Hi all, i was on youtube and i thought i would share this with you AZiners it is a video describing the the connection between the driver and the car. I would like your feedback as well on how you feel with you car regardless or generation and has your feeling or chemistry in connection changed. Personally i have this connection and confidence as well FYI: im a 4g owner. Take it away what are yours

 

I drove the 6-cylinder twice and 4-cylinder once. IMO, the majority of what these designers are talking about is just a sales pitch. Not that they're lying about any of it, but for me the car just didn't drive or handle significantly better than my 3G TL did, which had a "plain old" double wishbone setup and nothing more. I also didn't feel the "connection" they talk about any more than I did in my lowly Accords. It handled very nice; the ride was very smooth and the car was quiet. But so are so many other cars that aren't compared to being a horse or have what Chevy tried years ago as quadrasteer (they've said that PAWS is supposed to be invisible to the driver, and it was to me). If I hadn't read about the car ahead of time I would've thought it was pretty similar to the Accord only quieter, and nothing more.

Frankly I liked my 3G more, and was pretty underwhelmed by this latest effort. So what is the point of all this techno-babble and technology.

 

Wow this is quite an interesting take on it. I've never ridden a horse in my life but I can see where he's going with this. Out of the Acura's I've owned I felt most connected with my 2010 TSX, its hard to explain their was just something about that car that made me smile. Maybe its because I put more miles on it than my TL, I fell in love with it. But thats quickly changing. With my TLX I do feel very connected to the car, but in a different way. To me it has more of a commanding feel, like the car will do exactly what I want it to do, when I want it to do it, but with a much more refined demeanor. I'm sitting at a metered onramp to the highway and want to get moving quickly to merge with traffic? The car does it just as I wish, with ease and refinement. I'm on the highway and want to blast into another lane with cars quickly approaching? It does it without fuss, but also without any hesitation. I'm on a sweeping curvy road in the mountains in north Georgia, I simply glide into the turn, at the speed I wish, and the car handles it without any unwanted fuss. It isn't the raw connection of a BMW M car, its more relaxed yet still quite confident. I feel like i'm controlling the road, the road isn't controlling me.

I bought my is350 as a fun car, and yes its more fun in the situations, but has a less refined, rougher feel. Makes it more fun, but also in a strange way less confident. In the TLX, i'm able to take a road trip and have a blast driving, yet still arrive feeling relaxed, calm and composed. Yet in the Lexus I take a long drive/road trip and I feel a bit tense and agitated. Maybe it has something to do with my fascination and love for the TLX long before they were in production, back when Acura first announced the concept. Maybe its the thrill of knowing i'm driving a car I fell in love with long ago. To anyone who hasn't driven one, or has only taken one for a test drive, trust me it won't do the car justice. This isn't a car that blew me away during my test drive, or even my first few days of ownership. Its a car that, in time, becomes a part of you, and the more you drive it, the more you love it.

Ive had some special, amazing cars before, and only a few of them have had me so smitten. So no the TLX isn't the most outright exciting car out there. But I do feel a very strong unique connection to the TLX. It makes me feel special in a very unique, amazing way, and I couldn't be happier I bought it!

 

Thanks for this post....I was one of those who wasn't blown away by the test drive, maybe expecting so much more than my TL. Your point is well articulated and maybe I should give it more thoughts before scratching off my grocery list. Ironically enough, the same can be said about the ILX, a car that on the test drive was OK, but now, I love it more than many of my previous cars. We leased it because we had such a good deal and figured we had nothing to lose, but turns out, it is one of our favorite little car.

 

I see your points but man, if a $40k car doesn't wow me right from the start I think there's something wrong. When I first drove my beloved Honda Prelude (without PAWS, IDS, AHA, etc.), I knew that I had to have it. I shouldn't have to grow to love it.

 

I know what you are saying, but for me most cars don't wow me to drive. Anyone can make a car with incredible power and amazing handling, to me those don't make a car great. Just about any time I've purchased a car that actually did wow me from the start, I end up not liking it after a few months. And don't get me wrong, from the start I know I really liked the TLX, and I knew I really wanted it, it just wasn't based purely on performance, or the wow factor. For example when I bought my 2012 ss camaro back in 2011, that car didnt wow me, but it did greatly impress me. I felt like I had to have that car, and within months I hated it. The visibility was awful, gas mileage sucked, had nothing in the way of modern features, and drove like a big powerful boat. Then it started having problems, one after another, to the point I had to file the lemon law on that car.

Something like a Corvette ZL1 may completely wow me to drive, but please dont make me drive one every day, I would hate it. With the TLX, its a different kind of wow factor, one that isn't all show, but one that feels like it will last. And thats what I was looking for in a car. Like I said the TLX isn't the best car out there, but in this segment, to me at least, its at the top. It won't be for everyone and thats fine, but at least give the car a chance. Dont go into the test drive thinking of the things you have read about the car, go into it with an open mind and I'm willing to bet the TLX will impress!

 

I don't care about connection between me and a horse.

All I want is less computer between my right foot and the throttle body valve. But it appears to me that as of lately different car makers have associated premium feel with brainless driver.

PS. Car designers like to associate cars with animals... go figure.

 

I'm with you on this. The only car that I ever really felt a connection with was the first car I bought out of college - an 1984 Honda Accord LX.

That car was a total dog - it had something like 90 hp - but it was put together so well - it felt like all the controls were on ball bearings. It was back when Honda was starting to hit their stride and they were (IMO) way ahead of the American manufacturers at the time. I loved it when people would turn their nose up at the fact I bought a *Honda* until they rode in it.

It was a peek into the future of just how much better the Japanese designed and engineered cars would be than their American (BUY USA!!!) counterparts.

Anyways - It wasn't really special at all but I loved every minute in that car.

 

I hope your have a workshop/garage as you are an ideal candidate for a '60s or '70s era car. They can be a lot of fun but require good handling and car so that they continue to run well.

I am quite happy with all the technology but not yet prepared for the driverless car that is inevitable in the near future.

 

I've been called a pig a time or two....does that make me a car designer?!?