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Acura TSX
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The 325 auto vs the TSX auto is no contest in terms of performance. Do you want the creature comforts more than the touted BMW look and feel?
I think you have to seek out some other opinions from trusted advisors in your life and see what they say.
with Bluetooth capabilty for 6 cell phones. Dealer
claims car went out the door for 33.1k. Asking
27,950 with 4800 miles. Black on Black 6spd manual. Does anyone know what the Bluetooth option
cost to have done? Pricing out the options I come
up with about 2k thanks.
STeve
My only beef is the xenon lights. Other posters have mentioned the weird line of demarcation on these lights, and I definitely noticed it. Is there a fix for this phenomenon or do I just have to live with it? Very disconcerting in pitch black conditions.
Can regular bulbs be substituted?
BTW, I've read other posts complaining about the stock stereo, but I found it to be quite good, and I have a discerning ear for stereo. It's certainly not as good as an aftermarket set-up, but it's not bad. Thanks
Do they have auto levelers? It's cool to watch them adjust to diferent attitudes of the car. I had an IS300 that did this.
Oh well, if that's the only thing I can find wrong with this great car, I can live with it. I'll probably get used to them...
- Mark
Please convince me otherwise, as I really like the idea of xenons in general.
After having spent a few months behind HIDs, I'm convinced they do a much better job of illuminating to the distance that they are supposed to illuminate to. For this, you may pay a slight disadvange in distance illumination with the low-beams due to the sharp cutoff.
IMHO, the tradeoff is worth it. Don't forget the the cutoff also pays dividends in helping oncoming drivers maintain their vision also. If each person takes a selfish attitude that they want to see as good as they possibly can, then we'd all just adjust our headlights high and overuse hi-beams. And we'd all see worse because we'd be blinded by each other. We all need to get along out there.
And for illuminating things further than the cutoff, there are the high-beams. In a way, HID lights more clearly differentiate function between the low-beams and the hi-beams. Again, if you base your decision strictly on being able to see as far as you can with lo-beams, the normal halogens might do a little better. But if you base your decision on the full function of the entire system in illuminating the close-in field with the low-beams and the distance field with the hi-beams, and considering trying to cause as little glare to oncoming drivers as possible, I think the HIDs are quite a bit better.
- Mark
The new TL has HIDs in both low and hi-beam. So I was just curious since I have not found any mention of bi-xenons in case of the TSX.
Later...AH
Squirrel
I would never (and didn't) suggest "poor lighting" up close would be necessary to give you better distance visibility. I said that decent or average brightness up close would be adequate enough and also not create the additional problem of reducing your greater distance visibility, which "experts" claim is the more important of the two.
I think people get seduced by how bright the HIDs are, not realizing that there are potential negative consequences. As another example of this, take home security; people buy the brightest floodlights they can thinking that they are best for protecting against thieves. Unless you have 100% light coverage of your home, which few do, it's NOT the best idea. It's actually better to have DIMMER lighting so there isn't as great a contrast level between the lit and unlit areas. Thieves can do their work undetected in the resulting darker shadows due to the greater contrast levels between lit and unlit areas.
As for the idea of the 2 stage system, low and high beam, working as a more complete system (i.e., very bright and distinct low beam cut-off complimented by high beams to pick-up where low beams cut-off), well, it just isn't very practicle. Unless you live in some rural state where you only see oncoming traffic once every few minutes, the idea of switching to high beams is useful for only a small percentage of the time on the road. (unless you're willing to sacrifice other drivers comfort and safety, which I wouldn't suggest, nor would you for that matter as you had previously stated).
Now, maybe the HID cut-off is further distant than what I'm assuming, and therefore, isn't as much of a problem as I'm making it out to be. But I'm basing my assumption on what I've seen many TSX owners complain about on their boards. And I'm also basing my reservations on the seeming expert consensus about HID headlights in general.
I would prefer to be wrong about this (and maybe I am). I'm encouraged that you said on balance, limitations acknowledged, the HIDs are working well for you.
On a car where the HIDs are optional, sounds like you're not convinced, so save the money. On my MCS, I absolutely love them, but then one always tends to rationalize something they spent money on as always being better.
- Mark
What car do you have? I couldn't make out your abbreviation of "MCS".
And yes, as you said, some HID systems are better than others. Maybe that's why you can rightly defend them.. you may have one of the better systems available.
- Mark
;-)
I've had my TSX for about four days now and can weigh in on the HID issue. Around town the lights are fine, mostly due, I think, to the presence of ambient light.
It was on the long drive home from the dealership, through unlit countryside and mountain passes that I really noticed how the HID's work.
In pitch-black conditions the cut-off effect is really noticeable, and I had a little trouble getting used to it. Rolling terrain is particularly disconcerting because of this effect.
The high beams definitely cure the problem, but, as you pointed out, their use isn't really practical under normal driving conditions.
That said, I love my TSX more every time I get behind the wheel, and I'm sure I'll come to grips with the HID thing.
I drive mostly in urban areas, but when I clear the streetlights, I use the high-beams all the time. It is a pain to flick them on/off for traffic, but that's what it takes to be able to see clearly. As good drivers, that's what we're supposed to do.
It sounds like one reason everyone is so hung up on better low-beams is that they're trying to make them do what hi-beams are designed for.
- Mark
But as johnny420 said, urban areas with ambient light.. no problem. It may be the ideal lighting combo. Awesome bright HIDs near term, adequate enough surrounding lighting elsewhere.
