Louisiana

Just got back from Walker Acura in Metairie LA.
I drove the 2001 TL and then drove the only TL S they had.

First off was the 2001( White with parchment interior and NAVI). Sticker @ $28,000.
Interior: I didn't like he Parchment. It is Two-Tone which I find unattractive. Just a matter of taste I guess but it doesn't look uniform. The salesman commented that others have pointed that out. I haven't seen any comment on it from this forum though.
I didn't really care for the NAVI either. It takes away from the layout and aesthetically looks out of place. If they could conceal it somehow I'd like it more. Infinity does this well but their system isn't as good. Anyway, I am leaning away from the NAVI due to it's looks. It's very distracting too from the drivers perspective. I can't imagine using it while driving.
The Ride: I was not blown away but not entirely disappointed either. It's got a little zip and certainly more than the Infinity I30 but still left me wanting. The cornering ability was pretty darn good for a sedan. I hit some nice curves and it stared them right in the face with solid stability. The small tires got a little carried away when I accelerated through some tighter stuff.

Now for the 2002 TL S(Black with Parchment and No NAVI) Sticker @ $31,700.
Exterior: The Grill is noticeably bigger but not in a bad way. The rear lights are no more or less attractive in my opinion. The one noticeable difference for me is the height of the car. 17" wheels really make a difference. At 6'1", it was nice to see it higher off the ground though.

Performance: This car was faster. That's simplistic but true. It's also more responsive. It also had a nice "GROWL" that I like. I could really feel the increased horse power and wanted to unleash it but traffic was hindering my desires somewhat. The kick seemed to be around 3000 rpms but I can't be sure.
I did get to hit the interstate and opened it up to 80 in no time. I was working that shifter pretty good too. As I closed in on my exit, I was amazed to see it shift down to 2nd from 65 mph! The 2001 wouldn't do that! I didn't take it out of "SportShift" much so I can't comment on the automatic trans' performance.
I exited onto a clover leaf (appropriate term for St Paddies day eh?) and dropped it into 2nd and gave it some heavy juice. Even less body roll than the 2001. As I entered the traffic I laid off a bit to allow more room between me and the truck ahead of me. Once I got @ 30 feet of room, I accelerated hard and got right up on the truck and hit the brakes firmly. Nice job there too. No noticeable nose diving. Really impressed me but the salesman was clearly nervous.


Aesthetics: Side mirrors are a big difference from the inside. From the outside, they're barely noticeable. The salesman said they were modified to cut down on noise. Makes sense to me...But I can't say that I noticed. The interior is much cooler looking with those new silver dials. The seats are better too.
They held me in nicely while accelerating around those clover leafs. Again the parchment was not my favorite. Like the 2001 TL though, I found the seat to be short for my legs. This could be a problem on a long drive.
The Ride: I'd say it was less "Taut" than the BMW but more so than the "Premium" TL. Not so much more so that you'd be uncomfortable though. Just more road feel really. I liked it.
Now for price. The salesman said he was being upfront with me in telling me that they have to clear out the 2001's and it wouldn't make any sense to budge off the 2002 pricing in light of this. They have 15 2001's left and that'll be it for that model. Shouldn't take too long for them to clear that out. He estimated 6 months before they got leniant on the price. I seriously doubt that but I know where the salesman is coming from.

Later on, I sat in a black on black CL-S which had that bowling ball trim. I was amazed to find it more acceptable to even my conservative taste than the parchment two tone look. More sporty looking too. You don't really notice the bowling ball unless you point it out. It would be a real nice idea though to offer the faux wood with ebony. The salesman said no way though.

I have other observations but I gotta run for now.

AnthonyG

Good reviews. Just a couple comments though. I really can't image somebody not wanting the Navi, it is an option that you will definitely regret not getting. Moreover, you cannot add the Acura Navi after the fact. And, you are not supposed to operate the Navi when driving. You configure your route before you start driving, then listen to and if needed, casually glance (every now and them) at the Navi (such as when at a stop sign/stoplight).
The CL-S definitely looks more sporty than the TL-S. But, then again, it's a sports coupe, and most sports coupe look much more sportier than their four door counterparts.

Road Rage

How is the car taller - the lower profile 50-series tires should offet the wheel diamter?

Louisiana

I don't know for certain that the car is higher but I got that impression.
As for the NAVI, I just think it looked out of place. I'm still mulling it over but I just don't know if I can totally sold on it.
As I posted elsewhere, why not just buy a nice laptop for $2,000 and you get NAVI plus a lot more AND it's portable!

hunter001

Buying a TL without the NAV, for me was not an option I would even consider, given that only select Luxury vehicles even offer such a high-end system, even as an option.... anyway, read my response in the topic

"Why spend 2K for a Navigation system" under:
http://www.acura-tl.com/ubb/Forum14/HTML/000379.html


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2000 Naples Gold 3.2TL/Navi - Factory Stock but with up-graded tires

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">[This message has been edited by hunter001 on March 18, 2001 @ ]</font>

Guest

I'm surprised you say that the NAVI didn't look good to you.

Funny thing: I think the TL looks like an every-day-schmo car inside WITHOUT the Navi!

The Navi really sets the interior apart from almost every car on the road. I think it fits in really well, and makes the whole interior decidedly "high-tech meets luxury."

Not to mention that the Navi talks to you, and won't necessarily cause accidents.

Jon

Guest

Were the seats unusually short or the same as others in this class?

Louisiana

The seats were shorter than the BMW with the sport package.
I think the Infinity was about the same.
The Lexus IS300 was longer I think.

AcidHorse

Hmmm, are the Navi's for the 2002's enabled for Voice Recognition? Or do you still have to input data manually and the it tells you where to go?

Louisiana

I think you still have to input the information manually. No voice rec yet.
Anyway, I am still thinking about that TL S.
It really made an impression on me. So deceiving in looks. Family Sedan with a sleeping giant under the hood.
I've been giving that NAVI a second thought too. As I ask around, people seem to favor the NAVI.
Considering resale down the road, perhaps it'd be better to have the NAVI.
We'll see.