drivetofive

Odometer (Legend):  514,705

Odometer (ILX):  4,616

Celebration time!  Tomorrow (Tuesday, July 10th)  marks the 4 week anniversary of the day that I took the key to my new car from John Watts of Acura Digital Marketing when it had just 16 miles on the odometer.

Since that time, the ILX has been driven exactly 4,600 miles.

I’ve spent 92 hours, 16 minutes behind the wheel.

And the car has averaged 31.3 miles per gallon.

“Alex” the ILX scampered all the way to Idaho and back over the last several days.  The plan of attack looked something like this:

As we near 5,000 miles, the 2013 ILX is already proving itself a capable, comfortable alternative (can’t say replacement!) to the old Legend.  Even after subjecting the car to an 11-hour drive yesterday it wouldn’t phase me to hop in the driver’s seat and do the same drive again today.  The ILX demonstrated power on the steep grades, ample entertainment for the many hours of driving, and better-than-advertised fuel economy.  I’d say based on my experience so far, this car’s a winner.  Here’s a photo essay of where my Independence Day travels took me.

First rainstorm in the new car, northbound on Hwy 93 on the morning of July 4, 2012.  So much for that immaculate undercarriage!

Wikieup, Arizona.  “Eat at Joe’s” BBQ.  I’ve always wanted to try the grub but never had time!

Bluetooth – figured it out!  First call was to my friend Linh who said she could hear me loud and clear.  I also figured out how to play music from my iPhone through the car’s stereo system without using the USB cable.  Pretty slick design here.

Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  Home to “Midnight Mayhem” drag races that I used to attend frequently.

Hopping back on Interstate 15 after a fuel up.

There are a couple sections of rural central Utah where speed limits are a generous 80 mph.  The ILX is around 3,400 RPM at that speed but doesn’t drone or give the driver a headache, thanks to its extensive sound deadening.

Pit stop for fuel in Beaver, Utah.  Home to 2,400 people and an outlet store for Cache Valley Cheese.  Anyone like cheese curd as much as I do?

Approaching Nephi, Utah on Interstate 15.

My favorite trucks.  Have YOU had your Tyson today?

And finally among the Wasatch Mountain Range in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Honey, I shrunk my ILX!  Perched on the rooftop of my friend Branson’s house with Marcus and Matt in Salt Lake City, we had a nice vantage point of my parking space out front.  We scouted out locations to watch that evening’s fireworks.

I connected with my friend Jeff who was visiting Salt Lake from Alberta, Canada and we decided to do a little (okay, a lot of) hiking.  “Mount Timpanogos” looms 11,749 feet above the Utah Valley.  Ambitious hikers can access the summit via a 14-mile round-trip hike.  Jeff and I took along our other friend Devin and ventured out from the trailhead (elevation 6,900 feet) with our eyes on the prize.

It wasn’t long until we were right among the cascading waterfalls caused by spring run-off.  Truly spectacular sights & sounds.

But about 45 minutes into our elevation gain, a steady drizzle turned into a full-fledged rainstorm.  Coupled with the cold wind (there’s still snow in the ground at this elevation!), slippery mud/rocks, and our lack of adequate rain gear, we quickly learned that this would be a challenge.  We did still press on!

In the end we in fact did not reach the summit, but we did reach a small stone shelter built in 1959 at Emerald Lake, at elevation 10,380 feet after about 2 1/2 hours.  By that time, my clothes and backpack were soaked all the way through, my shoes were a muddy/squishy mess, and I was absolutely freezing.  The cloud cover kept us from being able to see much of a view from up there, unfortunately.  But my screaming leg muscles told me we must have been pretty high up!  The descent went much faster for us.

A great hike that I highly recommend if you’re ever near the Provo, Utah area and feeling outdoorsy.  But remember to take a rain poncho if there’s any mention at all of rain in the forecast.

I took the opportunity later that afternoon to head to Logan, Utah in the ILX.  One of my favorite scenic drives of all time is through Sardine Canyon which runs from Brigham City to Logan.  Fall colors there are simply unmatched, and I vow to go back later this year to capture some of them with my camera.  I did pull off Highway 89/91 for a few pictures of the ILX in the green hills.

Finally, arrival at Grandma’s house and a “traditional” lap around her yard.

Logan is also home to 14,000 students attending Utah State University – home of the Aggies.  I graduated as a proud USU student in December 2005 from the university’s Business program.  A painted-over drive-in movie theater at the south end of town pays tribute to the university.

On campus at the “Old Main” building which dates back to 1890 when the university was called “Agricultural College of Utah.”

