Proud new owner of a CPO 2012 SH-AWD
 

Options for me are either a 2012, 2013, or 2014. I have owned an '09 TSX which was great but not enough power in my opinion.

Not that I need it... but, overall I've always been a TL fan and I ultimately want something that I can hang onto long term. Can anyone give me a "high level" of the pros and cons among the 2012, 2013, and 2014 models?

Bear in mind I am also looking to save some money by not necessarily going new, because I don't drive all that much...

Thanks guys!

ressling....The 2012, 2013 and 2014 are pretty much the same car so the one you will pick will only be different by the asking price and the mileage on the odometer.

The SH-AWD is an amazing piece of machinery although some have had some problems with the propeller shaft so be aware. The SH-AWD wil not just give you great traction in rain and snow but also improved cornering abilities on dry roads putting a big smile on your face. As you know, the TLX is about to be revealed so if you want to wait and see what the TLX will look like, in about 2 weeks, it will be revealed to the public from the Detroit auto show. Nothing worst than buying a vehicle then seeing that waiting a little would have brought you more happiness.

The 2014 are going to start to be heavily discounted because sales are slowing down and the impending release of the TLX will affect the demand for the 2014 model....unless of course the TLX is hideous and people flock to get their TL.

I am sure that you can find a decent 2012 lease buy back if you want to go that route but again, best advice is wait a little to see what the TLX will bring. It will be less expensive (I think) than the current TL as it will slide between the ILX and RLX although the 4 cylinder would be the cheapest which you already said you didn't want based on your TSX experience. Not sure if my rambling helped....

A low mileage 2012 would be the way to go. Although mine is a FWD Advance, I purchased it for $16,000 off of MSRP. It only had 20,000 miles on it. You should be able to expect to pick up a low mileage SHAWD for $25,000 to $30,000 depending on the equipment (Base, Tech or Advance).

2012-2014 are essentially the same car as other have mentioned, if buying new is not an option and waiting for the TLX before purchasing a car ... I would look for a low mileage 2012 with either tech/ advance package, You could probably get a pretty sweet deal on one especially if you buy before the end of the calendar year.

The SH-AWD is excellent. Has more power than I need and all that I want. I don't know of any differences between the 2012 to 2014. Rarely do I have to floor the pedal to get it to do what I want. And good gas mileage.

I wish this were the case for everyone. =( But seriously, like everyone says, 12-14 is essentially the same car. I think the best model to get would be the SHAWD w/ Tech, but that is just my opinion. Cooled seats and lane detect aren't worth the extra spike in price for me. Stock wouldn't be the best either, the upgrades which you get for ~2-2.5k are totally worth it for the Tech Package.

^x2 ... but maybe used if the price spike is less than 1k I would go for the advanced, the wheels alone are worth more than 1k

Yeah, I can see him getting an advanced in the '12 maybe '13, but deff not a '14 adv for 1-1.5k more than Tech.

Thanks a million guys. All good points...

Where do you live? If you see a lot of snow, definitely go for the SH-AWD. I've been doing a lot of research over the past 6 months on cars and I'm picking up a 2012 SH-AWD tomorrow morning!

Like dano said, I would shoot for a 2012 with low miles. Best bang for your buck and plenty of them out there if you are patient enough.

if you don't have to have the newest body style, you could also score a smokin deal on a nice low mileage used 09-11. I personally think the 09-11 looks better with body kit vs the 12+ models.. the rear pices on the 12+ looks lame and tacked on.. whereas the 09-11 body kit is better.

I hated the 4G when it was first released..but now that it's been out for a while, it has grown on me, and I think the 09-11 looks better than the 12+.. the newer body style is watered down and soft looking vs the more aggressive and angular 09-11. but it's all subjective and personal presence.

i personally would NOT buy a FWD TL. the SH-AWD is so much sportier than the FWD model it's a huge difference. I've had FWD TLs as loaners, and while nice cars, I would not buy one. an SH-AWD with 19" wheels will handle and corner so much better. if you want a comfy ride.. get the FWD with smaller wheels...but you sacrifice handling ...

overall, an SH-AWD TL is a great car... it's not as fast as stuff like a 335 or G37, but when you factor in what you get and what you pay, it is a great jack of all trades..and I'd bet that honestly, the SH-AWD TL handels better than a 335... i beliefe there was a track test where the TL outran the 335 on a rrace track.. in a drag the 335 woudl kill the TL..but on a track, where the AWD system allowed the TL to get through and otu of turns faster, it beat the BWM.

if money is no object, buy an M3 sedan. you get the practicality of 4 doors and rear seats, and more performance than you will know what to do with. of course it costs an arm and a leg... :)

if you buy a TL,, buy SH-AWD. try to buy a stick if you can. I had to settle for an auto, but woudl have prefered stick. by a White one.. white is the best looking color ;)

:pics:

^ LMAO. Alright well I ended up getting a CPO 2012 SH-AWD w/ Tech, CBP Exterior/Umber Interior. Has more miles on it than I wanted it to, but it fit my budget and I drive approximately 7500 miles/yr so not a deal breaker for me.

I was seriously considering a 2010 SH-AWD 6MT that had less than 20,000 miles on it, but it was one of my least favorite exterior colors, and the dealership wouldn't even budge on my more than generous offer of $29k OTD. I told that dealer whatever they are smoking must be really good.

