Anyone know the difference between 02 and 03 tl-s? Is the transmission better on the 03?

Also what's the best color combo on the car?

 

Only difference between the '02 and '03 is that the '03s with NAVI also get OnStar.

Otherwise, no documented differences between the two cars. Its possible that the '03s have their transmission from a different manufacturer or a slightly modified transmission to prevent the problems of the '02, but there is no concrete evidence to support this.

As far as the best color combo, you dont really get much of a choice... Most colors force you to choose a certain interior (only NBP, and WDP have a choice of the two different interiors).

You'll get varying opinions from different people as to what color choice is best. Anthracite Metallic is a new color choice for the '03 TL-S however, and seems to be pretty popular around here.

 

I love my Anthracite Metallic color. I think, maybe, it's because there aren't that many on the road (at least that I've seen); mostly in silver, at least in the parts of San Diego I live and work around. And yeah, I think the only diff is the addition of OnStar (which is pretty cool but not sure if I'd keep the subscription going).

 

Onstar is worthless!!!!...(except for the vehicle tracking and door unlock feature) I'm w/ Planetside would not keep subscription. I had it on my Monte Carlo SS and never used it once the whole year that you get free!
And yes i have a `03 Anthracite too

 

Well, I'd like to offer a different opinion regarding OnStar...

Besides the safety and security benefits, I really like the Personal Calling feature. Although the minutes aren't cheap (about 35 cents/minute when purchased in bulk) there is no monthly fee, so you only pay for what you use. Plus, the integration with the car's audio system is great - the audio is muted when a call is placed or received. In fact, I'm thinking of ditching my cell phone, since I mostly used it in the car anyway, which makes it cost-neutral.

Now, there are obvious disadvantages - without a keypad, there is no way to generate tones, so accessing voice mail or other automated systems that require tones is impossible. And there's no voice mail, caller ID etc. that typically come with cell phones, so most folks would probably use it only to supplement their mobile phone service (if they use it at all).

I've played a bit with the virtual advisor feature (traffic, weather, news etc.) and while it's interesting, I don't think it's worth the call time used up.

Anyway, that's my opinion, for what it's worth...I do understand that it's not for everyone.

 

The only person to ever use my OnStar system was the dealer. He used it when we had to set up an new account... other than that, I've never touched that thing. The calling plan's cost is ridiculous and the only reason i'd ever renew it, would be because it can act as a lowjack... even though some insurance companies don't give you a discount for having OnStar.

 

ANTHRACITE METALLIC/EBONY ROCKS ....................

 

ONE other slight difference between the 02 and 03 TLS is that the leather on the door panels above the arm rest is perforated (like the seats) on the 03 model and pleated on the 02 model. The 02 seats are perforated and identical to the 03 seats. It took me a fine tooth comb to finally notice this slight door panel change. Other than that the cars are identical except for the ONSTAR and the anthracite color option as others have stated.

 

As far as I can tell the defroster vents are different on the 2003 models

 

Anthracite or agean blue are the best colors. I like my anthracite cuz when its dirty it still looks clean.

 

Some other little things... front grille and door handles are painted, headlights have some black in the casing to prevent the vertical beams.

If I had the choice between 02 or 03 I would most definitely choose 03 just because of the tranny. Even though there is no hard proof, later 03 builds should not be affected by the 02 tranny touch of death. Don't hold me to this, I am just saying I wouldn't touch an '02 with a ten foot pole unless I knew it already had its tranny swapped.

-copland007

 

Some other little things... front grille and door handles are
painted, headlights have some black in the casing to prevent
the vertical beams.

????? The front grill and door handles are still chrome on the 03. I don't know about the black in the headlights?????

 

Wow, I find all this stuff fascinating. The perforated leather on the doors was cool, I am not much for noticing details, so I would have never realized that the '02s dont have that ... Not sure what is meant by the painted door handles/grille either though?

 

02 grille:



03 grille:

Also notice the black in the headlight casing in above picture

 

Ahh ones a CL and ones a TL.

All the changes made to the CL didnt all carry over to the TL, so the TL doesnt get the body colored trim, blacked out headlights or 6 speed option.

 

Aaha! You see, you do learn something everyday, I didn't know it only was on the CLs, my bad.

 

Thanks, Mr. Hyde! The ONLY changes that have been confirmed is the ON Star, and the perforated door panels. OTHER THAN THAT THEY ARE IDENTICAL!

I also believe that the trannys are identical. At least the early releases. Time will tell if Acura has really fixed the problem and has started installing different units into their recent build.?????