2024 Acura ZDX Type S Review: Smooth, Speedy, But Short On Soul

Does badge matter? Acura is pulling out all the stops to position the 2024 ZDX Type S as not just its first all-electric model, but a worthy bearer of the Type S nameplate in the process. Those in the EV know, however, understand that roadmap pressures saw Honda hook up with General Motors to use its Ultium platform for both the ZDX and the 2024 Prologue. Platform sharing is nothing new, but how much of your rival can you have in the mix, before your new SUV feels more like a cuckoo in the nest?

Looking at the ZDX, you get the impression Acura really wished it was making a sedan, not an SUV. The two-tone bodywork, with its long, flat shoulder and chrome faux-roofline detail, seems determined to trick the eye into seeing a lower vehicle. I'm still not convinced by that lower sill trim, either, which remains matte silver regardless of body color. Throw in a lot of creases, swoops, divots, and detailing, and you have a pretty busy result.

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The 22-inch wheels standard on the Type S are handsome — the cheaper A-Spec gets 20-inch rims, still a decent size all things considered — and it's practical. Behind the standard powered tailgate there's 28.7-29.7 cu-ft of trunk space, trim depending, expanding to up to 63 cu-ft with the rear seats folded down.

2024 ZDX ownership kicks off at $64,500 (plus $1,350 destination) for the A-Spec RWD with a single electric motor driving the rear wheels; it has 358 hp and 324 lb-ft of torque, and as expected it offers the longest range, at 313 miles. The AWD version adds a second motor, costs from $68,500 (plus destination) for its 490 hp and 437 lb-ft, and sees range dip to 304 miles.

Acura offers two versions of the 2024 ZDX Type S: regular, from $73,500, and with the Performance Wheel & Tire package that swaps the all-seasons to summer rubber, from $74,500 (both before destination). Each has 499 horsepower and 544 lb-ft of torque from dual motors as standard, but range dips to 278 miles.

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A 102 kWh battery is standard, with up to 190 kW DC fast charging support. That, Acura says, means between 72 and 81 miles of range added after 10 minutes plugged in; wait 42 minutes, and the ZDX could go from 20-80%. Not bad — it's the same as the Blazer EV, unsurprisingly — but definitely short of the 210-235 kW rate a Kia EV9 can manage.

The Kia can't match this ZDX Type S for pace, however (the most potent EV9 currently available tops out at 379 horsepower). Acura quotes a conservative "under 5 seconds" for the EV's 0-60 mph time; in practice, it's definitely faster.

Like all ZDX models, the Type S has multi-link front and rear suspension. Where the A-Spec relies upon amplitude reactive dampers, though, the Type S gets adaptive dampers. They can adjust in firmness according to drive mode and road conditions: the ride is firmer in Sport, and softer in Normal.

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The Type S also has air suspension, which can adjust the standard 7-inches of ride height: 15 millimeters lower in Sport mode, or 25 millimeters higher in Snow mode. Paired with 3,500 pounds of towing capacity, it leaves the Acura middle of the pack for the sort of tasks an SUV would traditionally be judged on.

I can't imagine anyone is buying a ZDX Type S to go off-roading, though. In a straight line it feels plenty fast, not brain-meltingly so like the most potent of EVs, but certainly enough to shame gas vehicles when pulling away from the lights. Sport mode's electronic soundtrack is less appealing, mind. The suspension is dialed in firm, even in Normal mode, which is no great surprise given Acura has just north of 6,000 pounds of SUV to deal with, here.

Hit the corners, and that fact becomes more pressing. Where all-wheel drive gas or hybrid Acura models — yes, NSX, we're daydreaming about you again — get clever torque vectoring to dial different degrees of power to the outside and inside wheels in a turn, that's not part of the Ultium platform's magic, here.

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That beefy battery installed low down, between the wheels, helps things feel stable and planted, but don't expect the nimble darting that you might associate with the Type S brand. At least, Acura blends its big Brembo brakes — larger on the Type S version — with regenerative braking smoothly. I do wish there was a quicker way to switch the regen levels, rather than having to tap to it through the touchscreen, but the squeeze-to-temporarily-decelerate paddle is as good an idea here as it was on the Chevrolet Volt all those years ago.

A little fun might distract you from the ZDX's anodyne interior, at least. It's not bad, it's just bland. I said the same thing about the Prologue's cabin, and the dashboard is basically the same in the Acura: large expanses of dull gray plastic and GM switchgear, with a few nods to elevate it from entirely unmemorable with stitched faux-leather dash and door panels.

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The core specs aren't bad — there are plenty of USB-C ports, some handy cubbies, leather comes as standard along with front seat heating and ventilation, and unlike the Prologue you get heated rear seats in the ZDX Type S — but there's none of the showmanship that Acura injects into its other cars. 

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No outsized drive mode dial, to make notching over to Sport feel more of an adventure; instead, there's a tiny rocker switch hidden alongside the parking brake button by the driver's left knee.

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At least you get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on the standard 11.3-inch touchscreen — something Chevy EV buyers miss out on — and while all ZDX models have an 11-inch digital cluster, the Type S also throws in a head-up display. All trims have an 18-speaker Bang & Olufsen audio system, too, plus wireless charging. Type S versions have a handy 110V AC outlet in the rear as well.

One welcome carryover from GM is Super Cruise, the hands-free driver assistance package that allows you to release the wheel while the ZDX is on pre-mapped stretches of highway. Standard on the Type S — where it's dubbed "Hands-Free Cruise" — it uses a driver-monitoring camera to make sure you're still paying attention (since, even when the system is handling steering and speed, the human at the wheel is still legally in control).

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As in recent GM vehicles, the system can change lanes by itself: either when the driver hits the turn signal, or automatically if the vehicle ahead is slower than the speed Hands-Free Cruise is set to. If you set a route in Google Maps running on the ZDX's infotainment, the SUV can also pick the correct lane for upcoming maneuvers and lane-splits.

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Electric cars are typically pretty quiet, but the ZDX seems determined to make up for that with a bevy of over-aggressive safety bongs and chimes. It yells at you at the slightest provocation; sometimes the slapped-wrists lock you out of driving altogether, like the inability to move the Acura without your seatbelt on. On the move, the active safety tech is often too eager to jump in, flashing up alarming "BRAKE" warnings when cars ahead slow for a turn, and even needlessly slamming on the brakes on a couple of occasions.

Like was the case with the Honda Prologue, I can't say I dislike the ZDX: I just wish it felt more like an Acura. Cover the badge at the center of the steering wheel, and I question whether anybody would identify the brand. From the GM key fob, to the Chevy parts bin cabin, the overriding message seems to be "we needed to get an EV to dealerships sooner rather than later."

As a sportier SUV, the ZDX does fine. I don't hate the design, it's well-equipped, and Acura's range estimates seem fairly accurate if you drive sensibly. If you're expecting a Type S of old, though, this first EV from the company might leave you cold.

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It's not always going to be this way, mind. Honda and GM's Ultium partnership begins and ends with the Prologue and ZDX: the next all-electric Acura — perhaps something like this head-turning performance concept — should be based on the automaker's own platform. That gives the undeniably talented engineers at Acura time to deliver something worthy of the nameplate.