Hi Acurazine!

I'm deciding to get a TSX. I've written in a few other threads that my 3-month old 2013 Accord Coupe got totalled in an accident a few weeks ago and so I'm out looking for a car again. I really liked the Coupe but it felt too big for a 2-door and miss Acura since my last Acura lasted my family 17 years (an EL). Luckily since I got the Coupe at a really good deal and I have depreciation coverage from my insurance (and I wasn't at fault so I don't have to pay the deductible), I'm not losing any money.

I'm considering the Accord 2014 Sport (Sedan) which the dealer has given me a ridiculously good price if I want it since it would be my second car bought there in 3 months, or a TSX/TL. TL is probably out of the question because it's too fuel hungry.

I have two options for a TSX that I have looked at and test driven:

1:
White Tech, 2012, 38000 KM, Parchment Interior, $25000+tax(hopefully)
This car is a lease return that has been maintained by the selling dealer and it looks great except that I don't really like the parchment colored interior. I rather have black but it's not available right now in my area. Tax is 13% here in Toronto, so the total would be around 28500, just less than the Accord Sport that I can get brand new on-the-road.

2:
White Premium, 2012, 34000 KM, Ebony Interior, $23000 on-the-road
I'm not sure where this car came from but the dealer had it for a while and they're more eager to get rid of it so it's easier to negotiate for this one. The previous owner was a smoker and I can smell the cigarette odor. A big thing about this car is if the dealer can rid the car of the smell before giving it to me which I consider a pretty big deal. This car has the black interior which I like, but no GPS or the back-up camera which I've grown to like from my Accord.

Summary:
I really like the Tech because of the back-up camera but I don't like the interior color because I'm afraid that it will look old and ugly real fast since the lighter color shows creases in the leather more. It seems better maintained though but I'm not sure if the Tech pack really justifies an extra $5000+tax.

The thing about the other car is the smoke smell. Does anyone here have any experience with removing cigarette smells from used cars?

Any recommendations?

 

I would pay the extra few grand just to not deal with the cigarette smoke. It is a smell that requires a seriously keep cleaning to get rid of and that alone could be a grand or two.

 

Ugh. I hate people smoking in cars. I drove a used TSX before, had the same issue. Didn't take long to realize the rest of the car wasn't up to par either. Damaged rims, a lot of paint scratches, interior scratches on the door handle, etc. Walked away from that one rather easily.

Like you mentioned, give the dealer the option of trying to remove the smoke smell. If not I personally couldn't stand it.

Do you have the option of waiting any longer for something else to come into the market?

 

Up to you. It's really hard to judge prices (I mean a good deal or not) for us here (in the USA)(and yes, I'm willing to admit that) since the cars are always more money in Canada, and being used distorts it even more. Drive both (Accord and TSX), then decide. The models (TSX) are different too, so that's another disadvantage for rendering an opinion. Color is strictly subjective, so that's totally up to you too; you're the one who has to look at it every day. Call a few detail shops and ask them about the odor problem. There are a lot of new products out there, though I'd bet you that on a really damp day, no matter what they do, you'll still smell tobacco smoke. All that said, I couldn't care less about the Tech do-dads, so even though the smoking thing might be an issue, I'd go for the cheaper car. You can save some serious cash now, and the longer you keep it, the closer to the two cars (the TSX's) will come in resale price down the road (5 or 6 years from now, they'll be worth about the same)(and the Accord considerably less). I'm not crazy about white, but the black interior would soften that blow a little.

 

how soon do you need the car? and is 25k the upper limit of what you can spend? i dunno your financial situation but if it were me, i'd wait till the TLX came out to see pricing and how it drives. between the two at this point in time, i'd probably pick the accord.

 

I'm financially flexible and I will be cashing out the car so hopefully that gives me more bargaining room. 25k is not the upper limit, but it's the upper limit of what I feel a used TSX is worth (unless its 2013). The car that I actually really want is the TLX, but it's not out yet and I need a car within the next month. I also wouldn't buy the first year of a new model. I also really like the TL and there are many more used TLs on the market than TSX so the prices are nearly identical here in Toronto, but I just can't justify that high gas cost and also because the trunk for the TL doesn't fit my snowboards (back seats don't flop down).

I could also consider the ILX, but I'm very unimpressed with the features that you get for the cost. From what I have read, the 4Cylinder TSX is comparable to the ILX (in drive) because the ILX is much lighter. I won't be driving standard since my girlfriend will want to occasionally drive. I might switch to a standard later on when she gets her own car. I think an Accord is a better consideration than the ILX.