Hey guys,

It's been a while since I sold my 2nd gen TL and now I'm about to go back and pick up a used 4th gen. Right now the two I have my eye on is a 2010 FWD Tech w/18" wheels and 22k miles or a 2009 SH-AWD Tech w/28k miles and 18" wheels for the same price of $26995 + tax/lic...

I will be getting the extended warranty on either one I choose. Which is the better bang for the buck? I've been doing some research on both, but a little help from actual owners here would really help. TIA.

 

For a classy commuter - the FWD is plenty of car. If you intend to do some winter/bad weather driving, and enjoy spirited touring on the twisties; you'll be in love the the SHAWD.

The SHAWD does give up some trunkspace at the front of the trunk for the AWD hardware - but not a lot.

Other than that, with both having the tech package - it's apples and apples I believe.

 

If you are somewhere you will get snow, definitely get the sh-awd, if you like running hard in the twisties, get the sh-awd. Otherwise, the fwd will give you better gas mileage, and having one model year newer is always good for resale.

 

I'm a little worried about getting another AWD since the 4-Motion Passat I'm getting rid of was a heavy beast that sucked gas like no tomorrow. Being in Calif, I never see snow unless I want to drive over to it. How's maintenance on the SHAWD? Anything I need to be aware of?

 

Thanks. This is exactly what I'm thinking. I like both so it's hard to decide, but a newer car with longer warranty probably makes more sense.

 

The resale value will be a little better on the shawd - but if your not gonna see much snow the fwd would be good with tech.

 

Neither are "gems" on MPG. Both use premium fuel. You can get 30mpg highway with either. The FWD I suspect is marginally better in stop and go.

From maintenance, it's what I've come to expect from a Honda / Acura product. No surprises. Everything works.

It seems like it's a matter of changing fluids at guideline intervals, and do a timing belt/water pump/clean the EGR every 100k.

I've got 30k on my 09 SH-AWD and no powertrain issues or surprises. Not even needing brakes yet.

 

Here's the 2.

2010-



2009-

 

You sure that 09 doesn't have tech package? It has tech package trunk spoiler and chrome handle accents. I prefer palladium over Mayan bronze but that aside if I had to choose between the two I'd get tech 9/10 times because the Nav in great, sound system amazing and with the limited rear view you NEED a back up camera to park this thing (especially if you care about your wheels, lastly push to start is win.

 

They both have TECH package.

 

My advice woukld be get the 2010. You live in CAL so no snow to worry about and one year newer and I never buy the first year of a new model design.
Either one is nice, but that's my

 

In 09 - AWD was TECH. Couldn't get it without it....if I'm recalling properly.

 

Are you going to be doing anything to the cars? aesthetically i mean. if your going stock, id say the mayan bronze and if you gonna get some work done, the white TLs look amaaazing. i havent seen too many mayan bronze TLs on the road, so you can have the uniqueness right there. i recently got a CPO 09 TL-shawd in pallidium 35k on it, extended warranty and tire warranty. and it running great. and as for gas, its a 2 to 3 dollar max difference between regular fill up and premium fill up... and if you drive with a little restraint, ive noticed my gas isnt being sucked out. i live in NJ so i needed a awd.

 

FWD is excellent in the snow as well. Snow driving it is more about the tires than the AWD. AWD gets you moving, tires make sure you turn and stop.

The biggest knock on the SH AWD for me was the 'sport suspension'. I drove them back to back and the comfort level between the two was very apparent in normal commuting situations...

These magazine reviews assume people buy these 3700lb boats to drag race at the strip and drive on track prepped surfaces. Its laughable and counterintuitive to what a normal person buys and uses these cars for.

An extra 6% HP from the 3.7 would have been nice, I wish they offered the FWD with the 3.7 i don't think TQ steer would have been too much worse. At the end of the day, the automatic transmission doesn't let you hit peak HP anyways, so its a moot point.

The 3.5 feels very good on power, mileage is acceptible, ride is great, tech creature comforts are excellent.... Spacious, comfortable interior...


All in all an excellent car. Which ever way you go i suspect you'll be happy. Good luck and happy hunting.

 

News flash SH-AWD is performance orientated, not foul weather. I don't drag race my car since its not ideally suit for that but I do drive the hell out of it. Skip to 4:30 and then when we catchup to traffic to 9:00, other vid is good almost all the way through: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45zqK...ature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8No7...ature=youtu.be

Originally I thought you were debating tech or SH-AWD, I'd definately take the 09 with both.


Edit: excuse me missing shifts, recently put in a light weight pulley and I'm not use to how quickly it gets to 7.5k

 

Curious what the dyno would say, as to WHP...

FWD typically have ~10% drivetrain loss.... RWD closer to 20%. Lets say AWD has the same roughly 20% drivetrain loss

305 * .8 = 244WHP
280 * .9 = 252 WHP....

