Its comming on in a couple minutes on Dateline NBC on the east coast. I think its slow speed crashes but should be interesting.

 

I wonder what the result would be if they did crash the TSX where that "extra padding" was...

 

TSX= Poor alongside Chevy Malibu
The TSX had the highest repair cost....even more than the TL

$1559!!

WOW

 

F*ckin' wonderful

 

pls tell me you are not joking...

 

I thought they were just doing the bumper tests?

 

He's not joking.

Here is the article..

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4373198/

Keep in mind this is not a "Safety" crash test. Its a bumper test, to see how well the bumpers are built. This is stuff that would affect fender benders. The TSX bumpers are considered "poor", which means they are easily damaged I guess. The article concluded that building a better bumper is very easy, but it seems paying more for a car doesnt mean getting a better bumper as the cheaper cars did better than the more expensive cars.

So what does it really mean? Well maybe insurance for the TSX is going to go up

 

I'm not kidding!! The gest of it was that the TSX had a special area in the bumper with extra padding. Looks (to the insurance agency) like Acura was trying to pull a fast one......and got caught. Who's to say if they were or not. The test was performed on the left rear side of the bumper and the repair damage was $1559. 00. The front angle test, done on the front right bumper also was poor...cost here = $1269.00
Moral of this story my friends is to not hit or get hit by anyone in your nice new TSX!

Cheers
Todd

 

Wow, I had deja-vu reading that article and then I realized that they repeated the last 5 paragraphs at the end....

 

atlatr, you scared the crap out of me!

I had to visit the NBC site just to see for myself.

Glad this was only the test for bumpers. If the TSX had been given a "Poor" for the offset crash, I would have freaked out....and then questioned how the heck the Europeans test the cars (since the Accord got like a 4 star rating in basically the same test the IIHS does).

However, the "Poor" rating of the bumpers is a bit disappointing. I guess it's one area where the 6 beats the TSX out.....one of the only.

 

I guess this explains some of our insurance concerns

NJ insurance

 

its kinda crap that they changed where the pole hit the car though. What would have happend if they hit in the same place? Maybe we would have gotten a good rating!

 

Any chance of viewing the video? Missed Dateline

 

Sorry dude.....
I'll try to be a bit more specific next time.

 

not only did the TSX get a poor... but the engineers at Acura put extra padding specifically where where they knew the bumper test impact would take place. the testers offset the impact a bit to avoid the extra padding and the TSX scored a POOR.

maybe I should rebadge my TSX to TSUX.

 

Anyone recorded it, I missed it too!

 

I felt someone kicked my groin when I saw that video...

 

So, does this mean I am going to get a letter from my insurance company saying that they based my rate on the assumption the TSX would at least be "acceptable" and now my rates are going to go up???? :'(

And...I have been telling everyone at work how I love my car and its a great value and they are going to give me such s%#t tomorrow.

 

I am not worried about my rates going up because of this. I still feel safe in my TSX doesn't matter what these ppl say. Supposely, what aired on Dateline was the bumper tests. The TSX did the worse among the 6 cars tested this round.

For now, I am worried about getting hit from behind in my TSX. The repair bill on that won't be pretty.

 

...which is part of what your insurance rate is based on - now they know that a TSX in a common fender-bender will have a high bumper replacement cost, AND maybe that replacement cost will give an incentive for professional thieves

 

Insurance rates are based on dozens of factors, slow-impact tests only being one of them.

 

http://www.hwysafety.org/news%5Frele...4/pr022904.htm

The Chevy Malibu received all of $150 LESS damage in the 4 tests. I'd be extremely happy if the TSX insurance went DOWN to the Malibu's level!

Remember Volvo's reputation for safety? The Volvo XC90 received $4622 damage in the tests.

http://www.hwysafety.org/news%5Frele...3/pr031803.htm

 

i missed it, did they also do a crash test for the new TL?

that's pretty stupid for acura/honda engineers. then why does the Accord always get good crash test ratings? am i wrong that i read that the Rsx had good crash ratings?

i guess then i was pretty lucky back in last Nov. 03 when i was rearended in my 6th gen Accord. The bumper didn't fall off, it was just paint damage and the guy's license plate screws got stuck in the Accord's bumper. suffered whiplash, but that's not good.

oh man, i'm thinking the 6th gen Accord was a tank then compared to the Tsx.

that hurts though that it cost more than $1000 to fix the Tsx. i just thought that the cost was high because the Tsx is still a new model and the parts come from Japan.

 

Can you please remind me what part of "5MPH crash test repair bill" has to do with safety?

