Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

jipster · April 2020

Benjamin: I don't have answers to your questions, but as you may have already learned that the $9500 incentive on the TLX Tech seems to already be gone. Acura updated their incentives. Might be more like $8k now, even with your first responders 750.

Jip: Well, that stinks. Thought I had till the end of the month. But, I don't think the dealership ever discounted off MSRP, so may be able to get that back.

jipster · April 2020

roadburner · April 2020

jipster said:

roadburner said:

jipster said:

The plan is to keep the car until it turns to rust, or I do. Was actually thinking of this slogan, for Acura, when test driving the TLX, " The Acura TLX....so quiet, so comfortable, so luxurious.... you wouldn't mind being buried in one. "

Most of these midsize midlevel sedans I've looked at have interiors that are lacking in quality. Now, the Altima was much nicer at its trim level. It was saying buy me initially, but it felt a bit "nervous" on the expressway.

I accidentally came upon a Kia Stinger review about an hour ago. Maybe a plant by g.g? LOL.
It sounded and looked pretty good. Standard leather seats and a 2.0 turbo. With dealer incentives would put the price around that of the base TLX. Don't know about the hatchback though.
I love hatchbacks, but as others have said, the Stinger needs the V6 to be really entertaining. The AWD Stingers are at least RWD biased, but I prefer RWD or the GTS, which has a true LSD on the rear axle and the ability to send 100% of the power to the rear wheels.
Still, you might try a Stinger with the turbo 4, you might find it adequate. The Stinger isn't exactly burning up the sales charts, so-as graphicguy discovered-there are some real deals to be had- especially if you lease one and then immediately purchase it.
If you were leasing with the intent to immediately buy afterwards, is that something you'd want to talk to with the finance guy beforehand or after? Do all leases have this provision? Would a salesperson send me a completed lease form that has everything on it but my signature? The sales manager did not send me all the necessary numbers...just big picture numbers.. I would like a little time to look at a lease agreement before signing it.

Took the day off looking at cars. Today was run errands day. The little Tucson 4 banger loaner drives fairly well once it gets going. But it sure groans and protests when pressed.

Scotty mentioned not liking those CVT transmissions, but he also commented on the wisdom of having 8 and 9 speed automatic transmissions, "more things to go wrong". Have these transmissions been around long enough to have a good idea about their reliability?

On the Stinger Forum some dealers have outright lied and said that you can’t do the lease/buy strategy but most seem to be fine with it.
As far as Scotty K. goes, I don’t see how he’s able to sit down- considering all of the half-*ss opinions he pulls out of his butt. The ZF 8HP transmission has been superb in every application it’s used in. Ditto for the 8 speed Hyundai/Kia.

imidazol97 · April 2020

MIT group determines the number of folks who have had the China virus is much, much greater than the diagnosed cases based on testing. Biobot Analytics uses the sewage and determines a large city in MASS has 115,000 cases. The whole of MASS has under 17000 reported cases.

So a large number of people are asymptomatic or low symptoms, as some have hypothesized from the beginning of this. Thus the hospitalizations and death rates are much, much lower than early stats because of the larger number of persons who had/have the virus.

https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/04/08/massachusetts-sewage-suggests-more-than-100k-coronavirus-cases-in-state-mit-lab/

imidazol97 · April 2020

roadburner said:

As far as Scotty K. goes, I don’t see how he’s able to sit down- co

It's all about the clicks. Or as the news business used to be, just be sure to spell my name right was the motto for those wanting to get their name in the news.

fintail · April 2020

I suspect a German car dealer once kicked his butt in a fight or married a woman he liked, etc.

roadburner said:

On the Stinger Forum some dealers have outright lied and said that you can’t do the lease/buy strategy but most seem to be fine with it.
As far as Scotty K. goes, I don’t see how he’s able to sit down- considering all of the half-*ss opinions he pulls out of his butt. The ZF 8HP transmission has been superb in every application it’s used in. Ditto for the 8 speed Hyundai/Kia.

fintail · April 2020

We can hope so. Maybe we can also be on the downhill part of the curve too.

