2021 Accord Touring vs 2021 TLX
 

Got the opportunity to car shop for myself when a truck search for the wife ended with decision to wait for the long overdue Sequoia redesign. Planned on an ES 250 or 300h. Considered long list of others including Toyota, Volvo, Audi and Caddy. Landed on the Accord Touring after all the research, professional and owner reviews, forum time and test drives. That was despite every effort to avoid Honda after my TLX experience. Why? The Accord is too darn good. It's hard to find anything bad about it.

I gave it some time (two months and almost 2000 miles) behind the wheel before being able to confirm what everyone else says - it's really an awesome car. Materials and build quality make it feel like a luxury or premium car. Seats are comfortable. Ride is smooth and plush on the expressway, yet firm and planted around town.
-Wireless CarPlay with Qi charger and really intuitive infotainment
-Leather heated/ventilated front seats and heated rear seats
-HUD with street sign reader
-Rain sensing wipers
-Auto brights
-Respectable 19" rims
-Honda Sensing, which is improved for 2021 and I can say is delightful, compared to my AcuraWatch, which back in 2015 either didn't work or was dreadful when it did

I guess it was an itch I had to scratch. I always loved the 10G Accord and regretted going with my 1G TLX AWD Advance, although the 2018 Accord was apparently worth skipping due to numerous quality control problems. Some were ironed out in 2019 and the rest with the MMR, one of the reasons I went with the 2021 and my first brand new car in 12 years. There was zero chance I was going back to the Acura dealer I frequented with my problematic 1G TLX to shop for anything - but if you are considering a TLX, the Accord Touring should be on your list to check out. You might be impressed. I'm ultimately posting here to help others who are shopping -- and let you know I can be impressed (and by a mainstream sedan no less) after everything I said back on the 1G forum. If I had to criticize anything about my car, the trunk doesn't have a closing handle on the inside and bumps at low speeds (under 10mph) feel strange (like lumpy, not sure if this is due to adaptive dampers).

Also, yes, as long as I was going with FWD, I got the hybrid. It's quicker to 60mph than the 1.5T. I'm averaging 43mpg and it's really fun to knock around town in EV mode. As an electrical engineer, I appreciate the technology behind the eCVT, which is really a misnomer. There is no transmission and no shifting - the antithesis of the ZF9. The motor powers the car under most situations, either on battery or supplemented by the generator, except when the clutch connects the generator to the drivetrain directly at certain speeds. Unlike VCM, I barely notice my engine turning on and off. I use the paddles to control re-gen more often than I use the brake pedal (almost as engaging as stick shift). In sport mode, it's obviously still underpowered, but it feels peppy and the handling definitely tightens. It's just, quite simply, a perfect car for me.

I hope everyone find this level of satisfaction with their car - whether or not it's a TLX.

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Surprised looking at the two dash sections exactly how extensive is the all new dedicated TLX platform. To my eye its pretty obvious the unit body panels behind & supporting the dash through the console are pretty much the same stampings.

Congrats on the purchase. You got the car that was right for you!

I don't think I could every be happy with an Accord as the audio system has been universally planned. I definitely need the TLX's ELS 3D system or other "A grade" systems in future purchases.

:shrug:

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Looking at it from the inside.
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General dash curve matches. Ducting for the A/C matches. Windshield lower trim matches. Instrument cluster curve is slightly different but appear to sit on top of the A/C duct at the same place. The outer edges of both consoles seem to have the same kink in them as they rise to meet the lower dash. Dash height at the A/C ducts at the door seem to be at the same place on the door. Positioning of the standup screen & center stack is pretty much cosmetic & think they could be swapped in the same available space.

Could be totally wrong but its what caught my eye.

I've had a Type-S since I purchased my 2007 TL-S 6MT in December of 2006. I've dearly loved it from the beginning, and have been waiting a long time for a suitable replacement.

But I'm not sure the new TLX-S is it. They broke my heart when they gave up on manual transmissions. And the TLX is a disappointingly small car. Too small, I think. It has almost 11 inches less combined F/R legroom and a much smaller trunk than an Accord. I guess I wish they had brought back the TL Type-S on the Accord platform.

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Come on man...you posted picture of 2.0T in the TLX to make the point about similarity obsolete to a 2.0 NA/EV that is nothing like the 2.0T in the Accord. Really?

I recall the firewall stampings are quite different. From memory, TLX has a weird angle as if to reserve a little more space where the rear bank exhaust goes. Accord has a lot more space under the dash compared to TLX for design freedom. So the similarity in the dash dimension I would say probably is motr from similar UX philosophy.

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Ahh the good old post where I unloaded the TLX for the Accord. Just to follow up:

My 10G Accord Hybrid Touring has been the best car I’ve ever owned.
-2.5 years
-50k miles
-Pretty much only gas and oil so far. Just replaced OEM tires at 48k.
-I did have to replace a front parking sensor because a rock hit it. No fault of mine or the car.
-Averages about 40mpg.
-Comfortable on 5+ hour drives.
-Everything works every trip. ACC, LKAS and rain sensing wipers all good. Auto brights are goofy with their on off all the time, so I usually turn them off.
-Wireless CarPlay is amazing.
-HUD is nice to have.
-Heated and ventilated seats are great depending on the season.
-Fun to paddle shift with the regenerative braking.
-Fun to switch between Eco and Sport with noticeable adaptive suspension and engine response.
-Stereo is pretty solid.
-My only complaint about the car is the AVAS, ie the stupid hybrid sound. The only way to turn it off is with a resistor in place of the speaker, which I considered, but is illegal.

