dropped the S off for warranty work this morning and was fortunate enough to get a loaner car which of course is a 2012 TL base. Let me first say that I am grateful for the loaner vehicle and the privilege of not being thrown in some rental cobalt/sebring.

That said, this is nothing less or more than a marketing opportunity for acura to make me say to myself "maybe it is time to trade in ol' faithful". So the service manager points to my loaner, and I'm on my way. Looks are subjective and I think the 09+ TLs look absolutely terrible so we will just skip that .

I climb in and get all my mirrors and seat position sorted out. Feeling good, the steering wheel is fat and sporty, love it. seat bolstering leaves much to be desired but comfy. Then I start looking and feeling around and this is where it gets bad. *note* I have owned a 2nd gen 02-S, base 05 TL, and my current 07-S. I don't know if it is because it is a base model and maybe there are premium interiors but i don't remember that being the case in the 3rd gen? My base had leather and interior trim equal to my S aside from the differences between the two. The top of the dash/doors looks and feels like something that should be in a mid-tier pick-up truck. All the trim that has a metallic feel in the 3rd gen is hollow plastic with zero texture in this one. Can you even call it leather? the "leather" on the seats, doors, console is what ive seen in 07-09 hyundais and even mid-tier fords (escape with leather for example). It reminded me of my G8's leather material and that is not a shining area for the G8. Looking past the mediocre (at best) leather and moving on to ergonomics....thanks for leaving the end of the armrest with a huge void, I really enjoy my elbow slipping off the armrest. what the heck is that horseshoe shape? dont worry though, they put a pop-out tray there. unbelievably stupid. no nav, radio controls seemed fine aside from the huge dial should be a volume, not the small one. just seemed backwards. looking around is just seemed mundane, no real boldness to the interior, just conservative styling everywhere you look with no real break in trim/molding. positives from the interior... steering wheel feel, the controls on the wheel, gauge cluster is nice/different, and thats about it.

Moving on to how the car drove and felt, the steering was light but not numb. I am used to the heavy and tight steering of my S but it was a welcome feeling. effortless would be a great word for the steering. surprisingly for a base model it really felt tight on the road, very sure footed. the light steering wasn't numb and it felt like there was some road feel there. plenty of power on tap even with the auto trans, paddles are a joke of course compared to a manual trans. i expected it to be somewhat of a dog but i dont think it would be that far behind my S in a drag race or merging onto a highway. it moved out pretty well which surprised me a bit. road noise was similar to my car which was disappointing. one thing i really did not like was using the windshield wipers, you could hear the motor in the cabin even at highway speeds. sounds cheap. my drive home on 80% interstate and 20% country roads wasn't bad at all but certainly not fun. i wouldn't even say enjoyable. it was meh.

so i park in the garage and pop the trunk and hood. the trunk looks horribly inconvenient with its shape and doesnt seem to have a size advantage despite having the ass end of an elephant. engine compartment looked easy to service for a typical owner. funny that they put plastic everywhere in the compartment EXCEPT over the hideous intake manifold? couldn't spend the extra $8 to throw a molded piece of plastic on that? oky doky.

when we owned our 02 TL-S we loved it and really enjoyed it for what it was. The 3rd gen TL was released and it took everything not to go and get one, they were HOT. Then the TL-S was announced for the 3rd GEN and it was absolutely jaw dropping awesome, had to have it. So here I sit, in my loaner vehicle with absolutely ZERO interest in "upgrading" hell, id call it a downgrade at this point to the 4G. I think the sales figures speak for themselves obviously, but the new gen TLs dont spark any type of interest or passion, at all. Is it a nice luxury car? sure. Is it anything more than a nice luxury car in a saturated market that doesn't stand out anymore? no. and thats disappointing.

can i have my 07-S back? i miss my clicking mirror and erroneous fuel cap notification

 

wallllltaaaaaaaaaaah! great review

 

I get the cap message and my mirror clicks too haha. I gotta disagree though, I had a 12 SHAWD with tech and thought it was awesome. I don't think its all that much better than mine though..Also had a 11 FWD Tech too and thought it was cool, except for the beak. But you gotta love the 3G TL-S amazing car.

 

I just had a loaner '11 TSX-v6 and it felt like garbage compared to my 08 TL-S. Lifeless steering, horrible engine sound, not satisfying to drive at all. Not to mention terrible console setup. The only thing I liked more was the seat cushioning.

So happy to be back in the TL-S.

 

maybe i should look at a loaded one for comparison. but id take the '05 base we owned over a '12 base any day, any time. i think that says something.

