I've got about 2000 on the car and I'm loving it. I've had an '87 325is since new, so I'm constantly comparing the "new car feel" of this car with that one. I can honestly say that I have thoroughly enjoyed almost all of the 265,000 miles I've put on that car so far, and nothing will probably ever compare to the new feeling of that car, which lasted a very long time!

As for my TLS, I don't really have any rattles and squeaks to complain about (except one), but here are a few of my observations about fit and finish:

- The external door handles look like they were made for another car (fit makes them look too large), and the driver's handle mount is missaligned in the door.

- The left upper corner of the trunk lid is curled up noticeably.

- The passenger air bag cover on the dash looks like it's about to pop open on the upper right corner.

- The inside right front door latch housing is loose.

- I have a resonant humming noise from under the hood as I first accelerate (first two times) after starting the car up.

- The suspension could be a little more compliant, in my opinion.

I'm not posting these to complain. I'll probably accept whatever help the dealer will offer. I'm enjoying this car very much. But has anyone else noticed these little annoyances?

 

Larry,

Congrats on your new ride. You're not alone. I said this day one of ownership: If the TL-S was built like the Lexus ES300, I'd say the TL-S would be the penultimate vehicle for under $32,000. However, fit and finish aren't Acura's specialties, as they are w/ Lexus, Benz, and BMW.

Ditto on the airbag "cover"
Ditto on the exterior
Ditto on the suspension

Best of Luck,

pete

 

I thought this was my imagination!! Both sides of mine do this, but it's definitely more pronounced on the left side. Not much you can do for it, except to roll it out I imagine....

 

The resonant humming noises you hear after you accelerate after startup is your ABS doing a self test.

 

Walker29:

Thanks for that information. I had read that once before, in another thread. I didn't see any mention of that in the documentation, and it's so consistent that your explanation makes sense. How did you find out about it?

 

The suspension is not firm enough for my taste, especially the vast amount of body roll during corning. I wish the car would have even thicker sway bars. The TL-S is designed for performance and handling. The regular TL is for those who want a more comfortable ride.

 

Edward'TLS

I, too, want a performance suspension. I've got an '87 325is which, in my opinion, has a really good mixture of light body lean, very good grip, with a very supple suspension. My minor complaint is with TLS's harshness over common road irregularities. I would think that this car needs serious lowering and spring and shock modifications to get really good performance, especially with its weight. I don't know if everyone here is aware, but our car did pretty well in a recent comparison test, at Edmunds.com, against BMW 330i, Lexus IS300, Volvo, Lincoln, etc. In fact, it was the overall winner, primarily on value, but they liked it very much.

I suspect most of my complaint revolves around the low profile tires. The BMW's stock BBS wheels currently carry P205/60 R14 Michelins Pilots, which, as you would expect, are much softer over the road.