In the end, I fell in love with the color combo, particularly the umber interior. Car is in great shape. Will post more pics when I can, but I'm happy to be back in the Acura family!

http://i568.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps22daf8bb.jpg

http://i568.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps1de94535.jpg

ressling....Thanks for the photos and most importantly, congrats on your TL!! This is a great looking ride and will provide you amazing joy of ownership. We will be mor ethan happy to provide you with advices and tip on how to extract the most out of your TL.

There are few of us here who are quite fanatic about keeping our TL clean so you better not neglect your TL or me and/or TLtrigirl will be coming after you *lol*

congrats!

if i may, how much you got it OTD?

how much otd??

Also curious how much you paid! (And Mileage)

Just got mine a couple days ago, also a '12, and I have been loving it.

Nice color combo, black is a bitch to keep clean but when it is there's nothing like CBP. So how much yo unpaid for it.

Bought the same car (12 Sh-Awd Tech) OTD $31 w 100k Powertrain warranty and a 12month, 12k extension on the factory bumper to bumper. Love the car. Mods coming.

$30k OTD including all-season mats, the CPO warranty (1yr/12k miles) and extended warranty that matches the powertrain warranty up to 100k miles. Car has a ridiculous 50k on the odometer, but as I previously mentioned, I do not drive much so it will all balance out in a few years. This is also why I haggled about the extended warranty since CPO warranty only carries a year out.

I tried to get them to put new tires (car currently has 2nd pair of tires) on as well but that was a no-go. I should be able to get another 1+ year out of the tires, so I will live with it.

One crazy thing that I caught AFTER the sale was that there was a rock chip in the driver side DRL housing. I cannot believe this was missed in the CPO inspection! Had to put up a fight with the dealer about them swapping out a new one (apparently it's a $500+ part). I simply told them: "you need to replace this and make good on this deal, because I'm not paying for it". They made me jump through a few hoops, but they are honoring it. Part is supposed to arrive tomorrow and I'm getting it taken care of on Saturday.

Below is a pic of the chip. Not a huge issue, but my expectation is that it is to be replaced since it is a CPO car and they missed it.

Did I mention that I hate dealing with auto dealers, even the good ones? :whyme:

http://i568.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps8e0eece1.jpg

how many miles did it have?

Disregard my post above. I saw your posting about the miles afterwards.

I love that umber interior. Every time I see one come in I get all excited! hahaha. I sure wish Acura would keep making umber cars. Such an upscale interior.

But anywho, get the SH-AWD, you'll be disapointed if you don't. :thumbsup:

great congrats on the new car!

Thank you! Dealer swapped out my cracked driver's side DRL today so I have a new one now. :thumbsup: LOVE this car!

I just gave up my 2010 TL after putting 86,000 miles on it between December 2009 and December 2013.

Absolutely solid car. Not a penny spent other than regular maintenance and new tires around 65,000 or so.

One of the best cars I've ever lived with.

I don't think you'll be sorry. :-)

Glad to hear George! How you liking your RLX?

The more I drive it the more I like it. I thought that the RLX PAWS car was going to be a stop gap on the way to an RLX Hybrid, but having driven the Hybrid I believe that what I've got is what I want.

When the local dealer training cars start showing up in a week or so, I'll take another look at the Hybrid. I doubt there's going to be any kind of deal on the Hybrid in the beginning, though, no matter how much of a "friendly user" you're known to be.

At $61,400 the RLX PAWS car looks like a good but hardly stellar choice.

The thing is, in my part of the world they're selling for $52,200 now. It's a lot of car for that amount of money and when you work that into your equation, it's hard to beat.

I looked at a lot of things that'd seem odd considering I ended up with another Acura. I like the BMW 435i M-Sport...a lot. But if you equip it exactly like you'd have the RLX Advance, it's close to 70 grand and the deals are nowhere as good and the reliability is nowhere as good.

And anybody who complains about Acura electronics and how they work is going to be completely stymied by BMW. Audi is very good with it, but BMW is worse than Acura. :-)

And anybody who complains about the Acura automatic transmission needs to sit down in a BMW, look down at that stick that controls the BMW ZF 8 speed and try to figure it out. You'll end up glad that Acura simplified things.

The BMW 8 speed is an awesome transmission once you figure out how to put it in D and if you can live with leaving it in D. Once you get into trying to sport shift it and fool with different modes, it's just ridiculous and I think we're better off that Acura didn't even try to give us all that.

Just...too much.

I liked the car a lot (even though white is the only M Sport color choice), but I believe that I made the most logical choice for what I do with a car.

George, I hear you. My wife had a 2008 BMW 535i. Beautiful car. Once we neared the warranty expiration period, we were happy to unload it. The depreciation on those cars, coupled with the maintenance expenses is downright ludicrous.

Good looking ride-enjoy!


OP, if you want the title of your thread changed to reflect your new purchase, let me know via PM.

I love the RLX inside & out. I've been told by a few other current/past Acura owners the integration of the dual screens is poor. What's your opinion?

As a retired Honda/Acura salesman I can tell you, you are right on the money. We took in quite a few BMW 3 & 5 Series and even a couple 740s and the #1 reason people traded them is was the warranty was running out and they were facing the ridiculous service charges. #2 was the myriad of problems they had already experienced in the short time they owned their car.

I can also tell you that the depreciation on a BMW is ranks right there with Chrysler.:yuck: