TL-50000

Looking to buy to soon

adam209

do a search. there have been numerous postings about those cars against the tl. remember there will be a little bit of a bias since this is a tl site

blk04TL

Test drive em all - here is my .02.

A4/330i too small - Take out a bimmer 530 instead

G35 - great motor RWD - but interior is cheap

ES330 is an ole ladies car.

TL is tought to beat.

Go take all of em out for test ride - and come back and tell us what ya think.

blk04TL

Test drive em all - here is my .02.

A4/330i too small - Take out a bimmer 530 instead

G35 - great motor RWD - but interior is cheap

ES330 is an ole ladies car.

TL is tought to beat.

Go take all of em out for test ride - and come back and tell us what ya think.

HacksawHilliard

The ES330 is difficult to justify in my mind since it looks just like a Camry. I would eliminate that one from the group without even test driving it.

partagas

G35, noisy, dangerous handling, driver space is way too tight.

A4, small gorgeous interior but it just can't get my heart pumping.

I won't even dignify an ES300 or GS300 or Maxima with a response.

That leaves the 330i and the TL. If you're a driving nut, the 330i will probably go down in history as the best driving car ever made. It makes the 530 not fun in comparison. But, boy is it small and weak on goodies.

TL second best handler, best power, second only to the BMW in engine quality and full of room and goodies. Last time I chose the 330i, this time the TL.

SLVR04TL6PD

Buy the the TL and thank us later. You'll regret getting anything else.

Check out some of the members' posts. We (myself included) have traded, and sold our BMW's, Type-S's, Maximas,etc. In order to get an almost perfectly balanced luxury sports car.







Chad

Gundar_RENAMED

I agree with those here who tout the TL. Let's break it down, shall we?

Audi A4: Small / underpowered 225 bhp engine / spotty reliability / best interior design in the industry

BMW 330i: Small / underpowered / "me too" chic / spotty reliability

Mercedes C320: Small / homogenized ho-hum S500 design / poor interior ergonimics / boring driving dynamics

Infiniti G35: Classy exterior / great power / good value / bad interior design / Nissan's recent 1.02 million car recall (including this car)

Lexus ES330: Fabulous luxury features / UGLY EXTERIOR / perfect fit and finish / Lexus' legendary reliability / UGLY EXTERIOR / high resale value / UGLY EXTERIOR / bland driving dynamics...did I mention it has an UGLY EXTERIOR?

So there you have it. The TL wins hands down. Great exterior, great interior, lots of power, tons of USEFUL features, terrific Nav system, bluetooth, Acura dependibility (not quite at Lexus level, but close), and tremendous value for the money - the best value of all the cars compared here, in fact.

Cheers

r_liebo

I just drove all of these except the ES330 (not really the same kind of car -- if you want to Lexus, go with the IS300 or GS430)

Audi 3.0 -- Very nice on the inside, plenty of options at cheaper prices than BMW or Merc, great fit and finish, european car feel, but VERY boring. Just has no personality.

G35 -- tons of fun to drive, great performance (and its RWD), cheap interior, no Xenons. Styling to me seems bland, but that is very subjective.

BMW 330i-- best driver's car. Great handling, feel, performance, RWD. Great residuals if you lease. It is a tad small, very commonplace, and options get expensive. Also, the auto tranny really drains performance.

Merc 320 sport --- (right now my final candidate with the TL). Solid feel, very good performance, RWD, less commonplace than BMW's, by far the most polished of the choices. Options get expensive as well, though, smaller on the inside, and no Sirius radio until calendar year 2004. Also, most questionable reliability of the bunch. Great residuals if you lease.

Hope that helps, but as said before, go drive all of them

Jss1

You might like to review some consumer input re: Mercedez C320 first as this model is specifically mentioned.

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/mercedes.html

mook

I've been looking too and I've not test driven the 330 or the A4 mainly because I've had an A4 and don't want another until I can put less miles on a car per year and didn't want a BMW because they are too common.

I would say the G35 is the closest competitor to the TL. The G35 drives better than some German cars and if you want an auto it is better than the TL because all gears are available (the TL does the 1-2 shift for you). The only down side of the G35 is the interior. The materials are Nissan level and not Infiniti. Compare the interior of the Q45 and G35 and there is quite a difference.

The Lexus is just too much like a Camry for my taste, and I didn't drive it either.

The MB 320, has a bad reliably record (more like a Chrysler and less like a Mercedes). Plus the interior looked cheap to me. I like the TL much better.

I did drive the Volvo S60 and the Saab 9-3 and both of those cars are good performers and fun to drive.

It all comes down to reliablity for me. Only Infinity and Acura are at the level I'm comfortable with. The others are just to spotty, for me to feel comfortable spending $35-40K.

