bmode

Yo Wavehogger, have you slept in yours yet? I fell asleep for 3 hours in my TL Friday night messing around with the HDD and fine tuning a 5.1 audio disc. These seats are so much better than my 05' TL, they really wrap around you to prevent body roll! And the booty warmer's are much quicker to warm up too!

DJM52

Yes I do like it. It is a completely new style from the 3G...a little more into the future.

Acura GM

The exterior styling is an attempt to move the volume car upscale and become a true tier one luxury brand.

You will probably see a 3.2L V6 TSX in the spring. Which will give the brand a smalller sports sedan to help fill the void.

buddycura

The true measure of Acura will be their admission of polarizing styling which will cause a loss of market share and force restyling. Acura is not a niche/eclectic automaker. The TL is their bread and butter car. I believe my 3G TL is supreme and fear that the stink from the 09 will taint the entire Acura nameplate.

Myxomatosis

This TL is probably depreciating the value of my 97' CL. I'm almost ashamed to say I own an Acura, or should I say, I hope it doesnt come to that.

EL BAN

Hello, I am new on the board even though I had visited many times to read threads it's the first time I register due to recently joining the Acura family.

I was on the search for a new car after totalling my del Sol and was thinking about many cars. 08 Accord EX-L Coupe got discarded for the price (explained below). I decided for the 08 TL with rebates and bonuses for the reason of the dealer just trying to get all the 08's out and th 09's in.


I also considered the 09 TL once at the dealer because my wife liked it but no matter how hard I tried I couldn't see or feel what Acura was looking for when they designed it.

I can't feel the car. At that moment only the base model was available and I know the top of the line SH AWD would look ten times better put the price would also grow.

I am in PR and Acuras and Hondas here are waaaayyyy overpriced due to only one Dealer distributing them on the Island. Take as reference, an 06 SI here could sell easily over 28K without Navi when you could get one in the states much cheaper with the Navi included. and the one mentioned before, the 08 Accord Coupe EX-L starting negotiation price 38K

I didn't even go for a spin in the 09 because the starting price didn't even interest me since the car just didn't appeal to me.

I would say that Acura just missed it on this one. I always said they killed the TSX when they changed it but the slaughter was nastier with the TL.

I ended up leaving the dealer in an 08 TL and still, even though I have seen many 09 on the road, am sure I made the right choice.

My two cents.

bjtexer

07 TL-S<<<<< kill the 09 modles including RL n TSX

PortlandRL

I have tried to give this car a chance. Thought it no longer makes me physically sick to look at it, I still hate the way it looks. Based on its general appearance, Gillette could be making cars now.

Cap'n Preshoot

The '09 TL certainly is different-looking, though (in my opinion) not in many flattering ways. The Disney Car smiley grill is just plain fugly. The seats are comfy, but wife and I both thought the 3G dash had more pizazz. The 09 would probably take a while to 'grow' on me. We just bought our '08 and the 09's were already on the floor. I put 50% down on the 08 so it wasn't a matter of one being more affordable than the other. We drove both and considered both. The 08 won our hearts.

SpicyMikey

yes it's ok. Don't love the rear end but it's not a show stopper. All things considered, its a huge improvement over the 3g. Eventhough I don't love the exterior, I love the fact that it is unique looking. Can't mistaken it for anything else. I like that in a car design.

(Cj)

That was me

http://www.vtec.net/forums/one-messa...item_id=796038

DivinDude

The Aztec was unique looking too

officialTL

The new TL looks like a Toyota Camry on steroids!!!!!, Im sorry to say the TSX looks better than the TL now. What were they thinking.

slivka

i don't like it 3rd generation is the BEST

crxb

maybe the mdx grill could be an option - just like what style/size rims

pughater

the outside has its ups and downs as far as how i like it but u dont look at the outside when ur driving it. and i love the interior

inyong1988

iTrader: (2)

very slowly growing on me.

tonywong

Like a tumour? Just kidding.

I really hate the 4G, I have a 06 3G on lease and I won't be getting a 4G because they screwed it up so badly. My buddy who got the same car (when he saw mine) thinks they beat the 4G with the ugly stick as well.

I think the 4GTL is an anonymous angry appliance, no harmony or character in the lines. Sorry, but I guess I'll look at a CTS-V (if GM still exists) or year-old CLS next go round. I think it will sell OK for the first few months but sales will take a dive after that since the only thing going for the exterior is 'new'.

J.A.S.

My original vote was "have to see it in person." The first time I saw it, I wasn't a big fan - too radical of a change. But now I must say that I love this car.

crxb

crxb

I'll admit 1st time I saw one at the state fair car show last summer I didn't like it either



all I can say it must have been the lighting - because I'v changed my mind

smsTL

iTrader: (1)

^^^Nice color choice...It looks great.

J.A.S.

Hey crxb, I just ordered the same color combo you have. Can't wait to get it in my driveway!

Hacura

The 2009 has grown on me also but as a potential buyer, I will still go for an 07-08 TL-S anyday compared to the new design and upgrade the 08 with rims and the works. No complaints about the interior. The front and sides are nice.

