I am likely trading my 3G Base TL tomorrow for a 4G Base.

Has anyone on here traded out of a 3G to a 4G and had any regrets about trading the 3G?

 

Make sure you get base+tech or you will regret it.

 

:ibcornelius:

 

I want my 3G back!

 

Why?

 

Why..is this going to change my mind about trading?

I will not be trading unless they can bring the actual vehicle price down another $1000 to 32000. I swear I hate car shopping so bad it makes me want to not go tomorrow!!!

 

One more thing, a negative about keeping my car until the lease ends March of 2009. I owe 23000 on the car, they are offering 22000
The car will need tires, which will be an expense. The carpet looks Fair to good in the front (taupe carpet). I am assuming I will be paying to put new tires on it before I turn it in if I wait? Is that true?

I guess I am assuming that it's really going to be about the same difference if I can get the car for 32000 (2009 Black TL). Any opinions on this.

 

You can't turn it in with tires below 2/32nds of an inch in tread. If you don't have a tire tread guage you can use the penny test. If you can see the top of Lincoln's head after placing the penny inside the tread (viewed from the side across the tire treads) then they will probably hit you up for cost of new tires. other than that, read your original contract. They allow upto $1500 of damage or wear beyond what is considered "normal" (not to be exceeded by $500 for any one incident. In other words, yuo can't return it with $1200 of front end damage, but, you can return it with $1200 of damage done across multiple separate incidents. READ THE CONTRACT and be aware of what you agreed to in the beginning. Having said that, since you are trading for another Acura they should be nice to you When you turn it in without getting a new one they would be stricter.

 

Why? You've done you're homework. You know what you want and how much it's worth. Tell them $32k is what you are willing to spend on that car. If they have 3 09's left and none on the inbound they'll probably say no. So you walk away and wait for a 2010 in March OR wait until the 2010's are out and pickup a 09 leftover for under invoice in November. You're not forced to buy a car this week. You're in the drivers seat (pun intended).

 

Aside from all the rattling, what's bothering me the most is the steering on the freeway.
It's very difficult to make the car go in a straight line. I find it easier to go straight if I just take my hands off the steering wheel altogether. Any small movement of the steering wheel makes the car move wildly. Im not sure how it is in the SH-AWD, but
the steering in the base is pretty much shit.
I liked the steering of the 3G. I liked the touch screen. I liked the seats.
The negatives of the 3G still exists in the 4G, such as rattling and crappy leather.

Oh! Actually, there was one improvement. The 4G door doesnt spring back and hit you in the leg as in the 3G.

 

Crissy, If I was in your position, I would keep the car and buy new rims for it.

 

i LOVE my 4G... and my 3G's were pretty awesome too!!!

Only regret, is the power isnt there... the 3G Type-S was fast, but mine was fully bolted....

 

Oh Crap...I don't need that with OCD!!
This makes me want to never get another Acura. I have looked at Lexus but nothing did very much for me and I also REFUSE to pay more than 450 for any car.

How is the noise level in the base? I will be getting a Base if I trade to keep payments where I want them.

I may go tomorrow and drive it again, I test drove it right after if came out.

 

Does the 4G feel as sturdy and like it had the same quality or better?

 

Not really sure where this comes from. The steering in this car is fine, as long as it's in D and not S. It's very jumpy in sport mode, but in D it's stable as can be. S is great for street driving, and D is great for highway, IMO. I mean, yeah it's responsive when you move the wheel, but that's a GOOD thing, not a bad one.

Crissy, get the car if you like it, it's a massive upgrade no matter how you look at it. My 4G has zero rattles, the leather is fine for the most part (though one patch that is rarely used in the back seat is bunching up), and the drive on it is fine. Responsive enough and powerful enough. Don't let one complaint in a sea of positive user responses throw you!

 

^^^ I know what cornelius is saying. I notice it when I switch between my RL, TL, and MDX. The TL steering is a tad bit more sensitive due to the new electric steering system. The same complaint existed with the 09 TSX which has the same electric steering. They supposedly made some adjustments in the 2010 TSX that makes it better. I assume they will apply the same tweak to the 2010 TL. Regardless, the car is a huge step up in build quality and materials. The 3G interior feels like an economy car next to the 4G.

 

That helps, To me the appearance of the new TL looks more classy, even on the base with the base wheels. While I love my 07 TL I'd like to have a new color combo and the interior of the new TL looks alot nicer IMO. I am still going to go in for a test drive and if I don't like their deal than I can leave no strings attached; It will only cost me a couple hours.

 

Didn't you test-drive the car before you bought it?

 

There you go! Just go test it out and make them your offer if you like it. Walk away if they won't give you a fair deal. I've bought dozens of cars in my life and have rarely bought a car on the first try. Almost always end up walking away when they typically say "no" to my first offer. I just go to another dealer and make an offer, or, I go home and think about what I learned that day if everyone rejects me. Sometimes I end up moving off my number when I sleep on it. More times then not, the dealer moves off there's and makes a better offer within a week. Rarely have I ended up not buying the car I wanted because I couldn't get a "fair deal". Just don't get emotionally invested in the car or the time you spent, and don't bluff. The sales manager see's hundreds of buyers a month, they'll know if your bluffing and will just wait until you cave first.

 

If you wanna go 4G, then at least get SH-AWD, or you'll regret BIG TIME!!!

