Jeff. It’s hard to believe it, but I’ve known this guy nearly a decade now and we met — you guessed it — through Acura. Back in 2003, I was driving my 1994 Legend coupe and Jeff was driving a 1993 Legend coupe. We met at a Las Vegas Acura “meet” and have kept in touch ever since. This picture of us with our Legends was taken in July 2003. That year, Jeff traded his in in Legend on an Acura CL.

Here are our current rides. Jeff’s Nighthawk Black Pearl 2003 Acura CL Type-S is a rare 6-speed manual (one of only 480 vehicles produced in this color & transmission configuration). It’s also equipped with some highly sought-after Comptech upgrades under the hood. His car today is at 92,300 miles. Thanks to his meticulous care, it looks and runs as great now as it did back then. Even the leather interior is supple.

I encouraged Jeff to take the ILX for a spin so we took a test drive with his son Cody. Jeff observed that the slick-shifting 6-speed felt a lot like his CL but the clutch effort was quite a bit less. He liked the small diameter, thickly padded steering wheel. His son Cody was impressed that the ILX comes standard with push-button start and said, “I really like this interior!” Cody also offered to wash my car, which I respectfully declined since I had places to go and more bugs to kill. Next time, Cody! I’ll take you up on that offer.

The drive from Vegas to St. George is only about 100 miles and it’s straight freeway. Boring! In Mesquite, Nevada, I decided to detour a bit. Instead of taking I-15 the remaining 40 or so miles, I instead took my ILX on Old Highway 91 — the road that was the main north-south highway before completion of I-15 through the Virgin River Gorge in 1973. I love taking a step back in time and traveling the old roads because they offer so much more “flavor” to a trip than an interstate.

It would’ve been only 38.9 miles had I taken the freeway.

Instead, it was 47.1 miles and took quite a bit longer.

Narrow bridge on old Hwy 91.

About halfway to St. George, I breezed past some old rusted-out car hulks in a ditch alongside the road. I was intrigued so I turned around and went back for a few pictures.

Amazingly, even the chrome rear bumper on this car is still shining like new.

Can any of my Drive to Five readers identify these cars? I’m guessing something from the early 1950’s.

Time has truly taken its toll on these.

Onward I go! Here are a few other pictures from my backroads adventure.

See how much more fun this is than a freeway?

Upon arrival in Utah, I approached approached the Jacob Hamblin home on the outskirts of Santa Clara. Jacob was one of the more famous Mormon pioneers who settled the area in the 1800’s. Tours of his home are offered but I didn’t have time for much more than a picture of the ILX in front of this two story home made of adobe, sandstone, and ponderosa pine which dates back to 1863. Hamblin only lived in the home until 1869 until he set off for some missionary work and never returned. The home is in remarkable shape for its pioneer era vintage.

Since I was still feeling in a historic mood, this morning after breakfast I swung by Judd’s Store. This place has been around since 1911 and is still open today. They have some of the best breadsticks around!

Another “key” structure in the St. George community is the Mormon temple, which was constructed from 1871 to 1877 under direction of church president Brigham Young. The temple has a total floor area of 110,000 square feet. Its exterior finish is red sandstone (native to the area) which has been plastered white. The building and its grounds are immaculately maintained. Hard to believe it’s over 135 years old!

Just past the Arizona state line lies an exit called Black Rock Road. There’s nothing there, except for this one building that’s totally boarded up. This sign welcomes (and warns) visitors. Needless to say, I didn’t venture inside the structure!

Hopping back on Interstate 15 southbound which would lead me through the Virgin River Gorge.

And home sweet home in Scottsdale I’ve arrived. Thanks for following along!

EDIT updated 11/5/2012: I can’t believe it took me until now to realize I posted this entry on the one-year anniversary of my completion of 500,000 miles! It was one year ago, on 11/4/2011, when I rolled on the red carpet at Acura headquarters in Torrance, California to celebrate the milestone in my 1994 Legend.

I appreciate all of you who have come along for the ride since then. Here’s to many more miles of fun!

12 Comments »

Car of the Year Contender & Vegas Voyage

Posted in ILX, Nevada on October 31, 2012 by tysonhugie

Odometer (Legend): 516,653

Odometer (ILX):

Happy Halloween! It’s trip time here. I’m off yet again tomorrow to Sin City (AKA Las Vegas, Nevada) for a few days of car-related fun. On Friday I’ll attend the SEMA show at the Las Vegas Convention Center. My ILX knows this 309-mile drive well as we’ve done it a number of times already this year.

This year’s SEMA show promises to have some great features, including some souped-up Acura ILX’s. A press release distributed on Tuesday gives us a sneak peek at the “Street Build” car that will be on display.

Specifications:

Company Name: Evasive Motorsports
Name of Vehicle: 2013 Acura ILX Street Build
Powertrain Modifications: CT Engineering supercharger kit, CT Engineering intake, Hondata FlashPro, Greddy SP Elite prototype exhaust
Chassis/Suspension Modifications: 19 x 8.5 (+45 offset) Volk G25 wheels, 235/35ZR-19 Pirelli P Zero tires, Tein Street Advance Coilovers, Stoptech big brake kit, Evasive Motorsports corner balance and alignment
Exterior Modifications: Acura Genuine Accessories front underbody spoiler, Acura Genuine Accessories side underbody spoiler, Acura Genuine Accessories rear underbody spoiler, Acura Genuine Accessories deck lid spoiler, Acura Genuine Accessories body side molding, Rays Dura-Nuts lug nuts, S&A Design vinyl stickers
Interior Modifications: CT Engineering short-shift kit, Acura Genuine Accessories illuminated door sill, Acura Genuine Accessories trunk tray

Can’t wait to take a peek!

