maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

^Aim higher than that if you're making a wishlist. Lol

JTS97Z28

iTrader: (4)

I agree with this. Lexus has absolutely earned my interest. I would rather have the GS350 over the RLX, and the IS over the TL. Infact it's not even close and I probably wouldn't even visit the Acura dealership if I were in a search for a new vehicle. That's too bad.

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

Agree. RLX is so plain jane from the outside. Prior to the RLX being released there was a lot of talk about it being so good and different and blah blah. It has "PAWS" (Precision All-Wheel Steering). Now the RLX is just old news and no one really gives a damn about them. It's not one of those cars that you look at and wish you owned it.

If I was shopping for a sedan in the same segment as the RLX I would easily consider current gens E350, 535I, A6, or GS350 over the RLX.

This new "TLX" better look good and have a good power train to back it up if it wants to get attention compared to other cars in the same segment like the current gen IS, C-Class, 3-Series, A4. Those 4 cars LOOK very visually appealing and not boring like the 4G TL design. Also the 335i, S4, IS350, C350 are all very good performers.

I've already decided that my next car will probably be a 2010+ S4 used, but I don't plan on buying another car just yet. Maybe in the next few years. Hopefully there will be something better.

Lexus RC looks bad ass. There might be a new RC-F too. Coupe version of the IS-F ?

maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

I can't get past the separate LED DRLs on the new IS. It looks so off. And the teardrop tail lights look almost as bad as the new corvettes.

Everything other than that I like. Tech is amazing, AWD, decent lines. The 350 could use an additional 40-60HP though.

Audi is king right now, IMO.

Acura-OC

I like bad ass look on both IS and corvette.

Scottwax

Acura needs to do something when the V6 Accord touring sedan is quicker than anything in their product line-up.

JTS97Z28

iTrader: (4)

I was gonna say the same thing, I think maharajam is the one with bad taste here. The front LED's and rear tails of the IS is bad ass, and the new vette is sick looking too ;-)

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

I agree, how can anyone say the new C7 looks ugly? Even people that don't give 2 shits about cars can agree the new stingray looks bad ass.

The front end reminds me of a F12 berlinetta. Beautiful car

EvilVirus

iTrader: (8)

maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

Hey I said nothing about the new vettes front end. That is amazing. But the rear leaves much to be desired. The rear plastic splitter goes way to high and the tail lights are God awful. And no I'm not alone in that. Even my boss, who has owned a dozen vettes (no joke) agrees. So he is going to buy another Aston instead. He was waiting for it.

And the new IS is aggressive I agree. Stance is great and so are most of the lines. But I can't wrap my head around the front or rear lights. If they had made the front lights bigger and incorporated the leds. Money. If they clipped off the teardrop on the tails and extended into the trunk. Money.

MasterShake

iTrader: (1)

I've always thought Lexus cars were ugly. The newer IS and GS have nice proportions, but their boy racer lines and garish bends are grotesque. Maybe something I would have liked when I was 17.

http://images.thecarconnection.com/l...00415971_l.jpg
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog....ort-review.jpg

Honda cars do err far conservative, but I'd call most of their cars (aside from some of their more recent cars) handsome - understated, but still conservatively appealing.

Also, I've never driven a Toyota that I liked. I absolutely hate their steering.

Finally, I agree that Acura needs to come strong with their next generation of cars. The 4G TL has really hurt.

maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

Exactly what I mean. I coulda just used a picture.

Put the GS's heads and tails on the IS body and it'd be perfect.

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

Than it wouldn't be a IS anymore lol

Nick216

Anyone seen the specs on the 2014 rlx? Puts out 377 hp.

GKinColo08TL

One other note, the jewel eye headlights on the new RLX and MDX are hideous as far as I'm concerned...hate em, and to replace a headlight...like $1500, are you fucking kidding me? No one has mention the Beemer 3 series taillights that look like a fuck...also ugly imo.

Nick216

Yea i dont like the way they look either. But.. 7 speed DCT 377 hp . Seems nice. And a fukin hybrid

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

The new RLX will have similar technology to the upcoming NSX. It's only available in SH-AWD and has 3 electric motors and hondas first DCT. Still ugly though

I'd still take a S4 S5 or S6 over the RLX SH-AWD

maharajamd

iTrader: (1)

I don't believe they can do that tech in the TLX because of the accord platform.

