Crucifer

So I got the call from my dealership here in NJ that they had an Advertisement 09 TL SH-AWD at their dealership for pictures for future advertisements and to swing by if I wanted to see it.

So here is my review of what I saw and this is coming from a current NHBP 2004 Acura TL owner. All judgements are of my own and do not reflect anyone elses. Please enjoy my Review:


First off as I entered the lot I noticed it almost right away it is in its own right unique from anything else on the lot. The problem right away is the front grill is as hideous as all the pictures suggest. (Later on be ready for a big surprise). I got out of my car and decided to sneak some pictures before going into the dealership to talk to the contact I have there I was only able to snap 5 pictures from my camera phone as I didn't want to get in a heap of trouble for taking pictures of a car meant for picture Ads. (Hopefully I won't for posting them publically but w/e).

I slowly took the car all in and gave it a full look over and I can promise you this...there are more Cons than Pros. But in that there are some Pros. The first Pro since i like starting off on a good foot is that the car is not as bad as the pictures make it. There is def. some uniqueness to the car it stands out but not always in the best way. The car is long...really long....6 inches to be exact and its noticeable. The car looks slender but come to fine out its actually 2 inches wider which comes off deceiving. It's got a aggressive precense to it but its ruined...and ruined badly by the biggest CON I will say....and that CON is this:

THE CAR IS COVERED IN CHROME! EVERYWHERE AND I MEAN EVERYWHERE!

The entire front end is chromed out, The side doors have chrome liner, the ROOF has chrome sides that just randomly end at the decklid (looks hideous), the Back end that you've seen in the pictures is completely wrong the decklid doesn't fit into a nice curve that curve is actually a massive piece of CHROME that seperates the bumper from the trunk and I mean....WOW was I like "who...would do that to this car" it doesn't flow at all it look god awful. The Exhaust also looks cheap and not as nice as the Type-S current Quad exhaust its shabby looking and molded poorly together I can't atest to much more than that but it just didn't look that great.

Another major CON came when I peared into the car...our beautiful Gauge's in the 3G's are gone and in come a Mazda 3's gauge's:



What I mean by this is they have these odd Cones around them and inside the gauges are these MASSIVE circles that completely take up 75% of the gauge that connect to the Pin. Really REALLY ugly. And they are also not pointed forward but diagonal at eachother (4 total)...def not my taste and or even remotely pleasing.

But speaking of interior I'll throw in my Pro for the Interior...the 3G plastic swiggly shifter panel is finally gone. A beautiful mesh shifter is in its place it gives a feel of a Manual (nothing is visible looks just like a manual shifter) even though its an Automatic. I found that to be a nice classy touch.

Another interior Con...the GPS is hidden away as you've seen in pictures its in a out of arms length reach so I am going to assume our awesome Touch Screen abilities are no more and with that we've downgraded to dash controls once again. This was kind of a let down...I've never had an issue with glare with my Navi but apparently its more important than having a touch screen within a quick arm reach. Again my judgement it just wasn't the way to go.

Another Pro interior is for those whom are buying this as a family sedan...the interior of the car is MASSIVE...much much bigger than our 3G's or any other TL for that matter. The Leather looks more like REAL leather than our 3G designs and i'm split on that....I love my TL's seats I like their feel and their look but I guess if their upscaling the TL this was a good move it doesn't look cheap.

Now lets end on my Favorite two Pros before getting to the pictures:

Awesome Pro #1 - The rims on the SH-AWD are fing BEAUTIFUL!!!! These are amazingly gorgeous and compliment the car and i might be complimenting my TL-S with them when they become available if I get a TL-S :P cause man they were the first thing that caught my Eye. They are big...they arn't bulky and they just...you judge for yourself I snapped a picture of them

NOW FOR THE BEST PRO EVER!!!! Which just might save the 2009 TL!!!!