 

FYI Crissy78; Coincidently RideWithG.com just posted the current Acura Tl lease numbers for August and I got an email alert. They look very good. The base TL has the best offer on the surface, but the $2000 dealer money turns into $1000 for the base model. As a result, it's all about the same.

http://www.ridewithg.com/index.php/2...s-august-2009/

Based on a MF of 0.00184 and a residual of about 59% for a 10k/36m lease, you should be shooting for $425-$430 a month. That assumes tax of 6.5% for me in Orlando. That does not include startup fees like Bank, Dealer, or document fees. You want to pay all those up front anyway if you can. Assuming you paid those upfront you should be shooting for $425/mth tax inc. with about $1200 up front.

This is assuming some things but that's probably very close to the number you should be shooting for.

 

I thought Ive answered this question several times.

 

I loved my 3G - I like my 4G even better.... smoother ride, more features - I like the overall car better

No issues here and would not trade back

 

i got the SH-AWD.... solid like a rock.... about 10x better then the 3G ... i cant speak about the 4G FWD... i am sure its similar to the 3G FWD though

going to AWD is a HUGE difference

4G has bigger brakes (even bigger then the brembos)
4G has better technology
4G has bigger engine
4G has smoother ride
4G has better exhaust system (awd)

3G is a tad quicker (type-s vs awd or FWD vs FWD)
3G has better headlights projectors

 

If you hate it so much, why don't you sell it?

 

I would love to get the SH-AWD but in reality I can't afford that, not now and even if I wait until next year when my lease ends. I won't pay more than 450 per month. I honestly don't even want the tech package because we have a Garmon Navi and I can live without the rest. As long as I have my Sat. Radio and my IPOD.. I'm good to go!

 

Get the tech package for the extra few bucks a month. Nothing looks more silly and tacky than a $40K luxury sedan with a garmin navigation plastered to the windshield. No offense, but I kinda laugh at those people lol.

 

so play in the steering wheel is now a good thing?

I've got the AWD and haven't noticed any 'issues' with oversensitive steering. In fact I wish at lower speeds it WAS a litte more sensitive.

Car has been SOLID for me. Much tighter then my Lexus GS300 (but then again it was 7 years old when I traded her in)

Touch screen is over-rated. I thought it would annoy me since that's what I'm used to, but with voice input I can enter an address MUCH faster then touch screen. POI are another matter entirely and SUCK on every nav system I've used except for my Garmin.

Leather is holding up, but then again I'm not as particular about creases in leather since that's what I expect it to do over time.

 

Once my lease is up, I wont turn back.

 

I guess my supersensitive steering is good for making sharp U-turns or changing 2 or more lanes at one time. Otherwise, it just makes driving more challenging, especially at nighttime.

I have no idea what you are talking about when you say touch screen is over-rated. It's just like texting, but with bigger letters. It's a real pain in the ass to call out each letter one by one. It feels like Im one of those guys on Sesame Street, trying to teach kids how to spell.
The POI in my 3G was a lot better than my 4G. I think they truncated the database or something because places like McDonalds and Taco Bell are missing in my area.

 

If you look at my signature, you'll see I have had more than my fair share of 3G TL cars. I have a 4G AWD and love it, I am still not crazy about the front end or some of the back end, but I am in the car not outside looking at it. The car is an amazing improvemtn over the 3G. the only big complaint I have is the bluetooth sucks compared to the 3G and you'll see many others agreee with that. The ride is awesome and car is rock solid. If you liek the ride go for it, I found the base 4G too soft and did not handle to my taste, but I came fomr a Type-S so AWD had me hooked and addicted. This is by far the best year 1 car Honda ever built!

 

I agree. Touchscreen is way easier to use than that dial or voice commands when you have to spell out an address. But then again, I prefer the screen up high rather then down near the radio. it has a lot of advantages. With it's placement on top of the dash, it's impossible to offer touchscreen. It's a trade off. Neither situation is perfect

 

RTM. To input addresses you just say the name of the city/town, name of the street, and then the full number. (fyi for those in Mass always say Town of before the town name). For addresses you NEVER have to spell out the name. That's why I said for addresses it's much better.

POI aren't as good because you often (not always) have to spell out a name. Even if you have to spell out a name, one of the benefits is that you can do this without looking at the screen. The letters are read out loud to you and while this sounds difficult it actually isn't. The system starts narrowing the available letters as you spell more.

Not agreeing with you on the steering. I actually think it's very easy to keep a straight line with this car compared to my GS and my wife's Pilot. The more play on the steering wheel, the harder it is to maintain a straight line.

 

traded my 04 5AT Nav for the SH-AWD w/ HPT - remember the 04 fondly, but don't miss it.

 

I have to disagree w/ all of the above - at least going from my old 5AT 3G to the SH-AWD w/ HPT. bluntly if you don't like it why did you trade? (your right about the 4G door doesn't hit your leg) After a week I didn't miss the touch screen either. thats my 2 cents

 

I like the screen up high now. One thing I miss was the small mini screen in the 3G above the nav screen - I could see the clock fairly high up near my line of sight. - now the clock is much lower in the center stack = makes you take your eyes away from the road to ck the time

 

You guys have Sh-AWD. The ride and handling is totally different. The SH-AWD is one of the best handling cars on the market right now. In contrast, the base 4G seems to be detuned to be worse than a base TL. The steering seems to be getting more loose as time goes by.

 

I did a test drive last week of both and what your saying is kinda true. With the FWD I felt the steering wheel felt like my 89 accord. I told the care salesman this steering feels like my 89 accord. In the AWD I didn't get that sensation but this can all also related to the weigh distribution of the FWD vs AWD

 

I noticed the straight line issue right off the bat but have made adjustments that are working out

 

I got my new car yesterday. I got a 09 TL Base, Black with Ebony Interior.
I love it! It's totally different than the 3G I traded. I love the interior; it's much nicer than the 3G. Plus I got some free accessories thrown in too!