After almost 25 years of driving an Acura, I am probably going to get an 2017 Audi A4 instead of a TLX. The A4 is very comfortable, drives very well, and has been getting good reviews. It does not have as many standard safety features as a TLX, but it has enough for me. I am somewhat worried about the long term reliability and high repair costs of an Audi, so I am planning to go with a 3 year lease instead of buying it. Maybe in 3 years Acura will have their act together, and I will return to the Acura family.

 

Don't blame you

 

Good luck! It is a really nice looking car and I LOVE that dash tech! I was considering getting my first lease for that very same car for the same reason!

 

Goodluck, OP!!

post back on your long term experience with the Audi!

 

Good plan on lease vs buying. Nothing like paying for a repair on an Audi.

 

Really nice interior. Love the virtual dash & heads up combo.

 

Enjoy the Audi.

 

I've been hearing they're becoming more and more reliable these days... still expensive to fix, but apparently less chance of needing repairs.

Not sure how true that is, but I don't want to be the guinea pig to find out.

 

Sounds like a good plan. We like to buy and keep our vehicles for a while. Our 2009 Audi A4 was great. That is until 2016 when it had 3 electrical failures (about $3k in repairs). Also our local Audi dealer is terrible, so it was a good time to get rid of it and get something else. We love our TLX so far. It has a slight vibration, so we will have to take it back in to see if they can get that sorted out, but otherwise it is a great vehicle.

One other thing we are getting used to is the camera. The lines on the backup camera on our VW and Audi were right at the edge of the vehicle body. I think the ones on the TLX are at least as wide as the mirrors and I think they are even wider than that. I use them to parallel park and so far I keep winding up too far from the curb. Hopefully I can adjust over time, but I think VW / Audi had that one right.

So I guess as a warning to the OP, the lines on the backup camera are right at the edge of the body, so be careful if you are parallel parking or you will probably scratch up those new wheels if you are used to the lines on an Acura.

 

Cool. Post up pics when you get it.

 

You're STILL supposed to use your mirrors and look out the windows when parking. The camera is there to ASSIST, not take over.

 

I find that Audi's new A4 is today's TLX when it was released in 2014. Has cool tech and not too pricey for a luxury car based on it's features. The massive difference in this case is that people no longer look at discounts to buy it, it's a real luxury brand that people WANT. And if you really want performance, it HAS a sport option being the S4. They have my attention too, sorry Acura. Even my brother who owns a 2007 TL Type S is no longer looking at Acura. It's just not worth it anymore, may as well stay with Honda.

 

After driving over a dozen cars, some multiple times, over 6 months I would say I liked the A4 the best. I would have bought one, but in its Prestige configuration to get the driver assistance package it was a bit too pricey, especially give significant incentives on the TLX.

 

I hear ya man. I leased my 13 TL SHAWD because I've had transmission problems in all my Acura's since 1999 and wanted to see how the car behaved after three years. Towards the end after 26k miles, the transmission would jerk all the time and shift way to early. I got tired of taking it to the dealer (who admitted it drove funny and reset the computer many times which did nothing). I didnt want to deal with it anymore. I looked at the TLX but felt it lacked the quality of my 4G. I really wanted to get back into an Acura (been a Honda fanboy since 94). I finally bit the bullet and went German and picked up a 2016 340 xDrive with every box ticked including a ton of M-performance parts. This thing is a friggin beast! Oddly, it is not that much more than what I was paying for my Acura. Furthermore the 8 speed ZF tranny is the best auto transmission I have ever seen, period. I think you'll like your A4. I drove one a few months back and it rode great. Good luck with the purchase, and hopefully Acura will build something that brings us back to the brand.

 

I was evaluating the A4, TLX, Q50 and IS earlier this fall to replace my TSX of 11 years and came to the same decision. I felt like the technology and interior of the A4 was a generation ahead of the competitors and worth the price premium.

I've had the A4 for about 5 weeks now and absolutely love it. It feels so solid, the balance of ride and handling is perfect and the engine has so much usable power. I'm a big technology geek and love fiddling with the virtual cockpit. Like you, I considered buying vs. leasing, just for the reliability reasons, but ultimately opted to buy. I generally keep cars for a long time and maintain them well. I guess that I'm betting on Audi's improved reliability ratings being real.

