Hello all, the name's Will and I hail from Maryland. I am currently a Lexus LS460L owner looking for something more fun to drive daily. I've owned quite a few autos in my short life (2 Supercharged Grand Prixs,SC400,Maxima,G37) and Ibought the LS looking for something out of my norm. I enjoy the smooth ride and space but it leaves alot to be desired in the fun factor. I've been doing my research and my results keep coming to the 2012 TL SH-AWD. I'm not stranger to the Honda/Acura world, my wife drives a first gen TSX and nearly my entire family drives Honda. I'm really looking forward to taking some test drives this week. Anyone have any advice I should look for while on the test drives?
Here are some pictures of my current and previous cars:

 

So I test drive two 2012 TL's yesterday. One at Radley Acura and another at Criswell Acura. First impression of the one at Radley wasn't the greatest. Car was filthy even though I gave at least a four hour notice before showing up. Also the car had a weird whining noise and drove pretty laggy. On the other hand the one at Criswell was spotless clean, was certified, and drove like a champ. My only issue with it was it had the Umber interior which I'm not really a fan of. I do have one more vehicle I'm gonna take a look at. A 2013 Advance package hopefully I'll be impressed

 

HI,
4G with shawd is very fun to drive. I think for honda engine, it is better to rev it up a little bit. you wouldnt feel laggy I guess.

for shawd, the common issue is 1. engine oil consumption, but check out the forum, not everyone burning oil. and also by using different oil, it is within acceptable range.
2. propeller shaft whining noise
3. Torque Converter issue

Other than those, it is very solid and fun to drive

 

The 4G TL is a nice car but do some research on this site, quite of few people are having problems with oil consumption.

 

Welcome to AZ... If you decide on the a TL make sure the airbag recall is / was performed prior to picking it up.. IMO it will make your life easier as well as expedite the process, once you take delivery you may be put on a list like everyone else.

We've had our 4G for over 5 years and it's been great, nothing to complain about. With that being said, I'm not sure if I would trade a Lexus LS for one unless it was giving me problems Granted "Apples to Oranges" comparison but the Lexus LS is on a different level.

Good luck with your search..

 

Thanks for all the advice. I'm used to oil consumption coming from the VQ3x platforms. Those things can drink up some oil. But I'm very excited about purchasing the Acura. The Lexus has been great to me, just at 25 I don't think it's the car for me right now.

 

Look through Pohanka's inventory as well... Can't speak for their Acura side (since I never purchased from them, just get my car serviced there), but their Lexus dealership seems to go above other Lexus dealerships in the area when it comes to reconditioning their CPO cars (i.e. tires, brakes, rotors, etc).

Personally, I've had bad experiences at Radley (bad experiences 2/2 times I've gone in for service) and promises that weren't kept (i.e. the manager making a day/time to talk with me about my concerns/complaints and never hearing from him again). I've liked Pohanka a lot since I moved to the DMV, but some have had some bad experiences there it seems.

 

As someone who came from owning a couple Bonneville SSEis (see username) and a couple GTPs over the last decade I can tell you its an easy transition and these are better cars than anything Pontiac ever made.

The oil consumption is a concern, I have not seen anyone figure out why or root cause. Regardless of if you get the SH-AWD for the standard FWD version, its a fun car either way for a sedan and most of it seems engineered pretty well.