Acura_Dude

That's my favorite thing about the RLX/MDX: The LED headlights. I know they'll be expensive to replace, but they're LEDs. I expect them to last at least twice as long as HID lights, and there are plenty of people still driving around on their original bulbs.

Superunknown

I suspect the TLX's facial features will look exactly like the new MDX. Beveled shield in the grille, soft lines, billions of headlights, exact same vents below.

The shield is as inevitable as it is ugly.

tomlinsonj

iTrader: (2)

Based on the bland, smoothed lines of the whole 2014 Acura lineup, I am guessing the prototype might be an eye-catcher to create some hype, but the actual production version in the second half of the year gets a more conservative look. No doubt that the chassis and drivetrain will deliver given advances in these areas across most of the auto industry, but the production exterior will be the big question mark, IMO.

JTS97Z28

iTrader: (4)

Exactly!! The TLX is going to look identical to the MDX, RDX, RLX, and ILX but just a slightly different body style. I am almost certain its going to be the same boring design and when the car is unveiled its going to already feel like an old car thats been out a few years. Please prove me wrong Acura

I hate cars

I find the TLX interesting. I can see myself buying one if I decide to go the boring yet reliable route at the last second as I did with my 3G in late '05. It's a decision I haven't regretted. I'm getting new car fever but with my TL turning 8yrs old in a few days and still not a door ding and looking and driving as good as new it's hard to spend money on another car when this one is still so good. This alone has made me want another Acura product. Mine has been so incredibly good and reliable if a bit underpowered and FWD but that's ok for a daily.

The biggest drawback I can foresee is the possibility of my 8-9yr old 3G looking like the newer more modern of the two cars.

I have to say that I'm a GM guy, always have been, but the new Vette's rear end is incredibly ugly. The first one I saw in real life I thought some rich 16yr old had put an awful bodykit on a new Vette.

baby_igor

Honda Says It’s ‘High Time’ to Boost Sagging Acura Demand

Honda Motor Co. (7267)’s No. 2 executive, asked to identify the automaker’s weak spot, spoke bluntly: The company’s Acura luxury sedans have to get better.

The world will soon learn whether they have. Next month Honda will introduce the Acura TLX to replace its aging TL, the brand’s top-selling sedan that was last revamped five years ago. Designed by Honda’s North American unit, the reworked luxury car will be the latest test of the Tokyo-based automaker’s decision to give more influence to U.S. engineers.

“We need an Acura brand to shine among luxury franchises,” Executive Vice President Tetsuo Iwamura said in an interview last week at Bloomberg’s headquarters office in New York. “It’s high time.”

Acura car sales are down 8.6 percent in the U.S. through November. That represents a drag on results for a company with four models -- the Civic, Accord, CR-V and Odyssey -- ranking first or second in their respective segments. Combined Honda and Acura sales are up 7.8 percent this year, the slowest pace of the market’s biggest automakers and trailing the industry’s 8.4 percent increase through November.

Honda plans to introduce its 2015 model TLX sedan next month at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Iwamura said. A modified ILX compact sedan with a more robust powertrain will follow, and Acura’s NSX “supercar,” a high-performance coupe, returns in 2015. Iwamura declined to detail changes to the youth-oriented ILX model.

Berkman’s Role

The job of bringing the TLX to life was entrusted to Erik Berkman, a 30-year Honda veteran who in 2012 became the company’s first non-Japanese head of research and development for North America. Honda bolstered the U.S.-based operation’s power earlier this year when it created a nine-member North American management board, which includes Berkman, two other Americans and a Canadian. The board is in charge of products and strategy for the region, which generates the biggest share of the company’s global sales.

Berkman was among the engineers who helped the company tackle its last big test: 2012’s on-the-fly redesign of the critically panned Civic. He previously gained stature within Honda for leading development of Acura’s last hit sedan, the 2006 TL that helped the brand reach record sales in 2005. Getting Acura right, after what Iwamura called its “winding path,” is important to tap growing demand for premium vehicles in the U.S. and around the world.

Lagging Lexus

As Acura car sales have fallen, other premium brands have gained ground. Toyota Motor Corp.’s Lexus car sales rose 15 percent in the U.S. this year through November; Bayerische Motoren Werke AG’s BMW are up 9.2 percent; Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz, up 14 percent; and General Motors Co. (GM)’s Cadillac, up 55 percent. Mercedes-Benz car sales total 183,358 this year through November while BMW has delivered 178,512 cars, according to Autodata Corp.

