frugalguy

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/08/au...8acura-tl.html

New York Times
March 8, 2009
Behind the Wheel | 2009 Acura TL SH-AWD

Pace. Space. But Oh, That Face.

As the title suggests, the review praises handling/interior and mocks grill.

Silver_Surfer

I hope they do change the grille soon.

S2000 Driver

Behind the Wheel | 2009 Acura TL SH-AWD
Pace. Space. But Oh, That Face.


Acura's "power plenum" design theme migrated from the MDX and RDX crossovers to the
TL sedan.

By EZRA DYER
Published: March 6, 2009

Boston

BY the time Honda is ready to replace an existing vehicle with a new model, it has scrutinized the old one down to the last bolt, wringing improvements from every quantifiable aspect of performance. The changes are recorded with scientific precision.

Thanks to a 71-page briefing book full of those measurements, I know that the 2009 Acura TL SH-AWD, produced by Honda’s luxury division, has 1.6 percent more trunk capacity than the front-wheel-drive car it supersedes. Glove compartment volume is up 25 percent. Rear visibility is improved 7 percent. The armrests are 17 percent thicker and 30 percent softer.

That’s not all. The premium sound system has 51 additional watts of power. The length of the passenger windshield wiper is 18.75 inches. I have no idea how that last statistic compares with the wiper of the old car, but I’m sure it’s at least several percent better.

Styling changes are a problem to quantify, but if you were to look for clues to Acura’s own appraisal of the new TL design, it probably is a bad sign that television spots for the car show it in the dark, flitting between shadows. I can imagine Acura executives nodding in agreement as the ad agency’s creative director explains, “No, you don’t want people to see the car — it’s, umm, much more mysterious and artistic if it’s in the dark.”

The issue is the styling of the front end. I don’t understand the urge of certain car companies to foist a uniform front-end design on their entire lineup. Perhaps they look at BMW’s familiar twin-kidney grille and say, “We need something like that so everyone will instantly recognize all our cars.”

But one aesthetic approach rarely suits all vehicles. For instance, Audi’s elongated corporate grille looks at home on a big A8 sedan or a Q7 sport utility, but it seems inordinately brash on the much smaller A3 and TT.

In Acura’s case, the “power plenum” design idiom works for the MDX and RDX crossovers, but its naked, futuristic aggression doesn’t sit right with the sedans. A sedan’s grille should not look like a weapon used by ninjas from the year 2350.

Both of the TL’s available trim levels wear this startlingly angular face. The base model uses a 280 horsepower 3.5-liter V-6 coupled to an automatic transmission and front-wheel drive. That car competes with vehicles like the Nissan Maxima and Lexus ES 350 — the upscale front-wheel-drive crowd.

But Acura also wants an entry in the cutthroat domain of sport sedans like the BMW 335i, Infiniti G37 and Cadillac CTS, all of which are either rear- drive or all-wheel drive. Those cars are also available with at least 300 horsepower, so the upper-level TL gets a 305-horse 3.7-liter V-6 and Super-Handling All-Wheel-Drive, or SH-AWD in Acura-speak.

The only transmission is a 5-speed automatic, but for 2010 the TL will offer that ultimate symbol of sport-sedan credibility, a 6-speed manual.

I asked Mike Unger, principal engineer in charge of total vehicle performance for the TL, if the 6-speed TL SH-AWD could keep up with a 1991 Acura NSX — a two-seater that was competitive with European exotics in its day — on a racetrack. He said that was a question that Acura had yet to answer. But the notion that a sub-$50,000 four-door can be considered a racetrack opponent to the NSX (which was lighter but had less power and fewer gear ratios) speaks to how thoroughly Acura has overhauled the TL.

More than the added horsepower, the SH-AWD system is the real key to the TL’s newfound cornering rapidity. With its ability to direct extra torque to the outside rear wheel on curves, it helps to point the nose of the car into a turn. It effectively offsets the car’s nose-heavy weight distribution — which stacks 59 percent of its pounds on the front tires — to keep the front from pushing wide through corners.

I won’t pretend that I fully exploited the system on public roads, but on long highway on-ramps the TL SH-AWD simply hangs in and goes where you point it, sometimes making the car feel as if it is cheating physics. And cheating physics is fun.

