neiltsx

I’ve been reading this forum for a while and really appreciate all the great info here for owners. I did want to share my experiences with my TSX. I realize since this is a TSX forum I’m for the most part preaching to the choir, but I’ve been wanting to know if there are other people that have experienced what I have.
I would call myself a car guy, but I realize there’s a whole spectrum of car guy. I’ve been following cars and the automotive industry since I was in college in the late ‘90’s. I’m not the guy that goes to the track nor am I a big wrench guy. I enjoy driving cars on the street or a great canyon road and enjoy having as much fun driving whatever I have. Like many of you, I’m the guy most of my friends and family come to when wanting to know what car they should buy and what the automotive market looks like. My first car was a used ’85 300ZX, which got me hooked, but I fell in love with cars when I was driving my ’96 Prelude Si in college. I went to school in Southern Cal the cool sea level air was perfect for that car.

I bought my TSX in 2012, it was a certified pre-owned 2009 model year with relatively low miles 33,000. I bought the car as a daily driver for an EVO IX SE that I had at the time. The EVO was fast and fun to drive but the car beat me up, and I wanted something comfortable and easy to drive on a daily basis. I live in Az so the EVO was not fun in the summer time. When the A/C would have trouble cooling the car down after being parked in the sun, and the heat would bog the engine down making 1st gear engagements, it was a huge pain in the ass. Long story short the TSX was only ever intended to be a boring commuter car. It was for this reason I opted for an automatic, I know the 6-speed is one of the best in the industry and I loved the Honda Manual I had in my prelude but I wanted something that was a nice contrast to the EVO.

It wasn’t long before I actually enjoyed driving the TSX more than the EVO. The torque converter automatic transmission would hook up just perfectly and smoothly everytime I rolled from a stop, and surprisingly it wasn’t completely underpowered. Reading the spec sheet I never though 170 lb-ft was enough to get the 3400 lbs TSX out of its own way, but it does. I also saw the difference between driving something that’s a little too fast for the street vs. something where I could really be in its sweet spot and enjoy on more than just a freeway on ramp.

It became even more interesting when I decided to try using the paddles. This is the first paddle shifted car I had ever owned. Like most drivers use to manual transmissions, I never thought paddles nor autoshift transmissions ever felt right. It was like player street fighter for hours at home with your SNES controller then going to the arcade with the joy stick and buttons unable to pull off a simple “hadooken”. What I realized was that like driving a manual transmission car, there’s a learning curve, but it’s a different learning curve. Where in a manual its more muscle memory this is learning the behavior of the transmission which is difficult since every paddle shifted automatic is going to be slightly different. There’s also the additional challenge of not knowing exactly what gear you’re in without looking down, in a manual you can feel which gate you’re in. Once I decided I was going to learn this, it opened up a whole new side to the car. This was a complete surprise as this is no dual clutch anything. This is a normal torque converter 5-speed automatic transmission. Honda never made a big deal of the thing. I read a review of the TSX from some newspaper and the reviewer was ripping the car for the automatic transmission not being very smooth. He went on to say the only way to make it smooth is to use the paddles and he concludes by asking who uses paddles. Not old farts like that guy. Don’t get me wrong its no PDK or ZF 8-speed, but it does what you ask as long as you stay out of the portion where its having to shift for you. If you get to that point the paddle inputs are sometimes missed. If you can learn to shift before that point and without shocking the driveline, its pretty good. It’ll respond to multiple pulls, and singe gear shifts happen quickly. If you want to skip 2 or 3 gears it may take a moment, but its not much longer than a heel toe shift would take in a manual car.

Then around 80,000 miles the engine was finally breaking in, and this underpowered overweight TSX was a lot of fun. The times when I feel wanting more power is when its 110+ degree summer day and I’ve got the AC on, but in that case there aren’t many cars that don’t feel sluggish in those conditions without being too fast. For the street it rarely feels underpowered and it feels fast. I know its actually not fast, but on the street if it feels fast, its fast. After spending years in BMW’s and rally cars I’m finally back to a 4-cylinder naturally aspirated Honda motor and this just feels right. Not too powerful or over geared where I can’t enjoy the power band for more than a few seconds, but just good.

This is a long post but I wanted to post this to share my enthusiasm for this car, which I never thought would be close to fun. I also want to encourage anyone out there who’s maybe inheriting an automatic CU2 2.4 TSX from a family member or maybe you’re out there shopping for one and can only find automatics, that in this case you don’t absolutely need a manual and at least for street driving there’s a lot of fun to be had here. I’d almost prefer this just for the convenience of being able to put it in D and relax. Don’t get me wrong the manual in the TSX is amazing and I would agree one of the best the industry has put out, but don’t completely overlook the automatic.

cu2wagon

Welcome!

