Newbie here, looking for some input/opinions
02-09-2011, 10:42 AM
#41
I've had my 2010 TSX tech for a few months now, and here are my thoughts:
- VALUE. Cannot beat this car in this segment of entry level luxury sedan/wagon. How many other cars have leather, sunroof, heated seats, Bluetooth, Homelink (garage door remote control), steering wheel paddles for the automatic transmission, etc for this price? The A4 and BMW 3-series wagons will cost $5-15 K more for comparable options/trim.
Thrown in the TSX tech package and you get a good nav system (high definition for 2011), great sound system, and the back-up camera (don't underestmate how useful this feature is, obviously for parallel parking, but especially when you have kids and you're making sure that there are no toys or children behind below your line of sight when backing up).
- RELIABILITY. The 2009 seemed to have some issues with brakes and blown speakers, but I haven't seen that many 2010 owners report those problems. Consumer Reports gave the second generation TSX average reliability, but I wonder if the 2009 model year brought down the average, and the 2010 and 2011 versions will be more reliable.
- PEACE OF MIND. It's a Honda. It'll be reliable, and if it breaks, it will be relatively cheap to repair.
- FUN TO DRIVE. Okay, it's not a race car, but how many of us really need much more than 200 horses under the hood to drive to the grocery store or work? It's much easier to drive than a 3-series, and the TSX has enough zip and handling to make driving fun. It doesn't have that linear acceleration feel of the 3-series, and some people may find the high-revving, 2.4 L, inline-4 cylinder engine in the TSX not their cup of tea, but I get a kick out of it. The ergonomics are great, and it's easy to use all of the controls (especially those on the steering wheel) after 15 minutes of driving - don't be persuaded by the car reviews which criticized the numerous buttons on the dash (although the climate control system could be a little more visual and utilize more dials/levers rather than buttons, but that's a minor criticism).
- FUEL ECONOMY. Not bad on the highway, around 30 mpg which is fairly good in this segment.
- EXCLUSIVITY. Not too many on the road, but this factor may not be important to you. For me, it would kill me to drive a Camry or Accord like every one else.
- TRUNK SPACE. Pretty good for this segment, definitely larger than the 3-series BMW, and the fold down seats with easy quick release levers in the trunk are a great option.
- REAR SEAT. Again more space than the 3-series and the Lexus IS 250/350. Definitely enough space for my 3-year old son's child seat and one slightly squished adult on each side. The Lexus IS rear seat is for children.
- FRONT SEATS. The front seats are super comfortable, have great perforated leather upholstery and have heating elements (although only on the bottom cushion for the front passenger seat).
- FIT AND FINISH. Tight and not a single squeak so far.
- SOUND SYSTEM. Easy to operate, sounds great/awesome, plug in your iPhone or thumbdrive, and go down the road with your tunes.
If you are considering a minivan, PLEASE consider getting the TSX sport wagon instead, it has lots of trunk space, much more sporty and more fun to drive than a minivan. You could also consider the VW Jetta Sportwagen TDI (which gets something crazy like 40+ MPG with its turbodiesel engine, and it has the option for a gigantic panoramic sunroof). People may think I'm crazy for recommending that car on this site, but it's gotta be cooler than a minivan. I never understood why Americans don't like wagons; they're extremely popular in Europe for their practicality. I'd chose a wagon over a minivan in a heart beat.
- MINOR CRITICISMS. Forward visibility could be improved - it's a little difficult to see where the front of the car is since the front hood is long and flat. The same thing applies to judging where the front passenger wheel is when parking; the car is deceptively wide and I hit the curb a couple times with the passenger side wheels when I first tried parallel parking. The view is better in the 3-series, IS, and the Infiniti G37. I think the forward view is made worse by the relatively high dash; I'm 6'1" and I have the seat raised almost all the way to the top setting (thankfully the car has plenty of headroom) just to get a decent view forward (by the way, there's fairly decent legroom behind me when I'm driving). There's also a small blind spot due to relatively wide C-pillar behind the rear passengers; there's definitely not as good rear visibility as compared to a 3-series BMW.
The car is not as luxurious as it could be. Honda cut some corners to keep the price low, but they made reasonable choices that don't affect your driving experience too much (ie, I'd rather get a sound mechanical drivetrain than luxury appointments). The interior door handles and paddle shifters are plastic rather than medal. The 3-series sedan has nicely machined metal parts in these areas, and they definitely feel and look better. There's also no real interior wood trim option in the TSX (the 2011 has fake wood accents in the tech package). My wife's 3-series BMW has beautiful walnut inlays on the dash and the area between the front seats - a very nice touch. That being said the 3-series is really about $10K more than the TSX even with the tech package, and even more if you want a BMW with navigation, etc.
