I 've always known Acura to be along the lines of Lexus, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Infiniti, Saab...etc. I know the TL was made as a competitor for the C-class, 3 series, G20...etc. Some of my friends think Acura is just another Honda, and Infiniti is just another Nissan...an the like. But as far as the image of the car is concerned...who thinks that the TL is an equivalent of the latter mentioned cars (prices and options aside...I'm just talking about the image)? I was proud of my TL purchase, not only because it was the best bang for the buck, but I wanted a reputable luxury car. I was also looking at the Lexus IS300, and Mercedes C230 coupe...but fell in love with the Acura. I'd like to think I went with an upscale luxury brand. It may not be an RL or comparable...but I still think it's a nice reputable upscale nameplate. What's everyone else's thoughts on Acura?

Aya

PS: You guys rock with all the advice and help! This is the first forum I've been to where I actually have people helping me. As opposed to posting a thread, and coming back a month later and the best answer I get is, "That's too bad man. I feel ya." Rock on Acura owners!!!

 

I really love my car. This is only the 2nd car I have owned the other being 2001 Grand Prix. The rest of my vehicles have been Chevy trucks but there is no doubt that this is the BEST vehicle I have ever owned. Good luck with your Acura!!

 

I think in the near luxury class, Acura owns them all. When it comes to Luxury I think Lexus, MB and BMW has the advantages in that market. Acura can't compete in the $60K+ catagory. IMO, the RL is getting old and needs a makeover, more power, more comfort, more of a lot of things. Acura did great with the TSX and TL but when it comes to luxury compared to the others, Acura is lagging behind. Don't get me wrong, when I go to a wedding or a banquet and valet brings my car around, I always get looks. The TL definitely stands out as much as any of the other luxury brands.

 

I think in the near luxury class, Acura owns them all. When it comes to Luxury I think Lexus, MB and BMW has the advantages in that market. Acura can't compete in the $60K+ catagory. IMO, the RL is getting old and needs a makeover, more power, more comfort, more of a lot of things. Acura did great with the TSX and TL but when it comes to luxury compared to the others, Acura is lagging behind. Don't get me wrong, when I go to a wedding or a banquet and valet brings my car around, I always get looks. The TL definitely stands out as much as any of the other luxury brands.

 

IMHO, in materials (interior), the 2nd Gen TL (can't speak for 3rd gen) lagged way behind Lexus/BMW/etc (way to plasticy and vinlyly and rattley).
Now, the BMW 3 series is classified techically as "near luxury", not luxury. Price aside, the 3-series wins hands-down, no comparison. However, on price alone, the TL is the winner.

 

I was never concerned with image. I just liked the car. Plain and simple. I could give less of a **** what everyone else drives.

 

The Cars of Acura are great. The Image of Acura is sub-par.

The majority of people the are looking for a luxury car do only look at three brands, Lexus, Mercedes, and BMW. There is a very small amount of pressure from Places like Jaguar and Audi, but there really are only three Luxury brands.

What Honda needs to do is bump up the quality and options on its Acura line so that it could compete on the same level as BMW, et al. Right now, I do only view my Acura as a nicer Accord, but the brand could be much more than that.

BMW and Mercedes have always been luxury brands, but Lexus is what Acura can, and should, be. Toyota started Lexus as a way to save money by sharing platforms while still offering "luxury cars," and make the profit off these higher margin cars. What sets Lexus apart from Acura is its development into a true brand, instead of a profit scheme based on the same old cars. Honda has the resources and money to do this, but it would be a gamble.

Honda is not a gambling company, this can be seen in the styling of all of its and Acura's cars up until 2002. They look like average cars, nice looking average cars, but average just the same. The TL is a striking car, but it is not daring in any way; it is well designed and conservative, it does not draw attnetion to itself like the gaudy IS300 (It is a nice gaudy, but still gaudy). That is why I like it so much, and why it turns heads.

Ed

 

Acura=entry-level luxury car company. Like Volvo, Saab etc
The others you mentioned are the big 3 (BMW, Benz, Lexus). Acura makes a great "value" but not a luxury car.

 

In terms of "You pay what you get for..." IMO, Acura does better than BMW, Lexus, and other luxury brands in their price category. My last girlfriend got her '03 323CI w/cold winter package and premium. No navi, no sports package for a little over $40k. I got my '03 TL-S w/Navi. and OEM Kit for a little over $33k. I also personally don't like the leather/suede combo they have in the IS300 which was a car I was looking to buy but ended up getting a TL-S. Overall, Acura is a in my book.

Oh, and I love my TL-S

 

Um no, They are all Luxury makes, the TL is an entry level luxury car in the Acura line up.

The Benz C Class is as much a luxry car as the TL is.