Of course, it also is dependent on causes of death being accurate. I trust US sources much more than our most favored trading partner, although in some locales maybe not much more.

I wonder if this will impact the EB-5 program that someone was selling not too long ago. I doubt it.

We can all use a little levity:

imidazol97 said:
MIT group determines the number of folks who have had the China virus is much, much greater than the diagnosed cases based on testing. Biobot Analytics uses the sewage and determines a large city in MASS has 115,000 cases. The whole of MASS has under 17000 reported cases.

So a large number of people are asymptomatic or low symptoms, as some have hypothesized from the beginning of this. Thus the hospitalizations and death rates are much, much lower than early stats because of the larger number of persons who had/have the virus.

https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/04/08/massachusetts-sewage-suggests-more-than-100k-coronavirus-cases-in-state-mit-lab/

oldfarmer50 · April 2020

imidazol97 said:

explorerx4 said:
Since someone brought up police pursuits, I've watched a couple of OSHP video's.
They have been about a 1/2 hour long.
It was pretty local to some of you, even I recognize some of the signs from travelling down that way.
Amazing how long this GM keeps going.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrNzZNS-MSk
Great post! I didn't know that existed.

I listened to radio updates as that chase occurred. I thought the chase ended in Covington when the car hit the barrier wall. It was in Cincy next to the football stadium.

Amazing how many lives in other cars that GM almost hit. What did the passenger keep doing with his arm out the window? Was he throwing out stuff?

Probably drugs or since they were murder suspects, the gun.

explorerx4 · April 2020

In CT, May 20th is now the date.

nyccarguy · April 2020

@explorerx4 - that dash cam video was great! Do you subscribe to their YouTube channel? I am shocked at how long that Grand Marquis kept going. There is a point at the 22 minute mark where I swear he was going to hit that white van. Did his right rear tire blow out?

andres3 · April 2020

stickguy said:
They are better for 99% of what they use them for. And they aren’t supposed to be doing high speed pursuits now anyway.

You have to speed to catch a speeder. One of the few crimes where the Police have to mimic the criminals to catch them.

andres3 · April 2020

bwia said:
I was just watching a laughable Southern California situation where a CHP was chasing a woman driving a Hyundai Sonata doing 125 mph while the police were struggling to keep up in their SUVs at 100 mph. No contest. Apparently, the dispatcher had the good sense to call of the chase. Believing that she was in the clear the woman fugitive slowed down and pulled into a bank parking lot. What she didn't realize was that a TV chopper was following the action all along and conveyed the location to a ground crew....she surrendered without a whimper. Thanks to the TV reporter; now we'll be seeing more of them hovering over every little incident claiming to be friends of the police.

So, I'm wondering why do police departments invest so heavily in SUVs when they cannot adequately do a highway pursuit? Perhaps these gas hogs are best suited for snowy climes but not sunny California or Florida.

SUV's blend in and hide better. There are so many SUV's in CA, it often takes me a split second or two longer to spot a naughty SUV over the usual Crown Vic or Charger.

Radar detectors help; a few times for sure in these days of COVID-19 related speeding.

stickguy · April 2020

radios and choppers do a much better job.

venture · April 2020

explorerx4 · April 2020

I see that about 250,000 in Maine are without power due to a storm.

explorerx4 · April 2020

@nyccarguy,
One of those OSHP video's randomly appeared, so I watched it, even though they are about a half hour long.
The one I posted is about the same length as the first one, but driver behavior was more dangerous.
I kept thinking, ok it's about over, but there were still 10 to 15 minutes left.

oldfarmer50 · April 2020

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.

snakeweasel · April 2020

andres3 said:

bwia said:
I was just watching a laughable Southern California situation where a CHP was chasing a woman driving a Hyundai Sonata doing 125 mph while the police were struggling to keep up in their SUVs at 100 mph. No contest. Apparently, the dispatcher had the good sense to call of the chase. Believing that she was in the clear the woman fugitive slowed down and pulled into a bank parking lot. What she didn't realize was that a TV chopper was following the action all along and conveyed the location to a ground crew....she surrendered without a whimper. Thanks to the TV reporter; now we'll be seeing more of them hovering over every little incident claiming to be friends of the police.

