I just saw a review of the TL-S on Motorweek. The reviewers
seem to like the car.

There test said 0-60 in 6.6 sec's and quarter mile in 15.1.

They also said that it wasn't as fast as the 330i they tested
a couple of months ago. Supposidely the 330 they tested
ran a half second faster.

Any thoughts on this??

 

Well, I almost never take a manufacturer's indication of 0-60 times verbatum. They are most likely biased and/or optimistic.

For the TL-S I've seen mag reviewed times from 6.2 to 7.0.

It depends a lot on temperature, altitude, etc.

There's a rumour that the TL-S that went around to some magazines had modified Comptech headers and were therefore not stock.

 

Guys, stop trying to figure out why there is such a range. The reasons are simple. There are too many variables that WILL results in different times. No two tests even with the same car will reproduce the same number. Period!

Consider these points:
No 2 tests used the exact same car.
No 2 tests used the same driver.
No 2 tests were done at the same track.
No 2 tests were conducted under the same weather conditions.
No 2 tests used exactly the same launch technique.
AND no 2 cars are exactly the same.

So taking those points into consideration, it is reasonable to expect a range of 1/2 to 1 second variation in the results.

Also, regarding headers. That is very illegal thing to do with the way represention of their findings are published. So I seriously doubt they would assume such a liability. The car must be orderable from the dealer as pubublished and or they must disclose the options under the "options tested" part.

However, some manufactures have placed such a priority on the published results that they have tweaked "tuned" it for these tests. Things such as fuel and or air flow mappings that don't changes the "bill of materials". Also, some car mags like speed so much that they themselves will do everything possible to get the best numbers. It claims to show the driving superiority over the other guys. They too may "tune" for optimum results.

So if you want some degree of consistency in comparing different cars, then use the results from the just one car magazine. Don't pick the times from different ones. Also, the faster times tend to be representative of the cars "Stock" potential if driven to the egde under similar conditions. With some minor "tuning" too boot in some cases.

Years ago there used to be a disclaimer on such published results stating that those time were produced using a professional driver under racing conditions and not representative of your actual results.

I hope this helps confuse you some more. :p

RUF

 

One more thing, some test drivers run the 0-60 over and over and over until they get just the right launch RPMs and shift points. I think Car and Driver has some of the better testers.

 

Don't forget also that speed test drivers generally don't care about the future of the car, so they do things like torque braking that you wouldn't necessarily want to do with your own car.

 

That has got to be untrue! Do people really think Acura would do that ?

 

I doubt a company as conservative as Honda/Acura would do something as audacious as putting Comptech Headers on cars they lend to Car Magazines. The bottom line is that some cars come out of the factory stronger than others. BTW, I've beat my friends 330ci MANUAL twice in my TL-S.

 

2k2 -- did you ever consider your friend's Beemer may be a "slow" one outta the batch? (I'm being objective here, not condescending).

I saw the show today on PBS (20 WYCC in Chicago).



2 things:

They kept comparing it to the Lincoln LS (V6), the 330i, and the MB C320. However, when they discussed price range for entry level sedans and how the TL-S compared, they stated that it falls in the MIDDLE of the price range. They implied that the 330i can be had for 31,710 MSRP. Motorweek never takes into considerations the comparisons of cars in the options department -- usually they only focus on horsepower horsepower horsepower. I think the topic has been argued to death: a comparably equipped 330i would run anywhere from 37,000 -> 41,000 depending on your negotiating skills and the dealer flexibility.

They mentioned, yes, that the 330 was a 1/2-second faster in the 0-60mph (6.1), but they didn't mention the differences in the 1/4-mile times. Yet on the other hand, they mention how the TL-S is superior to the C320, the 330i, and LS in that is has the MOST hp in its class by at least 30hp or so. What good is the hp if you're slower than a competitor w/ less hp???

Did you notice how much NOSEDIVE the TL-S has during full, heavy braking from 60mph!!! It almost looked like the back end was gunna pop up and flip over the front. They mentioned the instability of the rear end under heavy braking -- though the distance of 123ft is a very good score for a 3600lb sedan.

There was this "filler commentary" during the description of the exterior of the TL-S that I thought was a complete joke -- they mentioned how bland the rear end looked, and how it lacked the distinctive appearances of the rear ends of the BMW's, and Mercedes. Hmmm... ya think!

 

Thanks... PeterUbers.... You cleared up the episode for me... I thought they were talkin about a half a second on the quarter mile time.... so in my head I was like... damn.. 330i's are fast.. haha.. glad i was mistaken... GOOD ...

As for the braking test.. haha.. yeah.. u described it perfectly... I don't want to go through the hell of lowering a car again.. but the nose dive factor might convince me to put springs in...

 

Upon looking at the numbers, I was almost positive that what they tested was a TL-P and not a TL-S. But I guess these performance figures vary from test to test.

 

We can always count on Ruf87 to "tell it like it is." Well put, Ruf