I tend to agree that MT is superior but there is a case for AT. And of the ATs, the unit in the TSX is far from the worst.

I've always thought it to be a wise idea to have one AT vehicle in the garage and after injuring my clutch knee, I was almost sort of kinda glad that my car was a slushbox.

Now, the other 99% of the time, I'm disappointed the wagon didn't come with a Man-ual box option; but every so often I agree that the AT has it's strengths.

musty hustla

The 4cyl TSX is very punchy up to 40mph. I've had a couple as loaners and accidently peeled out of the dealer because I didn't realize what I was working with.

neiltsx

cu2wagon, based on how much i've enjoyed my car i've been tempted to by the wagons. If you want just a little more power I think i read somewhere the CT Supercharger works on the '11+ TSX's, just not CARB legal in Cali.

musty, How do you like the V6? I've never gotten to drive one of those. Do you use the paddles in your car? How responsive is the transmission?

musty hustla

I like it a lot. I get decent gas mileage and it has enough power to do whatever I want on the road. I think it handles well but it is heavier than the 4cyl.

The transmission is good in my opinion. It's definitely sportier, in transmission and overall, than the 2010 Subaru 3.6R I had before the Acura. The 3.6 did have rev matching which was nice but I think the Acura shifts quicker and has a better sense of when I want to drive more aggressively. Because of this, I really don't use the paddles much. I'm more likely to use it going down steep hills than to pass someone.

cu2wagon

I think the power that the little I4 puts out is adequate for the wagon. Could it use more? Sure. But what vehicle (within reason) couldn't?

I think there was some nuance to bolting on a SC for the post-MMC vehicles. Maybe an ECU issue or something? I don't remember. It's tempting, but probably not likely. By the time I'd be ready to do it, I'm sure the kits and support will be long gone.

Besides, I need to keep reminding myself that this is just a DD/grocery getter. Not supposed to be the "fun car".

ceb

I did extensive test drives (a week each) in both the v6 and the 4 before I bought my second wagon and I'd say that the 4 is a better all around choice for the TSX. Because of the extra weight, the V6 seemed overly heavy and not significantly faster. Actually, the 4 felt "faster" and more nimble in traffic. I also drove the TSX and the (at that time new 6 speed auto) TL and found the V6 fir the TL far better. Somehow the V6 just seemed out of place in the TSX - not sure how it feels with a manual tranny though.

Nedmundo

I'm a die-hard manual guy, but I've driven a few TSX's with the automatic, and was pleasantly surprised at how decent it is. If you really want an Acura and an automatic, however, the TLX with the 8DCT is the way to go if it's in one's price range. I don't think I'd replace my 6MT TSX with one (unless a performance variant emerges), but it's an extremely cool transmission that beats any conventional auto I've tried.

And ceb, I know what you mean about the I4 TSX feeling faster than a V6. I now have a 2010 Fusion SEL V6 alongside my TSX. Its additional power is obvious (and nice!) on the highway, but otherwise the performance gap is minimal, and the TSX's high-revving four, 6MT, and short gearing provide a much sportier drive.

The comparison is interesting in other ways, and let's just say Ford has made enormous strides since that Fusion generation. Mine is a very good car that's competitive with the TSX in several areas, but it's undone by lower structural rigidity. The TSX is like a vault relative to the Ford, which pays big dividends in ride, handling, and overall composure. Newer Fords are much more solid.

neiltsx

Nedmundo, at first i thought the same thing regarding the TLX. After being so impressed with the TSX 2.4 auto, I was really looking forward to driving the TLX. I got one as a loaner and was able to spend some time in it. I was thinking the direct injected motor would be a lot nicer and the DCT with Torque converter would make it the best of both worlds.
Engine: Definitely nicer, although i'm sure there's some sort of valve cleaning service that would be needed as the valves will get carbon deposits without the fuel washing over them.
Tranmission: I was really disappointed here. With eight gears there is definitely the need to skip multiple gears 3 or 4 at a time and the transmission didn't seem to want to do it. It would of course shift a single or 2 gears nicely, but if i ever asked for more than that it wouldn't respond to that 3rd or 4th shift. I read a review and it had mentioned that when the TLX DCT is put in manual mode it'll become a 6-speed vs. 8-speed, i'm not exactly sure HOW it would do this, but it didn't seem to be the case. This may simply be a case of needing to learn and adapt to that transmission, but from my first impression it didn't seem to work as well as I thought it would.
Chassis: One major difference between the TSX and TLX is the wheelbase. The shorter wheelbase of the TSX allows the car to rotate better, which is especially needed being FWD. The TLX has the 4WS to help this, and in effect shorten the feel of the wheelbase, but i found the system to be always be one step behind especially during spirited driving.