 

Well, seems like everyone's kinda got the same opinions as me and my friends...mixed! lol Well, either way, I'm definitely MORE than happy with my TL. I was in the market for a C-Class or an IS300 before I settled on this one...and I think that if there was something about this car that was good enough to draw me away from getting a benz or lexus, it's gotta be along the same lines. IMHO The C-class was a little too mushy as far as the suspension was concerned for me...and although the IS300 rides like its on rails...the TL just has bigger ballz...so to speak...

 

It's all about what you get - to equip a atlima or maxima the same as an acura you spend as much if not more - regarding the comparison - Lexus, BMW, Mercedes what have you - well look at pop culture no one is rapping about riding in their Acrua-o - hell even the escalade makes it to bling bling status - I think that the Acura line gets saddled with being an older person's car (not my thinking but I will say I have seen more 55+ people in TL-S).

BMW gets the pimp crowd no questions asked....

Mercedes always seemed to be out of my league I just never thought about getting one - "too rich for my blood" mentality.

just my 2 cents

 

Big Punisher-
I used to have to pack a mack in the back of the ac'

Big pun has love for acura

I think acura is one of those brands that you need to experience to appreciate. The vast majority of acura owners i know are second or third time buyers at least. As far as styling, i think acura has a great thing with the second generation TL, personally... with a body kit i think it looks better than the 3rd Gen
But thats just me

 

I don't know about you guys, but I get mad respect from people in all walks of life when I am in my car. I'm talkin' from people who can only afford a Focus to MB owners. A nice car is a nice car no matter the so called "mantra" of luxury or entry luxury nomencalture. As far as Acura(Honda) stepping up to the so called big three, maybe they are right in the segment they want to be in. Guys look at their trend. They put great focus on their bread winner TL with a beautiful brand new design before the RL. They got a fresh new face in the TSX which slotted "below" the TL. Hell, the RSX is only a coulple of model years old. I know they are coming out with a new RL soon and more power to them, but don't be fooled into thinking they are not turning a great profit on the three cars under it. I think they realize that not everyone wants to pay $40k-plus for a little luxury and thats just fine with me!

 

I agree with you. Acura is considered in the class of other upscale cars like the Lexus, and Infiniti.

However, Benz is in a class all by themselves.

 

I have people ask what kind of car I drive and when I say Acura they something like '' oh you must have money are it looks like a rich mans car.'' So I think Acura does get respect!!!

 

In my suggestion, acura tl is on borderline of luxury vehicle.

1. infinity - worst

2. Acura

3. Lexus

4. BMW

5. Mer-Benz - best

 

Acura's got an image problem stemming from so many riced up, lowered integras with huge 'towel bar' trunk spoilers and coffee can exhausts still running around on the road for people to take the nameplate too seriously as a "luxury" brand. You dont see any ES300s or MB320s decked out with cheap sh|t accessories from the Autozone.
To be a near luxury brand, Acura's lowest level car should be at least a $28k TSX, not a $19k RSX. None of the other competition offers a budget car in that price range and neither should Acura. Leave those buyers to seek out Honda products, just as Infinity has nothing to sell to a buyer in the $22k price range. Instead they dont corrupt or diminish the status of the nameplate, and instead offers those customers products like the Nissan Altima for example.

 

i think the Acura's respected reputation was based on the Legend. that was a long time ago, now its somewhere in brand name purgatory and trying to establish itself once more. definitely does not have the cache of a Lexus. i think its because the cars have a sportier edge to them.

mercedes to lexus : bmw to acura

 

I don't care about Acura's lack of cachet. Who decides which brand has cachet anyway? I've owned two because they have the best value for the buck. I see no reason to pay more money just to get that German-style cachet. I can afford a BMW or Benz and CHOSE Acura.

1SICKLEX, often I agree with you but not this time. Have you test driven a 3G TL? Is the interior not luxurious for you? Just asking, not flaming.

 

i personally like the jaguar s type, and there are other luxury brands you left out like bentley, aston martin, rolls royce, and etc. now that is real luxury.

 

I had a 96 model A4 and the overall feeling of the car was better than my 00 TL although not as much "get up and go." But as far as maintenance prices go, can't beat the TL. I'm still learning to love my TL ........one ticket at a time .

 

Acura needs more selection. They have so little cars to choose from compared to Lexus.

 

Pure luxury = Mercedes, Lexus (soft rides, quiet, boring)

Pure Sport = BMW, Infiniti (interiors are spartan, harsher rides, engaging but not relaxing)

Perfect Blend = Audi, Acura (sportier than Merc/Lex, more luxurious than BMW/INfiniti)

Note : I am comparing apples to apples, not apples to flagship. Obviously the Q45 and BMW 7 series are more luxurious than a TL.

