23109VC

okay.. we all know there really is NO comparison, but I thought I would just post my thoughts here...

I've had my 2006 CPO RL for several months now and I finally had it in the shop for some routine maintenance. I was given a 2010 TSX w/tech for a loaner. I've had a TSX like this before, but not since having hte RL as a daily driver.... I thought I'd post up my thoughts on the experience..

first off, the TSX is a fun and very nice little car. It's actually not THAT small. it is very similar in size to a last model 3rd gen TL, and honestly not THAT much smaller in the back seat than the RL..it is smaller than the RL, but not by tons...but enough that it makes a difference to guys like me with three kids... we have a 2007 MDX as my wife's car..so the kids are usually in that car..but we do take hte RL quite a bit for medium length road trips and it's plenty big.... the TSX was noticeably smaller in teh back.

the legroom is quite a bit shorter and the width is narrower. ia lso noticed the trunk is quite a bit smaller...i had a harder time fitting our stuff into the back.

the TSX is fun to drive. if this c ar had the RL's motor, it would be a blast. I"ve never test driven the V6 TSX, but i'll bet that car is a lot of fun. the downside to the TSX V6 is the pricing. by the time you price out a V6 you might as well buy a new TL....

anyway, the little 4 bange rmoves pretty well..the only thing that drove me nuts was the buzzy 4 cylinder motor. to make the TSX go anywhere fast you have to redline the stink out of it. the motor is much noiser and vibrates more than the the V6 in the RL. so in the RL, if you get on the gas, you have much more low end torque and you don't have to redline the engine,a nd even if you do, it's quieter. the TSX is loud.

the interior of the TSX is really nice. hte look is coola nd more modern and sporty looking than the RLs interior. the rL looks far more luxurious... and it IS far more luxurious. the TSX looks nice though...it's nicer than the last new accord I sat in...although some of the plastics ahve a very rough/coarse feel to them, amost like fine grit snadpaper which I did not like.

handling is pretty good. if you drive at 7/10ths the car feels very light on it's feet and very planted. it feels like it has good grip and yhou can toss it throgh turns and it is honestly a fun little car to zip aroudn in. if you REALLY push it, it plows and understeers liek aFWD car does. My boxster...when reallyh psuhed, just begs for more..if you break ti loose, it will slide in a predictable manner and behaves like the spors car that it is.. . at lower more snae speeds... i got hte sense that a TSX with updgradd wheels/tires/shocks/springs would really be a fun car. at less than insane speeds, it would do just fine as a fun car to blast around the twistiies in..it wouldn't have hte smae feel as my boxtser..but c'mon..thats apples to oranges.

RL vs the TSX..ou can feel how much ligher the TSX is.... more tossable, but less stable too.

the steering wheel int he TSX is nicer...smaller in diamter and more sporty feelng.

the one thing I really did NOT like on the TSX is ultimately the lightnes of it. i have gotten used to having hte weight/mass and stability of the RL. once I got back int eh rL i said something like "this is how a car shoudl feel" the RL had a big planted feel to it. it was rock solid. the TSX feels tiny and flimsy by comparison.

on the freeway the TSX has a tendency to wander and require constant steering input to maintain a truly straigh tline. the RL just cruises absolutely straight..dead center...rock solid...smooth and stable.

on a freeway trip, the RL is a ZILLION times better.

if I was 25, and looking for a cool gas minded entry level luxury car i'd give hte TSX a long hard look, especially teh V6 if the pricing was right. the tech m odel has a lot of cool stuff.... not as much as an RL, but for an entryh level luxury sedan it's n ice.

if i bought one, i'd upgrade teh wheels tiree, shocks and psrings and it woudl be adarn fun little car. throw on an AEM intake and cat back exhaust adn it would be a fun little car.

but it's NO RL!!! boy am I glad ot have my car back....that old saying..you get what you pay for.... very true.

princelybug

iTrader: (16)

RL > TSX. Any day of the week.

KB1Spec

iTrader: (4)

I kinda like the new TSX. Like how the interior works out. But ya...RL is a gas guzzler where as the TSX gives good mileage. I wouldnt mind getting a TSX as a daily car.

Blazing GT

i had a tsx loaner

I<3 the gas mileage

miner

My 2008 TSX 6MT Nav avgs. 4-5 mpg more than my RL (26 vs 31) - not much considering the true differences fo the car.

DeadLock

I just traded my 2009 tsx for an RL......

getakey

I got a TSX as a loaner also. (RL in for 105K service)
As OP stated, fun little (but not that little) car. Obviously ride is harsher than RL.
The Tach and Speedo are kind of cool. The needles are attached to the circumference of the gauges, not the center. They don't even extend to the center.

pimpin-tl

The TSX is still actually a bit smaller than the 3rd gen TL. I had one as a loaner while my 3rd gen TL-S was getting a few things done. The backseat is very cramped compared to my TL. But overall the TSX is a great bargain. I do miss our RL.....we been trying to find a slightly used one 2006-2008 low miles again to pick up but haven't had any luck.