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Thats not true, I had the 03 type S and had the 04 for loaners on several occasions.
The 04 through 08 might look small on the outside but it actaully is a much more spacious than my 03.Fact is the 04-08 is a heavy car.
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
However, I see no flaw with the 09, Its going to work out perfectly for those long summer trips.
In regards to bulk, look at BMW's 7 series and Audi's A8- I dont see anyone complaining there.
The 04 through 08 might look small on the outside but it actaully is a much more spacious than my 03.Fact is the 04-08 is a heavy car.
Beside having an 04 and 07 currently, we previously had an 01 TL. The 01 had a longer length than the 04-08. The 04-08 has more interior room than the 99-03. The 04-08 handles much better than the previous gen.
The gain in interior passenger and cargo space is not proportionate with increased exterior bulk.
Traindriver replied:
I'm not sure I understand. Are you saying that the additional bulk is in the front/rear overhang or "fender bulge"....a bigger "footprint"? If not in the passenger compartment or trunk space, then how is it that a car gains "bulk?"
Instead of "bulk", I think the proper word might be "size". If a car becomes six inches longer and almost two inches wider and gains only a little over an inch of rear legroom and less than a cubic foot of trunk space, I agree that they are not proportional to the overall increase in size. The only reason I can think of for making the car so much larger is that Acura wants the TL to be more imposing looking and increasing its overall size can do just that. When an automobile becomes almost as large as a BMW 750i, I agree that as far as size alone is concerned, it can look quite impressive.
Comparing the TL to a "flagship" sedan is unfair in every way. They are designed to appeal to two completely different segments of the market.
'06 vs. '09:
Front shoulder room: 58.3"/58.2"
Rear Shoulder room: 55.7"/56.2"
Front Headroom: 38.7"/38.4"
Rear Headroom: 37.2"/36.7"
Front Leg Room: 42.8"/42.5"
Rear Leg Room: 34.9"/36.2"
Front Hiproom: 55.6"/55.7"
Rear Hiproom: 53.8"/54.8"
Passenger Volume: 97.9 cu ft/98.2 cu ft
Trunk: 12.5 cu ft./13.1 but for SH-AWD it is 12.5 cu ft
'06 vs. '09 size differences in exterior:
Length: 189.3"/195.3"
Wheelbase: 107.9"/109.3"
Height: 56.7"/57.2"
Width: 72.2"/74"
As you can see, the TL grew considerably more in exterior size and only grew in rear seat legroom. In some cases it is worse than the 3G TL.
No thanks Acura. You made a bloated whale and did not achieve interior increases in size. Granted we get SH-AWD so it makes no sense to buy the regular TL to get a bigger body and not get the SH-AWD with it since that is why the bigger body exists. Hello 2009 A4 quattro 2.0T!
OK, that sounds just a little too kinky and personal! :P
Whatever goes on behind closed doors......
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Given the current and projected economic conditions, Acura is either going to have to seriously rethink that pricing, or dramatically upgrade the RL far beyond what even I have suggested in the past. I had criticized Acura's (non)flagship for being ho-hum on performance and marginally better than the TL on luxury. I had thought that, since Lexus had really targeted Mercedes with its LS, Acura could target the BMW 550i with a revamped V8 RL, ideally with a RWD sport model that could be had with a 6 speed manual. Priced at $55k, it would be a solid competitor.
But now BMW has the 535i, available in RWD or AWD, automatic or 6-speed, standard or sport models. And priced in the $55k range, with performance that is within a knat's [non-permissible content removed] of the $65k V8 550i. Not to mention, more fuel efficient.
I think Acura is smoking dope if they think there is much of a market for a $65k+ RL over the next 3-4 years. They have never achieved anything over dismal sales at invoice or lower pricing on a $40's something RL. And now, with the ecomomy in the tank, and BMW filling it's own gap with the 535i, Acura is contemplating putting out an RL priced near the previous generation M5? Good friggin luck. :confuse:
I cant wait to post the pictures of my new white diamond pearl with the 19" FCS wheels and fully zained downed.
Bottom line, I like what I see so far with the FWD version, actually when I took the car for a test drive two motorist gave me a thumbs up while passing.