 

I also thought about the topic of acura vs other luxury brands. From my experience with my TL, people would see it as a nice car but it never had the same impact that a bimmer would have. People would ask me what kind of car i had and i would say acura and they would just respond 'oh thats nice'. When i got my g35, i've experienced such a different impact on what people say about my car when i say its infiniti. For some off reason, when i say infiniti, people immediately say..wow your rich. Just the other day, i was talking with my friends mom because my friend told her i got another car. She asked if i got acura again and i said no i got an infiniti. She was so shocked. Maybe because i'm an 18 year old with an infiniti but it cant be that because my TLS was expensive too. Its weird cuz they are almost in the same price range but people think my g is way more expensive. I think that other lux japanese brands like lexus and infiniti are a step higher than acura because of the way they market the cars. If any of you noticed, whenever acura comes out with a new car, car magazines always intoduce the car as 'honda's ***' (e.g. The all new acura tsx based on the european honda accord or the all new TL based on the same platform as the honda accord) You dont see car mags saying 'the all new lexus gs430 based on the Toyota Aristo or the g35 coupe based on the nissan skyline. Acura is always too directly connected to honda that most people just think they are tooo similar. Also the fact that alot of parts on acuras visibly say honda. On my g35, i have yet to see anything that says nissan. I havent seen anything say toyota on a lexus car either. Infiniti and lexus did a good job in separating their lower counterparts. Most people i've ran across had no idea infiniti was made by nissan. Since i have Skyline badges on my car, alot of people ask why it says that. I respond with saying that it is a Nissan Skyline 350gt in japan. They respond with "i didnt know infiniti was made by nissan..did you have your car imported?' I love acura cars, but honda has to work on separating the two companies(honda and acura) to the public eye.

 

So does the glass on the 2004 TL say Honda?

 

Good value luxury = oxymoron

No such thing. Get over it. Luxury features do not mean luxury.

 

Well, we just got a 2000 Lexus RX300 for the wife, and I spent a lot of time driving it this weekend. Soft supple interior, more leather around the interior, more wood in the interior, ultra soft ride, very very quiet, overall I thought this was way more luxurious than my TL. But when I got in my TL this morning, with the black interior, firm ride and niice accelaration I thought F' the plush ride, I'll take my TL interior over the RX interior any day. Go figure.

 

Well i dont have an 04 TL but i know i could see alot of things that say honda on my 03tls

 

I too agree that Acura shouldn't sell a car like the RSX for $20K. They should leave that to Honda and call it the Honda RSX. Even the Accord coupes are more powerful (V6), pricier, and offers a Navi option. They should make the S2000 called Acura S2000 and sell it as a sports convertible for $30K under the Acura name. That way, the Acura name plate doesn't sound cheap.

 

I agree with VTEC 6300...if they turned the RSX into an Honda, and the S2000 into an Acura, it would completely change the image of the nameplate. I figure Honda wants to let people know they can make cars to compete with the likes of BMW Benz and Audi (Z3/4, SLK, and TT) I was in the market for a convertible for the longest time and the S2000 was my pick...only thing is, I wanted to get a luxury nameplate because I feel I worked and saved enough to own one...I got the TL only because it was an Acura, and it was a reputationally known reliable vehicle. That and the fact that I have a kid on the way...dreams of a convertible went out the window for a little bit...and I had to settle for something with a little more efficiency. I'm glad I went with the Acura though...although something tells me that if I were to find an Acura S2000, I might have bought it right away. It was either an S2000 or a Z4, and even in high performance roadsters, Honda blows away the competition regardless of its nameplate. Although if I were to pay 30+k on a convertible, I would definitely want it to be known as a luxury marque vehicle. I know some people don't care about brand names and all that, and more power to them. But I feel like I've worked hard enough to deserve a car that people can look at and say, "Damn, he did well for himself after all...) You know? :p

 

We looked at MB C230 and Lexus ES300, but the 230's interior was chintzy (especially for the price) and the 300 didn't have the performance. I have a 2000 TL with OEM body kit and for what I paid it's the best-looking car yet, with excellent performance. Interior's sweet, too.

I *am* concerned with image, and no matter what anybody says, I do judge people by among other things, what kind of car they drive and if it's clean. It says a lot about the person. And it's nice to turn heads now and then.

Thought I read somewhere that the TL is the near-luxury (or entry-level luxury) market. The price would reflect that.

The whole bling-bling status thing? That's a whole other sub-culture. I don't want a chromed-out Escalade with spinning hubs and swivel DVD screens any more than I want a bicycle with a wicker basket and handlebar streamers.

Acura an older person's car? I mostly see 30- and 40-somethings driving these, and at 41 I'm definitely not old (though over thirty sounded old when I was 18...)

The riced-up, lowered integras with huge trunk spoilers and coffee can exhausts do dilute the luxury aspect of the Acura name somewhat, but I've always thought those gave more credibility to the performance reputation.