A lot depends on who you plan on using the car. If it is a daily driver and will be driven a lot, I would say to go with the TL, Lexus or Infiniti. If the car isn't going to be driven a lot, then the German cars are okay. I have to concur with other saying that the A4 has one of the best interiors. Audi does a great job designing cars, just don't keep one beyond its warranty.

j-maverick

by the way......HID lights are now standard on the G35 Sedan and Coupe. Just a fyi..

G35- handles as good as BMW, brakes as good as BMW, in 6sp form, the fastest of the group, and it has the most low end torque. Now available AWD. One of the most interior space offered, along with the TL. Priced inline with Acura.

Interior is as bad as BMW as well...and build quality is average.
I have one, and i really don't care for the interior at all. I drive it for the performance.

*lets not talk about recalls, becuase every car maker has them. I just got my Tranny replace on my CL-S...the same transmission on the current 04 TL.

Audi- AWD, classy exterior, classy interior, the best looking car overall, but the most underpowered in normal form. Step into an S4, and the tables turn quickly.

Lexus 330- FWD...if you want a serious sport sedan. this is not it.
BMW 330- Benchmark in the past, still in the present. Great car, but pricey. If price at 35k fully loaded, it would be the best car overall.

TL- great exterior, Kiss ASS interior. I would trade my CL just for the interior of this car. Finally a 6Sp with LSD, and finally a sporty package. This car needed to AWD to really compete with the RWD cars, and it failed to do So. The FWD is nose heavy, weight distribution is way off, brakes are carry overs from previous Gen. Unless you get the Brembos...big +++. Tranny is a carry over and power needed to be a bit more to seperate from Accord, at least 280hp. A-SPEC is overly priced, for what you get. The BEST FWD car in the class, but not the BEST Sport Sedan in the class. Price is great too.

MB320- to much $$ AMG32 is a different story

These are just my humble opinions. I probably left out many positive and negative things about the cars, but this is what I had in my mind.

Maxim

Same topic has been covered numerous times, but I'll just say that my preferences are in this order:
1. Acura TL. Doesn't have the RWD, but who cares?
2. G35. Good runner-up to the TL but interior sucks.
3. A4. Handles like a dream, but lousy reliability.
4. 330i. Why is it behind the A4 on my list? Because Bimmers are overpriced punkmobiles, that's why. And it's really no more reliable than the A4.
5. C320. Overpriced, small, unreliable.
6. ES330. (Insert yawn here).

SergeyM

Here are my 3 cents (questions): 1. When you chose a car what is more important interior or how the car drives. 2. Should you first decide which car is the best and then bring the price into account or should the price be a part of evaluation from the beginning. 3. Should we distinguish between the long time reliability/maintenance and short term. E.g. MB, BMW and Audi have free maintenance for first 4 years.

partagas

Y'all still aren't talking like drivers. The 330i is hands down the best driver. The TL is a close second and the Audi is decent. The G35 is an unruly dangerous beast and the MBs etc don't handle at all. I drove a G35, long and hard. After almost killing my self with the uncontrollable tail twice, with VSA on and off, and being tortured by the door hitting my leg and arm and the rotten ride. Now lets discuss price, reliability and features. I chose the TL because it was the second best driver/enthusiast car and had the best ride and the best stereo & nav and goodies.

1SICKLEX

And the TL doesn't look like a TSX which both look like an Accord? The G35 has tied and has beaten the 330 in 2 comparos. The new TL, we'll have to see but I am sure it's FWD will limit the fun. It will be up there though.it's not pretending to be a sports sedan. It's a luxo cruiser (insert yawn) It's only November 10th, and that probably will be the dumbest thing I'll read all month. Congratulations!!!

Maxim

If you buy the Bimmer, you aren't doing much driving, but instead you are cooling your heels at the dealership waiting to fix yet another electrical problem. If you drove the G so hard you nearly killed yourself, then maybe you ought ought to be more careful. I had a salesperson do that to me on a test drive. I reminded him that, a. he has no right to kill me, and b. I don't drive like that. The demonstration was wholly unnecessary. Consumer Reports actually made the same observation about the G's lack of poise at high speds. Other than that, you made a wise choice buying the TL. Now, if you will just slow down....

Fencesitter

We discussed one other car on this thread: http://www.acura-tl.com/forum/showth...hreadid=63593. I bought it and love it but can't say anything about what lies ahead (resale value and reliability). And of course it was soundly trashed by this forum! But if you're really going to consider all comers in this class/price range, you might want to at least test drive one (be sure to engage the "Sport" setting in the AT - it raises the shift points and greatly increases the acceleration). If you were a New Englander or Canadian, you might be more likely to consider it, but I don't know about California . . . they do make a convertible (sorry for the stereotyping!!), but that's not what the discussion was about.

niracura

Funny you mention this. (And thanks too ...)