 

I didn't examine it as much as you did, only time i drove the 12 TL was during a GMC driving event where you take it for a small closed track. I have to say that the new 4G TL drives better than the 3G, i felt more power and i liked the steering better.
But in terms of looks....3G is way better to me.

 

Power base vs base is certainly better. Type-s gets the nod though.

I didn't feel driving feel was better, just different. Steering was light which was welcoming over the heavy steering S. Road feel and noise was comparable

 

4G TLs don't fit sport luxury anymore. So sad

 

^the 6MT SH-AWD does.

 

I mean the look .They may classify at but I don't feel them like our 3Gs.It's just my opinion.

 

I had the 2012 4G loaner for almost a week when I had my 3G in for warranty service recently. White/Black with sports pkg. Allow me to say that I felt sad when they called me up to pick up my 3G (hence return the 4G loaner).

Some of my impressions:

The interior leather was very superior (compare to BMW and Audi)
Plenty of power with a feathered tap on the gas.
Decent take off
Awesome cockpit
Fantastic navigation screen and software
Amazing sound quality
More room in the cabin
Averaged 28MPG with 4G while 24MPG with the 3G on the same course (not scientific but..)
Auto Transmission felt a bit jerky on downshifts

I still love the 3G - alot, but I can’t wait to get my hands on an 2012 SHAWD TL

 

I had a chance to drive a new 6MT SH-AWD just a couple weeks ago. I was very impressed. I'm not a big fan of the exterior look on the 4G; however, effortless steering and shifting, excellent ride quality and the interior trim was nice IMO. Very nice car.

I won't be leaving my 3G, for sure... but I can't say if I had an extra $40k sitting around that I wouldn't consider one.

 

+1 on this.
I was very impressed wehn I drove the 2011 Tech TL. IMO the interior is much better than my 3G type-S for all the reasons mentioned above.
I was looking at a white 2012 SH-AWD the other day at the dealer. I thought it looked great and would be very happy driving it.
Its hard to compare it to the 3G---its a completely different car. I prefer the exterior styling of my Type-S---but I also like the appearance of the 2012 TL, just not as much. In the right color I think its pretty sharp. With a ronjon grill and tires I would say the new TL is pretty damn stunning.
I am not sure how anyone can sit in a 2012 TL tech and not think its an upgrade over the 3G. To me its night and day. 3G interior is very good---the 4G(tech) is GREAT.

 

I don't have the 12 TL i have the 11 but i felt the same way when i got the 2010 TL as a loaner.


I couldn't wait to get out of my 06 TL. I didn't even initially
go for a 06 i wanted the 03 but the dealer talked me out of it and into a 06 nice car but wasn't then and still isn't my taste.

 

Once again different stokes for different folks.

 

it does and i am still trying to figure it out. No shots intended.


But everybody is entitled to their own opinion & that's yours. I couldn't go back

 

The 4G is a very nice car, but it is very different from the 3G. It is much larger and has a completely different look. I think a lot of us 3G TL owners have no interest in a 4G. Different strokes for different folks, but I think Acura needs to come out with a car that will be an attractive replacement for us 3G TL owners.

There have been many similar threads on this forum before. Take a look at my post in a different thread with my review:
https://acurazine.com/forums/showpos...3&postcount=14
Similar thoughts to yours, OP.

 

The 4G is suppose to be different from the 3G it's a newer car. It's supposed to be different in almost every way. My only gripe with the 4G is the fact it only has 280 HP for base model which is really not a big jump from the base 3G yet as stated the car is bigger and heavier. Also the fact that the Type S 3G had the same HP and once again lighter.

As u said alot of 3G owners don't have any interest in owning a 4G and that's fine. But to say the newer one is not an upgrade is another story.

 

I too had test drove the base 11 TL today when I was at the dealership meeting with the mobile wheel repair to take care of one of the wheels in my 06. Waltah is right the steering feels light at low speeds and tightens a little at higher speed. Now the acceleration is different. The 11 has a more response from stop then my 06 due to the 11 having electric power steering vs the pump in the 06. Now the midrange on up my car feels that it pulls harder vs the 11 and the 11 power starts to come more aggressively at around 4000 to around 4500 rpm but all in all it seems my car feels quicker and I like the heavier feel of my 06 as well as the quickness. I definitely like my 06 looks hands down as well as the interior of the 06

 

Just found I'm stuck with it until Thursday. I'll miss my baby but glad I got the 12 as a loaner. I'll just keep the garage closed so people don't thing I traded in my S for this one, lol. My wife took it to work today, interested how she feels about it.

 

I guess I'll be keeping the 08 Type S forever.