Recommendations

[craig]

Originally Posted by doughboyea

Well then, ok.

yup.




but seriously, i would take it if i were you. or what about the new AWD ford 500? i know i know, its a ford. but hey, their atleast worth a test drive right?

[doughboyea]

I think I'd rather have the reliablity and warranty of the Acura/Honda than Ford. I could check it out but I'm really running out of time, I fear that my pos is going to eat me alive soon enough. This vehicle, aside from the average performance, comes fully equiped and very nicely priced for a daily driver.

Dough

[Pawel]

Originally Posted by doughboyea

A friend of mine from college, some of you may know him from the little flamming incident with drtye30, mentioned to me that I should give Acura a try. I know that some here have mentioned the RSX, aka girlie car, and that just didn't catch my attention. I just never got into the whole asian car market. Honda and Toyota just don't do it for me. Can't afford the really nice cars, Lexus, BMW, ect. So, I have to re-evaluate what I am going after. The tacoma would be the most utalitarian, however, dinan540 got me thinking about it (damn u ). So with my friend's suggestion, unwillingly I'll admit, I went to an Acura dealership.

Thier entry level sedan the TSX. Impressive is my first reaction when checking out thier standard features..... I must add that there is only one option and everthing else is standard, hence my reaction.

Right off the bat:
Pros. Long list of standard features, interior looks, warranty, price
Cons. Exterior looks, Performance
(The following pics are from edmunds.com, if pics don't work, blame edmunds.)
The exterior is ok. Nothing flashy, which is a good thing. It also doesn't look very aggressive. There are alot of straight lines and flat panels, seems like the way of cars nowadays. My personal prefrence is black (of course).


Black comes with a choice of tan or black (i think) interior. With the tan comes plastic molded wood grained trim and black has the plasticy aluminum look. Granted it's plastic, but looks good, not too shabby.

Interior is unreflective of the outside. There are curves abound. Controls have a good tactile feel. Gauges (my personal favorite area on most vehicles) are bright. You have the usual tach, speedo, fuel and water temp gauges. The lighting is a quiet blue backdrop with brighter with for the numbers and ring. Needles are red. Inbetween the tach and speedo is the 5th wheel of the group. This is where I get impressed. The display is a monochrome type of look, black background and grey digital display. It shows you pretty much what my E46 shows on it's OBC display, which I've gotten real used to over the years. Current MPG and cumelative MPG. Bluetooth integrated information display for incoming calls as well as vehicle mileage as well. Other information I've yet to test out.


Outside the cluster, the center dash looks similar to what you would find in a Lexus. At the very top are the same monochrome display from the gauges showing the temperature for the dual climate control system and time. Below are the usual vents and yes, the obvious navigation (a ~$2000 option). The radio/CD is integrated below the navigation and comes with a 6 CD changer. The total wattage of the system is 360. Not too bad really. At the very bottom comes the power port and cup for misc objects.

Between the seats, like some sort of promiscuius prom date, is the location of the 5sp automatic "tiptronic" transmission (6spd available). Behind it are the cup holders and interstingly enough, the armrest doubles as a hidding spot for an MP3 player hookup and power source.

The heated leather seats are smooth and comfy. I might also add that when set to max they are freakin hot (temp wise). Good for when you are in my area at this time of year.

Well now comes performance. Please understand that I'm comming from my 328i E46 so keep that in mind as I describe my feelings towards it. The TSX comes with just one engine. It's a 2.4L four cylinder v-tech (I know I know... ew.... the cursed word). Power is stated as 205hp and 164 ftlbs. Typical vtec power. Nothing impressive here. On the road, she doesn't boast much, the feeling of "YES" isn't there. However, at ~31mpg hwy on premium fuel is a major plus. Yes, its not Yugo or Mustang II, but comparing to my BMW (which is an unfair comparision) it lacks majorly. The FWD isn't felt as much as I thought it would. I didn't feel the torque steer I've felt with other FWD cars, but yet, it was proven still that it's just not a performance point.

OK, so what's standard?