So, I'm wondering why do police departments invest so heavily in SUVs when they cannot adequately do a highway pursuit? Perhaps these gas hogs are best suited for snowy climes but not sunny California or Florida.
SUV's blend in and hide better. There are so many SUV's in CA, it often takes me a split second or two longer to spot a naughty SUV over the usual Crown Vic or Charger.

Radar detectors help; a few times for sure in these days of COVID-19 related speeding.

Unmarked cars blend in better than marked cars. Police are going with SUVs because they have more interior room and cargo space which is important for police work. They also get better gas mileage than alternative police vehicles especially at idle where police vehicles spend a lot of time in.

jipster · April 2020

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.

The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)

stickguy · April 2020

if you look at how much computer equipment they carry now you can see why they need space. And gear in the back. An SUV is easier to get at stuff quickly instead of fishing around the back of the trunk. I suspect that sitting higher for better visibility is also a big thing these days.

at least around here even the marked cars are blending in because they are making the graphics much less noticeable (a lot of "ghost" cars), and the light bars, etc. are much lower profile. So they look like any other Explorer or Tahoe. Which is why I make sure to watch the speed whenever I see one of those beasts.

my BIL and his wife recently got a new black Explorer (the prior style) (they live in NY) and she did say that people move over for her when they notice her coming up behind them!

imidazol97 · April 2020

snakeweasel said:
Police are going with SUVs because they have more interior room and cargo space which is important for police work. They also get better gas mileage than alternative police vehicles especially at idle where police vehicles spend a lot of time in.

I am curious how a V8 explorer gets better idling fuel economy than a V8 Dodge Charger idling.

The explorer does have more room and they tend to be able to hide their light bar on top in ordinary traffic enforcement compared to a Dodge Charger used commonly here by OSP. In fact, OSP uses both vehicles for traffic and uses the Explorers for semi truck enforcement as well in vehicles market for that, although I assume the Explorers can stop any and every speed violator they see as well.

The pursuits by OSP that I watched here, one on I75 from Dayton to Cincy, and on I71 near Mansfield, both showed only Chargers in the pursuits.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_BdOTDlkFI

explorerx4 · April 2020

@imidazol97,
That is the first video I watched.
The strategy seems to be keep the pressure on until the offender wears down and makes a mistake or equipment fails.
Explorer doesn't have a V8.
Eocoboost provides plenty of power.

stickguy · April 2020

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)

do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.

snakeweasel · April 2020

stickguy said:
if you look at how much computer equipment they carry now you can see why they need space. And gear in the back. An SUV is easier to get at stuff quickly instead of fishing around the back of the trunk. I suspect that sitting higher for better visibility is also a big thing these days.

at least around here even the marked cars are blending in because they are making the graphics much less noticeable (a lot of "ghost" cars), and the light bars, etc. are much lower profile. So they look like any other Explorer or Tahoe. Which is why I make sure to watch the speed whenever I see one of those beasts.

my BIL and his wife recently got a new black Explorer (the prior style) (they live in NY) and she did say that people move over for her when they notice her coming up behind them!

Part of police work is being visible as it deters crime and helps build a community trust. Now I cannot speak of the markings but a low profile light bar means less wind resistance and better handling at high speeds and/or windy days.

abacomike · April 2020

Here in Broward County, we are now "required" to wear a face mask when going out in public. Face masks are also required for all business employees, managers, etc., who come into contact with customers or other people.

When I went grocery shopping Thursday, none of the employees in Publix were wearing masks. Now they are required.