Kid tested, mother approved.  Mom took the wheel of the ILX for a test-drive around the neighborhood and seemed right at home rowing through the gears.

The next morning it was time for a bath.  An exciting discovery awaited me when I went to pull the car into the garage from its steep driveway parking space.  This car actually has a feature that prevents it from rolling backward unintentionally when starting off from a stop!  I tested it out a few times.  It’s an ingenious idea that keeps the driver from having to do the whole clutch-brake-clutch fancy feet move to keep from rolling back.

I wasn’t content to be THIS close (only 20 miles!) to Idaho without making a little jaunt north of the border, so my mom and I set off in the ILX on Friday for a little adventure.  Many of my readers are probably familiar with the 2004 film “Napoleon Dynamite” about a nerdy high schooler.  The movie was filmed in the tiny 5,000 population town of Preston Idaho in southeastern Idaho, so my mom and I made a pilgrimage to check it out.

Idaho joins Arizona, Utah, Nevada, and California on the list of visited states for the ILX.

After some help from Google, we found out the address to the home used in the movie.  A dirt road didn’t stop us from taking the ILX the rest of the way there.

And, our arrival.  The home looks exactly the same today as it did in the movie 8 years ago.

Unfortunately, though, there was no pet llama “Tina” on the property as was seen in the film.

Here’s one of my favorite scenes from the movie.

Saturday it was time to attend the Cache Valley Cruise-In car show which has become a tradition for my family in Logan, Utah.  The show draws over 1,000 cars each year and is always held on or around the 4th of July.

I happened across this high-mileage beauty:  a 1963 Corvette proudly driven by its original owner, Steve Stone.  His Corvette has a story as exciting as my old Legend does!  Steve’s hit the 48 lower U.S. states as well as 11 Canadian provinces in his car.  I chatted with him for several minutes about his 487,000 miles of travels and wish I could have stayed longer to learn more.  This is a guy I can relate to!

In other high mileage news:  If you haven’t already heard the story of Irvin Gordon and you’re a high mileage car buff, take note.  His 3 million mile quest in his 1966 Volvo inspires us all!  Makes my measly little 500,000 mile achievement seem like not such a big deal!  Here’s the article.

S’mores around a campfire in Logan Canyon finished off the evening last Saturday.

The return trip to Phoenix was long but fun.  Mantua, Utah is a little community nestled in Sardine Canyon.

For the 727-mile SLC-PHX leg of the trip, I had a co-driver.  This picture was taken in the Virgin River Gorge on southbound Interstate 15 which to this day is one of the most expensive stretches of interstate ever — thanks to the extensive work it took to carve the road through the canyon.

Just beyond Hoover Dam at 4,526 miles on the odometer, we had a warning come up on the display indicating a loose fuel cap.  We double checked the cap and it was tight (clicked), so we shut the car off & restarted it to see if the problem reset.  It did.

And a parting shot from last night’s sunset on Hwy 93 southbound with Matt at the wheel.  Arizona sunsets just never seem to get old.

The ILX continues demonstrating its abilities as a great road-tripper and strikes a great balance between being fun to drive, yet not wearing out its driver on an all-day trip.

My experience thus far is best summed up with the reaction of an onlooker after I pulled in for fuel at Chevron in Salt Lake City on Saturday:  “Oh my GOSH that car is so gorgeous!  Is it a 2013!?”  I told her that yes, it’s a 2013, and no, she couldn’t have it!   I’m having way too much fun with the new ride.

Odometer (Legend):  514,200

Odometer (ILX):  1,275

She’s broken in!  The ILX has made its first trip to my homeland in Utah.  I traveled north from Phoenix, Arizona to visit my family for the Father’s Day weekend and fully enjoyed getting acquainted with my new car.  Here’s my trip report along with some driving impressions of the new ride.

Roadways were pretty empty during my departure early on Saturday.  Highway 74, the Carefree Highway, winds through the Arizona desert lined with Joshua trees that made for a nice backdrop as I pulled over for some sunrise pictures.

It wasn’t long until I passed a milestone at 500 miles on the odometer.

Much of the drive to Utah consists of two lane divided highways that climb through the desert.  There was little traffic.

And XM Radio to keep me company.  This quality song gave me a good chance to blast the 7-speaker Premium Audio System.

As I did with my Legend, I’ll track which states the ILX gets to roll through.  I’ve already crossed Arizona, Nevada, and Utah off the list thanks to this weekend’s trip.  Just before getting to the Nevada state line from Arizona, Highway 93 crosses through the Lake Mead Recreation Area.