At the end of the day i was disappointed with the TLX, which was a bummer, because i was really looking forward to being able to upgrade to it. Maybe i just need to spend more time with it? I'm eager to see what the new ILX will be like. Now that the Civic, which its based on, shares its platform with the Accord, the ILX will basically be on a shortened Accord platform which is the TSX. I'm hoping it'll also have the K24 motor, I love Honda's NA 4cyl motors. But I doubt it, i'm sure it'll be the 2.0 turbo, something new to get to know.

Eggs999bacon

I test drove a few other sedans before deciding on a CPO TSX. I wanted to like the newer accords, but the big body style and CVT made it feel like I was driving a boat. My budget didn't call for a V6. I also test drove an ILX which was nice, but again being picky I wanted the top end trim and wasn't in the budget. I also tried out the Chevy Malibu and was not impressed. The TSX i4 to me is a blast to drive. I don't have much experience with other cars so this was a great upgrade for me from my old 15 year SUV.

I love this car despite the lack of tech and plan to keep it for another 5 years. I can lightly mod it to refresh the look to make me not be tempted to upgrade so quickly. I have had this for about 6 months now and most nice days I find myself taking the long routes to whatever destination to enjoy the feel of the car. My wallet also thanks me for not overspending on a vehicle as I was also looking at Jeeps and Chevy Colorados that were topping out over 30g's. This is the perfect vehicle for me, for now and am very happy I went with the fun driving experience over the tech loaded newer sedans which are not that fun to drive.

My next mod is VLED LED switchbacks to breathe a little modern touch to the front end, but that requires me to bake the headlights to remove the stupid amber cover. However looking at some that have done this I feel I can tackle this mod with confidence. Also if done right its a way cheaper mod than new wheels, suspension, etc.

Love this car thought!

neiltsx

If your engine hasn't broken in yet expect a nice boost around 80,000 miles. I was very surprised at how this felt. It may just be the computer giving me a more aggressive throttle setting, whatever it is it feels a lot better now.

I think the non-tech is the way to go since there's no way a bluetooth or nav system designed in 2008 will be relevant now. The non-tech is very straight forward to switch out for the latest technologies including a Apple Carplay or Android Auto headunit. There's some great info on this forum regarding that. I just switched my non-tech head unit for the Pioneer Appradio 4, its far from perfect but it was a good deal on Amazon so i decided to try. Its far better than the stock bluetooth system, all steering wheel controls, fader control and sub control is maintained.

Is the VLED LED the headlight assembly from japan that trades the halogen high beam for an LED fixture, and then the normal HID light can switch from High-beam to low beam by tilting up (like BMW's bi-xenon)?

Eggs999bacon

I agree about upgrading the radio, which I plan to do eventually. The pioneers nex series caught my eye, which would allow me to add backup camera.

The VLED V3 tritons I bought actually replace the parking lights / turn signals. Unfortunately, our turn signals are covered with an amber covering over a clear lightbulb. The ideal way to use them is simply pull the DRL fuse, and always have your parking lights on during day as they will now be your functioning DRL. The big PITA is I have to bake the damn headlights, pull them apart, to remove the amber covering which is risky and time consuming. To me, this is the best DRL solution out there that doesn't affect the high beam function (high beam LED's apparently suck compared to the OEM halogen).

The VLEDS you talk of I do not know of.

Nedmundo

That's interesting about the TLX's 8DCT. I didn't push it hard enough to notice any of those issues. I pushed it hard enough to enjoy some lightning quick shifts up near redline, which was really cool. I don't know about it turning into a six speed in manual mode, but some modern transmissions will lock out their top gear in sport mode.

I agree the TLX didn't feel as agile as the TSX, but I felt like I could drive it faster in most conditions due to its stability and composure. That isn't necessarily more fun, but it was impressive.

I'm also very much looking forward to the next ILX (and Civic SI, for that matter). My TSX is about to hit 100k, and while it feels like it could easily go another 100k, I probably won't keep it past about 120k. Something smaller and more powerful would be ideal.