Exterior
Power moonroof with tilt
Heated outside mirrors
17" aluminum wheels
Auto-off headlights
Body Colored Door handles
Seed sensing variable wipers
Dual outlet exhuast

Comfort
Dual zone automatic climate control system
Cruise Control
Power windows, doors, seats
Steering wheel controls (Cruise, Audio, PHONE, Multi-Function Display, and Voice Recognition)
Homelink
Tilt and Tele Steering wheel
Leather wrapped steering wheel
12-volt power outlets.... yes, that's more than one.

Interior
Sport seats with preforated leather trimmed interior
Driver's 8 way power seat, 4 way passanger
Heated Seats
60/40 split rear seats
Rear seat arm rest

"Advanced Technology"
360-watt sound system w/ 6 disc changer
XM radio
Handsfree wireless telephone interface
MP3 input jack

Instrumentation
LED Backlit gauges
Multi information display
"Maintenance Minder" System, much like what we have for our service intervals.
Auxiliary information display
Trip computer
Exterior temperature indicator
Illuminated igition, power window switches and steering wheel controls.

Safety
Dual stage front airbags
Front side with passanger detection
Side Curtain airbags
3 point seat belts for all passangers
4 wheel antilock brakes with brake assist
Vehicle stability assist with traction control
Xenon Headlights
Fog Lights
Tire Pressure Monitor system with location and pressure
Theft deterent system with immobilizer
Rear window defroster

Warranty
Basic: 4 year / 50,000 mi
Powertrain: 6 year / 70,000 mi
Rust: 5 year / unlimited mi

And for those of you who really get into numbers, here are a few more:

2.4L 16vlv Aluminum-alloy in-line 4-cylinder
205hp @ 7000rpm (typical Vtech)
164 lbft @ 4500rpm (again, typical vtech)
7100rpm redline
Drive by wire
Unit Body
4-wheel independent double wishbone front / multi-link rear
Stabilizer bar: 25.4mm front / 15mm rear
Steering: Torque sensing variable power assist rack and pinion
Steering Ratio: 14.8:1
Steering Turns, lock to lock: 2.7
Turning Dia.: 38.1 ft
Brakes: 4 wheel disc with ABS and Brake assist 11.8" vented front / 10.2" solid rear
17x7.0 aluminum-alloy
Fuel Consumption: Auto 22/31, Manual 22/30
Fuel Tank: 17.1 gal
Fuel Type: Premium 91-octane
Ground Clearence: 6.1 inches (better than my 1/4 inch)
Curb wieght: Automatic@3359 lbs, Manual@3271 lbs.
Weight Distrobution: Automatic 61/39, Manual 60/40

And a partridge in a Pear tree......blablablabla

WELL, that was a shit load of typing.

Overall I am really impressed. Now comes the price tag.

MSRP: $28,090.00
Availble Options: Navigation@$2,000 extra

Trade-in: $6,500

Final amount due for loan: $20,195.00
+tax and Doc fee ($1,413.65 + $250)

Approved with eloan.com @ 6.25% intrest rate

Comes to $425.13/mo for 60 months. No penalties, early repayment all good.

Looks good, opinions?

Dough

ps... lost feeling in index finger....

Hey Steve, nice write up (You went for a Test drive and you didn't take me, ahhhh I guess I'm a bad luck from last test drive, ha,ha)
It's really a solid car, I test drove one myself back in a day.

You really have to drive it to feel the performance of the car, what I mean with Auto Slush box you have to keep the engine in peak range of rpm 6K-7K. I don't know if you had a chance to take it that high on a test drive, but if you did you def. feel the boost in power when cam profile changes and valve duration increases or in ricer world ( When V-TEC kicks in ) What made the car seem slow to you was the lack of torque in comparison to your car. I felt the same thing when I drove it.

Edit: removed the pics to shorten the post

[doughboyea]

HAHA, it was a last minute thing. I didn't go alone though, I took a friend from HS who lived in the area.

I hear you on the power side, the salesman told me to keep it higher in the rev to feel it, but, being on Rt. 22 with moderate traffic, it was difficult.

Dough

ps (dude, you quoted the longest post... now it's just REALLY too long of a reply )

[xsperf]

just commenting on the ford 500, arent those really, really expensive?

[doughboyea]

For the MSRP it is listed at.... it's a rip off....$28,460 with no options.

Tacky Interior.