 

I think everyone should stay calm here - regardless of the bumper test results, the TSX is still the same car as before. The chances that we get hit at the bumper are still the same as before. If you get hit at the bumper, then the other person or his/her insurance company will have to pick up the bill anyway. Regardless of the bumper test results, I am still going to drive as safely as I should in my TSX. I don't think I am loving my TSX any more or any less just because of this bumper test...

 

 

Between 1974 and the late 1980s cars sold in the US were required by the Feds to suffer no damage at all in a 5mph barrier test.

Volvo and Saab both introduced 5mph bumpers a couple of years before they were required to do so by the Feds.

Like the Saab and Volvo engineers, I think my car is just a little bit safer when the headlights and taillights work.

The insurance rating should be based on a car's claims experience, and so far the insurance companies seem to be using the Integra as the model for the TSX risk, and that car had a fairly awful claims history. So a lousy low speed collision result is probably mostly built into the TSX rates already.

From other reports from IIHS: TSX - $3957, Volvo S60- $3635, Lexus IS 300 - $3925, Saab 9-5 - $4092, BMW 328i - $2430, '04 TL - $2932. So every single car I'd consider driving did either "awful" or "just BAD" on the test!

Even the little Honda CR-V that I've been looking at for my kid failed miserably - $6607!

 

BE CAREFUL IN THE PARKING LOTS??? OUCH

2004 Acura TSX Average cost for (4) tests was $989. OUCH!
2004 Acura TL Average cost for (4) tests was $731.

The TSX sustained the heaviest damage in the rear-into-pole test because the bumper was too weak to protect the car body.

"The bumper couldn't keep the damage away from the trunk and rear body panel," Lund says. "The lid alone cost more than $500 to straighten and refinish. The bumper is supposed to take the hit so the car's fenders and body don't have to."

Another problem is that the TSX's bumpers are nearly flush against the body -- a design favored by some automotive stylists.

"That design may please the styling department, but it's terrible for consumers because it puts expensive sheet metal and safety components such as the headlamps closer to the point of impact in a routine fender-bender."

Link to IIHS website with details:
http://www.hwysafety.org/news_releas...4/pr022904.htm

 

yeah the bad news is starting to spread...

is this the same information from the dateline thread?

 

Its very simple, dont hit anything.

 

I think you guys all know why our TSX's look so trim and lith, right? We have 2.5 mph euro bumpers like a Benz or BMW. They are fine for high speed crashes, like in euro tests, where the car is to protect you, not the bumper to protect the car. I was actually surprised we did so well!

 

Yes it is. Lets keep the discussions in one place.

I'll merge the threads.

 

Sorry, but I just couldn't resist seeing how my Jetta did...

http://www.hwysafety.org/vehicle_rat...eed_smcars.htm


:P

&deity. bless my 5-mph bumpers...

 

Ah, looks like none of the luxury marques do well in this category...

http://search.hwysafety.org/vehicle_...eed_midlux.htm

 

This is what happens when you push for a car that is designed for a different market. The European and Japanese market don't have the same bumper requirements as the US so it should come as no surprise that the TSX did not do that well in the low speed bumper tests. This is also why the Lancer Evo took so long to come to the US (they had to redesign the bumpers to meet crash requirements but also meet the packaging requirements of the intercooler).

 

So, guess the dealers might be willing to give a bit on price now? (Naw, slick-talkin' sales-pukes will down-play this as being significant.....)


Won't do any good, but I think I might send Acura a letter with my concerns on the quality of the TSX, and yes, having bumpers that are the biggest POS in category is a quality issue....

 

It still comes down to supply and demand - if people will buy a car with crappy bumpers, then they still won't deal on the price. Until you go and see 10 TSX's in the lot, and one is the one you want, don't expect to get a great deal. I called 10 dealers and the only ones that would 'deal' were ones with the car on the lot, and only if i bought right then and there. Too bad they were 10 hours away...

 

In the U.S., the 5-mph bumper used to be mandated by law, but this was relaxed. (Down with the government! Down with regulations! etc. )

So, what happens now is that cars can be cheaper (the main objection to the regulation -- let the free market decide) and perhaps more stylish, but you end up paying more via higher insurance costs than you "saved" on the less expensive bumper.

 

Oh boy. They just had a news report about this on 10TV here in Columbus Ohio. They specifically said how poor the Acura TSX was. Here is a link...

http://www.iihs.org/news_releases/2004/pr022904.htm

 

bad news to me, no wonder why it's more expensive to insure the Tsx than the Accord before. i don't know i may be thinking of selling my Tsx for another car in a yr.