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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
Ok, as a TSX owner I have been waiting for this day. I just finished driving the 09 TSX and I have to admit the power surprised me a little. I would say the acceleration is better. I think the steering is going to be hard to get used to if that was what you liked about the previous TSX. The electronic steer in it is kind of awkward and loose in feel. For those who say the car is not much bigger than before you are sadly mistaken. This car is about as big as a TL and probably more comfortable than both the previous TSX and the TL. There are a lot of cool new gadgets like blue tooth music where you can play your music from your phone through the car. The usb port is also very nice but does not work with all mp3 players or for that matter all ipods. The auxilary jack is still there so you do not have to worry about the upgrade on mp3 players if you still have your old cord. The navigation system has some cool new features for Acura like Real Time Weather which will show you real radar across the country if you wan't. I did enjoy the upgraded sound system which sounded a lot better than the TL's only because you get a deeper fuller base throughout the car. The one thing I did not like is that you only receive a single cd on the base TSX. I felt this was cheap of Acura. The styling is a lot nicer on the outside and you must see it in person to appreciate it because the Pics do not show it off good. The handling is good although it did seem the VSA was a little more intrusive this time around. Overall I believe the people will really enjoy this car and appreciate more of what it brings than what it doesn't. The TSX still offers a lot more than anything in it's class feature wise and at the lower price point. We tested the car against the IS 250, Audi A4 2.0t, and the 328i. the only car the TSX beat all around was the Audi. Better handling, acceleration, overall quality. The Lexus IS 250 was about the same acceleration and a nicer fit and finish inside but there is no space in this car for tall people or a group of friends unless they are all sixth graders. I would still give the TSX the advantage by far over the IS 250. The BMW has speed and handling but one of the roughest rides you could ever expect. It is aslo very small and cramped and the price point is outrageous for what you get. Nothing in a base car. The BMW has beat the TSX in speed and handling but that is it. The TSX is much nicer, more reliable,a lot bigger, better drive and comfort, and a lot less with a lot more room. Did I forget to mention it had a lot more space. !!!! At a fraction of the price. With a lot more standard equipment. !!!!!!!!!!!!   
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Everyone says that Acura has not put enough power into their car and I feel the same way but lets take a look at something. Someone said that you can get a 328i for 5K more and it is a faster car.  If I am paying 5K more for this car then I will get a TL and still have more options and better reliability, more space .... Let's say that Acura did come out with a higher horsepower higher torque TSX and charged you 5K more for it then you would be crying about how Acura can justify their price. They don't have to. They Already have. Lets take a look at this. The Audi A4 2.0T cost's more with less equipment and is is slug off the line. (you think Acura's car is bad try this one.). The Lexus IS 250 cost's more with less equipment is a 6 cylinder that the 4 cylinder TSX can keep up with. The BMW is so over priced that you could have a TL-S for less than their car and have real leather!!!! So tell me how Acura is not doing the right thing. They give you a car that competes in this segment very well and at a lower price point. Now for those who say Volvo and VW are doing much better, if you like a Ford then yes go get a Volvo and enjoy the drastic drop in resale after you get it because they are not selling at the price they wan't so they put the incentives on them to move them out. VW has had so many mechanical probs with their cars that I would not touch one if I was paid to drive it and they are small and the ride is rough. I think Acura has done a great job and on April 24th you can go find out for yourself as this is the first of a long line of new cars to come from Acura. Acura has finally seen the direction they need to take and are going to become the top player in the luxury market within the next five to seven years I predict. If you only kmew what was coming.
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"Let's say that Acura did come out with a higher horsepower higher torque TSX and charged you 5K more for it then you would be crying about how Acura can justify their price" No I wouldn't, it's called the TL, a fairly popular model as far as I know! Used to be, Honda/Acura was about the drive, now it seems to be about the gadgets and the high resale. Who wanted a bigger TSX? Isn't there already a TL in the lineup? And I root for Acura as much as anyone and more than many, but this?... "Acura has finally seen the direction they need to take and are going to become the top player in the luxury market within the next five to seven years" ...has no chance of happening. |
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I think Acura's chances of breaking into the top tier would be greatly improved if they'd convert their cars to RWD. SH-AWD isn't a substitute for RWD architecture, since it has little value, or negative value in warm weather regions. I think Nissan/Infiniti have the right strategy, which is largely why Infiniti is making inroads against the German high end brands, while Acura isn't. The TL is arguably the best (lower end) luxury FWD car on the market, but it could be THE best if it were RWD, in my opinion, by combining 3-Series driving dynamics and Acura reliability. Insofar as the '09 TSX is concerned, I agree with nippononly. I'd rather have a Civic EX-L, and save the difference.
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Replying to: relerel (Apr 14, 2008 12:59 pm) |
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Apr 16, 2008 6:20 am) No kidding! In fact a Civic SI-L, if it were available with the Acura badge, would be the best thing Acura could do for the TSX right now. Goose the interior a little, give it NAV and a super-duper stereo system and all these gadgets people apparently crave, and price it at $27K. It would be a much better addition to the lineup than the '09 TSX is at $29K, and it wouldn't crowd the TL either. |
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"a Civic SI-L, if it were available with the Acura badge, would be the best thing Acura could do for the TSX right now." I agree with you, for the reasons you mention. I mentioned the EX-L Acura quivalent because it suits my particular needs better than the SI-L, but I believe the SI badged car would be a better fit for Acura, strategically. The major thing that would be lacking, that the TSX has, is the double wishbone suspension. It would be nice if that could be incorporated in the Acura version of the model we propose, since it would positively differentiate the Acura from the Honda. I sense, though, that it would be too difficult and expensive to modify the Civic to incorporate this feature. Oh well, since I don't crave the presitge of the Acura name, I could be perfectly happy with a Civic. Incidentally, one of our cars is a '99 TL, which has been a delight to own. My wife and I felt it was worth the extra cost over the Accord EX-L, but that may not apply today.
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Apr 17, 2008 6:04 am) Oh, I think it most certainly does. The new Accord is a big lumbering beast. The TL is not my favorite car in the world, but it is limber and sporty compared to the new Accord V-6, which is a large car indeed. The Civic SI, of course, is for all intents and purposes a 4-door version of the last RSX-S we got (I forget - did the RSX have rear struts or 'bones?). For them to put it in the lineup today as the new TSX would be to admit that their drive "upmarket" didn't work out as planned, but the '09 TSX is a very weak alternative, and I think at $29K it will continue the sales slide for that model.
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The RSX didn't feature the double wishbone suspension. It'll be interesting to learn about the '09 TL, even though it'll be larger than I'd like it to be. I imagine it'll have cylinder deactivation, but the '08 Accord V6 with that feature has gotten mixed reviews. I've read that the '09 TL will be offered with FWD and SH-AWD, but it's unclear to me whether the SH-AWD will be an option, or be part of an "S" version. I also don't know whether the TL will have a more powerful version of the Accord 3.5 V6, or the 3.7 V6 of the RL. Maybe the FWD TL will have the 3.5, while the 3.7 comes with the SH-AWD. Have you heard or read anything about these possibilities?
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Apr 17, 2008 4:33 pm) I'm not sure that I agree that it will probably have cylinder deactivation. Even the 6-4-3 that Honda is using now doesn't provide a huge gas savings, and "luxury car" buyers are supposed to care less about those costs anyway, right? Also, it's possible that the TL is also slated for eventual use of the new Honda diesel 6-cylinder, which could be the fuel-saver option in future for that model. |
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