Currently I have a loaner from the dealer. It is brand new 2016 Acura TSX SH-AWD 6-Cyl 290hp 9-speed automatic. My daily driver is 2012 Acura TL FWD with the same engine 280hp. Both have Tech package with the navigation. So essentially it is the 4 year newer version of my car.
I was expecting to be bowled over and seduced by the shiny new thing. The new car has more bells and whistles as the technology has moved forward by 4 years. It seems to have most of the fancy features. I found the window sticker in the glove box.
Getting back to the topic of this post. Nine speed automatic seems to have more cons than pros in my mind. When I drove it back to my house from the dealership, I thought it was a 4-cyl model. It had good oomph starting from stop but at highway, the pedal just did not feel responsive and it seemed to shifting quite a lot just to increase the speed. Every time I press the pedal, it shifts. Until it shifts four times, there is no sensation of the acceleration. May be the programming is not up to stuff. But I was in sport mode all the time. The car comes with Economy/Normal/Sport/Sport+ I can't imagine how gutless it would feel with the Economy mode!
I am thinking with the gearbox constantly changing gears, it probably would cut down its life considerably. Most wear in the auto box happens when it shifts.
Then it has the engine cut-off at stop light feature but fortunately there is button on the console to turn it off but it will default to on after you restart the vehicle.
Talking about the console, what is the big deal with the electronic shift buttons? It is not as if you have more room or more storage space when the shift lever is removed. Electronic parking brake does give back more room taken by the handle.
Don't get me wrong. It is a nice and capable car in its price bracket (list price including destination 42.5K) but just does not feel outstanding. I never got a chance to drive it on winding road to check its handling but I am sure I would chicken out well before the car would reach its limit.
What happened with the 3.7 engine? I know it had some spotty reputation about the oil consumption. Did Acura ever put it in TLX?
I was expecting to be bowled over and seduced by the shiny new thing. The new car has more bells and whistles as the technology has moved forward by 4 years. It seems to have most of the fancy features. I found the window sticker in the glove box.
Getting back to the topic of this post. Nine speed automatic seems to have more cons than pros in my mind. When I drove it back to my house from the dealership, I thought it was a 4-cyl model. It had good oomph starting from stop but at highway, the pedal just did not feel responsive and it seemed to shifting quite a lot just to increase the speed. Every time I press the pedal, it shifts. Until it shifts four times, there is no sensation of the acceleration. May be the programming is not up to stuff. But I was in sport mode all the time. The car comes with Economy/Normal/Sport/Sport+ I can't imagine how gutless it would feel with the Economy mode!
I am thinking with the gearbox constantly changing gears, it probably would cut down its life considerably. Most wear in the auto box happens when it shifts.
Then it has the engine cut-off at stop light feature but fortunately there is button on the console to turn it off but it will default to on after you restart the vehicle.
Talking about the console, what is the big deal with the electronic shift buttons? It is not as if you have more room or more storage space when the shift lever is removed. Electronic parking brake does give back more room taken by the handle.
Don't get me wrong. It is a nice and capable car in its price bracket (list price including destination 42.5K) but just does not feel outstanding. I never got a chance to drive it on winding road to check its handling but I am sure I would chicken out well before the car would reach its limit.
What happened with the 3.7 engine? I know it had some spotty reputation about the oil consumption. Did Acura ever put it in TLX?