First, the Genesis is Hyundai's flagship. Secondly, the Genesis looks good. Good styling tends to go a long way towards public acceptance.
"... two motorist gave me a thumbs up while passing."
You sure it wasn't some other digit rather than their thumbs? :P
I don't know habitat, after reading some of your fiery posts, that may be too tall of an order. :P
Also, I think at my age I should be able to tell the difference between a thumb and a middle finger.
Oh, you mean like the Aztec. I see your point then. By the way, before you give the TL too much credit for originality, there is a lot of Camry and ES350 in the profile, and some Maxima in the hood treatment. As for the grill, yeah, I guess I could be original and wear my underwear on the outside! Wait, Superman's done that already. Damn!
Well, yeah, exactly. I was concern that, at your age, your eyesight ain't what it used to be.
bodble - You are really funny!
I think it's safe to assume that a large percentage of people who purchase '09 TL's will go for the FWD model because they don't need the features provided by the more expensive AWD model. That would mean that the majority of TL owners will end up with an automobile designed for a minority of buyers. They will have a car that has grown considerably larger and get very little or no benefit from that increase in overall size. Such a concept may seem to make sense to Acura but it makes no sense at all to me.
I didn't imply that. I just found it perplexing that Acura had to increase the size of the car just to implement an AWD system, if that is indeed the reason for the increase in exterior dimensions.
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I believe that an automobile's size alone has nothing to do with agility or performance but it has a great deal to do with convenience. By convenience I mean the overcoming of problems related to moving it around in everyday use. One such problem is parking a longer automobile in a parallel parking space. It also refers to problems involved driving a wider car while heading into a parking slot. Not only is it more difficult to pull into such a space cleanly, but it also means that while parked, wider cars are better targets for being dinged by the opening of doors on cars next to it.
Although acceleration, braking, steering agility, and gas milage (among other things) can be extremely important, they aren't everything. I believe that convenience is equally important. The dictionary describes it as "the state of being able to proceed with something with little effort or difficulty". If an automobile becomes large enough where it no longer becomes easy for me to drive, it detracts from all the other good things it has to offer. The '09 FWD TL has become six inches longer and two inches wider while giving me virtually nothing in return.
I was considering the '09TL at one time. It's supposedly a wonderful car technically, but its styling decreased my interest greatly. Its added size completely killed off any interest I had left.
Maybe you've got it mixed up with the previous generation TL? They do say memory is the 2nd thing to go for ex-military guys, right after eyesight!
Now, if anyone out there has test driven the car, I'd like to hear your impressions.
If you think a Honda/Acura transmission needs to be replaced every 30k miles, you have not driven or owned a Honda/Acura. May be you are a salesman for a competitor and you feel compelled to denigrate Acura in this forum. Good luck to you ... whatever you do for a living.
Had a brief drive last month, overall an upgrade over 08TL. Exterior is better in person than pictures definitely, how much better is another story. Is it great? No. Will it grow on us? Maybe. Size is most noticeable in rear room, trunk design/space is a disappointment...maybe for safety reasons? Turn radius is still big, but handles smaller than size. Acceleration feels solid but not blazing (mid-6s is my guess 0-60). Interior is very nice, the Navi/stereo/dashboard are all thumbs up. Not sure about the seats, will have to go back again. Much better road/wind isolation, the 17" wheels didn't look too small in person.
Thanks for your driving impression. Just curious, what do you currently drive now? I do have an 04 TL and am trying to get to the dealer and drive the 09 as well. Is the turn radius really going to be that noticeable with everyday driving?
I have said it before, the 09 does look better in person. Even my wife likes it. But she always said the 04 TL looked like any other car that Honda makes. By no means is she putting Honda products down, that's all we have driven for years. Think she is just happy to see something that a little more striking to the eye.
Honda had real problem with transmission in 2001-2003. 2009 TL looks ugly and too big. I think sales of TL will drop a lot. My girlfriend saw it on the road and think that it is new Saturn model.
PS: You can't complain too much about the TL's size, or speak negatively about it, on this thread. If you do, then you may face the wrath of some members (albeit only a few) who will accuse you of not offering any useful information.