 

Yeah man I don't blame you. I have a TLX SHAWD and a 2015 Audi and I always take the Audi when I can. It's Super responsive, Dual Clutch, Google Maps, I could go on... I do hear you on the safety features, but Audi does have the prestige package which should get you just about everything. Its going to cost more than the TLX, but I would say its worth it. You always get what you pay for.

 

I think I'm on same path. Next spring or summer I'm definitely changing my TLX. The A4 or Q5 are on the top of my list.
I may go a little bit more with a Macan 2.0t.
For sure after almost 13 years of Honda and Acura is the time to look somewhere else.
What is disappointing for me is that when I switch from 3G to 4G was an good upgrade in terms of driving dynamics, but I cannot say same thing going from 4G to TLX.
Like the other say it, I thought I can still love it but after 2 years is a divorce time...

 

If I was replacing the 435 with another coupe the AUDI would be high on the list to look at. Going to a two seater next so this will leave them out because I don't care for the TT styling.

 

Audi has vastly improved their interiors in the past few years, as well as a significant technology boost. A few things though: 1) I could never bring myself to buy a FWD German automobile. 2) Parts & Service: substantially more expensive than Japanese cars. 3) Residual Value: Depending on how long you keep it, it's hard to beat Japanese cars (particularly Honda & Toyota) resale value. 4) Overall cost of ownership: Factoring everything in, Japanese cars have a lower cost of ownership than German cars.

That said, I have my eye on the new Audi S5 sportback as my next vehicle in a few years.

 

and no Acura in the future for you either

 

Good idea leasing the A4. You don't want to be owning that car out of warranty.

 

I am considering the A4 as well. It's currently #1 on my list, with the new Civic as #2. I've never had such I diverse list price-wise. Luckily, I have 4 months to decide but I don't think a TLX is in my future, unless the price is sooooo fantastic that I cannot refuse.

 

Honestly, owning an Acura out of warranty isn't that good of an idea either these days.

 

At least the parts will be available in less than 2 weeks and will cost half as much as German parts.

Don't get me wrong, we loved our A4 and I love my Touareg TDI. I have no illusions about how expensive and potentially painful it could be to keep it long term. I will probably keep it until it runs out of my extended warranty (October 2019) or if no significant issues by then, I will keep it until it has a significant mechanical issue or the first electrical issue (even a small one).

 

Yea you probably wanna lease. My friend has a 2011 Q5 and it's quite reliable. So far he's put about 60000 miles on it. The main issue is this random squeaky noise coming from the rear passengers door which is extremely annoying but the dealer wouldn't fix it.

With that said, at that sort of mileage, he's replaced brakes and a few other things, which were pretty darn pricey. And now his dampers are blown and each corner would cost him $800 for parts only ($3200 to replace all for plus labour). Yikes. I just told him to get coilovers haha.

 

Repairing an out-of-warranty Acura is usually a lot cheaper than an out-of-warranty Audi, in both parts and service. Plus, Acura (Honda) parts are easy to come by.

 

I would hope that the Germans made some headway in the QC area over the decades. Though unlikely, the only model in this segment that I would pull the trigger on is the 340i. But the A4 is definitely a looker.

Good luck with the Audi. Keep us posted with your experiences.

 

I really like the BMW 440i Grand Coupe, but the 340i would be almost as nice. However, they are significantly more expensive than the TLX. ~$60,000. That said, I'm hoping I can swing an Audi S5 sportback (baby S7) or an Audi SQ5 in the not-so-distant future.

 

OP....I don't blame you. I did the same when the TLX came out and got the IS but now I am hoping that the MMC will be more exciting, if not, I'll wait for the FMC. I want to come back to Acura but they need to improve their current TLX before I drop cash on the counter

 

Yes, the new A4 seems to be a decent choice in this segment. I just don't like how similar it looks when compared to the last generation. In fact, I am not sure that I like how Audi is getting more straight lines in their recent designs. Boxier looking overall and I am not sure that I like it, but that is just a subjective, personal thing.

That said, I do like the A4 Allroad. When my lease for the TLX is up next year, the Allroad is certainly on the short list for my consideration. If only the local Audi dealerships, esp. the one at Glenmore, were less arrogant.... sigh. That was THE main reason why I did not get into an Audi before.... with our bad economy in Alberta now, maybe they have learned the painful lesson to not treat potential clients like garbage again LOL

How do you guys who have the new A4 like the interior space? When I went into the cabin of the A4 at the Calgary autoshow last year, it seemed cramped. But that was just for a short time only so the assessment may not have been accurate.... how does it compare to the TLX?

