Road Test: Honda Legend

By Feann Torr - 27/Mar/2007

The Honda Legend was originally launched at the 2004 New York Auto Show and was designed to be the Japanese automakers most luxurious vehicle, and with an advanced AWD system the company hoped it would be a technology leader to boot. With Lexus selling more cars anyone would have thought possible ten years ago, Honda clearly wants a piece of the action.

Not unlike the Tardis - Doctor Who's time-travelling vessel - the Honda Legend is far roomier on the inside than it looks on the outside, which is one of the many tricks this Japanese luxury car is capable of if you deign to give it the time of day. It's a luxury car with many of the trimmings that were once the exclusive preserve of the German luxury marques, and with a powerful 3.5-litre V6 engine it's far from lacking in raw power either.

Priced at almost $75,000, this car is not cheap. It's competing against Lexus, Volvo, BMW and Audi at this price, and though it's not an ugly car it is somewhat unimaginative in its design. That said, some folks would argue that is exactly what luxury car customers want - something unassuming that won't attract too much unwanted attention. If that's the case, then Honda wins.

Whatever the case, the new Legend is more than just an unwieldy luxo-cruiser: it's got intent. Underneath its conservative styling, Honda has replaced the previous front-wheel drive transmission with a more appealing 4WD system - one that uses a range of features normally seen on highly-strung performance cars like the Mitsubishi Evolution. But is the world ready for another Japanese luxury car just yet?

Lexus has proved that Japan can do prestige cars, and very well at that, but Honda hasn't reached for the top end of town in some time, and whenever it does, it's only with a sole model. So what is Honda's plan for the Legend? I'm not quite sure just yet, but hopefully by the end of this review we'll all have a better idea.

With an opulent leather-covered interior, the Honda Legend is a very nice place to spend time, and with a clever AWD system it can be rewarding to drive

Engine: Honda 3.5-litre V6 Built in Japan, the transversely front-mounted, all-alloy vee 6-cylinder petrol engine has a 3.5-litre (3471cc) capacity, with single overhead camshafts (SOHC per cylinder bank) that actuate a total of 24-valves.  The fuel injected motor has an 11.0:1 compression ratio and features variable valve timing and lift. The Honda engine also benefits from a large 73 litre fuel tank and will run on premium 95 RON or higher grades of petrol. Claimed Fuel Consumption: 11.8L/100km (combined) Max Power: 217kW @ 6200rpm Max Torque: 351Nm @ 5000rpm Max Speed: 250km/h 0-100km/h: 7.9 seconds

Badged as an Acura RL in the United States, the Honda Legend succeeds on a number of levels, one of the most important of which is making a strong first impression. 

Before you even get into the Legend you are greeted with clearly illuminated door handles, courtesy of cleverly placed LEDs. The doors and their seals are of a decent quality and they lend the car a robust, classy feel as you open then shut them.

Once inside the stately Japanese vehicle, a cavernous interior with enough room for four fully-grown humans is in evidence, plus there's leather everywhere, electric everything, the restrained use of glossy materials and enough buttons and dials to make any gadgeteer grin.

It's got a pair of adaptive headlights that can light corners for you at night and I must say that the car is incredibly quiet on the road, making use of what Honda calls 'active noise cancellation'. As the name suggests, the system reduces low frequency external noises, firstly by recognising them via cabin-mounted microphones and then by transmitting a special signal through the cars 10 speakers to mask them. Sounds good. I think. I never heard it in action, which I suppose is a good thing.

And the stereo is a top shelf unit. Built by Bose, it's a 260-watt system with 10 speakers (including a sub-woofer), a 6 CD in-dash changer that can read MP3, WMA and DVD audio classes. The audio quality that comes through it is very impressive, with good clarity and rarely any distortion, even with bass-heavy audio. It's not quite as crisp as the Mark Levinson audio systems that can be optioned with some Lexus models, but it's streets ahead of most vehicular sound systems.

Sitting in the car you do get a sense of luxury, but not in a European way; it's very smooth and comfy, but felt as though it was lacking the sense of occasion that you sometimes experience in top end German cars.

The front seats are upholstered in a medium quality leather, but the cushioning is very nice and makes you feel quite relaxed as soon you plonk yourself down. There's 8-way power adjustable front seats and a 4-way power adjustable steering wheel, so there's little chance you'll pull a muscle when customising your driving position.

The view from the drivers seat is rather nice, with a curving roof over the instrument cluster and a fairly intuitive centre console, all of which is trimmed with a combination of brushed aluminium and maple wood grain.

Ergonomically speaking, the Legend is almost up there with Audi design, as almost everything is automated or electronically controlled and most of it is within easy reach. There is a sense of clinical precision to the interior which may not appeal to everyone, but I quite liked it, because it's a bit different to the modern prestige car template.

Some other neat features included the electric rear sunblind, which is operated with a switch on the driver's overhead console, and it even retracts when you slot the gearbox into reverse. There's the usuals in there too, such as dual-zone climate control, complete with 'sun sensors' that will detect direct sunlight and adjust the air flow and temperature automatically, and if the weather turns foul, automatic rain-sensing windscreen wipers will play their part.

Spending time in the Honda Legend is quite relaxing, and very comfortable - it's got all the luxury trimmings that are often only the reserve of prestige cars in the six figure bracket, and high levels of engine power too.

To my mind the crux of any Honda is always its engine. Granted, the Legend is aiming higher - much higher - than most Hondas, and as a result the cabin, the luxury appointments, the technology and its ease of use are probably more important for buyers in this bracket, but it still has a very good engine.

