Honda Car Forum

I NEED THE PROS AND CONS OF THE CAR AND LONG TERM REPORT OF MAINTENANCE OF THE TL THROUGH THE YEARS

You'll find that information at http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/c...cars/index.htm

try edmonds. com or acurazine.

Here's a big problem with this car. It's going to cost you $38,425, plus tax. The dealer has probably put some crap on the car like mud flaps, floor mats, trunk tray etc. So they are going to be asking around $40K plus tax.But that's not the main problem. The main problem is that next year, the all new Acura TL is going to be launched, based on the all new 2008 Honda Accord. So your shiny new $40K TL is going to look obsolete, tired and old. This is going to be reflected in the residuals. And I don't know about you, but I hate to spend that kind of money, only to have my car look really dated inside of 12 months.The Type-S is really just a way of holding interest in the model until the new one comes out. It's nothing special. More horse power, better suspension and brakes, but nothing changes the fact that all that new power is going through the front wheels. A real sports sedan is rear wheel or all wheel drive.I owned a regular TL from new. An '05 model. Not so different from the '08 model. Slower of course than the Type S. I was utterly underwhelmed. It was fairly quick, and had a nice cockpit, but it really didn't have much soul.As time went on, the annoying squeaky rattle that the dealership failed to fix four times, became annoying. The paper thin leather on the seats began to wear. The lovely stereo lost its' luster when I realized that no one sells DVD-audio discs any more.The passenger window stopped working on occasion, and the dealership could not fix that. The dashboard discolored in a slightly uneven way. During a winter snow shower my car slid off the road, prompting the dealership to inform me that my tires were faulty and they replaced them for free. Which was all well and good, but I still lost my deductible and pay more insurance now because of the accident.The car was boring to drive, vague steering in the rain, unsettled around corners. After I had it for a year, I started looking at new cars. After two years I traded it in, and have not missed it one little bit. I was a die hard fan of Japanese cars, but this one made me think again.So, no, I would not recommend one. My bad experience aside, I just would not want to buy a car so soon before it gets replaced with a new model.In the similar price range you might want to look at the Infiniti.If you can scrape together a little more, you might want to test drive a BMW 335i. I guarentee it will be more fun. Just take one for a test drive on a country lane and throw it around some bends in sports mode. You'll get the idea.If you want a sports sedan, you need to find a rear wheel drive car that really works well. In this segment BMW have dominated for decades. Every single review of sports sedans makes mention of the 3 series. There is a reason for this. The BMW 3 series is the benchmark against which all other sports sedans are measured. Drive one and you'll see why.As to maintenance and reliability. If you check consumer reports you will see that BMW has improved year on year for the past five years or so. You get a 50,000 mile warranty that covers everything, including servicing.In all honesty if you are going to keep the car for 200,000 miles, a Honda or a Nissan may ultimately be cheaper to maintain. But from my experience of the Acura, I was not too impressed by the way it was holding together after just 25,000 miles.

Your best bet is to start sifting through some Google searches of on-line auto industry review sites, there's a bunch of them...Edmunds, Road & Track, AutoWeek, Consumer Reports, etc.The 3rd Gen TL (arrived in 2004) is nearing its end of production life, and from a reliability (maintenance) standpoint, that tends to bode well for the consumer. That is, Honda's pretty much worked most all the 'bugs' out of the car. I own an '06 TL and thus far it's been rock solid w/o any defects or problems. And I also have my 2000 V6 Accord nigh on 7 years...that too is solid...no issues to speak about. Honda's rock.The Type S is very much like the base model. Here's how it differs from the base TL:- A Spec kit- 3.5L motor (basically, the RL power plant)- backup camera- minor cosmetic enhancements to the facia (grill, wheels, etc.)Also, both the base & Type S '07/'08 models have the RL's auto transmission...that's a plus re reliability since it's a more robust mechanism than the prior Gen 3 transmissions. You will likely find yourself replacing your tires more frequently. The Type S has to be a bit more nose heavy with the heavier 3.5L engine. And due to the added torque, it's a good guess that Type S tires won't last quite a long. This would be true however of most any performance-oriented sport sedan out there.The big ongoing discussion re the TL is the matter of torque steer. Personally, I think it's an over-rated issue. I drive my TL hard enough, and rarely encounter a situation where it becomes a nuisance...and when it is a nuisance it's because I'm driving beyond good sense anyway. RWD afficionados are detractors of FWD, yet be aware that a recent Road & Track report did a serious track test between the G35, the IS350, and the TL Type S. Though the Type S was a bit slower than the others in linear acceleration, the Type S actually outhandled the other cars! And this track test was performed by a world class race driver.Be aware too that most Internet reviews tend to be slanted towards raw performance issues. Honda's prestige Acura line however brings perhaps the very best 'mix' of important features & at a superb dollar value (their cars come loaded)...they don't nickel & dime you for the extras. The TL represents a superbly successful effort at an entry level sport sedan...and the consumers voted with their pocket books...don't think you'll go wrong with this car.Lastly, body style changes is just a bunch of 'hype'...we don't change our best friends every 4 yrs but the auto industry programs us to think that a car is obsolete once the new version hits the street...silly. Rather, consider the car on its own design merits. The Gen 3 TL in this respect is in the opinion of many the sharpest looking Acura to ever hit the street, and it will likely retain its appeal for a long time to come.