I've read the thread you mention a while back, and asked myself "why haven't I looked at SAABs"?

Next thing you know, I'm test driving the 95 Arc and Aero, and liking every minute of it. So much so that if all goes well tomorrow, there will be one ordered for me.

I'm going with the 95 Arc. It is a 2004 and has so many incentives on it now that it can sell at $100 over the non-Navi TL (See carsdirect.com). Mine is with OnStar, Premium Package/Sound, Touring Package and Xenon.

I find the interior much like the BMW I drive today (528i).

Driving is much more fun with the turbo engine than with the 528's engine. The 528's, I think, lacks enough power to make driving fun. I've driven the 530, and there is no noticeable difference between it and the 528 as far as fun goes. The 540 is where things start coocking, but it is not in the same price range.

Besides, BMWs are all too common in my neighborhood and I think it would be nice to drive the SAAB with its distinctive look. The TL, to me, looks like other cars.

Another note - if you are planning to lease a TL, and wish to get a better deal overall consider this:

1-You are more likely to get 1K under MSRP for a non-Navi than for a Navi.
2-A car without Navi will actually bump your residual to 59% at 42 Month (vs. 57% for the Navi). True you get the "ugly" dashboard - but you're not spending $2000 on Navi plus you're getting $1K off MSRP, plus you have $1500 less to finance on the lease.

But you still want Navi right? So if you can live with the "ugly" dashboard, you get the Magellan RoadMate700 for about $1300, and now you have an excellent Navi unit, that you can use in your TL as well as in your wife's SUV when the whole family is going on trips. This is a touch screen unit with all US and Canada Maps preloaded. Turn by turn voice, and many other neat features.

I plan to have the Magellan in my 2004 SAAB 95 Arc.

FInal words: The SAAB is at least as fun to drive as the TL, and feels like less of a step down coming from the BMW.

I don't drive hard, use it more like an exec car, mostly highways, so I don't think I'm going to miss the fine "driver's car" points for which the TL may still be superior to the SAAB.

Happy hunting. ... And if you are looking for someone who can get you a TL on the groud, ready to go for under MSRP in the NY/LI Metro area, do yourself a favor and contact Shoofin' He was able to find me a TL with 1K under on the ground. But then I decided on the SAAB...

VQ35DE

Expanding the pool here, have you considered a certified used Lexus GS400/430.

Maxim

Hey fencesitter,

I remember I gave you kudos for your mojo. The 9-5 is a daring buy. I, myself would like a 9-3, if I could get a good deal. Heck, you only live once. The ubiquity of all the cars mentioned on this thread makes you want try something different.

vtec 6300

I'm just curious guys, but what do you think makes the ES330 ugly? I just wanna hear some opinions. To me, the shape of the headlights and how it extends all the way to the middle of the hood is ugly and reminds me of some kind of insect. But I guess the ugliness came in handy as it contributes to the 0.28 drag coefficient. The side of the car has long overhangs and looks too bloated. The rear of the car actually looks ok and I think the shape of the tailights with the chrome in it are very nice and classy looking.

GalantT3

It would be a tight race between the Infiniti G35 and 2004 Acura TL.

There both such hot cars exterior wise!

But interior is important also so too, and the G35 is lacking so your left wondering.

Jaydef

aww man, this is a close one. dont know if your a real car nut... A4 put the TL to shame in exterior and interior fit and finish. 1.8T w/ a chip and possible a bigger turbo comes out to the same price as a A4 V6, but MUCH fast. but it is also very tight in the back. so the the 330i, to me, it seems like the 330i is pointless if the 330ci has basically the same back seat room...
if you really need the 4 doors, you might want to go with the TL... if the A4 doesnt get ur heart racing, take a look at this..

Jaydef

Maxim

Aaaah. For my money, the Audi A4 is the prettiest car on the road. Thanks for the pics, Jaydef. The ES is NOT ugly, just disproportionate. If Lexus moved the wheels a couple of inches to the outside it would actually look more presentable. Right now the front and rear extend too far outwards, with no compensation for wheel location. It looks like a giant chicken from behind. Ugly cars--Pontiac Aztec (I know it's not a car), the erstwhile Tiburon, the gone, but thankfully forgotten, Buick Riviera, the first generation Acura CL (so sue me), the Buick Skylark, Chevy Impala, the new 7 Series.

Tracer

Friend of mine just conned someone into buying his Saab 95.. he loved it the first two months he had it, then it went down hills from there.. he actually ended up next to the road SIX times because the engine died on him in SIX months... The service guy at Saab (the dumbass) said that they see it a lot.... ouch..

No Saab for me..

Tracer