I just rolled 2,000 miles on my 2006 TL. Probably like many of you, most of my driving is alone (commuting to work, etc...). This weekend was the first trip I took in the TL with a full car... 4 adults. I drove up from the Sacramento area (California) to the mountains around Lake Tahoe.

I am used to the performance characteristics in the car when it's just me. With a larger load (4 adults and all their junk for a 3 day trip), I was impressed that the car performed just like when I am alone. Accleration, braking, handling, etc... were all nearly the same as when I am alone in the car.

In other "smaller" cars that I have owned, I can usually feel a difference... not huge... but noticeable. Not so in my TL. The car accelerated uphill in higher elevations with the A/C on. Lots of power and no pinging or hesitation. Just smooth torque.

Once again, the TL gives me another pleasant surprise. I have had the car since the end of January. It's still breaking in as I obviously don't put a lot of miles on the car. This is my first Acura and it's been a great experience. For anyone on the fence of whether to buy a TL or not... put my vote in the + column.


And special thanks to all of you frequent posters and moderators. The information I find here is invaluable.

Thanks again!
Steve

 

Welcome to the club. Nice color combo.

 

The word that comes to mind is "capable". This car amazes me more each time I drive it. It does pretty much anything you ask of it.

 

TL's owns all!

 

Good write up and welcome to the forum.

 

FYI, having the A/C on really isn't that big a deal anymore in terms of taking a performance hit. Your parents (or grandparents) had to worry about it back when A/C's were simply not very efficient. With A/C's being as efficient as they are today and coupled with a very refined V6, it's really not a factor.

The weight of four adults though... that's a different matter. It's good to know that the weight didn't kill the perf.

 

Hi Steve -

I'm in Orangevale with the same color combo - I have 1100 miles on my '06 TL w/nav - mine automatic - rear wing, lower trim kit (Niello Acura)

Now the scary part - the first weekend I had my TL (end of June) - I drove up to Tahoe (but just with my wife)

and I'm

Steve

 

nice a while back i remember someone saying the total oppisite on there 04 fully loaded with people the said it felt sluggish and i remember them saying something about how it felt as if the car was going to flip over.

 

what ever you do, dont drive to Tahoe during winter,as our TL aint capable of chains hookup. I seem to notice more body roll when I have 5 adults in the car

 

I have an '04 and I carried four adults (my brother, my parents, and me) plus our four golf bags one time last year. I'll never do that again. Too much weight and the rear of the car rode too low. It still handled OK, but I would not care to have it that weighted down except in an emergency. (The way the car was sitting reminded me of those old American cars you see where the entire extended family crams in, five or six kids sitting on each other's laps in the back seat, muffler about to scrape the pavement.....)

 

After a long trip with a full load, check your rear tires.

The reason the TL handles so well is in the geometry of the rear suspension. Under hard cornering, the camber changes. The downside is that a full load simulates squating under hard cornering and changes the alignment of the rear wheels.

Some members have reported excessive wear on those rear tires when traveling long distances with a full load.

 

I got my '06 in November and made at least 12 trips to Tahoe and had to "cable" up at least 5 times with no trouble at all. True you are not supposed to use chains but cables are easier to put on anyway. In the snow without cables on, the traction control and VSA works fantastic...

 

Only problem I had traveling with bunch of people and luggage is that my low beams were mis-leveled...they were almost like high beams.

 

i had the car loaded down with 6 golf bags, felt fine around most turns while going fast. impressed with how the car still drove, and that the gas mileage was hardly affected

 

you've got to show me how to load 6 golf bags in this car. i can hardly fit 2 big ones in the trunk.

 

2 in trunk, 3 in back seat, 1 in passenger seat.

 

I fit four golf bags in the trunk by putting the woods through the ski pass-thru (clubheads in the trunk, shafts thru the pass-thru). Of the four bags the only particularly large one was my father's, which makes a difference—I use a lightweight carry bag and my mother has a relatively small bag so that she can get it in and out of the car without much hassle.