I have owned a 99 TL and two 2002 TL Type S units and loved them . At present I have a 04 Maxima SE. The Max is a wonderful machine with 260 hp and 255ft/lb out of the superb VQ engine.
Being somewhat idealistic and sadly with a streak of non-civic decadence I'm now 'thinking' I should return to the 04 TL. At this point I'm lacking sufficient information to encourage me return to the Acura fold. Help!

 

From a financial perspective, I wouldn't recommend it. But hey, whatever floats your boat. You're pretty much guaranteed that the new TL will be an awesome car. At least from what we've seen so far.

 

So...why do you want a new car? Try saving up for that nice second home out in the woods (or first one). Seriously...what's the point of a new car so frequently?

I guess everyone has different priorities...


SPUDMTN

 

wait till 06 model year...depreciation wont be bad, demand will die down, u wont lose money

 

Even though you say you need to know more about Acura, it sounds like you think you know what kind of car the TL will be. Well, what do you think? Is it going to be very similar to the current TL, or very different? Is it going to be more of a "comfort/luxury" type car or more of a "driver's" car? Is it going to be kind of big (i.e. the size that most people seem to think) or closer to the TSX (which is what DNB and acura_driver calculated from the Seattle pics)? I sure as hell don't know. But everybody else seems to think they know!

 

Yeah yeah yeah...we know larch...we know...we know that nobody knows about the up and coming knowns (to supplement our current knowns) about the 2004 TL.


SPUDMTN

 

Spud, and anybody else -- I'm just fascinated by how much people go around ASSUMING things, to the point that they lose track of what are the facts and what are their assumptions. Every now and then, there's a situation where not only are assumptions running rampant, but very soon we're going to know all the facts and we'll be able to see in bold relief how right or wrong we were, and (perhaps) how much we were fooling ourselves and how little we realized that we were going on assumptions and not fact.

This TL thing is maybe the very best example of this I've seen in my life, and I'm not going to let it go by.

BTW it also fascinates me how reluctant people are to put right out what they think about this when they're asked directly, even though it's obvious that they think they really do know.

 

Ditto. I had a hard enough time reconciling purchasing a brand new model that is already released (the fact that it is around in Europe helped). I can't imagine pre-ordering a car shrouded in mystery. I'm impressed that some people can - I just never could myself.

Your last paragraph is a keen observation on human nature. I can't say how many times I've heard a student suggest something, and when you ask them why, they just stare blankly and stammer out an answer without confidence.

zoltan, i agree with unsure - wait a couple years and dodge that huge early depreciation.

 

zoltan, I agree with unsure and jcg878, but for a different reason. It allows all these folks who have a deposit on a '04 (ahem....beta-testers) to work out all the bugs for us.

 

I couldn't agree more. Although if your deposit is refundable. You really don't have much to lose.

 

The Autoweek article should be a great help. Recommend you wait until after September 1 to decide anything -- the car will be officially "announced", and writeups on the car will start appearing. Watch this forum on September 1 -- one of our members is an Acura employee who has promised more info when the embargo is lifted!

I pre-ordered my TSX, so that I could get the exact color and transmission I wanted, as early as possible. The down-side of pre-ordering is, you have no leverage to negotiate price. I think you will be better off to wait until dealers has some cars in inventory, and then shop around. You might not get a discount until 05.

 

Maybe money isn't a problem for this fellow or he could be BSing us, like a lot of people do on here sometimes.

 

Sound like this guy is writing off leased vehicles which explain the frequency.

If you like the Maxi, keep it. TL will cost at least $4K-$6K more and it'll be smaller.

I hated the 04 Maxi at first but after seeing them in town more, I really like how they stand out in traffic. Something I couldn't say about the new TL.... or may be until I see one in person.

 

you also think altimas are hot Different taste for different folks. There aren't any offical specs that i know of yet but are they max and new tl dimensions expected to be all that different?

 

Max is 2" longer than current TL (at a wopping 194" for the Max), the 04 TL should be less than the current 192, you know the guesses 187-190"

When you drive the Max, you can tell it is BIG!

 

For the TL I think we're seeing something similar to the Rorschach inkblot test. People are reading their desires into the car. After the 1000th post it sounded like the car would slalom like an S2000 yet have the highway ride of an S-class.

FWIW, speculation also ran amok during the prerelease days of the TSX. Some of you may remember rumors of a V6, AWD TSX going for under $24k. And it had a compass, too.

 

Acura TL "defector" will return and trade my 04 Maxina SE for a 04 TL. I love the Maxima ,it is just about perfect but I think the Acura is just alittle more refined! There is a strong market demand for Maximas so I hope I get a reasonable deal.

 

Hmmm. Two "Zoltans," both defectors. "Zoltan," and "Zoltan1." Makes you think.

All I know is, they've never been seen together.


Anyway, welcome back to Acura. But, about getting rid of a car that's just about perfect.....

 

I'd pick the TSX or TL over the 04 Maxima. The only reason I would get a new Maxima is for space.

 

I'm Zoltan and Zoltan one ,sorry about the"duality". I have in the passed owed a99 TL in heather mist (a great clour tone) one 2002 TL in silver,one 02 TL Type S in gold (bad) and an02 TL Type S in white,traded that for a Murano (a wonderful machine) then into the 04 Maxima SeE. In Canada we have total Gov, of Canada health care so I can afford to flip dars more frequently, plus re-sale of Acuras is so good!

 

That's great -- but, don't you like to hold on to a car for a while when you really like it? (I do. Which means I have a tough time explaining why I'm even thinking about the TL!)