Now AWD will lay it down better off the line obv, and you really need to look at area under the curve rather than peak HP, + auto trans is programmed to shift before peak HP...

but its interesting none the less.

The drivetrain loss definitely plays into the MPG equation.

 

I have no doubt in my mind that from a roll fwd TL can beat me (a built CL did), I'm just not that concerned with straight line racing to the limiter.

 

I have no use for it at all either... Was just making the point. Have to define 'performance' I guess...

I got the 'offramp at 60+' out of my system in my old civic si... I was just looking for a cruiser, wasn't willing to trade ride comfort for better handling...

All in what you want the attributes of your car to have...

 

So is the price for the 09 look right? It's $26995 + tax/lic including a 4yr/100k (2016 or 72k miles, whichever come first) bumper-2-bumper Acura warranty?

 

For an 09 base w tech that looks like roughly the going rate.

 

All AWD vehicles have worse fuel economy than their 2WD counterparts. Even Acura is no exception.

I don't know how the SH-AWD TL compared with the 4-Motion Passat, but Acura has published an EPA estimate of 18/26/21 for city/highway/combined mpg for the 2012 SH-AWD 6AT TL.

Acura is light years ahead of VW in terms of reliability, since VW is industry known to have poor vehicle reliability.

 

$27k for a 3 year old car is insane. I bought a brand new TL with 7yrs/100k warranty for $33k. Also, I got 0.9% for 60 months. I know my car is just base but I'd rather pay $6k more for a new 2012. If you want tech, add $3k.

Have you looked into buying new? How were you going to pay for your car? Finance or cash?

 

That is exactly what's holding me back from pulling the trigger. I bought my previous TL new and when I get in these CPO's and see marks and scratches all over, it makes me wonder why I just don't bite the bullet for the peace of mind that I will be the 1st owner.
I'm pre-approved through my Credit Union, but I heard about special financing for all new TL through Acura. It's making me rethink my plan.

Actually my original plan was to get a CPO 2008 Lexus GS350, but paying 32k for a 4-yr old car made me even sadder.

 

Just buy new. Trust me. 5 years ago I really wanted a TL but instead of buying an 07, I bought an 03 TL-S. Thought it was a good deal and even though it's 4 years old, I was confident it would last long. 2 years later I had transmission issues and it costs me a ton of $ to fix.

Anyways, with 0.9% for 60 months and some even offering 0%, you are better off spending the money on the car than interest. Good luck.

 

Sort of a moot example, 2G TLs were/are notorious for trans issues. The gap between new vs used with Acura financing might be a lot smaller than you think, plus the slightly better mpg from 6spd AT over 5spd bridges the gap further. I'm the exact opposite in that I rather buy a used car with more features than a new baser; the later seems like something a yuppie who's fond of bimmers would do. Look at all these badass features my 328 comes with! All that air inside the cabin is included!

 

I've never gone wrong with CPO, but I typically don't finance much money (if any) either.

 

Offering 1.9% on CPO's, pretty much the same deal... I got a FWD tech 09 w under 40k miles for $24k... Thought the numbers worked out fine. Savings will easily pay for wear items, new 20's i want to get...etc...

Certain cars I wouldnt want to buy used...A gussied up Accord I trust is a pretty bulletproof platform. We'll see.

 

It really just depends on your driving and how long you want to keep this car.

I'm planning to keep this car forever (crossing fingers). I'm financing it for 5 years so by the time I pay it off, it will still be fairly new with probably 60-70K miles.

If you buy the 2009 and finance it for 5 years, by the time you pay it off, it will be 8 years old with 100K miles. By then, you'll probably want to buy a new car again.

In 5 years, I bet my base 2012 TL will be worth at least 6K more than your 2009 TL.

 

Ok fellas, last question. I have an offer for a '12 FWD Tech for $33995 + tax/lic with .9% financing. Good deal or wait for Jul 4th?

 

That's a really good deal. That's only $2,300 more than what I paid for my base. For $2,300 more, I would have gotten the tech even if I didn't need or want it.

Do it!

 

Sounds good.

 

Going in to sign papers now. They are throwing in the maintenance package with 5-A1 and 4-B1 services, plus all-season floor mats.

 

Damn, you are just killing it. Good job man.

Glad you stayed away from the CPO.

Which color did you get?

 

Graphite luster metallic with black interior.

 

Nice negotiating, sounds like you worked a great deal for your 2012! Congrats!

 

Just got home. Going to bring her back tomorrow to get detailed. Whew finally done!

 

Should I cancel Acuracare? I got the 7/100k for $1500. Reading from here, it looks like I have 60 days to cancel and get a full refund. If I decide to cancel, do I go through Acura or back to the dealer?

 

Car looks good. Now get some tints. Haha

Keep acuracare if you plan to keep the car long term.

 

Tints are def 1st in order with summer around the corner. I have to ask my LEO buddy on what % I can put on the fronts.