SUMMARY: All in all, I've been extremely happy with my purchase - not a single regret or problem over the first 4-5 months and only 1,300 miles. Everything works as advertised, and I feel confident that I'll be driving and enjoying this car for years. I think you're making a great choice by considering all of your options, especially the TSX.
- VALUE. Cannot beat this car in this segment of entry level luxury sedan/wagon. How many other cars have leather, sunroof, heated seats, Bluetooth, Homelink (garage door remote control), steering wheel paddles for the automatic transmission, etc for this price? The A4 and BMW 3-series wagons will cost $5-15 K more for comparable options/trim.
Thrown in the TSX tech package and you get a good nav system (high definition for 2011), great sound system, and the back-up camera (don't underestmate how useful this feature is, obviously for parallel parking, but especially when you have kids and you're making sure that there are no toys or children behind below your line of sight when backing up).
- RELIABILITY. The 2009 seemed to have some issues with brakes and blown speakers, but I haven't seen that many 2010 owners report those problems. Consumer Reports gave the second generation TSX average reliability, but I wonder if the 2009 model year brought down the average, and the 2010 and 2011 versions will be more reliable.
- PEACE OF MIND. It's a Honda. It'll be reliable, and if it breaks, it will be relatively cheap to repair.
- FUN TO DRIVE. Okay, it's not a race car, but how many of us really need much more than 200 horses under the hood to drive to the grocery store or work? It's much easier to drive than a 3-series, and the TSX has enough zip and handling to make driving fun. It doesn't have that linear acceleration feel of the 3-series, and some people may find the high-revving, 2.4 L, inline-4 cylinder engine in the TSX not their cup of tea, but I get a kick out of it. The ergonomics are great, and it's easy to use all of the controls (especially those on the steering wheel) after 15 minutes of driving - don't be persuaded by the car reviews which criticized the numerous buttons on the dash (although the climate control system could be a little more visual and utilize more dials/levers rather than buttons, but that's a minor criticism).
- FUEL ECONOMY. Not bad on the highway, around 30 mpg which is fairly good in this segment.
- EXCLUSIVITY. Not too many on the road, but this factor may not be important to you. For me, it would kill me to drive a Camry or Accord like every one else.
- TRUNK SPACE. Pretty good for this segment, definitely larger than the 3-series BMW, and the fold down seats with easy quick release levers in the trunk are a great option.
- REAR SEAT. Again more space than the 3-series and the Lexus IS 250/350. Definitely enough space for my 3-year old son's child seat and one slightly squished adult on each side. The Lexus IS rear seat is for children.
- FRONT SEATS. The front seats are super comfortable, have great perforated leather upholstery and have heating elements (although only on the bottom cushion for the front passenger seat).
- FIT AND FINISH. Tight and not a single squeak so far.
- SOUND SYSTEM. Easy to operate, sounds great/awesome, plug in your iPhone or thumbdrive, and go down the road with your tunes.
If you are considering a minivan, PLEASE consider getting the TSX sport wagon instead, it has lots of trunk space, much more sporty and more fun to drive than a minivan. You could also consider the VW Jetta Sportwagen TDI (which gets something crazy like 40+ MPG with its turbodiesel engine, and it has the option for a gigantic panoramic sunroof). People may think I'm crazy for recommending that car on this site, but it's gotta be cooler than a minivan. I never understood why Americans don't like wagons; they're extremely popular in Europe for their practicality. I'd chose a wagon over a minivan in a heart beat.
- MINOR CRITICISMS. Forward visibility could be improved - it's a little difficult to see where the front of the car is since the front hood is long and flat. The same thing applies to judging where the front passenger wheel is when parking; the car is deceptively wide and I hit the curb a couple times with the passenger side wheels when I first tried parallel parking. The view is better in the 3-series, IS, and the Infiniti G37. I think the forward view is made worse by the relatively high dash; I'm 6'1" and I have the seat raised almost all the way to the top setting (thankfully the car has plenty of headroom) just to get a decent view forward (by the way, there's fairly decent legroom behind me when I'm driving). There's also a small blind spot due to relatively wide C-pillar behind the rear passengers; there's definitely not as good rear visibility as compared to a 3-series BMW.
