I had a '05 TL that my wife wrecked. I sold it after and we replaced w/ an Infiniti M35. The M rocks!

Anyway, my 911 Turbo has been traded in on a new BMW M5. My reasons are many, but include having a 2 year old daughter and the Turbo is just not practical for anything right now in my life. Also, at the track, I'm getting nervous about hurting it.

Anyway, another option is a less expensive sedan [than the M5], and a cheaper track that I won't be scared to hurt like a Lotus Elise. So, I was considering getting another TL.

Our '05 had one minor rattle, but I was able to fix it. The leather wears terribly for the age of the car. (Every '04 I look at looks 5 years old inside) My '05 was wearing "ok" but that's only because I had to really stress about caring for it. It just wasn't very durable. It's a shame, because these interiors look bad ass when brand new!

Anyway, what has the experience with the '06's been? Improvements w/ rattles? leather? anything else?

Thanks...

PS. I did a search and didn't turn up anything significant.

 

Do you think the interior detoriation is due to environmental circumstances? Meaning, do you leave your car outside in the sun which then boils the air in the car slowly ruining the look as you expressed? For most of the cars that I have owned, leaving the car in the garage at home and while at work (work garage) helps keep the car looking like new. Was your previous TL garaged?

 

Mine was garaged at work and home. The thing about the leather that is irritating is its tendency to get wrinkles that don't disappear. Even if you baby the leather while in teh car, this seems to happen. It drove me nuts.

When I compared mine to older TL's, it seemed like a common problem. It think it has to do with the leather being coated by a plastic/vinyl like substance that is what is truly creating the wrinkles. That was the biggest let down for me in my past ownership experience.

 

Ahh you're right. My first generation TL had the plastic/vynil substance you speak of over time. I didnt realize the problem was reoccuring in new generations. I noticed you had Parch interior and this was also the interior color I had in my first gen TL. Do you think color has anything to with it? Our new 3-gen TL is ebony/gray and havent ran into this problem yet.

 

I thought I read posts about this happening with ebony leather as well. I could be wrong, but could swear the ebony owners had this problem.

 

I like my '06. No problems, no rattles.

 

Geez the 06 had hardly been in service that long... I am sure as more are sold and people make comments on the reliability/issues, etc. A few weeks is not enough time to determine that. Most rattles happen around 5000 miles from what I can tell here.

Going from an m5 to a TL.. that would be a tough transition...

 

I have been fortunate to have no issues with my Parch leather. The texture is fairly consistent, not too soft, not to stiff or wrinkled. I maintain it regularly, and it is wearing very well thus far.

That said, I noted a big variance in leather quality on 2 06TLs at the Auto Show last week (I noted in my thread). The TL with Ebony had very soft, smooth leather, while the TL with Parch was very stiff, wrinkled and inconsistent from seat to seat. I do not know if this is a characteristic of the color choice, but my Parch was equal to that of the Ebony TL in the show. I may not have noticed it if I had not been purposefully comparing the two 06TLs to my 05TL

I would make note to check the leather and compare to other TLs when you make your purchase. If you order a TL, I would compare it to other TLs on the lost when it is delivered. Acura do not seem very consistent in leather quality, and having seem a wide range of comments and concerns in this forum, I would support that theory. But again, leather is a natural product, not manufactured and tolerances, tastes and applications vary.

You need to set your standards and concerns, measure them accordingly. For me, I personally do not believe you can go wrong with the TL.

 

Good post. Thanks Mike.

 

Had mine for 4 weeks. No problems so far.

 

TampaMike - I have an '05 with ebony int. and it's exactly the same quality/feel you mentioned on the '06 with ebony.

I don't know if it's a trait of the ebony, or if some of us just get lucky w/ leather and some don't. The quality of the leather was one of the things I really liked during my original test drives (my wife, who couldn't be further from being a car nut couldn't stop talking about how soft and smooth it was)... It's sad to hear about so many bad leather installs in TL's and possible inconsistencies in the manufacturing process.

 

my 05 has ebony interior, its very soft but it also has wrinkles in it. is there any recommendations as to how i should clean the leather or keep it from continuing to get worse.

 

i have the same question as drdamian. i read somewhere else that the side bolsters on the front seats werent leather though so is it the vinyl that is wrinkled in my car?

i dont want it to get progressively worse...suggestions?

 

I just use these: Armor ALL Leather Wipes every time I clean the car. I usually give the seats a once-over even if I'm just washing/waxing, but not necessarily doing the entire interior (vac/dash, etc).

I think I got some good seats to begin with and the religious wipe-downs have helped maintain that quality.

There are probably better/more professional products out there, but I've never had an issue with the Armor All Wipes. I even use them on my leather furniture in the house..

 

For being 35, your stable is quite impressive

 

Ditto. A little love will go a long way. I keep the leather wipes and a weekly wipe down has kept my leather as new. I think I also got a 'good' leather set with my Parch, as some of the other Parch I have seen where not as smooth and soft. I see more ebony with better feeling / apprearing quality leather. I wonder if quartz and camel colors have similar trends?

But I took an associate to Acura yesterday to order his new TL (he is a G35 driver now! ). And looking over the leather on the TLs on the lot...there was quite a range in leather quality on the TLs, yet no so on the few RLs they had there? Go figure. Acura must have a leather vendor under contract to supply the TL that needs to be shot, skinned and tanned.