Below is the Nevada state line, as Highway 93 in Arizona curves up and over the Colorado River just downstream of Hoover Dam via the Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge which was completed in 2010.  This bridge looms a whopping 900 feet above the river below and spans the canyon over 1,000 feet wide.  It is an engineering wonder for sure and worth checking out if you’re ever in the area.

Arizona state line, as Interstate 15 crosses back over the northwestern corner of the state.  I’ve taken pictures in this area before.

And finally on into southwestern Utah, also known as “Utah’s Dixie” due to the area’s heritage as a cotton-growing community for the Mormon pioneers who settled here in the 1800’s.

The landscape here in southern Utah, unlike that of the northern part of the state, consists of desert vistas much like Arizona.

There’s a curvy one-lane loop in Pioneer Park in St. George, Utah that offers a prime place to evaluate handling performance of a sport minded car like the ILX.  This spot has been one of my favorites to visit since I bought my Legend almost a decade ago and put together a little video on this stretch of road with the assistance of a Sticky Pod camera mount.  I figured it was fitting that I take the new ILX there to give it a proper induction.

Even my little nephew Beckam can appreciate those leather seats.  He’ll be driving a 6-speed as soon as he can reach those pedals, I’m sure.

My brother and niece were checking out the car, too.  They gave approval!  Here’s a taste of OCD that some might appreciate:  You’ll notice I actually left the plastic on the sun visors that came with the car from the Indiana factory.  I’ve since pulled the covers off but it was a fun way to show my family just how “fresh” this car really is.

I paid a visit to my friend Buck who drives a 2002 Acura RSX 6-speed a color that’s not unlike my Silver Moon.  We decided that our cars definitely share a brotherly resemblance and sporty demeanor.

Today’s drive back to Phoenix after the weekend’s family activities was fairly adventurous.  My friend Greg and his son Cody needed a ride to Phoenix so that they could pick up a couple of vehicles that Greg had purchased at auction.  I was happy to provide shuttle service so the 3 of us piled into the ILX and headed for the hills.

Rather than back-track through Las Vegas, we decided to take the scenic route through Flagstaff, Arizona.  So on the following map from point “B” to point “C” – we were on the right hand side of the circle this time.  My entire weekend was a giant loop circling the Grand Canyon as illustrated:

Highway 89A climbs from 722 feet in elevation to about 8,000 feet in a matter of about 20 miles to the summit at Jacob Lake.  This is the kind of road where true driving experience can be enjoyed.  I blasted up the side of mountain mostly in 4th and 5th gears.  For most of the drive we opened the moonroof and enjoyed the temperatures which were quite a bit cooler than at the valley floor.

Quick photo-op among the fresh smelling pines.  It made us all wish we’d brought tents and had a couple of days to camp!

And yet another milestone comes to pass.

Back seat must’ve been comfy – Cody was able to catch some Z’s.

After descending 89A, we got back into the red rock country called Vermillion Cliffs, a spectacular “suburb” of the Grand Canyon with very little traffic and the type of landscape you’d expect to see in an old Western movie.  Greg and I posed for a quick picture.

Just a little bit down the road we encountered the Lee’s Canyon Ferry, named after John D. Lee who first operated this river crossing in the 1800’s.  The ferry became obsolete in 1928 when the bridge that I’m standing on in the following picture was completed.  And that bridge has now been bypassed by yet another bridge to the south which is much wider to accommodate today’s automobile traffic.

Standing in the middle of the bridge and looking northward, it’s truly an inspiring sight.  This location is the official start of the Grand Canyon.

Saddled back up in in the ILX we finished our trek through the wild west and had lunch in historic downtown Flagstaff, Arizona.

From there it was a straight shot home to Phoenix via I-17.

So what’s the verdict on this new ride after spending a weekend in the driver’s seat?

Bottom line:  This car is a worthy road tripper.

The ILX handling is very tight.  Even slight input to the steering wheel is quickly transferred to the road.  The car felt “grippy” – almost like it had AWD.  There was little to no body roll on some of the curves at Jacob Lake including a banked hairpin at the base of the mountain that’s posted at 15 mph (presumably for high profile vehicles and camp trailers) and I was able to take at nearly 45 comfortably – just testing the limits of the car.  But even with sporty handling, I got home today after 7 hours in the car and did not feel exhausted.

First impressions left me with remarkably few things about the ILX that I “didn’t” like, and most of these are more related to my unfamiliarity with the car and will likely not be as much of an issue as I spend more time with it.  To keep this blog an objective view for anyone who’s considering looking at this car, I thought these were worthwhile things to bring up.