While Honda derives the bulk of its revenue from mass-market Civic compacts, Accord sedans and small CR-V SUVs, luxury autos ensure better profit margins. The average Honda sold for $25,976 in November, versus $40,597 for each Acura vehicle, according to Kelley Blue Book, an automotive pricing and data company.

For now, Acura sales are sustained by the new MDX and RDX sport-utility vehicles, which account for 58 percent of Acura’s 149,685 U.S. sales through November. Honda sold 62,301 of its four Acura sedan models over the same period, including the large RLX and outgoing TSX, less than half the volume of Toyota’s premium Lexus cars.

‘Big Opportunity’

Acura, created prior to Lexus or Nissan Motor Co.’s Infiniti as a U.S. premium brand, can become a bigger source of global revenue for Honda, said Steve Usher, a San Diego-based equity analyst for JI Asia Research, who rates Honda a buy.

“They are now looking at it on a more global scale,” Usher said. “They’re starting to think about getting Acura to China, and that will be a big opportunity.”

Iwamura said in January that his 2013 goal was a U.S. sales record -- topping its 1.55 million U.S. sales in 2007. Lagging Acura deliveries make that unlikely, he said last week. Still, Honda averted a larger blow: that Civic and Accord, cornerstones of success for 30 years, were falling behind competitors’ new compact and mid-size offerings.

‘Strong Again’

A poor review for the 2012 Civic by Consumer Reports sent shock waves through Honda. The company took the unusual tack of rushing out an upgrade -- what it calls a “major minor refresh” -- that improved Civic’s interior and added a stronger frame that gave it the best crash rating of any U.S. compact.

The revamped Civic and new Accord that came out in 2012 lifted Honda-brand car sales 8.8 percent, outpacing an industrywide average for cars of 5.6 percent, according to Autodata.

“Honda is definitely strong again and, if not boiling over, on a steady simmer in terms of progress and momentum,” said Karl Brauer, industry analyst at Kelley Blue Book.

Honda argues that if fleet sales are removed, it boasts one of the industry’s best growth rates in retail deliveries this year. Retail sales reflect only vehicles sold directly to individuals, rather than to businesses and rental-car companies.

Honda estimates less than 2 percent of its U.S. sales are to fleets. It eschews them to maintain higher resale values for retail buyers, U.S. senior vice president Mike Accavitti said.

Changing Landscape

Like Toyota, Honda is still adapting to an automotive landscape in which quality is a given and companies including GM, Ford Motor Co. and Hyundai Motor Co. now build some of the most compelling vehicles.

“Everybody is better than they used to be,” Brauer said. “You can’t be the clear or easy winner in any segment like you used to.”

Acura’s inconsistent car line has made the brand a laggard in recent years to BMW, Mercedes, Lexus and GM’s Cadillac and Volkswagen AG’s Audi unit. Sales peaked at 209,610 in 2005 and dwindled in 2009, when U.S. auto sales collapsed. Acura deliveries may reach about 163,000 units this year, based on the sales pace through November.

Iwamura said the mid-size TLX sport sedan that replaces the aging TL will be the biggest change for Acura in 2014.

The racing-style NSX that returns in 2015 will be Acura’s performance “halo,” Iwamura said. The car should sell for more than $100,000, he has said. The last units of the all-aluminum coupe were sold in 2007.

‘Big Kids’

Much as 2010 was a low point for Toyota, which had to battle a recall crisis, 2011 was similarly tough for Honda.

The Consumer Reports pan of the Civic came after Asian natural disasters in 2011 -- Japan’s earthquake and tsunami, and flooding in Thailand -- stalled Honda’s global production for months. A 2011 spike in the yen’s value made sales of Japan-built models such as the Fit subcompact unprofitable in the U.S.

Those setbacks, along with lackluster reviews for several Honda and Acura models, provided an opportunity to try a new approach, U.S. Executive Vice President John Mendel said in an interview last month in Los Angeles.

Honda has struggled with balancing a “small company mentality” with the fact that it now “is sitting at the big kids’ table,” he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alan Ohnsman in Los Angeles at aohnsman@bloomberg.net

Acura_Dude

DMZ

Not gonna happen.

DMZ

They'd better get off their asses!

Consider the following FACTS:
- The new ILX cannot be purchased with a 6MT and Navigation in the same car.
- The TL is now on its 6th year without a major design change.
- The RLX is the first Acura to ever not get a 'Recommended" seal of approval by Consumer Reports.
- The RDX's combination of interior room, price, and gas mileage make it a sales joke.

I see new Accords everywhere I look. New BMW's and Audis too.

