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Show Thursday, August 2, 2007 SPRINGVILLE HERALD 23 The Sixth Gear 2007 Acura RDX: Smaller sometimes is cooler DanielSouza " STAFF WRITER A few years ago every auto manufacturer came to their financial senses and ucuucu iu iuuow inrough of what had become a cash cow: Sport Utility Vehicles. Big vehicles with capabilities capabili-ties both on and off roads. You and I are familiar with . these vehicles. Large gas guzzlers with get-out-of-the-way built-in capabilities capabili-ties (just ask a subcompact driver). Large also is the old, but true adage: times change. And so do our vehicles. The sport-luxury SUV marketplace mar-ketplace is in an exciting state of evolution. Smaller engines are now the norm. Forget eight cylinders. Current etiquette demands a hybrid engine, or at least a six cylinder. With the arrival of Acu-ra's Acu-ra's new RDX 5-passenger Entry Premium SUV, this emerging market segment gets a decidedly "connected" "connect-ed" spin. Not only does this all-new SUV combine the immediate response of Acura's first-ever tur-bocharged tur-bocharged engine and the agile control of Super Handling Han-dling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD), the RDX puts state-of-the-art communications, com-munications, navigation and audio entertainment at the driver's fingertips. "The all-new RDX is an exciting entry to the Acura Acu-ra light truck lineup for 2007", said Dick Colliver, vice president sales, "The RDX's innovative pow-ertrain pow-ertrain coupled with SH- AWD provides this SUV with outstanding performance." perfor-mance." Built on a new global light truck platform, the RDX concept was initiated in California and then developed de-veloped in Japan. Besides featuring first-time engineering engi-neering features including Acura's first turbocharged and intercooled engine and the first adaptation of the SH-AWD system to an SUV, the RDX also offers Acura's first standard 18-inch 18-inch wheels and tires. Rated output for the RDX engine is 240 horsepower SAE net at 6000 rpm. In terms of torque, the RDX has the highest output of any engine in the Acura lineup, with 260 Ibs.-ft. of torque SAE net at 4500 rpm. The RDX is expected to return an EPA certified 1923 CityHighway mileage, mile-age, while meeting strict CARB LEV-2 ULEV and EPA Tier-2 Bin-5 emissions standards. A 5-speed automatic with Sequential SportShift is standard. The electronically elec-tronically controlled throttle and trans-mission trans-mission work together to-gether to execute ex-ecute shifts, resulting in exception ally quick and smooth gear changes. The transmission can function as a conventional conven-tional automatic transmission transmis-sion or, at the driver's option, op-tion, can be shifted manually manu-ally via steering-wheel-mounted paddles. SH-AWD is standard in the RDX to maximize available traction while improving handling balance bal-ance and responsiveness. SH-AWD is Acura's patented all-wheel drive system that distributes the optimum amount of torque not only between the front and rear axles but also between be-tween the left and right rear wheels. The system's direct yaw control helps reduce understeer to enhance en-hance steering accuracy and add to total cornering power. Responsive handling han-dling is further aided by fully independent front and rear suspensions. Acura also headlined with the RDX when it was chosen was one of only three luxury SUVs (out of 13 total vehicles) to earn a 2007 Insurance Institute for Highway Safety TOP SAFETY PICK Award. The annual award, given to SUVs for the first time this year, recognizes vehicles ve-hicles that perform best in protecting passengers in front, rear and side crashes crash-es based on their ratings in the Institute's tests. With exception of the not-so-attractive front end looks (think MDX), the RDX is sure to please with a smooth drive, a beyond-cool beyond-cool turbo meter in the dashboard and the properly prop-erly educated six under the hood. Base price -$33,195 Price as tested - $39,850 EZL .Ii i Ljsr- MC3T-C3FS3 D2$t in Price, Warranty, & Safety! 1 0 YEAR 100K WARRANTY on NEW KIAS! 410 SO. UNIVERSITY AVE PROVO Daniel Souza can be reached at sixth.gear. heraldgmail.com or visit his blog at httpsixthgear-herald.blogspot.com vv.'. i (ho Vr? Sprayed en -,tr-rt ---- 1 i m mdkmdk t ' V t , . tf -i , .( Joy Crisfflon named Volunteer of the Month Not many people know where the Research Library Li-brary is located at the Springville Museum of Art, but one dedicated volunteer, Joy Crismon, spends many happy hours there. Crismon was named Volunteer of the Month for August by the Hafen-Dallin Hafen-Dallin Volunteer Guild. Crismon prepares and preserves pictures and articles ar-ticles about Utah artists and adds them to a large collection that is available for research and study by any interested patron. For two years Crismon has donated her time and expertise in the library and as the Docent Chairman with the Hafen-Dallin Volunteer Vol-unteer Guild. She provides training and. encouragement encourage-ment to a team of docent volunteers. Crismon has loved art since childhood. Her moth I ' I .... .t, . t Joy Crismon Don Olsen, an abstract painter, encouraged her to further her education in college. She graduated from Brigham Young University Uni-versity with a minor in art and an elementary educa tion major. She taught school and i " jm m. w, er is a painter and taught raised a family of four with her to love art ad nature, her husband, Jim. They are She has also been sharing the proud grandparents ot this love from an early age as she drew paper dolls for her friends in first grade! She studied art in high school and her teacher, six. They love to travel and have been to Europe, Mexico, Mex-ico, Tahiti, Costa Rica and all the states except North Dakota! They currently i live in Pleasant Grove. : Joy's hobbies include drawing, painting, teaching teach-ing art lessons and sewing quilts. She has also served in a variety of callings in her church. Qne of her favorite teaching teach-ing jobs was spent as the art teacher at The American Ameri-can Heritage School. She hosted student art shows, brought in local guest artists art-ists to speak, took students on fieldtrips to museums, and helped many of them enter their work in art contests that resulted in awards and scholarships. Thorough her efforts, the school was able to purchase pur-chase a ceramic kiln and other art supplies. Crismon is a published writer. Her book, "Start With Art," an art curriculum, curricu-lum, has sold and is used around the country. She retired in 2004 but continues to influence children chil-dren through art lessons taught in her home. Crismon really enjoys all that she does at the Springville Spring-ville museum. She studies each artist as she works in the library and she hopes the information she preserves pre-serves will serve future students and artists. As Docent chairman, Crismon hopes to leave good training manuals for others to enjoy and learn from. She loves her association associ-ation with the great people and great art at the museum muse-um and treasures the time she can spend there. GQI.IE 10 FG3 CLL C A 90 CT NATURE'S WAY CL& Epim (-1 IJU Mat Pmntt Coapaa Ml Tuuocrwduw Whlta tappllaa ! iUIVE90cT. 24 BUY 190 ct, Get 30 Ct. FREE! Btpim Ml-M Mill Fnttit Coipom M tlmt af HicbaM WhUt Sappliaa Lad 7C4-S:2I2 043 Emt essfrsf Ln. &P5I1S1 f Bill Fusion AVVD b eats uamry a acco 2007 FORD FUSION 39 MONTH LEASE1 Please buckle up! 39 month lease, 10,000 mile per year. $999 plus fees due at signing. 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