MPG: 19/26
Engine: 3.0L V6 203hp and 207lbft
Navigation extra $2,000 (MSRP)
Moonroof extra $995
Chrome Package extra $895
Limited Convenience Package $475

and other shit...... price continues to grow.

So not impressed.

Dough

[Pawel]

Originally Posted by doughboyea

For the MSRP it is listed at.... it's a rip off....$28,460 with no options.

Tacky Interior.

MPG: 19/26
Engine: 3.0L V6 203hp and 207lbft
Navigation extra $2,000 (MSRP)
Moonroof extra $995
Chrome Package extra $895
Limited Convenience Package $475

and other shit...... price continues to grow.

So not impressed.

Dough

I'm pretty sure this thing drives like a boat. It's also a very big car, size wise comparable to S-Class or 7-Series. I think it's more of a cruiser for older folks than anything else.

As far as a last quote, that was a long one, didn't think about it when I was quoting.

[doughboyea]

Haha Paul, you DON'T have to quote me everytime you respond..... for shits sake!

Boat indeed. Not worth test driving. I really don't think anything can beat the Acura at this point, considering the standards it comes with plus the price at the end.

Dough

[celsdogg]

and its worth mentioning that they are renaming the Ford 500 to the Taurus.

http://www.leftlanenews.com/2007/02/...enamed-taurus/

CEO Alan Mulally was quoted as saying Ford should have never dropped the nameplate in the first place. "I havent had time to do the deep dive on why we stopped investing in Taurus, but I'd like to," said Ford CEO Alan Mulally. "The Ford Five Hundred should have been the new Taurus."

as for the Acura, im fine with them as a brand. the fwd thing would bother me a little bit, and you already seem to be hesitating over the difference in the feel of the power. imho, i would still see what else is out there.

[doughboyea]

Yea, I get that, just I have to be more realistic. I commute to work, I don't really have fun on the way there since I'm mostly in traffic. Creature comforts and a rather good fuel economy are in mind. I really don't want to waste more time trying to find a vehicle that can out do this Acura.

Can you find one that comes fully loaded with Navi and all the other crap i typed out in the other post while giving 30mpg and a 70,000 mi warranty?

I know it's a Honda, but, it's a bit more refined. It's not a slapped together econo car, and although it's got the VTECH engine in it, for my purposes, I'll make due. It's not like I'm turning my back on BMW, just, BMW can't compare when it comes down to price, warranty and reliability, I'm sure those of you whom have read my previous posts can understand how important the warranty and reliability are to me.

Dough

[Pawel]

Dude, I can't understand your reply with "all though it's got the V-tec engine" as if it was something bad. Really don't get it. It's a great technology introducted/pioneered by Honda and brought in from racing and we as a public can only benefit from it. It was applied through out the whole lineup of their vehicles, and ricers really are the ones to blame for over hyping the whole thing with stickers and other BS.

[celsdogg]

^^^ hate to do it, but i have to agree with him. supposedly does the same thing as vanos so it cant hurt, i guess.

[doughboyea]

Originally Posted by Pawel

Dude, I can't understand your reply with "all though it's got the V-tec engine" as if it was something bad. Really don't get it. It's a great technology introducted/pioneered by Honda and brought in from racing and we as a public can only benefit from it. It was applied through out the whole lineup of their vehicles, and ricers really are the ones to blame for over hyping the whole thing with stickers and other BS.

OK toughguy

Explain to me why it has 205hp and 164 torque????

Dough

[craig]

how about pontiac? great cars, kinda cheap interiors(well, thats how it is with our van anyway) but who cares. i say you wait till the new G8 comes out. not sure when that is tho, this year i think.



edit: hell, even the g6. starts at 17K and i think they look nice.

[doughboyea]

Hmm, looks good, not sure on interior quality though. Has an aggressive stance and will come with either a 3.6L V6 (261hp 250 lbft) or a 6.0L V8 GT edition (362hp 391 lbft). The V8 will have the ability to automatically shut off half of the cylinders under "low-load driving."



Prices are expected to start around $25k (I'm assuming for the V6). Thing is, that's over a year away, and in the mean time, I'll have this fuckin car causing me troubles the entire time, and who knows how much longer it will last.

Source: Autoweek.com

Thank you for making me aware of it, and if it weren't for the time issue, I might've checked it out.

Dough