What other cars were you looking at prior purchasing Acura TLX?

Originally I wanted the Volvo V60 or S60 but with the toys I wanted they were $68,000 and they discontinued the T6 AWD on both before I got chance to pull the trigger.
I wanted to look at the Genesis G70, but even finding a location near me for a test drive was difficult, so I figured service would be unbearable, and all online reviews on Genesis service are pretty bleak.
The KIA Stinger was very nice, but I couldn't see spending $55,000 on a KIA.
I looked at the infinity Q50 Red sport but it looked very dated on the inside, and the audio system was not as good as the Acura and no where near the B&W of the Volvo.
The BMW 340i got way too expensive very fast with a few options, plus every other car is a BMW around here, and having had BMW branded cars before, their service is expensive & they weasel out of any warrantee items quickly.
The Mercedes C43 also got expensive quickly with similar options, and my friends that own them say they are expensive to own, and you have to get rid of them before they get to 100,000 miles, I wanted to keep this car for many years.
I would have preferred the Volvo V60 T8 Polstar but could not test drive one and the reviews said that the driving experience is still lethargic, but the Bowers and Wilkens sound system is truly amazing and may have made up for it, except given the options I wanted the Polstar came in over $80,000 and is out of my budget.
The TLX carpets are cheap, so I replaced them with Lloyd mats, I hated the black wheels so I am replacing them with Vossen's, but even with all that I am into my car for less that $62,000 (including taxes, fees and loan interest) and still cheaper than most of the alternatives.

I like it because;
I love the TLX exterior and interior styling
I do like the little touch pad thing.
I adore the sound of the engine when you step on it and the immediate surge of power.
It feels very sure footed
I get lots of complements on this
I hardly ever see another 2021 TLX and have never seen another Type S on the road
The sound system is very good and perhaps the best in this price range (I liked it better than the upgraded Mercedes, BMW and Infinity sound systems, but not as much as the Volvo)
I had an Acura back in the 90's and their service is as good as Volvo's that I would rate at excellent.
Honda/Acura reliability
I like that is weighs in at over 2 tons given the weight of most SUV's and Trucks that I may collide with.

I don't like;
Cheap floor mats
Black wheels (just like most Honda products)
No spare
It is really a two seater, the back seat is tight, has no lighting effects, no power outlets, you really feel abandoned back there. (The headroom is better than the Infinity Q50) but you could take two other adults to a local restaurant but not to the next state.
Tiny moon roof, most of the competition has panoramic roof
The drivers door window sill is too high to comfortably drive with your arm resting on it,
The drivers door armrest is too low to comfortably drive with your arm resting on it.
No 360 view on the Type S (Some would argue it should have the HUD)
Auto engine off
I wish it was available in Navy blue or Burgundy or perhaps a British Racing green. with a light grey or cream/tan interior
I wish I could assign the colors of the interior in Dynamic lighting.

I hope this helps you.
This is just my opinion, and opinions are like armpits, most people have two and they sometimes stink....

I looked at the Honda Accord 2.0T Touring pretty hard. If they had a red one in Wichita, I would have bought it. Unfortunately, they kept on getting the sonic grey ones that I really didn't like. Even though the Accord is slightly faster than the TLX....and I do like a fast car....I felt that the Honda interior was too mundane and I didn't care for the side profile of the car. I would have been happy with the Accord, but I don't regret skipping it.

I also considered the Genesis G70 but I felt that the car was a little too small and the 2.0 version was too weak. I would have given the 3.3T version a look if they had one available. I also am not a fan of the massive grille on the front of the car. Finally, the Genesis logo makes me think of Chrysler....and I think of Chrysler as being a garbage brand of cars.

Kia Stinger was the same kind of thing. Looks wise, I thought the Stinger was better than the G70, but getting one with the equivalent performance of the TLX was going to require $10k more out of pocket.

I ended up getting the TLX because it was the best blend of performance, price and quality of the ones that I looked at. I wanted a car that I can drive for 7 years without worrying about it, which is why I decided to quit buying used BMW's.

I was looking at the following :

1) VW Arteon SEL-P - R-line - Had the versatility (hatch) but engine and transmission of the 21 not up to par (rectified for 22 models with the euro-spec engine and DSG - sigh)
2) Kia Stinger 2.5 GT Line - Well rounded car with the hatch, but since the chip shortage Kia dealers are holding customers hostage with above MSRP asking prices and I wasn't going to pay near MSRP for a Kia
3) BMW 330iXdrive - I prefer this to most of the German entry-level sport sedans but just too common and post-pandemic decent BMW lease prices seemed to have evaporated
4) Lexus IS350 FSport - Loved the V6 but small inside and showing its age.

I ended up driving the TLX with SH-AWD and really liking the ride and handling and then appreciating the overall package while also liking the looks of the A-Spec. I also managed to snag the Acura competitive discount and was able to get a good deal. Interesting to see some of the commonalities with others who ended up going with a TLX.