 

Nice car. However, for a comparably equipped vehicle, without the safety systems, it's $170 more to lease than my TLX 2.4 Tech. Nice car, but I prefer the looks of the TLX and the handling the PAWS provides, and can't justify the extra bucks because the interior is a little nicer. BTW, I like the two screens and have never liked the "glue on" look of German Navi....but that's me. You can always get something better if you pay more.

 

When it comes to coupes in the segment, I definitely love the A5/S5 though the Q60 is really growing on me.

 

From a leasing perspective, my 2013 TL SH-AWD Tech with an MSRP of 44k was about 535/mo including NJ tax all in with 0 down. My 64k 340 xDrive costs me 650/mo with the same terms. I make up a bit in gas savings (I used to average 18/gallon in the TL and I get around 24-25 with aggressive driving on the 340). The extra $115 / mo brings me so much pleasure every time I get in the car though. Its such a beast.

 

Its been a steady drain on Acura going back to the introduction of the 4G. I jumped ship when it was time to replace my 2006 TL. Waited till the 4G was released, did not like the look, & bought a BMW 335IS coupe. The TLX is a very nice car but there are just to many nice cars now with good performance then there were in the 3G days. Acura really has placed itself in a box being a one model only company in the non-SUV market segement.

 

There's a lot bigger difference between an A4 and a TLX 2.4 Tech than just a nicer interior (although the A4 interior is much nicer). The A4 has an extra 50hp and 90 lb/ft of torque and the torque is available at a much lower RPM. The A4 is also available with AWD. Personally, I'm OK with the screen on top of the dash and didn't like the two screens/touchscreen layout in the TLX, but I understand how someone could have the opposite opinion. However, the virtual cockpit in the Audi is a generation ahead of the system in the TLX (and CarPlay/Android Auto is a nice touch too).

Of course, the A4 is significantly more expensive than a TLX 2.4 Tech, so it should be nicer. To me, it was worth the difference though.

 

The trunk space in the A4 is OK, but not cavernous. Rear seat leg and knee room is pretty good. IMO, a normal sized adult would be quite comfortable for an extended ride in the back seat.

My recollection is that the TLX trunk is bigger than the A4, but I don't recall its back seat.

 

I almost traded in my TLX this summer for a '17 A4 before Acura replaced my transmission (all is good now). I LOVED the new A4. Honestly, I think I would choose the A4 over the TLX if I was in the market to buy. I was looking at the premium plus quattro trim. Very nice luxury features- open-pore wood trim, ambient lighting, standard leather, very nice interior materials, etc. The car seemed like a very good value at a few thousand more for very similar equipment as my TLX. I never got to test it, but it has a 755 watt 19 speaker bang & olufsen sound sytem which I'm sure is amazing. Overall just a great car, especially for the money.

 

Thanks for all the comments. For purposes of full disclosure, I am looking at the new Ultra model, which is about $2,500 cheaper, and gets better gas mileage than the standard A4. However, the engine is less powerful, at 190 hp and 236 torque. I am still negotiating with several dealers, and hope to get to a lease price I am willing to pay soon.

There may be some hope for Acura/Honda with respect to future cars. I went to the Los Angeles Auto show yesterday, and sat in the new CR-V. The driver's seat was the best (for me) in any Honda/Acura that I have seen (sat in?) in a long time. It was very comfortable, was not too big or too small, had nice feeling leather and generally looked nice, with a lot of stitching. It also had 4 way adjustable lumbar support on the driver's seat, which is the first one I have ever seen in any Honda.

I test drove the new Honda Clarity, and it looked very nice inside, and drove very well. Hopefully the new Accord will look as good inside and drive as well,. However, the driver's seat in the Clarity had no adjustable lumbar support, which is a deal breaker for me. Additionally, there will not be a refueling station near me until late 2017.

 

Unfortunately, Honda has had better designs than Acura for a few years. Just take a look at the Accord Sport. I can't stop staring at it whenever I see it on the road. The 19" wheels are beautiful and you can get one for about 22k. Acura used to lead Honda but you can't even get CarPlay in a TLX (standard on an Accord EX and above).

 

I used to have the 14 Sport and strongly considered the 16 Touring (which now has the same appearance as the Sport). It's such a good looking sedan.