Initial Drive Evaluation
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With clever engineering and correct-size packaging, the enjoyable-to-drive TLX just might signal a revival at Acura.
The initial-generation TSX sedan was every thing a luxury Honda—so, an Acura—should be. Its rev-pleased 4-cylinder and willing chassis zinged our hearts, as did the contemporary, V-6–powered third-generation TL. Each cars’ appeal waned for the 2009 model year, when Acura’s bid for enhanced mainstream appeal resulted in softer and stranger-looking replacements right now, sales pressure from the RLX above and the ILX under have killed them off totally. The 2015 TLX is tasked with replacing both.
Obtaining the TSX and TL Within
The move makes some sense. Although the TSX roughly matched the size of the entry-luxury regular bearer, the BMW 3-series, the TL was a tweener. For the TLX, Acura carried over the TL’s 109.3-inch wheelbase but chopped the overhangs by 3.7 inches total and made the auto a complete inch narrower. The outcome is a wonderfully correct-size package that feels as roomy as the existing F30 3-series and the new Mercedes-Benz C-class. Acura claims the body shell is all-new and that its materials mix involves 47 percent high-strength steel. Stiffness is up relative to the TL’s, but weight is kept to near-TSX levels and the new automobile abandons Acura’s techno-iron-chicken look for a more tailored and handsome appearance.
The TLX’s base 2.4-liter is the identical sweet 4-pot located in the Honda Accord—right down to the block, direct fuel-injection program, and i-VTEC valve timing and intake cam-phasing tech—but with its own dual-stage intake manifold and larger 11.6:1 compression ratio. It also demands premium fuel. The alterations extract 17 extra ponies for 206 horsepower at 6800 rpm torque is unchanged from the Honda at 182 lb-ft, although its 4500-rpm peak happens 600 revs greater. The TLX’s output tops the old TSX’s port-injected 4-cylinder by 5 horsepower and 10 lb-ft.
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The 4 is hitched exclusively to a new, in-house-created 8-speed dual-clutch automatic. Unusually and in what Acura calls a initial, a torque converter is fitted in spot of the flywheel to deliver off-the-line torque multiplication, enable smoother takeoffs from a stop, and damp vibrations. It works. The off-the-line jerkiness present in practically every single transmission of this type—even the Volkswagen Group’s version suffers a little—is nowhere to be found. After underway, the converter speedily locks up for appropriate, ultraquick-shifting dual-clutch feel. The 4-cylinder automobile gets Acura’s agility-enhancing Precision All-Wheel Steer (P-AWS) 4-wheel steering as regular, as does the front-drive V-6 model.
The 3.5-liter V-6 also traces its roots to other present Honda and Acura goods, but it incorporates a beefier starter to help the Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD) model’s common engine cease-begin feature. It also has Honda’s Variable Cylinder Management, which drops 3 cylinders for the duration of low-load driving to save fuel, as properly as a new block casting to facilitate the only transmission selection, a ZF-sourced 9-speed automatic. Acura completely reworks the ZF unit, specifying a new case compatible with SH-AWD, unique ratios, and its own shift logic. As a bonus, V-6 models get cool push-button transmission controls in location of the dual-clutch’s traditional shift lever they wouldn’t look out of spot in a Ferrari. Output from the V-6 is strong—albeit not quite BMW 335i–strong—at 290 horsepower and 267 lb-ft of torque, 10 and 13 more than the old TSX’s optional 6.
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Acura’s VTEC Just Kicked In
Slide behind the TLX’s meaty 3-spoke steering wheel, and a clean gauge cluster with sharp white-on-black dial faces stares back at you. A red starter button sits off to the right of the wheel. The aesthetic is pure Honda in the ideal way attainable, an impression carried additional by the clean dashboard design, low cowl, and wide, comfy seats. The dual central show arrangement is bizarre, just as it is in a rash of current Honda/Acura items. The decrease touch screen handles audio and some climate-manage functions, while the upper, non–touch screen (controlled by a knob and challenging buttons situated below the reduced display) manages the same stuff, plus navigation. The graphics and resolutions of the displays don’t really match a single screen would do the job just fine.
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