• During a long drive, I like to rest my hand while holding the bottom of the steering wheel, but this only works on a 4-spoke steering wheel and not a 3-spoke like the ILX has.  Another thing on my wish list might be cruise control buttons that are lower on the wheel.
• As a safety measure, the car continually tries to lock its doors when I’m driving.  I’d like to keep doors unlocked the whole time so that when I exit the car and need to get something out of the back seat, I don’t have to hit the unlock button again.
• I wish the driver’s door had a pocket long enough for my day planner (yes, I’m old fashioned and still use one), and I’m still trying to decide the best place to stow my sunglasses.
• The chrome trim around the center console (surrounding the shift knob as well as the 2 cupholders) looks great from a design perspective but when caught at just the right angle with the sun (which happened a few times) reflects sunlight directly into the driver’s face.  Something small that could probably be overcome by a different type of finish on the trim pieces.

ILX strong points that I loved, which by far outweighed any negatives – in random order:

• Power.  This car is a 4 cylinder and has 29 hp fewer than I’m used to having at my command.  However, it revs quite a bit higher than my Legend did.  80 mph means the engine is turning about 3,400 RPM.  On some steep grades between Wickenburg and Wikieup on northbound Highway 93, I didn’t have to downshift.  The car held speed in 6^th with cruise control activated which was impressive.  I also exposed the ILX to some highway speed passing situations today on Hwy 89 north of Flagstaff and it quickly got up to speed and allowed me to maneuver easily around the slow pokes.
• Cupholders!  Two of them in the center console, and one in each of the front doors.  Why I never!  First car I’ve ever owned with a cupholder.  Sounds silly but coming from someone who’s missed out on this luxury, it’s a welcome feature.
• XM Radio.  I never thought I’d be a believer, but between the 4 or 5 stations which quickly became my favorites, I was able to stay entertained for the entire drive without even needing to plug in my iPod.  For any who are wondering, I highly recommend “80’s on 8” and “Blue Collar Comedy” (channel 97).
• Tilt Moonroof.  Super nice for getting some ventilation without having to slide the roof open.
• Turn Signal Feature.  Discovery I made:  When you “blip” the lever just slightly and release, it’ll signal 3 times without having to hold the lever in place.  Very handy for lane changes.
• Smart Key Access.  I can walk up to the locked car with just the fob in my pocket, it unlocks for me.  What I’m still struggling with is where to keep the key.  I find myself so used to taking the key OUT of my pocket that most of the time I still do.  I’ve been storing it in the cup holder area while I drive.
• Gas Mileage.  The ILX has averaged 30.6 mpg in its 1275 miles of life.  I’d say this car’s had mostly highway exposure.  The gauge is way more accurate than the one in my Legend (which would hover around “full” forever, and then dump speedily toward empty as soon as it hit ½ tank).  I like how the information center in the ILX gauge cluster tells me at a glance my average as well as instantaneous MPG.
• Accessory Power Outlet.  It’s inside the center console – a lot easier place to run the cord for a cell phone charger than if it had been mounted to the dash.
• Space – Leg and Head.  One complaint I had about the Legend was how “shallow” the footwells were.  I’m 5’11” and found myself with plenty of space to stretch legs in the ILX.
• Visibility.  The driver’s point of view in the car is high and blind spots are fairly easily overcome.
• Auto Up/Down Windows.  Both front windows are automatic up/down.  My Legend had only the driver’s side.  Though, I haven’t yet rolled around much with windows down for a couple of reasons:  (1)  It’s too dang hot outside, and (2) Why would I want to let my “new car smell” escape?
• Back-Up Camera.  I don’t think I’ve ever aced a reverse parking job quite as well as I did last night with the assistance of the guidelines on the camera screen.
• Foot Pedals.  I love driving barefoot in a stick shift!  The race inspired sport pedals on the ILX actually feel like they’re giving my feet a massage as I’m rowing through the gears.
• Exhaust Note.  I’ve had 3 friends this week ask me if I’d had some special tuning done with the exhaust system to give it a little more “growl.”  I’ve explained to them that the car is in fact stock and it left the Indiana factory just as-is.

You’ll remember that I had the privilege of meeting Chief Acura Designer, Jon Ikeda, a couple of months ago to talk to him about the ILX design language.  I followed up with Jon via email and included some pictures to let him know that I’m now the proud driver of an ILX.  Jon’s response to my email included some sound advice.  Following is his reply (pasted verbatim):

Hello Tyson,

Car pics look great. Only one thing left…..Enjoy!

Regards,
Jon Ikeda

Couldn’t have said it better myself.  I’m without a doubt following his counsel as I have a blast with this new ride.  Until next time!