Acura has been comparatively late to the sport by way of EV adoption. However at this time that adjustments with the debut of the 2024 ZDX, the posh automaker’s first full EV. The brand new ZDX boasts a trendy design and a high-end cabin, in addition to vary and efficiency specs that make it an instantaneous competitor in opposition to the BMW and Mercedes-Benz EVs of the world – a minimum of on paper.
Sharing a GM Ultium platform with the Chevrolet Blazer EV, the bottom ZDX A-Spec makes use of a 102.0-kilowatt-hour battery pack and is available in both a single- or dual-motor configuration. The bottom ZDX has 340 horsepower and an estimated 325 miles of vary with the single-motor setup, falling to 315 miles of vary with the dual-motor format.
The ZDX has a DC quick charging price of 190 kilowatts, which implies you’ll be able to recoup as much as 81 miles in as little as 10 minutes. And Acura guarantees complete residence charging options will probably be out there through a brand new Acura Dwelling Electrification web site that connects ZDX homeowners with native installers.
On the high quality is the ZDX Kind S, which earns the title of “strongest Acura SUV ever” with a 500-hp, dual-motor setup. It makes use of the identical 102.0-kWh battery pack as the bottom ZDX A-Spec, and even with all that energy, the Kind S nonetheless has an estimated 288 miles of vary.
Acura guarantees a “close to” 50/50 weight distribution for the ZDX platform as a complete, with efficiency upgrades particular to the Kind S starting from an adjustable air suspension with performance-tuned adaptive dampers to fifteen.6-inch, six-piston Brembo brakes with yellow-painted calipers on the entrance wheels. The ZDX Kind S will also have a high-performance summer season tire choice with a gloss black wheel.
Visually, the brand new ZDX isn’t some redux of the unique lifted fastback from 2010 – for higher or worse. As an alternative, it has a extra conventional SUV form with a gloss black roof, 20- or 22-inch wheels relying on the trim, and a entrance fascia impressed by the Acura Precision EV idea.
Acura’s Diamond Pentagon grille highlights the entrance finish with a 3D embossed diamond sample and an illuminated encompass, whereas fashionable Jewel Eye headlights adorn both aspect of the grille joined by signature LED daytime operating lights beneath.
And consumers can choose from a bevy of lovely paint jobs to coat the outside of their ZDX. The brand new Double Apex Blue Pearl from the Precision EV carries over to manufacturing, whereas the Kind S mannequin brings with it the signature Tiger Eye Pearl paint, which can also be out there on the flagship variations of the TLX, MDX, and Integra.
By way of sizing, the ZDX is 197.7 inches lengthy and 77.0 inches huge, which makes it only a contact smaller than the gas-powered MDX (198.4 inches lengthy / 78.7 inches huge). However its battery platform provides it a considerably longer wheelbase; 121.8 inches right here in comparison with simply 113.8 inches on the MDX. And that extra-long platform means extra house within the cabin – which guarantees to be a stunning place to take a seat.
The ZDX has a driver-oriented cockpit with an 11.0-inch digital instrument cluster and an 11.3-inch touchscreen with a brand new Google consumer interface. That features Google Assistant and superior Google Maps that come loaded with EV-specific options like instantaneous battery preconditioning when the vacation spot is a DC quick charging station. That setup additionally consists of customary wi-fi Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, not like its Ultium platform-mate Chevrolet Blazer EV.
The ZDX may also be the primary Acura to have an ordinary immersive Bang & Olufsen audio system with as much as 14 distinct amplification channels. That setup consists of 18 audio system – together with 4 within the headliner – and a subwoofer.
An AcuraWatch security suite will probably be customary on all ZDX fashions with entrance and rear emergency braking, blind spot monitoring with steering help, and a rear pedestrian alert. Transfer as much as the Kind S mannequin to unlock the brand new AcuraWatch 360+ hands-free driver help. Akin to GM Tremendous Cruise or Ford Blue Cruise, AcuraWatch 360+ permits for hands-free driving on as much as 400,000 miles of suitable roads and comes with one other first: an automated parking assistant.
The Acura ZDX begins manufacturing subsequent 12 months and consumers will be capable of get into their vehicles by the tip of 2024. The ZDX begins at “round” $60,000, whereas the Kind S mannequin will price $70,000. Examine that to the MDX, which begins at $51,045 with vacation spot and asks $67,895, and the ZDX is available in at just a few grand pricier in each respects than its gasoline counterpart.