I still wonder if I should have gone with the 2.0T. But it’s really fun to tool around town in EV mode.

Anyone looking at a TLX should also consider an Accord Touring. I think there are YouTube videos out there proving the Accord is actually a better and faster car.

Well I agree as long as the TLX Type-S is out the equation as it’s infinitely better than the accord touring

Honda got rid of the 2.0L Accord so the version that was faster than the non-Type S TLX no longer exists!

The Accords are great cars. My wife’s first one went 432k miles essentially trouble free. Her last one, which my granddaughter now drives, just turned over 300k miles.
I don’t know how many miles my daughter’s has, but it must be close to 300k. She got it the same day in 2006 as my wife got the one that granddaughter currently drives. The two before them were killed on Friday the 13th of October, 2006. My wife was rear ended by a truck on I-495 when she was stopped by bumper to bumper traffic. The truck driver never touched the brakes, punting her into the car in front of her. My daughter was rammed and knocked into the end of a guardrail which speared her Accord. The woman that hit her was driving a Herz rental and rushing to catch a plane. It’s a miracle neither my wife or daughter were hurt.

Agree. We've had 5 of them. One was totaled at only about 70K miles (didn't like that one, a '96, all that much anyway). Two were sold at 200K+ miles and were still going strong. Our current Accord is my wife's old car, a '13 EX sedan, still performing flawlessly at 125K miles. The current '13 model is a 2.4 EarthDreams with 6MT, which is a tremendous drivetrain. The engine is very smooth, and routinely delivers 31-33 combined mpg in mixed driving. On the highway, in non-winter weather, it will easily get 40-42 mpg. At the same time, if you wind it out (Yo, VTEC!) it will run 0-60 in about 6.6 seconds according to the magazine tests. Really an amazing engine/drive combo.

I was never enamored with the styling of the 10G Accord, having owned a 7G, 8G and 9G but ultimately favoring the 9G version, where I originally had a 14 Sport (totaled) and now have a 16 AV6 Touring. So, I've never been interested in driving one though I'm acquainted with the product and know a number of owners, collaborating with a few 2.0T guys when it comes to performance mods. Given that the Touring 2.0T comes in at 280lbs lighter than a base TLX, I would expect that the former would serve to be a bit quicker. :co:

Although the SH-AWD justifiably gets all the glory for enhancing handling and providing all weather traction, the fwd version has very much benefited from a chassis that was developed with the Type S in mind. Again, I haven't driven the 10G 2.0T (and maybe I should, just to gain a little more perspective), I suspect that it wouldn't be as adept a handler as the TLX 2.0T.

That said, the grief of sitting in this awful Central New Jersey traffic for 70% of my driving is mitigated quite well with a comfortable/quiet cabin and a great ELS Studio 3D sound system. As I'm on the cusp of buying out the lease, it's honestly the first car I've had in a LONG time where I'm really not interested in swapping for something else. Whatever I get next (ideally a well cared for Nissan GTR ) will be in addition to my A-Spec. :toocool:

I'll weigh in here about my 2011 (?G) V6 EX-L Accord. I loved that car and surprised quite a few drivers looking to have a go. Once the OEM tires had to be replaced, I kept ultra-high performance all-season tires on it. Great handling for a front driver. Very reliable out to 160k miles, finally had a chance to return to Acura for the TLX-S, so went for it. That Accord was what I consider a top of the line non-Luxury/Premium car. I just hope that Honda hasn't taken all the fun out of the current Accord, they need that V6 or 2.0T oomph. What I heard about the 2.0T was all good.

I second that idea for having a nice weekend sports car in addition to your daily driver A-Spec :toocool:

My lease on my TLX is coming up soon. I'd really hoped that Acura would eventually come up with a hybrid TLX, but it looks like that's not in the cards. I'll see how things price out with the 24 TLXs.

But I have to admit, I'm curious about the Accord Hybrid. I loved the 10G style. You could see the shared DNA between the cars. There were a couple of times I'd see a 10G and for a split second think it was an Acura. That similarity is gone with the 11G. It kind of has a Taurus/Passat look to it. I keep trying to love it, but I just don't feel it. And I've learned the hard way in the past that you'lli never 'learn to love how it looks over time' when it comes to a car....either you love it or you don't. The TLX has what my buddy calls the 'look back' factor. When you park it, you sometimes look back as you walk away just to enjoy how it looks. The TLX still does that for me.

This has made the upcoming decision a bit muddled. It all depends on deals/availability but all these options are on the table

24 TLX - A-Spec I have a Tech now and the jump to an A-spec would depend if it's more or a LOT more
24 TLX - Tech - would get the little things I wish were in the 21 (wireless carplay, remote start, bigger screen)
21 TLX Tech - just buy what I have. For 23k with 32k miles on it, it's more car for less money than what I'd buy on the used market
24 - Accord Touring/Sport L - would scratch by hybrid itch. Just don't love the looks
22 Accord Touring Hybrid - would split the baby and get me a hybrid and car I enjoyed looking at. But the used market is so wonky right now, I'd spend a more money than keeping my TLX.