But in those poorly lit areas, it's necessary to toggle between highs and lows more with the HIDs than even the regular halogens. Toggling back 'n forth is fine. I do that with my regular halogens now, even though it's kindof a pain.
But because cars are often passing you at least several times a minute, you don't get to benefit much from high beam use, thus making the HIDs less appealing of the two lighting options. (particularly at highway speeds where your reaction time is shorter and objects come into view later).
johnny420 - do you find that on flat terrain, the HIDs throw light far out enough, even at highway speeds, that you feel confident when driving?
- Mark
end of mini-rant.
That said, I'm 6'1" and I fit without much fuss. It's much easier than getting into my '01 TL.
The side bolsters are a little more of an issue for me but are manageable.
I would have to say no, especially at highway speeds. But even then, in urban areas, the ambient light is still great enough to counteract the cutoff effect.
In darker areas, as speed increases, I feel confidence waning, and, conditions permitting, will use my high beams. It's unsettling to not be able to see what is just up ahead. Again, I'm hoping that with more use I'll grow accustomed to the HID's.
To bmwdoug: I also 6' 1" and have no trouble fitting into my TSX, but I'm used to the effect of the lower ceiling after driving an Accord for a couple of years. Prior to that I drove a pickup, and the adjustment to the Accord took awhile. BTW, the TSX driver seat has a height adjustment. Perhaps the seat was all the way up. Either that or you have a really long torso :-)
Now, when I drove a demo model, it was less of a problem. I'm guessin' that the seats were broken in more, compressed a little from use, as I don't think my seat back was reclined any differently than the previous times.
It really does depend how you're body is balanced. I have a 32" inseam, which I guess is a little on the short side for someone my height, so I must be proportionaly longer in the torso. This would explain the discrepancy of why same height, and even taller, people claiming plenty of headroom.
6'5" Squirreljam on the other hand, is either out of balance in the opposite way (legs much longer proportionaly than his torso) or he must angle his seat back quite a bit more than we do. Or a combination of the two.
See if you can check out a demo with some decent miles on it.
Compromised HIDS and extremely average brakes, among a few weaknesses. I guess no car is perfect.. certainly not below 30K anyway.
Later...AH
My legs are long but not freakishly so (36 inseam), and I don't think I have the back reclined much. As combustible said, it's probably a combo - with the legs, I tilt the seat base back a bit to get some thigh support, and with reasonably long arms, the reach to the wheel isn't bad.
Goes to show how important a good long demo is, to see how the car fits each of us personally...
On the xenons, yeah, bi-xenons would be cool, but in a suburban environment, I rarely flick on the hi-beams, so I haven't found myself wanting them too much. I agree the abrupt cutoff is disconcerting on the low-beams, though.
Squirrel
The TSX headlamps have 2 bulbs (plus a turn signal and side marker) each: a Xenon low beam and a Halogen high beam. The Xenon low beams have a projector-style lens. It is this lens that creates the distinct cut-off, not the Xenon lamp. There are other implementations of Xenon lamps which use reflector assemblies, which can disperse the light differently (more like the headlamps you've been accustomed to for the last 10 years or so).
My wife and I have 3 cars: a 93 Accord, a 97 Pathfinder, and the TSX (owned since July). I live in an urban area and drive the TSX most of the time, so lack of forward visibility usually isn't an issue for me. I've grown accustomed to the way the HID low beams perform, and in many cases I actually wish my other two cars had them as well. I'm always surprised at how dim my Pathfinder's headlamps seem (and dashboard too, but that's another topic) when I swap cars. The same goes for the Accord, especially when the pavement is wet. (Are my headlights even ON???)
The TSX projectors are aimed quite appropriately. The cut-off is just a few inches below most cars' side-view mirrors, so the lights don't glare into the eyes of drivers in front of you (except on bumpy roads, when they may seem to "flash").
I also notice that the projectors light up the sides of the road in front of the car very well... much better than either of my other cars.
That being said, we recently drove the TSX on a 2-lane road in an unlit rural area and with only the low-beams on, no less than 4 different oncoming cars flashed their high-beams at us. We think it's because the drivers in that region aren't used to seeing many cars with HID's (i.e. BMW, Lexus, Acura, etc.). While it's true that using the high-beams greatly increased visibility, I felt more confident driving with only the low beams than I usually do with the low beams on my other two (non-HID-equipped) cars.
Finally (thanks for sticking with me!), I've found that in inclement weather (i.e. rain, snow) the HID cutoff helps a lot to reduce glare, while still providing ample light on the roadway.
It's interesting to read how some folks love the HID's, while others don't like them.
Regarding the brakes, I have to disagree somewhat. I'm coming off of a 2000 Accord, and the TSX's brakes are significantly better.
That said, I also test drove a 2004 TL 6 sp with the Brembo brakes, and those are phenomenal. They really haul you down from speed. Same for the Mazda6 in the sport trim. Very nice brakes.
The TSX's braking is somewhere in between. Neither the brakes or the headlamps were a deal-breaker for me. I'm very happy with the car so far.
Johnny
Halogen projectors (Mazda 6 is a good example) operate the same way as the HID projectors--those who have objections to the TSX's lights would most likely have an objection to the 6 as well.
Chris
Thanks to all for the feedback on the topic of HIDs and brakes so far. :-)
Later...AH
I was reading through my TSX owner's manual and noticed a reference to a "Key Number Tag". Have you all received one with your car? What does it look like? My keychain has a little strip of paper on it with a barcode and a 4 digit number on it. Is that it or should I have received something else?