Acura/Honda has done it again, they never learn about mistakes in the rear end, literally

What they should have done is to simply keep the back end more boxy and higher up similar to the 3rd Gen with tails more complex yet similar to the new TSX. That would have been blockbuster as you can easily change the front grill. I'm sure we'll see aftermarket grills around the corner. Instead they are pushing this pointed front and back look, it works in the front but is a disaster in the rear. They should have caught this in early design as a mistake you do not make.

In light of the current economy, they could have also scratched the redesign and gone another two years with a refreshed SH-AWD TL-S, new interior features - I'm sure that would have been a big hit . I don't know how easy that would have been but they already had a proven design and saved loads of cash from introducing a new model.

Unfortunately, I think Acura will take a hit on their sales numbers because of the new look along with the economy the way it is. In these sort of times, you want more bang for the buck and a serious unique hard hitting design, all of which the 4th Gen exterior falls short.

crxb

thanks J.A.S. you will enjoy it

AcuraSoulElement: I thought the front was what caused the controversy

Hacura

Crxb,

I can only speak for my opinion. The front, while not great, is something I could live with since you have options on the grill and lip kits that will inevitably dress it up. Unfortunately the rear tails need to go, they are not near "TL" worthy. While the rear "grill" thingy between the bottom of the trunk and the bumper is a new look, it just doesn't cut it, too pointy overall as they could have done without it. Too busy for my blood, like trying too hard with a mixmatch of design elements.

The ending of the rear window is, lets face it, too much like what's already been done and on its way out - nothing futuristic about this. Its obvious as I don't need to name cars that have already used that look for half a decade, thus, Acura is simply too late to that design paradigm.

Its a nice car overall, the interior is superb and there are exterior features to praise. While many can say they buy a car for a ride and its interior, I can only say that just doesn't cut it for me. I've learned to be realistic with myself and life in general. I buy a car for a minimum of 5 years.

I'm also a bit surprised they (Acura) went with such a design on their flagship seller. A design which clearly is not an evolution of its predecessor.

I don't want to repeat too much of the mainstream thinking but it is this way for a reason and we're not all crazy. The TSX look should have been the new TL. If it weren't for the lack of HP and some rear leg room, I'd buy the TSX in a heart beat...

crxb

AcuraSoulElement - yah the rear is busy - overall not as clean a design as the 3G, but in at least for me in some colors - the trim pieces don't stand out so much - esp the Palladium - almost blend right in. Notice in the TV ads the car is what color? - Palladium - don't think that is an accident.

I haven't really looked all that close at the TSX's shape - for the same reasons HP and rear seat leg room

NJ Vike

Room. The TL is larger and that's why we purchased a 2007 TL Type S. It may not be as fast but the TL is better looking and most impotantly, I can drive without my head hitting the roof.

crxb

I have noticed the 4G seems to have more head room than the 3G

Blazing GT

Oh Really?

Colin

Just goes to show that you shouldn't paint the front grill

NJ Vike

How about the rest of the vehicle? Are there any plans for a Type S?

crxb

6MT for 2010

NX64000

I took a look at the 09 when I was having my 6MT 2006 TL rebuilt ( another story) the front grill I could see getting used to except that it is made of incredibly cheesy plastic -looks cheap - feels cheap - sort of Acura's version of plasic cladding

slivka

i have 3G 05 and i put on type s lips it looks sick you can't even see the difference. when i saw 4G it ugly ugly i will keep my 3G

narnia

A reviewer in the NY Times summed up my feelings: "The new TL looks like an evil Transformer robot sent to enslave the human race."

If Acura hasn't tweaked the design by the time I'm ready to buy my next car, I'll probably get an Accord EX-V6.

Cristofo

I don't want to be "that guy" but all the ridiculous OVEREXAGERRATED comments about the 09 are making me nauseous. There is a much deeper cause for the hatred and it's because you love your 3G TL and when something new replaces it, your defenses go up. I loved my Vigor (original TL) way more than the 1G TL. There has gotta be something wrong with me, if 300 of the 316 posts are extremely negative.

bmode

Bravo Cristofo, there's nothing wrong with you! I too did not like the 4G when I saw it, but now that I own one, my old TL looks small and outdated. I'm glad I made the jump now, I feel privileged to drive this thing with no one else on the road with it.

J.A.S.

Cristofo, You're not "that guy." I'm sure a number of us think the slamming of the 4G is a little out of control. It doesn't seem that many had even seen the car in person, never mind driven one.

Many 3G owners bought their cars because they like/love the looks of the exterior (can't the same be said for all of us?) Acura gave the TL a significant remodel and some people don't like what happened to "their" car.

When I saw the 4G in pictures and on the web, I didn't like it at first. The difference is seeing it in person in order to appreciate how the lines and curves all come together to make a really attractive car. Then sit in the interior (impressive) and drive the car. Judge the car on it's own merits. The 3G is the 3G, the 4G is a different car. If you still don't like it, fine. At least you gave it a fair shot.

By the way, I've had a 4G in my driveway for the last four days. I love it!

Hacura

Damn, I just saw the Palladium '09 for the first time and it was pretty nice. The first 2009 I saw was blue so that was pretty horrific.

All right, its growing on me and I'm feeling to take back some of the initial serious comments I had about the redesign. I must say though, it took the right color and an in person walk around to start liking the car.

One thing is for sure, its simply not a photogenic car