AbsolutMizzou

I was all but convinced that I was going to buy a new TL Navi after the first of the year. Based on information from this board, I was assuming I could pick one up for about $33,500.

Then in today's St. Louis paper, I see an ad for a 2006 M35x for $39,398. More money but it comes with all wheel drive and keyless start. What I wouldn't get is the Navi in the Acura.

Any thoughts?

ttliang

don't paper shop. go drive both a lot and buy the one you like. not exactly the same $$$ but as long as you can afford.......


i was driving an 06 RL last night...kinda boring. i am a 6sp kinda guy. that's just me tho..good luck and let us know.

acuranewbie

I don't understand the hoopla about keyless start, putting the key in my ignition and starting it up isn't something that I think about

gainful

I would suggest you take the M35x if the advertised number is not a hoax.

M35x has a hell better ride and much more comfrtable, and it handles better than TL, too. Plus you get a lot more torque at low rpm w/o torque steer.

I will go for a M35 if one day I can't bear with the vibration, rattles, and the crunchy ride of the TL.

Another major difference, M35 is made in Japan, better quality than Ohio, you can see the difference even from the paint.

gainful

How is RL's ride? Is it more absorbent than TL's?

ttliang

if you are still riding EL-42 on ur TL, then yes. i'll tell u tires make all the difference. even my summer tires ride batter than the el-42. if u still do, get new tires already. they will probably solve ur rattles and othe problems.

RL is a bigger luxury car with a lot of toys. handles pretty good. it felt big and heavy with no excitement whatsoever (i don't mean slow. it's pretty fast. on par with an TL 5AT). pedal shifters are hard to use when doing sharper turns in general (not brand specific).

if you are looking for big buick or lexus LS 430 cloud-like ride (with no handling or course), RL rides harder. if you are looking for a luxury car with good handling and a lot of toys, RL is ur car.

ps. smile came back after i got back in my TL 6mt tho.

flatfoot

I was waiting for another couple of weeks before I posted my comparison, as a former 05 tl auto, nav, owner, and an m35x owner, for exactly three weeks know. So I am not going to do a new car, good time review just yet.
But to answer your query a bit, I am absolutely delighted with the m35x. While I liked my tl(and this was my very first sports sedan, and car for that matter, with abs, stability control and all other computer safety devices) , all the little complaints I had about the handling and upon bringing in for service, was told is normal, may or may not be true for the tl, but I can tell you , the m35x, has not one of these issues.
I am not delighted with its exterior looks, but darn, this car behaves, the way an expensive car should be. (I consider a tl , while not as expensive, still an expensive car).
The car is quiet, absorbs all bumps and road irregularites with a delightful suspension. I get no squirrly handling charachteristics that I got with the tl. No floating feeling on the highways, no cracks and snaps to the suspension, felt on the drivers body, brakes are silky smooth and feel much better then the tl.
I can push this car around town, with much more confidence then I had in the tl. And it is a bigger car, in every aspect.
And above all, the drive feels confident. No noises , or squeels from the tires and brake systems.
To keep it short and answer your question, the m35x is an absolute delightful car for me, and I dont have any worries, if the car is okay, but it feels like a fine automobile should.
As far as your price advertised, it is a little below invoice. So unless it is a demo, Or some kind of scam, I dont know.
Infiniti dealer I dealt with, knew I understood the numbers, and had no problem ordering basically a stock m35x, with two options. I was willing to wait for it, so basically the dealer would be keeping the buy back, and I got it for just a bit over invoice. No problem.
Is the over 10,000 dollar difference worth it? NO QUESTION. Its like night and day. I have driven it on the snow and ice several times, and the car sticks to the road like its a summer day.
Detailed comparison, to come in a few weeks, when I get to the point, when i feel I have enough miles on the 35x to open her up and brake hard, but I am actually excited about this. My advice to someone looking for a tl, is to save your money and buy an accord or civic. The tl, is a bargain when it comes to the features and what you get in my opinion, but is not in the class of an entry luxury sedan, of course in my opinion.

acuranewbie

I'm curious, did you get Navi on your M35 and if so how does it compare to the TL's

flatfoot

No, I didnt get the navi. I found myself not using the navi on the tl, as I know the tri state area I live in, and found the navi, while being cosmetically nice, and everyone wants to play with it, a two thousand dollar waste of money for me.....If I ever find myself in a situation not knowing the direction, I will take out my map in the trunk, or on my pda.
And I dont think I could afford(or at least want to pay that much money) the navi in the infiniti.
Ten years down the road, navi will be standard equipment on all hyundais and kias I bet. LOL

acuranewbie

Fair enough, I personally love my navi and have used it a bunch of times not only in Miami but for addresses in nearby cities like Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, I have gotten so used to it that I don't plan to buy a car without it but it doesn't sound like you get much use of it so I can see why you didn't get it, anyway as far as the M35 I don't doubt it's a great car just as are the IS350, 330i, G35, etc. but in the end I chose the TL because it had the features I wanted for the right price, I'm glad to hear you are enjoying your M35 though

gainful

Very nicely written. Some folks on this forum believes "handling= suspension with no spring" , that is totally wrong.

Even the small things on TL, like the door handles, are not desigened properly. It is not anchored to any structural beam on the door frame, so when you pull on it, it is going to deform and makes cracking sound.

And that's right, ---Every problem that dealer can not fix is normal, is the standard feature of the car. ------We should thank Acura for not charging us extra for them

ttliang

gainful,

i think you intentionally change the P in "painful" to a G. i feel sorry for you everytime you posted. it's always some whines about TL. people kept telling you to sell your car and buy a infiniti already. why haven't you done so all this time? you bitched so much around here i am starting to lose respect (and credibility). go to bwm, infiniti or GTO sites to bash. u'll find more people that hate acura there. i don't know if that'll ease ur pain but it's a start....

you can start by going..."i own a TL right now. let me tell you what a POS that car is....."

sorry if i wasted ur time trying to help you in the past. i thought u wanted help...i guess not. u just want to keep being "painful"......and bash TL.

Ron A

I actually thought gainful was getting soft. His first two posts were actually atypically not critical, but it didn't take long to revert to form, did it?

I have a huge bet with trancemission that this thread won't get ugly like many of the other comparison threads, and I hope I don't have to hock my TL to pay him if I lose.

QuickRick

Guys, This TL vs. M35 is one argument we will always win IMHO. I looked at that car and it has the goofiest styling. Japanese is it? sure, it must be it is so old fashioned and odd looking. Why is it the even the rear drive M35 is all jacked up like a 4x4 truck? The wheel house space is for what? 40 inch tires? I really like the coupe but the 4 door M35 is just.....plain vanilla. To those who want to own something that looks 10 years old...go for it. I don't want to own something that looks like an econobox but to each his own I suppose. QR