JeffNY

Any chance a future version will have AWD and a SMT (seqential manual transmission....with an "auto" mode)??

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution and Subaru WRX have AWD...and both are sub $32k cars. It'd not only help put power to the pavement but help in the snow....another Winter ahead...eee...I hate the thought of it.

Anyone know if Honda has any SMT tranny's in development?

And can we order th '04 TL with a HI3R (3.5L 650+HP)
http://www.hondaracing.com/pit/index.html
...be the last F-ing time a Viper goes flying by me

Jeff-

EmuMessenger

AWD would be awesome, but we do not have an arrival date for that feature.

I will say with relative confidence, we will never see a production car with that V8.

JPZ

Hey fellas, i know this is outside your topic of AWD and 650 hp engine (both kick-a$$) ideas. but do you gusy know from experience how 19"8 wheels ride on the TL?? it looks like there is enough room .. but i wanted to check.

EmuMessenger

Off-topic, but people seem to do OK with 19x8.

Tracer

Bud of mine in Honda hinted at the TL-S (2005?) having an AWD option.. but he can't confirm or deny it.

Tracer

VTEC11

honda dosn't race in CART anymore?? It says 2002 was the last year... what gives..

AcuraTLFan

HAHAAH..Honda making a SMT...not a chance

TOyota and honda moved to making IRL engines now...Ford took over the engines for CART

JeffNY

Why do you say not a chance? There could be many advantages to Honda using a modern SMT over traditional automatics (many fewer parts, smaller, lighter...) and versions could be used in there entire product line. Manually controlled SMT's could fit into some of their "sport" cars.

JeffNY

And ummm, hate to tell you this, but Honda has been building and selling SMT's for 40+ years.....look at most any Honda motorcycle.

1SICKLEX

PLEEEEEEEEEEASE do not compare the TL to a WRX or EVO, pleeeeeeeeeeease. 2 totally diff cars. TL is for for swift entry level luxury and EVO and WRX are all out sports cars which happen to have 4 doors.

JeffNY

I wasn't comparing them. Simply pointing out that cost should not be an issue for Acura giving the TL AWD.

jdone

Honda will not provide awd unless they have to. The original '99 tl did not have side air bags or a five speed transmission. These were added for '00 only to meet the competition.

EmuMessenger

True, but if the competition (G35, S60, 325) offers or is rumored to offer AWD, why not get in front of the competition for once and not sit back and watch.

AcuraAddict

(start hijacking) Hey Jeff,

I just noticed you live in Wynantskill!!! Damn, I live in West Sand Lake, right down 150 from you. Do you have a TL? If you see a silver CLS around with a "unique" license plate (I don't want to give that out on the internet) its me. (BTW, I'm TypeSAddict on A-CL.com) (end hijacking)

Raheel

Because than you can sit back and watch all the problems the competition gets, and than you can fix the problem, and make your car bullet proof with such a new technology

Than in the future your car sells more than the other, Acura thinks in the future and not the present, they plan for the future and dont get caught up in the present..

EmuMessenger

Sure, but you do not invest millions of dollars in engineering and R&D to sit back and watch competition.

JeffNY

AcuraAddict,

Howdee neighbor Yes, I have a dark emerald pearl '99 TL. I love the color. People still look twice then ask "What kind of car is this?". My sister lives in West Sand Lake...across the street and up the hill from where Sno-Fun was (you and I are probably the only ones here who know where that was....bought two Kawasakis there).

By the way, I drove by Cooley Mazda Sunday night and pulled in....they have 5 new RX-8's on the lot and 2 inside I think! Hot looking car....I gotta stop back when they are open...

Jeff

1SICKLEX

Egad dude, the AWD systems in the EVO and WRX are from the cars made overseas for years. We are just now getting them here in the U.S. but they have been selling it like that for a long time. Whereas, Acura would need a totally NEW system to develop AWD.

On the other hand, the interiors and features of the WRX and EVO are no where as nice as a TL.

It's an Acura, which means conservative which means no AWD.

JeffNY

Acura is conservative? hummm...you mean like the NSX? RSX? And I wouldn't even call the TL "conservative". What other $30-$32k car has 225-260HP and is loaded with almost every option...and Acura was one of the first guys to really push navigation systems. They also are the guys building VTEC engines. Since when has Acura sat on their rear and took a back to anybody?

I think you are thinking of Pontiac and Oldsmobile

>> Acura would need a totally NEW system to develop AWD.<<

You're not saying it's beyond their engineering skills are you? And you have heard of the MDX and Honda Pilot, right? Both AWD (built pretty much on car platforms).