The front grill overlap that big ugly piece of chrome that is the front end of this car DOES NOT look like its 1 piece! IT LOOKS LIKE AN INSERT....MEANING!!!!!! It can be RIPPED out! YES I'll say it again! IT CAN BE RIPPED OUT! And yes I took a picture of it too! I told the contact I have there how much that'll improve the car if when the 2009's come in that they go around and just rip them all off the cars. Mind you the con to this is the ugly ugly mesh that is under the Grill...its not the best looking mesh ever. But i'm still ecstatic that the Smiley face is not a 1 piece deal.

Hope the review helped it was an Advertisement car so I was not allowed to take her out on the road but hey seeing it in person was enough.

Final Verdict/Thoughts: This car is still Hideous...there is chrome from end to end and a lot of it to be exact. Its just not as bad as the pictures made it out to be. There is still a precense of aggression when you see it but just not fully there like our 3G's. All in all I think once the mod communty can rip off the chrome and find ways to replace it this car might be a underdog seller. If not then this car is targeted at the 40-70 year old range. It's becoming more like a towncar than a Luxury Sportscar.

In the end...all this car truely means is the 3G's are the Official Undesputed King of TL's. (Until the sales drop so bad that they redesign it in 2011)

Recommendations for future TLs: Use the 3G body...make it RWD standard AWD Type-S and give us 300+hp stock base 350hp AWD Type-S stock. The wet dream

OK OK OK I KNOW PICTURES:

The Front End (In all its Chrome Glory):



The Back End (With the big ugly Chrome Piece...sigh):



Down the side (Chrome Door Liner, Chrome Roof Liner.... ):



PRO #1 THE WHEELS! (The Sex):



AND THE BEST NEWS OF ALL (The Insert Grill):

vc123

nice review!!


man that shield is f_ing HUGEEEEEE

mrtracey

In my opinion the chrome is not that hideous as its not the polished type but rather the matte type. The chrome strip that is between the bumper and trunk is extremely dulled down, almost like plastic nickel finish. While the vehicle I have seen was silverish color the chrome went well. The biggest addition of chrome this year are the strips that down run the length of the roof to the trunk like the Maxima, M35 and 7 series. The interior to me was a little too clustered as there are tons of buttons everywhere, but other than that I liked. I hope to see a SHAWD model as the vehicle I saw was a base no navi FWD model.

LuvMyTSX

If they had at least made it smaller like the TSX grille, it wouldn't be so bad, but man this thing is just too huge. I'm trying so hard to like the car.

trancemission

I agree, I get all pumped when I see thread titles with pics.

But then that massive overbite hits me like a freakin brick wall

pokin

Very nice review.

maverickinvestor

Thank you for the pics and review!

I enjoyed reading it.

The review was balanced and believable (unlike some other ones we have seen lately)!

TLTrance

I actually think the chrome is fine. Every luxury car has more chrome than the lower end models from the same company. Its not like it comes with 22" wheels and curb feelers.. :P

Crucifer

But its not even like Chrome chrome its like this cheap plastic chrome...you'll know when you see one yourself.

vinnier6

iTrader: (1)

i think they could have done better with the exhaust tips too, they are exactly like the standard tl with a divider in the middle making them look like quad exhaust....thats stupid and cheap in my opinion....

xen-cuts

what is the insert grill? how is your english so poor?

Edward'TLS

Never mind about his English. Nobody is perfect. Pictures are worth a thousand words.

ggesq

iTrader: (1)

meh, I don't mind the "chrome."

Thanks for the review.

neuronbob

Thanks for the review.

The best news is that the grille could be potentially removed and replaced with an aftermarket grille.

YESSSSSSSSS. Thank you Acura!

Git to work aftermarket guys! The best new replacement grille will likely get lotsa sales! RonJon? Anyone?

Bernard1973

why no brembos ?!!!!!!!!!

