Is the TLX the messiah that Acura has been waiting for?

I'm pretty much with you on this one. I really don't think that the TLX is going to set any sales records, but I notice that the price points are definitely set to help.

Guess that we will sit back and see over the next few weeks to months.

A new report this morning from Automotive News:

http://www.autonews.com/article/201...-plans-second-half-sales-lift-from-tlx-in-u-s

I think it will sell well for them. They shrunk it down inside and outside compared to the TL and are bringing it out at a price equivalent to the TSX. They are positioning it as the high value tech laden near luxury compact.

It's smaller inside than the Civic but they are hoping that the luxury features will be enough to lure away young buyers shopping in the near luxury segment who want a compact sedan with the latest tech.

But, it's a tough segment to compete in with the stylish Mercedes CLA sedan and the surprise hit new Audi A3 and larger A4 in the mix.

I just don't think that this is the replacement that most existing TL owners were hoping for since it is no bigger than even the TSX. Unless of course most TL owners would actually prefer a more compact car.

I guess Honda has decided that people with families and need more passenger room should go with a loaded Accord or the mid-size category RLX. Acura has given up any full sized sedan aspirations.

motegi said:

I think it will sell well for them. They shrunk it down inside and outside compared to the TL and are bringing it out at a price equivalent to the TSX. They are positioning it as the high value tech laden near luxury compact.

It's smaller inside than the Civic but they are hoping that the luxury features will be enough to lure away young buyers shopping in the near luxury segment who want a compact sedan with the latest tech.

But, it's a tough segment to compete in with the stylish Mercedes CLA sedan and the surprise hit Audi A3 and larger A4 in the mix.

I just don't think that this is the replacement that most existing TL owners were hoping for since it is no bigger than even the TSX. Unless of course the TL owners would prefer a more compact car.

I guess Honda has decided that people with families and need more passenger room should go with a loaded Accord or the mid-size category RLX. Acura has given up any full sized sedan aspirations.

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smaller inside than a Civic? Doesn't that in turn make it smaller inside than an ILX?

As for the messiah I think thats the NSX

Just an FYI the previous generation '04-'08 TL had a 97.9 cu ft interior passenger volume which is only 0.3 cu ft smaller than the latest TL.

So the new TLX is not really "getting back to" the prior generation TL size but rather shrinking down to a different size class altogether.

Acura seems to think that the TLX will be able to achieve the same level of sales as the RDX and MDX. Do you think that is really going to happen? When you consider each vehicle in it's segement against competitors, I think that Acura's SUVs are far more formiddable than the TLX. That isn't even trying to be a knock on the TLX, it's just that the competition is fierce in the segment that Acura has the TLX competing in.

And the competition has been catching up to the MDX as well.

I agree that the near luxury compact sedan segment is quite crowded as you mentioned. Mercedes and Audi have had some success with their recent CLA and A3 which are both much smaller than the TLX but have entry pricing in the similar range. Also the BMW 3/4 series sedans overlap with the TSX. The Lexus IS is competition as well but also smaller inside.

It comes down to the potential buyers and their brand prestige vs value preferences.

I always take charts like that with a HUGE grain of salt. CUV's are the new wagons, just grouped into a different class, plus there are more CUV's on the market than traditional sedans which also contributes to the skew. Not to mention most of these CUV's are simply nothing more than small hatch back lifted...

So maybe its more fair to say people are buying more compact cars than sedans, but I think thats been true for a while...

Hatchbacks and city cars don't count as sedans, so I think you are partly right, but I think that it does not really mean that CUVs are any less popular than the chart says, or that sedans are more popular.

Having more CUVs on the market is just a function of car companies playing to where the demand is.

thats not necessarily true. Which came first the chicken or the egg, do they sell more CUV's because people demand more CUV's or do they sell more CUV's because they make more CUV's? Remember that Supply does not Always follow demand as Economics sys, well as Capitalism says. In a mercantile system (similar to what we have now) The Supply dictates the demand.

The thing is you can't get a lifted sedan, they don't make those yet, people equate the higher ride height with safety, thats why most CUV/SUV's are owned by women. There is a whole host of baked in misconceptions and motives from the manufacturers that contribute to the data.

Then stories like this come out and reinforce the reasoning. People are encouraged to buy CUV's because well thats what everyones doing, then another study comes out and says look even more popular, until slowly but surely sedans dont exist anymore.

Maybe that's dooms day, but the hyperbole is needed to illustrate a point.

I agree with this chicken or the egg argument but I'm not sure it matters. whether its one causing the other or the other way around, the fact is that CUVs are becoming more popular.

Lots of speculation of lots of things but so far, no one has driven it yet. How it drives could change everything. As an owner of a 2012 SH-AWD, I'm really wanting something more compact, more agile, lighter on its feet. I can forgive a lot of shortcomings if the thing handles like a dream. I think it could carve out a nice niche, especially at the target pricing vs the competition.

torqued said:

Lots of speculation of lots of things but so far, no one has driven it yet. How it drives could change everything. As an owner of a 2012 SH-AWD, I'm really wanting something more compact, more agile, lighter on its feet. I can forgive a lot of shortcomings if the thing handles like a dream. I think it could carve out a nice niche, especially at the target pricing vs the competition.

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That is very true, as good as it looks on paper and in pictures and video's there really is nothing like seeing it in person for yourself and getting behind the wheel.

ll of this is very true. There have been cars in the past that didn't win over its competitors in any other category except being a superior driving machine. That is what Acura has planned for the TLX, we will just have to see if this bet pays off for them.

torqued said:

Lots of speculation of lots of things but so far, no one has driven it yet. How it drives could change everything.

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You're right. It would help to see a test drive and review from a car mag as well. They can point out performance and comparisons better them I'm capable of. I don't think the local Acura rep wants me to clock zero to 60 during my test drive . With production ramped up, we should begin to see those reviews soon.

EyeingAcura said:

You're right. It would help to see a test drive and review from a car mag as well. They can point out performance and comparisons better them I'm capable of. I don't think the local Acura rep wants me to clock zero to 60 during my test drive . With production ramped up, we should begin to see those reviews soon.

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this is very true, i would be most interested in seeing all sort of tests, slalom, 1/4 mile, 0-60, 60-0, braking: 0-100, 100-0, and all the usual tests done in a lengthy in-depth test.