The TL SH-AWD is also lively in a straight line. The snarl of the V-6 strikes a nice balance between refinement and sportiness, racing from a stop to 60 miles an hour in 6 seconds, according to Car and Driver, while returning 25 miles a gallon on the highway — though a rather unfortunate 17 m.p.g. in town.

Like the Cadillac CTS, the TL avoids direct confrontation with the BMW juggernaut. The TL is priced like a 335xi (a loaded SH-AWD with the Technology Package costs $42,995) but it is much larger than a 3 Series. In fact, the TL is even a few inches longer than a 5 Series.

The SH-AWD I tested included the $3,730 Technology Package, which is indeed a technophile’s delight. The 8-inch high-resolution screen in the dashboard can display a wealth of information, from radar weather maps to traffic reports to the backing-up view from a rear-mounted camera.

So, the TL SH-AWD is sweet to drive but jarring to look at. In that way, it reminds me of the 2002 BMW 7 Series, a car that was generally decried as a monkfish on wheels, with a rear end that looked like an impacted tooth. But BMW sold 22,000 of those 7 Series sedans in the first year after it was introduced, nearly 4,000 more than its conservatively styled predecessor sold in its best year. So the TL might prove to be a hit, a tech-forward performance sedan whose sales numbers eventually validate its challenging aesthetics.

Or Acura might slap a new grille on it in a year or two and lay blame for this whole “power plenum” business where it rightly belongs: with the ninjas from the future.

•

INSIDE TRACK: Leading candidate for a face transplant.

Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company

Legend2TL

, my gut feeling is somewhere in in Ohio and California there is a PowerPoint presentation being emailed around Honda/Acura with exterior design changes for the 2010 4G

DLeeWebb

I hope not. I like how the grill and the whole car looks...

ostrich

LOL This is quite an accurate article. I am quite used to the grille now, but I still would wish that it were different.

Anyway, didn't anyone from those secret consumer panels before its release point out how much the grille would be disliked by the general public?

JD23

One significant inaccuracy in the article: The SH-AWD Tech TL is definitely not the same price as the 335xi. Once a few basic luxury options are added to the 335xi, it hits $50k, which is significantly more than $43k.

Also, I don't see the value in auto reviewers devoting a significant portion of reviews to the TL's exterior styling. At this point, anyone interested in the review has already seen pictures of the exterior and has formed his own opinion. The reviewer possesses no special insight into the exterior styling. The reviews should focus more on things that cannot be evaluated by looking at pictures on the internet, like the steering feel, interior quality and handling.

Legend2TL

Sometimes they skip the consumer panels altogether.

The story of the Nissan Titan.
When the 1st gen Titan pickup designs were finalized at Nissan's San Diego Design facility, CEO Ghoen came out to view the clay mockup models. There were three styles for the pickup, mild medium and bold. The design teams and management looked at all three simultaneously. Ghoen openly asked the group which one they liked best, the mass majority liked the bold. The lead designer was a guy in his mid-20's, Ghoen told the team to go with that model. Even the young designer was stunned and someone asked if they should show the concept with a consumer panel test. Ghoen told them no and proceed with the bold design.

I agree with the NYT article, the bold grill works well with the 2G MDX. There are two on my street (white and silver), at first I didn't care for the style now it looks just right for those vehicles no matter what the color.

1075

Like it or not, the styling of a vehicle both exterior and interior plays a major part in most people's decision making process. This is especially true in the upscale classes because most people purchasing these models consider a car more than "just transportation". So IMO styling evaluation, while subjective has a place in a car review. You wouldn't do a car review without pictures would you?

PetesTL

A lot of people now are able to snag the AWD Tech for less than $38K....same price as a 1 series! Try getting discounts like that on a 335i....impossible unless it's used.

PGSberg

........AND "THAT FACE"! Who the hell cares. I like the beak both painted and in the buff. I can't wait for the V6 TSX to come out. Maybe everyone will flock to it and I'll still have one of the rarest cars on the road!

Wavehogger

Most of these reviewers have jumped on the bandwagon so they 'fit in' with the rest of them regarding the exterior. And they love the attention from the sensationalism. I can't stand the ones who try and say that the A4 and 335 are equal in value. Go load them up and you're paying 10 grand more easy. Not to mention they can't hold a candle in reliability. And from what I've heard at my dealer talking to the regional sales director, Acura has no plans to change the grill. It's currently being designed into all the current models and upcoming crossover. But who knows, just as quickly as they killed the NSX they could change the grill..