Hey Acura execs, are you reading this?!?!? No longer can you make it your good looks and your name.
.
.

Josh73

cant wait to see this thing!

GKinColo08TL

Here's what I don't get. Imo the 3G TLs were one of the, if not the best cars ever designed, esthetically. So many manufacturers copied elements of the car. Look at the Mazda 6, the Ford Fusion, Kia Optima. I also think the 2005 and up RL is a great looking car. And aside form the beak, the 4G TL is a great looking car. I understand the need to modernize designs but why did Honda/Acura decide to eff this up?

JTS97Z28

iTrader: (4)

Yeah I agree with all that. Sometimes I dream that Acura would design a car that had similar (but updated and slightly modernized) 3G styling with their SH-AWD system and maybe 340ish HP and ofcourse all the latest features and gadgets like pano sunroofs, adaptive cruise control, ventilated seats etc etc. then ontop of that your typical Acura quality and great fuel efficiency. I would be ALL over that car. I think that's what really is drawing me to the Lexus GS350 Fsport and IS350 Fsport. They both have the kind of upgrades and changes over the base models that Acura did to the Type S. Dark gray wheels, upgraded suspension and power and other misc styling upgrades.

I hate cars

I agree. When I see another 3G on the road it still looks like a car that could be in production today. I always said it was a timeless design and as time goes on it becomes more true. A slightly updated 3G look with all of the latest modern features would be a sure winner. I still keep an eye out for an ultra low mileage 3G TL. I would buy one over most of the new Acura products.

The very few times I've seen mine being driven I've been surprised every time at how new it looks, not the condition of the car but the design. With it being slightly lowered, wider tires on stock rims, even the big brakes all make a huge difference in making it look like a new car design.

ErickUa5

Maybe a Hybrid version with no transmission like the new hybrid Accord
Naaa

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

The new accord does have a transmission, a cvt

WayneJay

I would absolutely love to see an updated 3G. No doubt the 3G is ageless. Going into the 8th year of owning my car, I still can't get enough of admiring my 3G. Also, mine has been incredibly good. People often say that it doesn't feel like a 7-year old car. I let a good friend drive my car two years ago, and he said that it felt nice and tight. I think Acura clearly went wrong when they tried to reinvent themselves. I remember one of my old bosses, saying to not "mess with success". Obviously, no company can simply succeed if it sits on it's laurels, but Acura clearly lost their way, not much different from Infiniti in the 90s.

I too am hoping for the best, but not too optimistic about Acura and the TLX. I've been a Honda fan since the early 90s when I owned a '92 Accord. I don't see myself buying within the next two years, but sadly, I'm thinking that my 3G is my last Acura.

As much as we're dumping on Acura... Honda itself had let itself go, so to speak. The speaker makes reference to the '12 Civic issues. How is it that standards became so relaxed that this sub-par car made it to production. They did well with the '13 Civic rushed MMR, but this is so not the Honda MoCo that we knew and admired.

I'd hope that Acura has gotten serious (sorta like GM, especially Cadillac) about building competetive cars that people want to drive. I'd hope that the decision-makers while looking to move forward... they'd also look back to the past when Acura was doing well. Go back to basics to identify what worked well in those days, and try to get the magic back. The competetion is fierce, and Acura has to do much better if they're to survive.

I'm hopeful.

ErickUa5

The non hybrid does have a cvt, not the hybrid though.
http://www.burienhonda.com/2014-hond...-transmission/

vietxquangstah

iTrader: (7)

I like the new accord hybrids I would get one

Gets as good gas mileage as a prius but looks a lot better interior and exterior.

LaCostaRacer

I too am cautiously optimistic. I wish Honda would simply release some photos and get things going. The wait is a bit painful.

Look how long ago the NSX info was released? What's the problem with leaking things a week before the Detroit car show with such a small player in the luxury car market?

If anything, the photos might delay some people from getting other vehicles the first few weeks in January. I have a coworker who just picked up a Lexus ES- one of the reasons was being tired of the unknown from Acura. The other reason is Lexus was moving cars with the 'December to Remember' campaign.

P1zzaman

iTrader: (1)

For some reason I have a feeling that the 3rd gen will still reign supreme, in looks at least

6 MT

I'm not the least bit optimistic about the TLX, at least in the looks department...Acura is completely non-competitive in my mind if i were to be looking for something to replace my 3G. I'd be looking squarely to Germany.

hostile429

ilx is nothing more but a modern day integra