Fact is, you can buy a TL relatively cheap and make it shiny, fast, or leave it plain, and use the difference in what you would have paid for a more expensive brand for more stuff.

 

Good point about the Honda S2000, as I had forgotten about that car entirely. The car is totally misplaced selling under the Honda badge. First off, the Honda nameplate shouldn't have a vehicle that costs more than an Acura (ie. the RSX and TSX) if Acura is supposed to be the 'upscale' brand of the two. Second, Acura offers no convertible sports coupe, while Infinity and BMW do, so it seems like a no-brainer.

As far as status, showing off a fancy brand name, and all the rest of that, Why do ANY of the car companies have two brand names (Nissan/Infinity, Toyota/Lexus etc) if not to position one to appeal to the mass market, and the other to a higher level buyer (ie. a more well to do consumer). If you are going to buy an Acura, from the same company that offers a $90k car (the NSX) and a $45k car (the RL) you really should have an expection that you will be viewed as more well-off financially if you are driving an Acura, over a Civic (even if you did spend all your money on your car and dont have a pot left to piss in). And of course the sales and service experience at the dealership should be better with the higher upscale brand, although from some of the posts I've read on this site, it seems like the Acura sales and service folks might as well be selling the civics. I wonder if they treat you the same way if you buy an NSX? Which brings me to one last question -- whats the deal with that car? It may have a lightweight body, but its so underpowered by today's car standards. I guess thats why you hardly see any of them on the road, but at least where I live i see zillions of $60-100k Benz and Bimmers, so its certainly not the sticker price that keeps people from buying them...but thats another story for another website

 

S2000 needs a V-6, i have an 03 S2000 and it DOES have great performance .. but ****.. when driving normally, it sounds like a Civic.. when acceleration pedal to the metal.. it sounds like a Civic on E's .. It needs a V-6, but still do the 9000rpm and a NICE exhaust! (i love the car tho, don't get me wrong)

The TL.. i think it's mid-luxury .. luxurious enough to be a luxury car, but not total overkill like the much more expensive beamers and Lexii.

Next to that.. Lexus owners can keep their Lexii .. they're bland.

Tracer

 

After I saw what the Lexus was made of, I decided to totally X them out completely. They are made out of Styrofoam. WTF??? Also if you like a less agressive ride then Lexus would be the choice. Their interior and sound system are a lot better than Acura but that's it. Has boring look IMO. The only Lexus I still do double takes is the Lexus Lan cuz it's beautifu, especially the new model. Sweeeet! Always liked the LS. The messed up the ES, the IS is corny, and they should have left the SC just the way it is.

Mercedes C230 is a waste of time.

I understand there is a luxury division with most car companies. But they are just out for the green instead of keeping the people with loads of money happy, they choose to make cheaper models of a product for a broader market. So now the value of the Luxury lines are declining tremendously. I remember I used to see a Jaguar and be like WOW now I hate Jaguars. It's just not the same prestige. Also they should REFRAIN from making the regular line cars look so much like the luxury line. Too many times, you just can't tell the difference.

With all that said I still think Acura TL's is a good value for an entry level luxury car. Very competitive! I still love my car.

 

No, have not driven it but the interior is very plush, a big step over the previous car. But leather still feels like plastic and wood is still fake. IMO, too much power for those front wheels. I am sure it will satisfy all the new TLowners who just drive to work everyday but for those that are into mods/tracks/road courses, corner, I'd rather an IS or 3 with a less nice interior.

If cruising is your thing, the new TL is very hard to beat. But it's scarey and troubling just seeing the same problem threads in the gen 3 forum everyday.My only objection is if you get the same features or similar features but cheaper (ala Lexus vs BMW or Benz) it's a value. With Acura, IMO, it's not value, just cheaper. I see Acura after niches, not direct competition.
TSX 25k vs Volvo S40, Audi A4 1.8, Saab 9-3
TL sporty/entry luxo FWD in between cars like ES 330 and 3 series
RL, I won't even bother
NSX, 90k, getting clobbered in sales the last 10 years (great car)
MDX sells well and gets good reviews (though any SUV sells nowadays)Well Lexus has the ES 330, SC 430, LS 430 to battle Benz
It has the GS series and IS to battle BMW

I think Acura does very will in it's niche. But no real wood, no V-8s, no RWD in sedans, 20k RSXs, 25k TSXs, no sedan costs more than 45k.
Infiniti has had 1 good year, they still are bottom of the barrel to me, compared to Caddy and Lincoln and Audi.

Oh hell who gives a ****.

 

I have a 2003 TLS, 99 BMW 740IL, and a 1996 Suburu SVX. My favorite every day driver is the TLS. I love it! No squeeky seats, no trans problems, etc. The BMW is a luxure car ideal for long trips but give me the TLS for every day driving the freeways of L.A.!