The car is not as luxurious as it could be. Honda cut some corners to keep the price low, but they made reasonable choices that don't affect your driving experience too much (ie, I'd rather get a sound mechanical drivetrain than luxury appointments). The interior door handles and paddle shifters are plastic rather than medal. The 3-series sedan has nicely machined metal parts in these areas, and they definitely feel and look better. There's also no real interior wood trim option in the TSX (the 2011 has fake wood accents in the tech package). My wife's 3-series BMW has beautiful walnut inlays on the dash and the area between the front seats - a very nice touch. That being said the 3-series is really about $10K more than the TSX even with the tech package, and even more if you want a BMW with navigation, etc.
SUMMARY: All in all, I've been extremely happy with my purchase - not a single regret or problem over the first 4-5 months and only 1,300 miles. Everything works as advertised, and I feel confident that I'll be driving and enjoying this car for years. I think you're making a great choice by considering all of your options, especially the TSX.
LOVE the ELS sounds system. I was pretty set on the base TSX but I ended up with a TECH due to the deal I was able to get and the colors I wanted. Now I would not be able to go back. The backup camera to me is just about useless though. Most other manufacturers at least have lines or markings illustrating distance. With the TSX camera you cant tell anything. Just about worthless.
I do agree wholeheartedly about the door handles. They feel like sh!t. No excuse for crap like this. And I am reminded everytime I open the door. So far, that is my only criticism after a month and 900 miles.
02-09-2011, 12:06 PM
#43
Advanced
My wife works for Honda so naturally we (more she than me) are loyal Honda drivers. I like them alot but I'm willing to give other cars a chance whereas my she isn't.
I went from a 2007 TSX with tech package to a 2010 TSX with tech package.
1. I have to say that the inside is beautiful and looks more luxurious than the 07 inside.
2. It has more torque than the 2007 but sometimes I feel it's lacking. My wife has a 2009 TL and I love its torque. The 2010 is still fun to drive and can bob and weave through traffic just fine though.
3. I agree with one of the other female posters about wind noise and rocks, sand sounds, underneath but with radio to normal sound, (around number 10 for volume for me), it's fine.
4. There is a visibility issue or illusion that you can't see the whole road in the front and blind spot on the side. I don't know any other way to describe it. I'm glad someone else mentioned this because I never had this issue in my 07 TSX. It's ok but I have to manually turn my head to the right to make sure before going to the right lane as for as the blind spot on the right, didn't have to in 07 TSX. As for as the front visibility issue, raising the seat up makes it ok.
5. Rearview camera honestly should have markers. That, I had to get used to as well. And the camera is not positioned in the middle in the back of the car making it more difficult to guage or center your parking when backing up. My wife's TL has the markers and her rearview camera is perfectly centered in the back. She doesn't like to have to backup in the TSX and leaves that part to me. You can get used to it however as I've managed to compensate in my head for the camera not being centered.
6. It is reliable though as I know you already know with Honda's, afterall, it's just another Honda. lol.
7. The sound system with tech package is amazing. It's more than enough power for us.
8. Exclusivity as one poster said. You definitely won't see a whole lot of them on the road which is a plus in my opinion.
Overall, I really think your wife will enjoy this car. My wife really thinks it's nice as well. It was between this one and an A4 but to get the A4 with everything that comes in this car would put it at about 45k which is crazy in my opinion. As a matter of fact, from what you've mentioned about your wife, she may even enjoy just the base package. That's what I was going to get. Sorry but I use my iphone for navigation, I'm just used to it. The TSX one works well though as my wife uses it always. I only got the tech package because my wife said "If you're going to get the TSX, get it with everything." lol.
Hope this helps and I'm sure you (and your wife of course) will enjoy whatever vehicle with whatever options you choose.
CJ
I went from a 2007 TSX with tech package to a 2010 TSX with tech package.
1. I have to say that the inside is beautiful and looks more luxurious than the 07 inside.
2. It has more torque than the 2007 but sometimes I feel it's lacking. My wife has a 2009 TL and I love its torque. The 2010 is still fun to drive and can bob and weave through traffic just fine though.
3. I agree with one of the other female posters about wind noise and rocks, sand sounds, underneath but with radio to normal sound, (around number 10 for volume for me), it's fine.
4. There is a visibility issue or illusion that you can't see the whole road in the front and blind spot on the side. I don't know any other way to describe it. I'm glad someone else mentioned this because I never had this issue in my 07 TSX. It's ok but I have to manually turn my head to the right to make sure before going to the right lane as for as the blind spot on the right, didn't have to in 07 TSX. As for as the front visibility issue, raising the seat up makes it ok.