Colin

They'll probably make an appearance when this is a Type-S. Actually, they will probably use the Acura branded 4 piston from the RL and save money vs. licensing the Brembo name.

erick3

SilverJ

Finally a review from someone who doesnt work for Acura and have less than 5 posts. You know who you are !
I knew this car would be just as hideous in person as it is in pictures.....
I really hope sales plummet so bad they are forced to actually LISTEN to the public and add back in some of the things we loved about the 3g while still updating the car.

mrtracey

I wish I did work for Acura so I could the employee pricing on the 09 TL. The fact of the matter is that I do not. In any case, I would love to see a Navi model as the one I saw was base with no smart key. Anyone please let me know if you receive an invite from any dealer in the NY/Long Island area as I would love to see the Navi model.

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

Crucifier, great insight and thanks for the pictures too.

Walshstl

Great review. Front and rear is ugly. Acura's new designs are horrible. Too bad, I really like the Acura service in my area and the community is awesome but I will not be getting another acura.

rksokol

Crucifer - Did you get the name of the color of that TL in the pictures?

And damn, that is a lot of chrome! Around the tail lights? Oh, hell no!

BeaverTL

Definitely will be looking for a used 3G when the time comes. Chrome window/roof liners went out with the 70s. And I am not sure how to design a grill to replace that big bucktooth beak on that "thing". It definitely is not an Acura I would want to buy.

JeffS

It is Mayan Bronze Metallic with Umber interior.

neuronbob

What's with all the hate of the chrome accents? That's not so bad. Adds some flash.

smsTL

iTrader: (1)

I wish my 3g had more chrome. I added some of my own.

Razzi

it just looks pretentious. like they couldnt decide what to do with it so they took 30 story board ideas and stuck em together. and the exhaust. WHAT THE FUCK

the chrome, well, if you wanted to you can buy vinyl over lay and slap em on

PZero

Very interesting review. Unfortunately confirming most of the cons from the pictures.
I've been nothing but Honda/Acura for years. Maybe the next body change I'll be back.
I'm already looking at Audi for the next company car.

Crucifer

Thank you for the Thank yous.

hektik02

i think that pretty much sums it up right there. i will not be getting another tl until they get back to the drawing board and making it look more like a entry level luxury sports sedan. it has gone completely old people. i dont think they took in any thought at all to make the car appeal to the 18-30 year old car buyers market. BLAH!

dudechewy

x2 lol

darmok

I just swung by my dealer (Muller's Woodfield) where they had just received their demo '09 TL (FWD Tech, black on black). They were prepping the car and I didn't want to interrupt them, but I will say that pictures do not do this car justice. The rear is absolutely dead sexy. It's very sleek and makes the car seem more like a four door coupe than an ordinary sedan. The "beak" is not as bad as it seems in the pictures, mostly because in person you won't be looking at it up close or from some of the angles it's been photographed at. It will take some getting used to but it has been well integrated into the design (unlike the '09 RL, which is still hideous in person!). The FWD model needs some bigger wheels, but that's about my only complaint.

Overall I'd rate it slightly higher than the '09 Maxima, which also a sexy looking sport sedan. It's preferable from any angle to the ES350, and since the botched MMC for the '09 IS250/350 is also better than those. (They ruined the IS with Sentra headlights and Galant taillamps... what a shame for what was a very sexy car!) The G35 I find bland from most angles where the TL does not lack for visual interest.

The good thing is that Acura has recognized that most of our exposure to a model comes from sitting behind it in traffic, and has given the TL a design that is extremely distinctive and good looking. As for the beak, well, we'll get used to it. There's nothing fundamentally objectionable about it, so as it sinks into our collective consciousness it will become less of an issue. It took me a long time to get used to the Audi snout too, but it happened eventually.

About the only downside I can see is that just as I got used to the '09 TSX, the new TL comes along and makes it look ultra-boring.

tls02

Rallye Acura is having a big Roll Out on Thursday evening, starting at 6:30. I did get an invite in todays mail. Don't know if the AWD will be there.