And again, I'm not comparing the TL to the WRX and EVO...only the idea that cost would stop Acura from offering it in the TL.

Jeff

nick79

And can we order th '04 TL with a HI3R (3.5L 650+HP)
---------------


:wow:

Edward'TLS

This is very true. Take a look at the 94-97 generation Accord. There was no V6 version for that generation in the planning, but eventually had to spend millions to redesign the front end to shoehorn a V6 in the engine bay, just because customers were moving away to V6 Camry and V6 Maxima.

Talking about getting ahead of the competitors. Honda was the first to introduce 4-wheel-steering (4WS) in North America in the Prelude. It was a major flop. Nobody wanted the funny steering. Being first is good, but will cost dearly if Honda misses the spot.

Edward'TLS

Not a problem, if you're willing to pay $150K - $200K for it.

1SICKLEX

Acura is very conservative. Anybody and any magazine article states this. I am not making this up.

Dude the RSX? R U kidding. And no, Honda has skills to make it but they won't. Acura=entry-level luxury=keep the costs down. That is why the TL And CL are made in America now.

EmuMessenger

unfortunately...

JeffNY

You know I'm not even sure I know what you mean when you say "conservative". I think car companies either build quality and innovative cars or don't.

I think Acura does. My '99 TL is now over four years old. And I'll park that car next to almost any new car out there...including some that cost more. And it will compare very well. Why? Because Acura didn't sit on their rear 7 years ago when they were designing it saying "Gee...lets wait and see what Ford and GM does...lets not include a navigation system, the auto-manual tranny or a 225HP VTEC and a stunning interior just yet....we need to see what the Chevy Impala looks like first." Give me a break.

Acura sold a TON of TL's because of what it offered. It was the first time I paid $30,000 (+tax) for a car. But I'm happy. Because I got value. Yes, cost is an issue when bringing AWD to a vehicle. Same was true for navigation systems. But THAT is what sells cars. At least to people like us. If anybody can figure a way to do AWD cost effectivly and make money on it it's Honda. When I got my TL it seemed to offer than some European cars did that cost $10k more!

When has Honda or Acura ever held back waiting to see what the competition does? Honda went from not even building cars three decades ago to now being one of the top name brands in the world. And they didn't do it by holding back or being "conservative" and building lame crap boxes....like GM.

Jeff

1SICKLEX

Uhh, the current RL, the MDX has hella late, the 1st gen TL never came close to any accolades, the SLX sucked, what R U talking about. Acura refuses to build RWD, refuse to build a V-8, refuse to make their designs more edgey (no matter if it's ugly at least take a chance)etc. Acura=hold back. Nothing is wrong with that, they sell 150k cars a year and do well.

No one is comparing Acura to GM. GM is the worst example of what to do with a car company.Indeed it did. It offered value and what hella people are finding out now, u get what u pay for. But for 30k nothing comes close features and contests wise to a TL.

Conservative as in style. The new BMWs are ugly (IMO) but not conservative. Audis on the other hand, are styled (zzzzzzz) or conservative. Lexus has some good models some ugly ones. The LS 430 though is conservative.

The whole Acura line is conservative. Again, there is nothing wrong with this approach.

jdone

Since a man named Soichiro Honda first put a tiny gas engine on a bicycle in 1946 Honda has never lost money in any given year. Honda never intends to lose money either. That's why Honda=conservative. Car enthusiasts like us tend to sometimes forget that the car companies are not in business to make cars but to make money!

Edward'TLS

Today, there aren't too many big independent car manufacturers left standing. Toyota, Honda, BMW, etc. are among the only few. Even Nissan, which is one of the big three in Japan, is being controlled by Renault.

Honda is in fact a relatively small company compared to GM, DaimlerChrysler, Ford, and Toyota, in terms of assets and sales. Any big mistake or wrong marketing strategy will cost it bad, and may even knock it off the independent throne.

Its always a balance between feature and cost. Let say, if a V8 is used or AWD is used, the car is gonna cost $7000 more - making it costing more than the competitors. Will people still buy the car ? Some will, some won't and buy Audi or Volvo instead. This means lost sales and lost money.

The Honda factories are running almost at full capacity and Honda can virtually sell all the cars it made, except the CL, with very little incentives. Why should it risk going into uncharted water ? If someone doesn't like calling Honda conservative, let's call Honda being careful.