Acura Type S concept teaser
Acura
A little over a year ago, Honda vice president and Acura Brand Officer Jon Ikeda told me over dinner that Acura was recommitting to being Honda’s premium performance brand. The launch of the third-generation RDX A-spec was the first tangible step in that direction and Acura is getting ready to ramp up the action with the return of Type S badging for upcoming models. As a preview, Acura will use the upcoming Monterey Car Week as the venue to show the new Type S concept.
Based on the teaser video, this Type S is likely also a preview of the replacement for the either the RLX or TLX sedans or perhaps both. The profile visible in the teaser video appears to draw heavily on the Acura Precision Concept first shown at the 2016 North American International Auto Show. That car was a fastback, four-door sedan that gave us the first look at the new Acura design language that was applied in part to refreshed versions of the MDX, TLX, ILX and RLX and more completely to the new RDX.
The four prior Type S models went beyond what is available on current A-Spec variants with more power and improved handling. The last one offered was on the 2008 TL sedan. Acura isn’t providing any additional details on which future models will get the Type S treatment or how it will be applied, but it’s probably a safe bet that hybridization will play a part and a full battery electric vehicle isn’t beyond the realm of possibility.
If you happen to be in Monterey for Car Week (which sadly I will not) the 2019 Type S concept will be at The Quail, Motorsports Gathering on Friday February 16 and then on the lawn at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Concept on Sunday, August 18.