5. Rearview camera honestly should have markers. That, I had to get used to as well. And the camera is not positioned in the middle in the back of the car making it more difficult to guage or center your parking when backing up. My wife's TL has the markers and her rearview camera is perfectly centered in the back. She doesn't like to have to backup in the TSX and leaves that part to me. You can get used to it however as I've managed to compensate in my head for the camera not being centered.
6. It is reliable though as I know you already know with Honda's, afterall, it's just another Honda. lol.
7. The sound system with tech package is amazing. It's more than enough power for us.
8. Exclusivity as one poster said. You definitely won't see a whole lot of them on the road which is a plus in my opinion.
Overall, I really think your wife will enjoy this car. My wife really thinks it's nice as well. It was between this one and an A4 but to get the A4 with everything that comes in this car would put it at about 45k which is crazy in my opinion. As a matter of fact, from what you've mentioned about your wife, she may even enjoy just the base package. That's what I was going to get. Sorry but I use my iphone for navigation, I'm just used to it. The TSX one works well though as my wife uses it always. I only got the tech package because my wife said "If you're going to get the TSX, get it with everything." lol.
Hope this helps and I'm sure you (and your wife of course) will enjoy whatever vehicle with whatever options you choose.
CJ
02-09-2011, 12:13 PM
#44
There is one problem i can say the TSX has which i dont like...and i hate to be a downer guys cause i love this car but...
whenever i get a full tank fillup i can hear lots of sloshing of fuel when stopping/starting the car and im like...
<_<
>_>.
fucking sloshing man
SPEED EDIT!:
some quick googling revealed that this is due to a plastic fuel tank and not specific to the tsx. plastic fuel tanks save weight and the EPA likes them so they are there...?
whenever i get a full tank fillup i can hear lots of sloshing of fuel when stopping/starting the car and im like...
<_<
>_>.
fucking sloshing man
SPEED EDIT!:
some quick googling revealed that this is due to a plastic fuel tank and not specific to the tsx. plastic fuel tanks save weight and the EPA likes them so they are there...?
Last edited by KillerG; 02-09-2011 at 12:16 PM.
02-09-2011, 12:35 PM
#46
only audible when my music and air conditioning are off... it really only bothers me when i am pulling out of my garage basically after a recent fill up. not a big deal i suppose
02-09-2011, 12:49 PM
#47
to the OP: overall, the car is a great bang for the buck. Very low maintenance, and fun to drive. If your wifey is up for it, you may want to go for the 6MT; it's a very smooth clutch and makes driving that much more fun.
I think by far the best thing about the TSX is that it's very nimble; it does not corner like a BMW or anything, but the car is very responsive. I think it is the IDEAL size car as well. In Atlanta where I reside, I can easily fit in very tight parking garage spaces, as well as street spots and narrow lanes.
I think by far the best thing about the TSX is that it's very nimble; it does not corner like a BMW or anything, but the car is very responsive. I think it is the IDEAL size car as well. In Atlanta where I reside, I can easily fit in very tight parking garage spaces, as well as street spots and narrow lanes.
02-09-2011, 01:11 PM
#48
Racer
Thread Starter
to the OP: overall, the car is a great bang for the buck. Very low maintenance, and fun to drive. If your wifey is up for it, you may want to go for the 6MT; it's a very smooth clutch and makes driving that much more fun.
I think by far the best thing about the TSX is that it's very nimble; it does not corner like a BMW or anything, but the car is very responsive. I think it is the IDEAL size car as well. In Atlanta where I reside, I can easily fit in very tight parking garage spaces, as well as street spots and narrow lanes.
I think by far the best thing about the TSX is that it's very nimble; it does not corner like a BMW or anything, but the car is very responsive. I think it is the IDEAL size car as well. In Atlanta where I reside, I can easily fit in very tight parking garage spaces, as well as street spots and narrow lanes.
I wish she knew how to drive a manual as that would be much more fun. I do enjoy rowing my own gears, but living every day in traffic and around town with a 6MT would probably drive me looney. Auto it will be until I can afford a third vehicle.
02-09-2011, 01:41 PM
#49
Actually I find the size of the 1st gen TSX was more ideal but hey I've got kids now so the added space is good I guess.
02-09-2011, 05:53 PM
#50
Intermediate
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This post is probably more to your wife than yourself. Speaking to you as a woman, I am very happy so far with my 2010 TSX. The only problem is that I went from driving a smaller Honda Prelude to a TSX. For me to be able to feel I have control of my car, I have to be able to parallel park. I could just zip in and out of a parking space with my prelude. I am still adjusting to the size of the TSX, though I have less than 2000 miles on my car.