I will admit the stock 17"s are really weak and they should change the design MMC. But painting the grill and/or back section makes it look worse. Like a teenager spraypainting his rims. Those who don't like the design that much, should buy something else or wait until there are more high end aftermarket grill choices. yea yea let me have it painted ones..

PGSberg

- Wavehogger, to each his own. Taking comments from fellow owners is always welcome and usually comical. It's the ones strolling in here without a 4G trying to pick fights. I wonder if we should go to Audi forums and dog the crap out of their cars.

JD23

Yeah, I was being conservative and not factoring in discounts, which would bring the price difference to around $10k, making the reviewer look even sloppier.

JD23

That's my point. Exterior styling is completely subjective and can be evaluated with pictures. I don't need a supposed automotive expert to evaluate the styling for me. I understand that the controversial styling should be mentioned in the review, but spending a disproportionate amount of time debating the styling only serves to reduce the utility of the review. I want the review to tell me things that cannot be gleaned from a picture.

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

I haven't seen a white 4G with the nose painted yet....that looks really classy.

JeffS

Don't you mean a PowerPlenumPower presentation? I would imagine (and hope) you are correct and the PP replacement is already done and waiting for the MMC.

Colin

Hnnn the NSX was made for 15 years! The grill change should be ready for the G6 TL. Redoing the grill without touching the sheetmetal would be hard or impossible. And redoing the hood would never be done for year 2.

frugalguy

I think the grill is fine.

I do think the headlight assembly looks relatively too small for the size of the grill.

I am not good with ps but I think if the headlight assembly can line up and be flush on top with the grill, people would not think the grill is too big anymore.

frugalguy

I think Wave was referring to Honda killing off the 2G NSX, not the 1G NSX.

Colin

Funny, that never occurred to me, but that makes more sense...

Fishy

I almost bumped into a white 4G while walking back to my car from dinner. Wasn't looking where I was walking and then too late... turn around and and almost hurled semi-digested Stella, ny cut steak, and fries onto the hood. It may have improved the looks if I hit the plenum.

But seriously, it's a nice car but I honestly find it fugly and not just the grille. Now you can discount a lot of opinions about this car for various reasons but not mine because I'm in the TL's target demographic. However, the 4G seems to be doing relatively well so there are enough people who like it and I can only say good for Acura.

JAB00

Objectively speaking, the 09 TL's looks are controversial. Personally, I wouldn't go as far and say it's ugly but it is definitely controversial. If I were in the market for a new car, it would be in the top three consideration. I love Acura's reliability, tech features, and luxury. For it's features, reputation and price point, it's hard to pass up despite the controversial looks.

blakura

If the car looked better, I would have one right now. As things are now, I'm sitting on the fence unable to make the purchase or not It seems to be doing well considering the market at this moment, but I can't help but to wonder how many others are on the fence with me due to the look of the car, although it looks better in some colors than in others just not with the 17" wheels on the base model.

bmode

Another pointless article to stir up opinions and create a discussion that goes no where? Hey Mods, can we put a stop on posting reviews on the 4G, or at least commenting on them, especially the negative ones? It's a good read, but the posts that follow go no where? Just a thought.

1075

Why not just ask for a ban on negative comments altogether? This is an internet DISCUSSION board isn't it? A published review on the '09 TL is an entirely appropriate post on this forum IMO. As long as there are no personal attacks then I say go for it, differing opinions make things interesting. This thread isn't a re-hash of anything, it's a discussion of a newly posted review on the '09 TL. So what if some of the same things (i.e. styling) are discussed? There are also some of the same high points that have been previously discussed that were identified in the review.

You happen to like the looks of the '09 and think that the 3rd Gen looks old and dated. I didn't care for the looks of the '09 and chose to go with an '08 after seeing the 4th Gen. That does not make either one of us haters, we just have different likes and dislikes.

PsychDoc

I agree with you 100%.

Good post!

S2000 Driver

To paraphrase 1075's above comments, what the hell do you think an internet discussion board is for?

erick3

i love the car...
in fact, i'd love to get my hands on that new 6mt in 2010...

LaCostaRacer

Mark Holt summed up the grill very succinctly in Car & Driver in the Backfire section (april 09 page #15)

"The Acura TL is so ugly that if it were parked at the beach, cats would bury it"

Now I don't think it's that ugly, but he does have a point.