As the saying goes, what’s old is new again. Case in point: the new Acura ZDX A Spec. It’s not that the vehicle itself is old—it’s more that the way this vehicle came to market.
1996 was a year chock-full of optimism, with Americans everywhere doing the Macarena as they poured their life savings into the can’t-miss investment vehicle known as Beanie Babies. Cheap gas allowed sales of the newly defined SUV market to surge. Everyone, everywhere, was scrambling to get into one of these fancy-ish trucks, and perhaps more importantly, OEMs the world over were scrambling to get their own profit-heavy SUV ready to sell.
Acura never had a history of building trucks, but that didn’t stop them from getting in on the SUV craze. The luxury brand partnered with GM to sell a tarted-up version of the Isuzu Trooper and released it as the 1996 Acura SLX. It was the brand’s first SUV, and while it didn’t exactly set the world on fire, it gave Honda’s luxury brand a credible offering in the segment.
That brings us to today. The cheap gas of 30 years ago now seems like a blissful fever dream, and it’s EVs that are promising a greener, more cost-efficient way to get around. And Acura once again needs some outside help getting into this hot, growing market, so the Acura ZDX A-Spec you see here is essentially a fancy Chevrolet Blazer EV.
I’m admittedly poking fun at the “history rhyming” bit of how the ZDX came to be, but don’t think I’m using these GM ties to criticize the vehicle itself. While its interior is clearly more GM than Acura, it’s also not burdened by some of GM’s, uh, questionable decisions. So let’s get into this 2024 Acura ZDX A-Spec.
Looks big. Actually isn’t.
As busy as Acura’s current design language is, no one would describe its vehicles as portly. From Day 1 there’s been an implied athleticism to Acura’s lineup, and GM bones aside, this ZDX continues the brand’s performance-inspired vibe.
There’s something about the way this electric crossover presents in person that makes it feel massive. Maybe it’s the flatness of its roof, the slab sides, or lack of a front grille that creates the illusion of volume, but it feels larger than something like the actually-much-larger Tesla Model Y.
Illusion of size aside, the ZDX does a great job of taking Acura’s design cues and applying them to the GM platform. Unlike that old SLX, which can charitably be best described as a badge job, this ZDX does feel like a clean-sheet Acura design. There’s really no GM DNA to be found here… until you get to the inside.
Yes, it’s a GM parts bin inside. But they’re all nice parts.
My time with the ZDX falls right in the middle of my being in both the gas and all-electric versions of the new Chevrolet Equinox. The Acura’s screens and switchgear, unsurprisingly, feel like those I find in the Chevys—because they are GM-sourced components.
In my mind, though, the Acura is still the superior vehicle to spend time. It’s happy to simply be a car rather than a disruptive tech innovation. For example, the Acura gets a proper start/stop button rather than the “is it on or off?” sit-to-start feature found in GM’s newest EVs. The 11.3-inch touchscreen display gets the same basic UX as every other modern GM vehicle. But unlike any modern GM, the ZDX still gets full Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility.
I’m also glad that all the physical controls carry over to the ZDX, so everything from the gear selector to the volume knob to every single temperature control is a tactile, physical object. The exterior lights are still turned on and off via the touchscreen display, but since I tend to leave my light switch set to AUTO, this isn’t exactly a big deal.
Nothing but good things to say about the rest of the cabin experience. All materials are nice to look at and nice to touch. The front seats are heated and cooled and offer lots of adjustment. The head- and legroom is generous all around. And easy access to the 29.7 cubic feet of cargo area behind the rear seats means that this EV is primed and ready to carry whatever you throw at it.
Unsurprisingly, it drives like every other EV.
For better or worse, the shift to all-electric powertrains has homogenized the driving experience. And while some EVs offer party tricks like sub-3-second 0-60 times or synthesized gears and engine sounds, they all basically behave the same. So just as with every other EV, the ZDX delivers a whole mountain of torque for brisk acceleration and ample passing power—all while providing a quiet and serene ride.
With this Acura ZDX being built atop GM’s Ultium platform, it gets all the same specs. So this Acura gets a 102 kWh battery pack, a single 358-horsepower/324-lb-ft torque motor driving the rear wheels, and an EPA-estimated all-electric driving range of 313 miles. Ever mindful of its performance heritage, Acura likes to tout the ZDX’s perfect 50/50 weight distribution. But as this specific rear-drive A-Spec weighs in at a hefty 5,421 pounds—and as it’s the lightest model in the ZDX lineup—my guess is that most ZDX buyers will care more about things like charging speeds. Find the right DC Fast Charger and you can add 81 miles of range in just 10 minutes—or take the battery from 20% to 80% in 42 minutes.
Final Thoughts
There’s a lot to like about the Acura ZDX A-Spec. It’s well-appointed, versatile, and offers all the benefits of a modern-day EV. And speaking of benefits, since the ZDX is built at GM’s plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee—it also qualifies for the current $7500 Federal Tax Credit given to US-built EVs. That helps bring its starting price of $64,500 down to a more reasonable $57,000.
Much like the early SLX, though, I’m guessing that Acura’s support for this model might be short-lived. At a recent EV-focused event in Japan, Honda has gone on record stating they do not have a relationship with GM. What this means for the future of the ZDX remains unclear but we can safely assume two things: the next Acura EV will be developed fully in-house, and that the ZDX line itself is on borrowed time. I’m cheap and can’t imagine myself paying $60k for an EV, but if and when those ZDX discounts start hitting, this could end up being an incredible bargain. Or, if cost is what drives your driving decisions, just get a Chevy Equinox EV or Blazer EV and get a near-identical driving experience for a lot less money.
Justin Kaehler has been covering all things automotive for 20 years, and has been an active part of the car scene for much longer than that. Though he’s grown to love all cars, he’s still particularly fond of the ’80s and ’90s Japanese metal he grew up on. And for those of you who grew up playing The Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift game for the PS2 and PSP, yes, he’s also that JDM Justin.