I wonder why this was not implemented weeks ago. I have an appointment at the eye doctor Monday morning and I know they were wearing masks weeks ago when I was last there.

jipster · April 2020

stickguy said:

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)
do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.

Want? Sure. Need? Not really. Would prefer not to have a moonroof. Heated seats and better stereo would be nice. The leather interior of the TLX was excellent. Ride, comfort, reliability, good power (doesn't need to be great) and nice interior are tops in my book. No touchscreen on the base Accord, which I would like. If I went up to the Ex or ExL price point, I'd probably just stay with the Acura.

snakeweasel · April 2020

imidazol97 said:

snakeweasel said:
Police are going with SUVs because they have more interior room and cargo space which is important for police work. They also get better gas mileage than alternative police vehicles especially at idle where police vehicles spend a lot of time in.
I am curious how a V8 explorer gets better idling fuel economy than a V8 Dodge Charger idling.

I'm curious how you're going to get a V8 Explorer that isnt at least 10 years old. The last generation Explorer had the 3.7 V6 cyclone engine for police packages (not sure what the current generation has but I do know that V8s are not available).

graphicguy · April 2020

bwia said:
From Car & Driver. https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a15147575/the-147-mph-hyundai-sonata-car-news/

The 147-mph Hyundai Sonata.

Way back in 2007 a Sonata was clocked doing 147.

"At 5:47 a.m. on Sunday, May 21, [2007] the freeway — the Loop 101 — was empty, so empty that before he knew it his rental, a 2006 Hyundai Sonata V-6, was going 128 mph. Eight minutes later he was clocked at 147 mph, which works out to 82 mph over the limit. He didn't know it, but speed cameras had taken pictures of him as he blew by.

But wait just a minute. Is a Sonata even capable of going 147 mph?
That was the question an Arizona newspaper put to Car and Driver soon after the story broke. If a Sonata could not go 147, then the speed-monitoring equipment was suspect, and so were all the citations."

Having to fight a ticket by a speed camera I was a victim of last year, their accuracy is indeed dubious, at best. What I did find out, at least around here, they don’t quite have the additional man power to show up for all those who allegedly were speeding and decided to have their day in court (like me).

Mine was the first encounter and probably the last in the area the municipality says I was speeding. They used a panel van on the side of the road with the camera operating in it.

I have not seen that panel van, again....anywhere in the same city where I allegedly sped.

They gave me a choice. Pay $200 with no points on my record, or go to court. Clearly, it was a money grab. But, I guess most who were cited decided to fight it, as I got a call from the police dept stating they were dropping the charges. When I asked why, they said there were too many who were willing to go to court and they could not tie up officers and/or prosecutors to handle the amount of cases.

The good guys won.

sda · April 2020

jipster said:

stickguy said:

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)
do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.
Want? Sure. Need? Not really. Would prefer not to have a moonroof. Heated seats and better stereo would be nice. The leather interior of the TLX was excellent. Ride, comfort, reliability, good power (doesn't need to be great) and nice interior are tops in my book. No touchscreen on the base Accord, which I would like. If I went up to the Ex or ExL price point, I'd probably just stay with the Acura.

The Accord Sport 1.5 has the upgraded infotainment with apple car play and android auto. No sunroof, better interior with power driver seat.

jipster · April 2020

sda said:

jipster said:

stickguy said:

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)
do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.
Want? Sure. Need? Not really. Would prefer not to have a moonroof. Heated seats and better stereo would be nice. The leather interior of the TLX was excellent. Ride, comfort, reliability, good power (doesn't need to be great) and nice interior are tops in my book. No touchscreen on the base Accord, which I would like. If I went up to the Ex or ExL price point, I'd probably just stay with the Acura.
The Accord Sport 1.5 has the upgraded infotainment with apple car play and android auto. No sunroof, better interior with power driver seat.