I had chose not to buy the tech package which included the rearview camera, as I just didn't think it was worth it. If I had to do it over again, I would buy it just for the camera!
However, I did add the back-up sensors to my purchase. Now, again speaking as a woman, I am going to guess your wife does the grocery shopping? Would drive alot in parking lots? For this reason I particularly wanted the back-up sensors. Unfortunately, many of the elderly when leaving a store, DO NOT LOOK where they are pushing their grocery cart and/or for a car that is backing up. Just to avoid hitting an elderly person or even a child, the sensors do help as a warning if one of them suddenly walks into your path out of nowhere.
Again, this is just my
from woman to woman; but, this is something that a woman would consider more, than probably a man. Unless you do the weekly grocery shopping, you cannot appreciate what I am talking about. For Seniors, it really can be a dangerous world out there.
Rose
I had chose not to buy the tech package which included the rearview camera, as I just didn't think it was worth it. If I had to do it over again, I would buy it just for the camera!
However, I did add the back-up sensors to my purchase. Now, again speaking as a woman, I am going to guess your wife does the grocery shopping? Would drive alot in parking lots? For this reason I particularly wanted the back-up sensors. Unfortunately, many of the elderly when leaving a store, DO NOT LOOK where they are pushing their grocery cart and/or for a car that is backing up. Just to avoid hitting an elderly person or even a child, the sensors do help as a warning if one of them suddenly walks into your path out of nowhere.
Again, this is just my
from woman to woman; but, this is something that a woman would consider more, than probably a man. Unless you do the weekly grocery shopping, you cannot appreciate what I am talking about. For Seniors, it really can be a dangerous world out there. Rose
02-09-2011, 08:54 PM
#51
02-09-2011, 09:11 PM
#52
02-10-2011, 12:17 PM
#53
it's a car-drive it
My husband likes to go grocery shopping and also likes to cook. We park as far away from the entrance to the store as possible. We also try to find parking spots that you pull thru so you can drive out forward and do not have to reverse it.
02-10-2011, 06:09 PM
#54
06-06-2011, 08:31 PM
#55
Racer
Thread Starter
Just a little update.
I wanted to thank everyone for their posts here. The wife has finally made up her mind and we got the financing straight so that we could put our wholesaler on the hunt.
Looking for a '10 CBP with Parchment or Grigio with Taupe. She's actually getting excited to replace her 13y/o Civic.
Can't wait to see what our guy comes up with.
I wanted to thank everyone for their posts here. The wife has finally made up her mind and we got the financing straight so that we could put our wholesaler on the hunt.
Looking for a '10 CBP with Parchment or Grigio with Taupe. She's actually getting excited to replace her 13y/o Civic.
Can't wait to see what our guy comes up with.
06-07-2011, 03:43 PM
#56
Awesome! Definitely post pics once you get it! Did you decide on Tech vs non-tech? At first I wasn't keen on spending the extra cash on a Tech package but one of my friends said if you're gonna go luxury, why not go with all the bells and whistles? Otherwise it'll just be any other car with leather seats and no "wow" factor. And he was right. I love having all the featuers of the Tech package. Back up camera does indeed make them panties drop. Good luck with your purchase!
06-07-2011, 06:09 PM
#57
Racer
Thread Starter
Thanks!
If it were my daily driver Tech would be a must have. Sadly it's the wife's daily. She's impartial to Tech and if it means a base car can get us a cleaner, more low mileage vehicle, then I think that's what we'll do.
For instance, she'd rather have a 15k mile base than a 30k mile Tech if it meant the price was the same. Her logic on vehicles is a little off from mine, and she's not that concerned with the Tech features.
Working with this wholesaler is something new for me. The purchase is mostly taken out of my hands, and I have to rely solely on him to find us what we're looking for. So I had to give him a list of must haves, would likes, and can live withouts.
We won't comprimise on color, interior, or mileage.
Now I just sit and wait until he calls me with something worth buying...I'm not very patient.
If it were my daily driver Tech would be a must have. Sadly it's the wife's daily. She's impartial to Tech and if it means a base car can get us a cleaner, more low mileage vehicle, then I think that's what we'll do.
For instance, she'd rather have a 15k mile base than a 30k mile Tech if it meant the price was the same. Her logic on vehicles is a little off from mine, and she's not that concerned with the Tech features.
Working with this wholesaler is something new for me. The purchase is mostly taken out of my hands, and I have to rely solely on him to find us what we're looking for. So I had to give him a list of must haves, would likes, and can live withouts.
We won't comprimise on color, interior, or mileage.
Now I just sit and wait until he calls me with something worth buying...I'm not very patient.
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