I went to see the TLX at another local dealership today. I saw a white TLX with the body kit, spoiler and diamond cut wheels. I don't think that the body kit was necessary but overall it did look nice! The diamond cut wheels were actually better looking in person than in photos - it seems that Acura likes to design things which are not that photogenic!!! LOL!

I do have to point out though, that the colour mismatch between the body and the bumper is subtle but certainly present. To make things worse, there is yet another slight mismatch between the bumper and the body kit!!! Ouch.... take a look below... I should have taken some close-up photos to show you the mismatch:







I think that without the body kit, the colour mismatch probably would not be as obvious. However, it was a bit noticeable with the body kit on.... ouch. Still, overall, the car looks nice. Oh, and in the white colour, the rear end looks nice. Much nicer than the rear end of the blue TLX.

P.S. Weather, hope you like these white TLX pics! LOL

 

Ugh... the add-ons look tacky to begin with imo

 

Oops! I forgot to post this photo too, comparing the rear end of the white vs. blue TLX. I have to tell you that the white TLX rear end does look very nice. It is very simple but it does look upscale. IMHO the rear lights blend in a bit much with darker colours on the TLX:

 

Generally like white cars but stay away for the mismatch. It's ok as far as the car is concerned and is usually only detectable for most under certain lighting but if you plan to add the factory kit, it's a no go IMO and could drive one crazy. Coming from experience with a 3G TL. Don't know about now but in the past it was a bit apparent in other colors as well, mostly lighter. Darker the better as far as that is concerned though.

 

^^
Woah, looks like an elongated Civic sedan with bigger wheels from that angle

 

This is the exact same issue with the aero kit on the 4G TL.

The lighter the color, the harder the aero kit will match the bodywork.

The darker the color, the more the aero kit color will blend into the bodywork.

White color has the worse color match, and Charcoal/Black color has the perfect color match.

https://acurazine.com/forums/4g-tl-2009-2014-123/another-bwp-2012-tl-sh-tech-aero-kit-pics-836894/
https://acurazine.com/forums/4g-tl-photograph-gallery-296/wait-over-bwp-sh-awd-advanced-home-814611/

 

Meh, I'm still buying a white one.

 

Nothing new really, I have seen this for years from Honda. Some lighting can really make it look worse, but still it shouldn't happen.

 

^+1. The lip kit on my CBP is also a different shade of black than the body and bumpers; you can only tell in direct sunlight up close.

 

How does the decklid spoiler look up close and in person?

 

Our 2012 TL (white) had mismatched front and rear facias, and that was the factory parts. It was a very common issue.

 

I agree.

 

I've actually noticed a lot of white cars have slight shade mis-match between the sheet metal and plastic parts. Haven't noticed this on other color cars.

 

I the GS 350 I had was white and it had the same problem. It is common on white cars.

I think I am going with the diamond cut wheels, splash guards and spoiler. That aero kit just doesn't call my name on this one. It looks great on black though!

 

the lighter colors really highlight that stick on aero kit.



a darker color helps hide that tack on piece

 

The decklid spoiler looks good in person! It adds that nice "angle" to the rear end of the car and I like that a lot. It also makes it look a bit more distinguished.

 

Good choice!!!

 

I like the contours on the spoiler too

 

i like it, and i dont really see the mismatch from looking at those pics. Now the mismatch on my WDP 3G....ugh

 

I'll reserve judgement until I see the Diamond Cut wheels myself in person but I tend to not like a busy wheel patter which is why I like the ones on my current TL....a classic 5 spoke pattern with no extra bling bling

 

The spoiler really makes the rear end look sportier.

 

First photos I saw of the TLX were with these 19" Diamond Cut wheels and I hoped that there were some alternatives as I like a simple look that is easy to hand clean. They do look better in person, but still not to my liking.

I have not seen it mentioned, but the ride with the 19" wheels may be a little harsher than the 18" (we have some bad roads in Canada) but road handling might be better. Larger wheels tend to look better but are more susceptible to curb rash.

 

Weather, I am with you. Typically, I do NOT like busy wheels. I immensely dislike those "bling bling" chrome wheels, too! When I first saw these diamond cut ones in the photos and videos of the official unveiling of the TLX, I was horrified because they looked so "bling" and shiny. However, when I saw them finally yesterday, they were NOT bling at all. NOT shiny at all. Quite muted, in fact. They were busy but somehow, with the clean lines of the TLX they actually complemented the vehicle quite nicely, especially with the black colour (which was in the showroom). So I changed my mind after I saw them in person. I look forward to your comments after you have seen them in person yourself! :-)

 

I visited my local dealer again yesterday to see a BWP/Expresso combo in person. While there, a customer was taking delivery of a black YLX Advance with the body kit, spoiler and those diamond cut wheels.. WOW, that setup looked sweet on the black car! Like you, I found those wheels to look much better in person and a possibility.. I just don't care for the price

 

I don't know about Charcoal matching well Edward. I think the paint mismatch is with every color and with most carmakers.