Only black interiors on all sport models. Though on the plus side, I'd be irresistible to women.

imidazol97 · April 2020

snakeweasel said:

imidazol97 said:

snakeweasel said:
Police are going with SUVs because they have more interior room and cargo space which is important for police work. They also get better gas mileage than alternative police vehicles especially at idle where police vehicles spend a lot of time in.
I am curious how a V8 explorer gets better idling fuel economy than a V8 Dodge Charger idling.
I'm curious how you're going to get a V8 Explorer that isnt at least 10 years old. The last generation Explorer had the 3.7 V6 cyclone engine for police packages (not sure what the current generation has but I do know that V8s are not available).

Sorry to be so ignorant. I don't follow Fords. I said I'd never buy another one in 1977 when my Torino 351W engine need timing gears at 70K miles. And I didn't. I did win a 79 Mustang Pace Car which I kept for about 6 months, It was not the V8 model.

So, how do the fuel idle use rates compare for the V6 Explorer and the (I guess V8) Challenger. I recall Explorers having an exhaust leak problem of some kind that prompted a recall.

driver100 · April 2020

jipster said:

sda said:

jipster said:

stickguy said:

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)
do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.
Want? Sure. Need? Not really. Would prefer not to have a moonroof. Heated seats and better stereo would be nice. The leather interior of the TLX was excellent. Ride, comfort, reliability, good power (doesn't need to be great) and nice interior are tops in my book. No touchscreen on the base Accord, which I would like. If I went up to the Ex or ExL price point, I'd probably just stay with the Acura.
The Accord Sport 1.5 has the upgraded infotainment with apple car play and android auto. No sunroof, better interior with power driver seat.
Only black interiors on all sport models. Though on the plus side, I'd be irresistible to women.

It sounds like the Acura dealer (the lady with the nice nails) didn't tell you the special offer was expiring. That seems like poor customer care to me. And, I don't believe their story completely......selling cars is going to be even more difficult in a few weeks, they may come out with a better deal somewhere else. It seems to me that dealer did absolutely nothing for you Jip.

oldfarmer50 · April 2020

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)

Scotty also says that Honda CVTs are reliable. He’s only down on those made by Jatco. His point about a small turbo being more stressed and therefore likely to wear faster makes some sense to me.

I was impressed by the Accord’s rear legroom.

driver100 · April 2020

abacomike said:

When I went grocery shopping Thursday, none of the employees in Publix were wearing masks. Now they are required.
I wonder why this was not implemented weeks ago. I have an appointment at the eye doctor Monday morning and I know they were wearing masks weeks ago when I was last there.

Part of the problem was there weren't enough masks even for hospital staff....so they downplayed the importance of masks. Now that they are finding them and people are making them, they can tell people they should be used as much as possible......especially for people working or being in public.
I wouldn't be surprised if we will be required to wear masks if this dies down but is still around. I find it hard to even imagine wearing a mask.....I'll feel like I am in a bad sci-fi movie.

Michaell · April 2020

driver100 said:

jipster said:

sda said:

jipster said:

stickguy said:

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)
do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.
Want? Sure. Need? Not really. Would prefer not to have a moonroof. Heated seats and better stereo would be nice. The leather interior of the TLX was excellent. Ride, comfort, reliability, good power (doesn't need to be great) and nice interior are tops in my book. No touchscreen on the base Accord, which I would like. If I went up to the Ex or ExL price point, I'd probably just stay with the Acura.
The Accord Sport 1.5 has the upgraded infotainment with apple car play and android auto. No sunroof, better interior with power driver seat.
Only black interiors on all sport models. Though on the plus side, I'd be irresistible to women.
It sounds like the Acura dealer (the lady with the nice nails) didn't tell you the special offer was expiring. That seems like poor customer care to me. And, I don't believe their story completely......selling cars is going to be even more difficult in a few weeks, they may come out with a better deal somewhere else. It seems to me that dealer did absolutely nothing for you Jip.

Dealers do not get any advance notice of program changes. They were probably as surprised (and disappointed) as us customers are about the decrease in the incentive amounts.