I previously owned a Kia Stinger, a 10th gen Accord Touring and 10th gen Accord Sport.
In stepping up to the premium segment, I cross shopped the TLX with the G70, ES, A4, 330i, and C 300.

The G70 was simply too small in the trunk and rear seat, and its interior is rather bland. I find the A4 too bland on the exterior. I wouldn't call the 330i "bland," but I also don't find it exciting on the inside or out; perhaps it feels a little stale. And the C 300's interior looks and feels very dated. The ES 350 F Sport is the car that came the closest to the TLX for me. I sort-of like the ES's design, and the spaciousness in the trunk and back seat were a big selling point, as was the V6.

However, I went with the TLX because I think it is by far the most attractive car in the segment, inside and out. I find it to look far more sporty than the ES, and it certainly oozes a different aura from the Lexus. Not only is the interior attractive, but it is incredibly feature-rich and user-friendly. I have always loved the way Honda designs and packages their cars. I like the in-between size of the TLX while still being priced like a compact. I also love the way the car rides and handles, and SH-AWD was a big selling point as well, along with the ELS system. Long-term cost of ownership was a big selling point over the Germans, too.

Coming from the more spacious Accord, I was concerned about its practicality. This past weekend, I put that to the test. My partner and I drove about three hours to meet up with some old friends who flew into the same city, and I chauffeured the group around for the long weekend in the TLX. The four of us range from 5'10" to 6'2", so none of us are small people. Although my partner and I had to move the front seats forward from our normal positions, we were all still reasonably comfortable, especially for the <30 minute rides we were taking. To my pleasant surprise, all of our luggage fit in the trunk (Two mid-sized [check-in sized] luggage, one large carry-on luggage, two duffel bags, a small cooler, and a backpack). This is about the most practical I ever need a vehicle to be (it's extremely rare to have more than my partner and me in the car), so I'm thrilled with how it handled it all.

JaRod said:

I was considering the Lexus IS350, however like many Toyota or Lexus models they are far behind in technology, they design a model and keep it with modest changes like forever. the IS500 would've been nice but when you add the extras that are standard in the TLX it goes north of 70k (minus the engine). My previous one was a Lexus RC 350/17 and it was the only vehicle in my life, and I've had many, that I never ever had a single problem with, not even a bulb, not even the battery in 4 years and 50K miles.

Click to expand...

Same here. I stopped by Lexus dealership with my wife to check out IS and was surprised just how tight and compact it is. We didn't even bother getting into to one to sit and test the comfort as I knew right away this is not going to work for me. We moved onto ES - now, that's a car I'd consider, esp. in 350 F Sport. However, I am not impressed with central console and I find placement of CD (who still uses CDs in 2020?) very inconvenient, such an odd placement. IS has a much better center console.

I told the sales rep to send me info on Cloudburst Gray if and when it come in 350 F Sport. I'd def stop by and re-evaluate it. ES def wins, at least for me, in seat ventilation and seating capacity - ventilation seats are much more distinguished in ES than TLX and there is room in the back for comfortable siting on those long trips. Trunk space is another win as well addition of spare tire.

Acura dealership down the street from Lexus was horrible. We walked in and took a good min for someone to acknowledge us. And when we finally set and talk to the sale rep., he was anything but interested. I guess we interrupted his game recaps on YouTube. Needless to say, I'll make every effort not to return there.

Not a 2021 facelift model, but the used TLX I bought was optimal for a variety of reasons.

I was looking at a new Civic Hatch or an Accord Sport, as they are both very good offerings from Honda and more practical than a TLX. However, the factory was not going to be making the hatches for some unknown amount of time. Dealers also didn't have our desired spec or many Accords in general. The ones they did have in stock were well over MSRP and what we felt was acceptable for the price. The Camry was also unreasonably pricey and not worth it. Used models from both manufacturers, with the climate of the current car market, were also not good deals. I suppose not too surprising given the value retention on those vehicles.

There was some decent consideration for Lexus, but like a used Toyota the price was quite up there in relation to the wear, age, spec, etc. New ones also felt slightly dated and uninteresting. Infiniti and Nissan were not even in the picture because of their less than spotless rep sheet. Other competing brands like Audi, BMW, MB, were just too financially unjustifiable in the long run used or new.

As for Acura, the ILX was actually up for consideration but I found out that I could barely fit comfortably in it with the seat positioned all the way down and back, so that was completely out of the picture before I even test drove it. That lead me to the TLX because for the same price as a new ILX, Camry SE, Civic Hatch, or Accord Sport, you could get a lightly used and sometimes certified TLX. I went with a certified TLX because it practically guaranteed that it would be mechanically sound and cosmetically acceptable. You would not believe the amount of used TLXs and other luxury class vehicles that had smashed mirrors, scratches in ridiculous places, worn parts etc.

I can say that I think I made the right decision with a TLX.