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Sedans Acura TSX 2009 Acura TSX
364 messages, Last post on Sep 21, 2009 at 9:27 AM
You are in the Acura TSX Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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Replying to: bodble2 (Jul 23, 2008 4:46 pm)
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Replying to: ransomolds (Jul 24, 2008 11:45 am) |
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"hpmctorque: I forget if we were talking about sales prospects for ALL TSXs or just the diesels. I think the diesel will be almost in a class of one for a little while, while the gas models are overpriced or underdelivering, you pick." We were talking about all TSXs. My recollection of the context of our difference regarding sales of the new generation TSX was the following: We were both disappointed that size and weight increased, but we differed on sales projections. I believe you took the position that sales would be disappointing, while I argued that, despite the rather poor reviews, I thought that sales would be respectable. My reasons were that first year sales would be okay because its a new generation. Second year sales would get a boost from the diesel. Third year sales would probably be supported by a freshening and/or the addition of a turbo "S" choice. Finally, although fourth year (2012) sales would probably decline, Acura could introduce an attractive lease deal, or some other marketing ploy, to help sales. Time will tell how things turn out.
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Jul 26, 2008 7:24 pm) |
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...you pass on the '09 TL because you don't like the styling, or because it's grown too big, too heavy, and too balky, but you still like the Acura brand, you can simply buy a TSX, right? Not so fast. Before you buy a TSX, try out the back seat. Is it just me (and I'm not a big person), or is the leg room too tight for a mid size car? Also, access in and out of the back seat is difficult, if your shoe size is anything larger than, say, a (men's size) 8. So, as I see it, the '09 TSX isn't a good substitute for someone trading a TL. The '09 TSX is wider than the previous generation, but the back seet leg and foot room is virtually unchanged.
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Aug 13, 2008 4:29 am) |
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The difficulty an average size or larger adult has in getting his/her shoes into the back, and the limited foot, leg, and knee room would be a deal breaker for me too. I don't understand what the designers were thinking, since the TSX is a mid-size car from a length, width, and height standpoint. |
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Aug 13, 2008 4:29 am) |
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Okay, How are they paddleshifters in the new TSX? Does it add more fun? Let me know |
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Our criteria is an entry level luxury sedan that is fuel efficient, reliable, and offers good comfort for daily commute. Powerful engine is not needed. Fuel efficiency is more important than power for us. My wifevwants to get a Lexus, so I took her to the Lexus dealership. Lexus are nice cars, but the IS 250 is too small inside, with less interior room than the Civic. However, my wife like the chic and elegant look of the exterior. The next bigger car in Lexus's line up is the ES 350, which is too large to maneuver in tight garage, and cost a lot more. I think it does not worth the money because it is an old man's car, and it is a lux-up Toyota Camry. This leaves us to the only other choice, which is the 2009 Acura TSX. TSX is basically a European Honda Accord built in Japan. Europe Accord has to be made smaller than American Accord because of the tight roads. The 2009 Acura TSX is the second generation just arrived to the dealership floor 2 months ago. The TSX offers the best value in entry level luxury sedan segment. It cost the least, offers largest interior, and offers the best fuel economy. In order to achieve this, Acura chooses a 4-cylinder 2.4-liter gasoline engine that outputs 201 horsepower and 170 lbs-ft of torque. The engine output cannot match the power on the Lexus IS 250, BMW 328i, or Mercedes C-series sedans. A lot of people think the power train is the weakest point of the TSX, but 200 horse power is good enough for us. More horses just means more cost. Who really uses that much power on day-to-day driving anyway, not to mention aggressive driving brings more wear and tear. The transmission is a 5-speed automatic transmission, which is probably the weakest point of the car, while other Luxury sedans all have 6-speed automatic transmissions. The power train is the reason why TSX costs less than its competitors. I have seen a lot of bad reviews on the 2009 TSX, that is because whoever writes reviews are "car enthusiasts", and they do not have to pay for the car, gas, or maintenance cost from their pockets. They are suckers to BMW and pony cars. Acura uses EPS (Electric Power Steering) on the TSX. It replaces the traditional hydraulic power steering. The steering wheel is no linked to a complex hydraulic system. The advantage is the simplicity, reduce weight, and improves fuel economy. The disadvantage is that it provides less steering wheel feeling to the driver. My wife cannot tell the difference, but I can tell. After driving it for a while, I get used to it. The gas throttle is also electric instead of the mechanical system, aka drive by wire. It also feels strange at first, but I got used to it after a couple days. The overall drive and ride quality is good. The ride is quiet yet I feel connected to the road. Even though the car is quite large, the suspension is comfortable but does not give me the floating ship feeling of a Toyota Camry. Acura puts in a lot of improvement on insulation and aerodynamic to reduce the noise in the cabin. The Michelin tires sticks to the road well, and there is only little body roll on quick cornering. The braking is good for me, but I heard it is not as good as its competitors. The 2009 TSX is bigger than the previous generation in every dimension. It offers a lot of room and comfort inside, but it also drives like a big car. This means when maneuvering in tight space, I have to be careful to make sure I have enough room for the car. I am used to the high driving position of my Honda CR-V. In this car, I feel like I do not have enough visibility to see every corner of the car. The TSX has a long list of standard safety features. It has Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body structure, together with the 6 air bags/curtains it earns 5-star ratings for each of the NHTSA's front and side impact testing. We know we buy one of the safest cars in the market. There are also a lot of people who hates the look of the car. I have to say the exterior style is quite polarizing. I am a guy who like flashes and bling bling on cars, so I like the style a lot. I think it looks sharp, aggressive, and energetic from most angles. It looks sporty, and it definitely has a funky European look. I do not like the Toyota-Lexus styling, it is just boring and their cars just blend in so well with most of other cars on the road. My wife, however, prefers the subtle and anonymous styling of Lexus. She thinks the car looks like a "devil". Regardless you like the style or not, one thing is for sure. You cannot ignore this car on the road, because it just looks so different. Most people do not like the style because of the new "Power Platinum" grille. It looks like a shield or some people say it looks like a bird's beak. This is the new look of the Acura family of sedans. All other Acura sedans will share the same look in the 2009 model lineup. The interior of the car is the highlight of the car. Even in the base model, it has perforated leather seat, heated seat, 2 memory seat positions, auto dim rear view mirror, sun roof, Bluetooth, home link garage door opener, XM Satellite radio, MP3/WAM USB port, trip computer, and many other features. Other manufacturers will nickel and dime you for these features, but they are all included in an Acura. The seat is wrapped with soft leather, and it is supportive. I prefer the seat can be less firm, but I am now used to it. The interior material is soft and high quality. The driver and passengers can feel pampered inside the cabin. The steering wheel, gear shifter, and arm rests are also wrapped in leather. There is a lot of room inside for my arms and legs. I actually feel it got too much shoulder room, because I am having hard time resting my elbow on both left and right armrest. It is probably better fit for a larger person. I find the rear passenger leg room can be tight if I push the front seat back. However, it still offers more room and comfort for the rear passengers than Lexus IS 250. The backseat can only have 2 comfortable passengers. A third passenger at the back will feel the sitting position very awkward. This is because the shape of the back seats is like a bucket to make sure 2 passengers feel supportive. The center storage lid has an auxiliary port for MP3 players, and it also has a USB port for any USB storage device and iPod. I connect a 4GB USB thumb drive to the car, and the audio system is able to read all the files on it. Many other luxury sedans has built-in hard drive for storing music. For the TSX, I can just plug in my own hard drive. The audio system has fully-integrated iPod interface if you plug an iPod. I found this system does not work with Zune. (to be continued) |
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