On the 3GTL White Diamond Pearl was notorious for this but Anthracite Metallic was definitely not safe. When I first bought my car I went to a meet and we had 3 TLs that were AM, all relatively new but all 3 were markedly different shades of the same color. One had more brown in it. One had more green it in. Mine had more blue/grey in it (Thank God, if I had a choice, that's how I wanted it.) Funny thing is our bumpers and mirrors could have been interchanged between us for a better match, lol. We even thought of actually doing it, too much work. I have an old pic somewhere, can't find it, but the difference was pretty noticeable.

Back then we complained about it on AZine, but the consensus was that it wasn't something reasonable to complain about. It is something to accept as a normal part of the process. Different parts/materials painted different times will look different. But here's the thing; these cars undergo quality inspections as they roll out of the factory.....there will be color mismatch between parts, OK, accepted. Then why is it so hard to color match the variable parts/panels to the appropriate car? Yes it is more work than slapping them on based on color code. But why accept this? I don't see this on real premium cars out there. I have yet to see a S550 or LS460 like this.

The only reason I see that they don't do this is because it costs them more money and they feel they don't have to. I'm sure there's enough things to worry about on the production line, this type of thing is not high priority on a volume car. It's because most customers don't notice subtle things like this. Trust me I wish I didn't either. Attention to detail is good and bad because ignorance can be bliss. And yes I have seen a lot of non-enthusiasts note color mismatch, it's because they have an eye for detail. It is always a problem when we get bodywork done too. Bodyshops have to take extra care to blend properly. They think just going with the colorcode and getting away with it means they're done. I remind them they are dealing with a very picky customer. They normally STILL screw up badly nearly every time and have to redo it. They remind me that even the factory mismatches and they show me on my car. I'm like "Yea, I know. I don't care. Don't worry about that. YOU have to do it right!"

As a final note let me say; I was really hoping that seeing more pics of the bodykit would mean that the look would grow on me. Maybe I would see an angle I didn't see before. It has the opposite effect actually. The more I look at it, the more I hate it and ask WHY?? What's up with the 2D look? lol. Did they ever consider that people might look at it from other angles besides STRAIGHT from the side? lol. That is the ONLY angle it looks good at. Car is definitely better without it, less is more in this case.

 

After having seen the kit on the white car in person, I thought it looked better than in pics (just like the car itself), but I'm still not sure I'd get it. I may get the spoiler and splashguards, but that may be it. It's a shame, because this car would look sick with a simple flowing body kit instead of bolt-ons.

BTW, there may have been color variation in the bumper/body of the car as well as the kit, but it was so subtle I didn't notice it. Now that people have mentioned it, I'll probably notice it... thanks a lot! lol. I remember the issues with the 3G bumpers and the white cars.

 

I don't notice a change between the car and kit.... I do notice the rear bumper looking slightly gold.

 

I'm sure in time someone will come out with a kit done right. I'm not the body kit type, but the bolt on look of this kit just looks odd. If I were me I'd wait to see what the after market comes up with.

 

Could it be from the brick wall behind it?

 

Went to look at the TLX recently and the mismatch bumpers was the first thing i noticed at our dealer on the white car.

 

Yeah, those diamond cut wheels are pretty sweet but the price is too steep.

Apparently in Canada, they offer a "launch kit" (only 200 available nationwide) that includes the body kit, the 19" diamond cut rims and Michelin tires for $3200. And you get to keep the original 18" rims and tires. Pretty good deal.

 

Here, if you want the $2340 Diamond cut wheels, you also have a $1250 premuim tire upgrade on top of the rims.

$3590 for the upgrade? NO thanks

 

^^^^^

Is that an "upgrade", or are you actually buying another set of wheels/tires ?

 

If you select those wheels as an accessory, a window pops up telling you you have to change tires for that price

 

If it were me I'd talk negotiate the "launch kit" during purchase. I'd trade them back the body kit ($2k or whatever it's worth) and get back some useful goodies/accessories for that value. Or at the very least get some money back.

I'm pretty sure they'll tell you can't be done. Right now the dealers are in power position.

 

LOL I'd do that too as I wouldn't want to have anything to do with that body kit. But I doubt you can actually resell it to the dealer, as this is part of a promotion. Besides, they generally don't sell tons of kits so I doubt they wanna keep that in stock collecting dust.

However, you may resell it online.

 

Ooooooooooooh, really!? I need to find out about this "launch kit" then! Thanks!