Weather (at least on this side of the country!) has been prime the last couple of weeks so I’ve taken advantage of every opportunity to get the cars out. Friday after work I took a quick jaunt up Arizona Hwy 87 toward Payson with the moonroof open and rear windows down in the coupe. Lots of saguaro cacti out that way!

Car of the Year & ILX News

Acura has known how to build quality cars for a long time now. The original Legend coupe which debuted in 1987 took home the title of Import Car of the Year. Now, 25 years later the 2013 Acura ILX is in the running for Motor Trend’s highly coveted Car of the Year title. Read up on it here.

I’ve had a blast with my ILX since I got the keys in mid June, and my friends know how much I love showing the car off. My buddy Nick works graveyard shift for a local towing company and was sure to let me know when he’d found his first ILX victim this week! D’oh! To the unlucky new ILX owner in Tempe – keep an eye on those parking restrictions!

The ILX movement is catching on, and it’s fun to see the enthusiast community grow. Facebook ILX Owners group member Luke from Columbus, Ohio just picked up this beautiful Crystal Black Pearl 6-speed.

Check out this new ILX commercial demonstrating the car’s abilities to read text messages, a feature I experimented with awhile back.

Aaron’s New Ride

Finally, I’m sending some well-deserved congratulations to my good friend Aaron on today’s purchase of his 2013 Audi S5. I had the privilege of shuttling Aaron from central Phoenix to Audi of Chandler tonight where his 333-horsepower, “Monsoon Gray” sports coupe awaited delivery.

The Acura feels a bit out of place in this parking lot but still proudly shows off its innovative design.

Aaron’s car as it awaited him in the “Delivery Area.”

And getting some hands-on training from the salesperson.

Since I had a bit of time to kill while Aaron took care of paperwork, I watched another gentleman take delivery of the below car, a 2013 Audi A8L. This monster is a 500-horsepower, 463 lb-ft of torque luxo-ride powered by a W12 motor. The pricetag? Only $154,000.

I watched with a bit of wonder as the salesperson showed the new owner, a boots-wearing cowboy from Tucson, a special feature that assists closure of the front doors and “sucks” them in once they are lightly closed. I didn’t have the heart to tell the guy that my 18-year-old Legend had that same feature in 1994, and Acura called it “Active Door Strikers.” Didn’t want to spoil his fun.

🙂

Finally, the customary key handoff and send-off!

Aaron’s making a huge upgrade from his black A4 and promised the salesperson he’d keep the speeds reasonable as he got acquainted with his new ride.

34 miles and just a baby.

Aaron let me drive his car back from our celebratory dinner, and I must say it was one sweet ride. The flat-bottomed steering wheel was one of my favorite features. As much as I’m not usually a fan of automatic transmissions, this one is a 7-speed dual-clutch unit and actually is quite fun to drive!

Safe travels to all this weekend and make every mile Legendary.

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Sin City

Posted in ILX, Legend, Nevada, Road Trip on May 30, 2012 by tysonhugie

Odometer: 513,556

Looking pretty good tonight since I washed & waxed it on Saturday morning! This is my kind of parking lot. Empty.

The Legend took a chill pill in the garage while I traveled the 287 miles to Las Vegas, Nevada over the weekend with some friends. There’s no interstate connecting Phoenix and Las Vegas (yet) but the highway system is always getting better and it’s a straight shot up Hwy 93 for the most part. The city was bustling with Memorial Day tourists like myself.

Las Vegas is a destination that my Acura has visited frequently in the 9 years I’ve owned it. For the first couple of years, I would regularly travel about 100 miles each way from where I was living in southwest Utah to have my oil changes done at Falconi’s Acura. It was a long drive just to have car maintenance taken care of, but without a true Acura dealership in the community (though, we did have Honda) I welcomed the chance to road-trip.

In fact, Falconi’s Acura was the first place I had my car serviced after I bought it. Here’s the receipt from when they worked on the car at just 97,008 miles on the odometer, back in April, 2003.

I’ve been through Vegas a number of times with the Legend over the years.

In October 2006, I took this series of pictures while I was rolling through there on my way from Utah to Arizona. My car had the 19″ Racing Hart wheels installed at the time. I still have these wheels but they need tires so I haven’t used them much.

Mandalay Bay and Luxor casinos in the background

Excalibur

New York, New York

Las Vegas hosted the 3rd annual National Acura Legend Meet (NALM) in 2007. About 25 Legends congregated at the Falconi’s dealership for a photoshoot as part of the event’s festivities. I had traveled with a caravan of 5 other Acura fanatics from the PHX area.

These people are like family to me! We all share a love of a great automobile.

Luxor in the background at night. My car was in the foreground with the 19″ wheels again.

And a shot from yesterday with my friends before we departed. The famous “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign has been a landmark at the south end of Las Vegas Boulevard (“The Strip”) since 1959. I’ve always wanted to stage my Acura in front of it for a picture but never had the chance.

Rustin, Tyson, Brady, Beau. These guys just roll their eyes at my Acura obsession!

Summer’s heating up and Acura’s got a smokin’ new ride in dealerships that you may start seeing on the road. The 2013 ILX is now on sale!

Here are a few more pictures I took at the National Press Launch event in Scottsdale, Arizona when I got some firsthand experience with this car.

Pictured below are: My friend Chuck’s ultra low-mileage 6-speed Legend coupe, which I’ve talked about before, parked next to a 2nd generation Acura TL and this new Crimson Garnet 2013 ILX that I was driving at the event. The newest member of the family fits right in!

Another fun color that’s all-new for model year 2013: Fathom Blue. The picture doesn’t do it justice. This car is stunning!

Check out the Build & Price utility on Acura.com if you want to customize an ILX of your own.

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