The Japanese company rarely delves into turbocharging or supercharging (the one exception being the 2007 Acura RDX, using a 2.3-litre turbo 4-cylinder engine), relying instead on its troupe of intelligent powertrain engineers to ensure it's motors are precise, refined and powerful. 

Powered by a 3.5-litre V6, the Legend's engine is exactly these things. It has plenty of squirt, but continuing the luxury car aesthetic it's remarkably quiet and refined. Even when you hit full throttle and the engine revs rise, you can barely hear what's going under the bonnet - without the aid of the rev counter it would be an eerie sensation. 

The 6-cylinder engine is paired with a a relatively slushy 5-speed automatic gearbox, which however suits the car's character with soft and smooth gear changes that are never abrupt and so won't spill your beverage. At the same token, the gearbox is probably the Legend's weakest link in driveline terms, especially when you discover that this thing can navigate corners at a brisk clip. It's great in the city with its soft gear changes and relaxed feel, but doesn't have the urgency or response time needed when you start going faster. The steering wheel paddles are relegated to being a quaint curiosity, and if you're charging hard through a mountain pass you're better off leaving it in 'D' drive.

Fitted with SH-AWD, or super handling all-wheel drive and decent 235/50 R17 tyres, the Legend is not lacking grip and with 217kW of power at its disposal the car can build up steam very quickly. This 3.5-litre V6 engine is a SOHC unit developing 217kW of power @ 6200rpm and 351Nm of torque @ 5000rpm, which gives the vehicle strong acceleration off the line. Fuel economy is not too bad for a vehicle that produces more than 200 kilowatts (11.8L/100km), and it also features a 73 litre fuel tank which gives it a half-decent cruising range.

Pushing the car to its limits and taking it through demandingly twisty roads is a little daunting at first, because the Legend is quite heavy (1855kg) and I was worried about it sliding all over the road because there's an amount of body roll when you start going faster through corners, building up the lateral G-forces (and there's no switchable electronic suspension system like some sports-luxury models). But even with the bodyroll playing negatively on the cars dynamics, the big Honda grips the road very tightly, and is capable of some fairly decent mid-corner speeds as a result. 

Though the steering feel is a little woolen, with a somewhat floaty (Honda would call it luxury) feel, the car rarely exhibits understeer thanks to the SH-AWD system. It is possible to get the car's nose to push wide, but to do this you need to be hacking into very tight corners at very high speeds. Driven progressively and getting to know the cars limits was a surprisingly rewarding experience because the car is very capable of tackling apexes rather nicely. Granted, it's no Integra Type R or mid-engined NSX, but the 4WD system gives this overweight luxury car a good deal of stability.

Indeed, the SH-AWD system is a decent piece of kit, and almost rids the car of understeer by applying torque between left and right rear wheels. This 4WD system can be (very loosely) compared to the active yaw control system that the banzai Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution performance cars use, where torque can be transferred not only between the front and rear axles, but also between the left and right wheels. On the road, the system reduces understeer by apportioning up to 100% torque to either the left or right rear wheels. You never really 'feel' it working though - I just mashed the throttle and turned the steering wheel and marvelled that something so large could have any dexterity.

As well as having a clever AWD system, the Honda Legend makes use of an aluminium bonnet (and boot), front fenders, sub frame and even some of the suspension components are all aluminium, which reduces weight at the front of the car and gives the car relatively sharp turn-in. Braking is taken care of by ventilated disc brakes front and rear (320mm and 310mm respectively) and they manage to cope quite well with the Legend's considerable bulk.

The big Honda can be surprisingly adept on any given stretch of winding road, but in everyday traffic the Legend is in its element. It keeps outside noises to a minimum, the gearbox is ridiculously smooth and you needn't strain to get things done - just point and shoot. It effortlessly goes where you ask it, and even has the presence of mind to offer you a range of luxury comforts, plus it's a formidable cruiser, able to eat up Australia's expansive highway system thanks to its plush ride, quality interior, and impressive V6 power reserves.

And did I mention that it's bigger than a Mercedes E-Class and safer than a bomb shelter? Measuring 4955mm from bumper to bumper, it's larger than the Holden Commodore and Ford Falcon too, and with eight airbags that protect front and rear passengers, plus ABS, its intelligent AWD system, and vehicle stability assist (VSA), so you do get a sense of being safe and secure when driving the Legend. It's got a sizable boot - 452 litres in all - and there's massive amounts of room for rear seat passengers as well.

Overall: 3.5/5

So, what is Honda's plan for the Legend? To build a luxury car that can compete with the Europeans and to be a technology leader, and for the most part it does this. The Mercedes-Benz E350 starts at $126,500, offers less power and torque from 3.5-litre V6 and not as many features. On paper, the Honda Legend begins to sound attractive.

Not only large, this thing is powerful too, but where it can't rival some other large luxury marques is that it only offers a 6-cylinder engine. That said, there are talks that Honda and it's American luxury division Acura are pushing for a V8 engine.

I really like the Legend - it's offered at a good price and drives well. But there's something missing. Perhaps part of it is the design, perhaps there's a little badge envy in there, or perhaps it's the fact that driving experience failed to live up to expectations?

When it first launched at the 2004 New York Auto Show, the Honda Legend wanted to be a technology leader in the premium large sedan market and, to a point, it succeeds and primarily due to its promising AWD system. But in New York, back in 2004 when the car was unveiled, many of the features that were cutting edge are now viewed without jaw-dropping incredulity. "It does what?!" now becomes "My Hyundai does that". The Honda Legend is a very good vehicle that offers impressive value-for-money and would make for a great business partner, but Honda will need to strive harder to become a technology leader in the fast-moving prestige car market.