Remember, the plants are shut down, so no new inventory is coming. Dealers want to sell cars, for sure, but they also want to maximize profit on each unit sold (or leased).

snakeweasel · April 2020

imidazol97 said:

snakeweasel said:

imidazol97 said:

snakeweasel said:
Police are going with SUVs because they have more interior room and cargo space which is important for police work. They also get better gas mileage than alternative police vehicles especially at idle where police vehicles spend a lot of time in.
I am curious how a V8 explorer gets better idling fuel economy than a V8 Dodge Charger idling.
I'm curious how you're going to get a V8 Explorer that isnt at least 10 years old. The last generation Explorer had the 3.7 V6 cyclone engine for police packages (not sure what the current generation has but I do know that V8s are not available).
Sorry to be so ignorant. I don't follow Fords. I said I'd never buy another one in 1977 when my Torino 351W engine need timing gears at 70K miles. And I didn't. I did win a 79 Mustang Pace Car which I kept for about 6 months, It was not the V8 model.

So, how do the fuel idle use rates compare for the V6 Explorer and the (I guess V8) Challenger. I recall Explorers having an exhaust leak problem of some kind that prompted a recall.

Well I do not know the exact figures but a V6 has 25% fewer cylinders firing in any given time frame so that helps. There are other factors too like idle speed, cylinder displacement and the like.

One article I read stated that an SUV was using a little over 30% less gas than the sedan (cant remember if it was the Crown Vic or the Charger) at idle. Since police cars remain running during the entire shift that can add up quickly.

jipster · April 2020

jipster said:

sda said:

jipster said:

stickguy said:

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)
do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.
Want? Sure. Need? Not really. Would prefer not to have a moonroof. Heated seats and better stereo would be nice. The leather interior of the TLX was excellent. Ride, comfort, reliability, good power (doesn't need to be great) and nice interior are tops in my book. No touchscreen on the base Accord, which I would like. If I went up to the Ex or ExL price point, I'd probably just stay with the Acura.
The Accord Sport 1.5 has the upgraded infotainment with apple car play and android auto. No sunroof, better interior with power driver seat.
Only black interiors on all "Sport" models. Though on the plus side, I'd be irresistible to women.

oldfarmer50 · April 2020

stickguy said:
if you look at how much computer equipment they carry now you can see why they need space. And gear in the back. An SUV is easier to get at stuff quickly instead of fishing around the back of the trunk. I suspect that sitting higher for better visibility is also a big thing these days.

at least around here even the marked cars are blending in because they are making the graphics much less noticeable (a lot of "ghost" cars), and the light bars, etc. are much lower profile. So they look like any other Explorer or Tahoe. Which is why I make sure to watch the speed whenever I see one of those beasts.

my BIL and his wife recently got a new black Explorer (the prior style) (they live in NY) and she did say that people move over for her when they notice her coming up behind them!

They move over for my Mustang too. I think it’s called ‘Ford Respect’.

oldfarmer50 · April 2020

abacomike said:
Here in Broward County, we are now "required" to wear a face mask when going out in public. Face masks are also required for all business employees, managers, etc., who come into contact with customers or other people.

When I went grocery shopping Thursday, none of the employees in Publix were wearing masks. Now they are required.

I wonder why this was not implemented weeks ago. I have an appointment at the eye doctor Monday morning and I know they were wearing masks weeks ago when I was last there.

And if you can’t find any masks because the horders are all sitting on them, what then? Stay home until you starve? Seems heavy handed unless the government is making them available.

roadburner · April 2020

jipster said:

sda said:

jipster said:

stickguy said:

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)
do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.
Want? Sure. Need? Not really. Would prefer not to have a moonroof. Heated seats and better stereo would be nice. The leather interior of the TLX was excellent. Ride, comfort, reliability, good power (doesn't need to be great) and nice interior are tops in my book. No touchscreen on the base Accord, which I would like. If I went up to the Ex or ExL price point, I'd probably just stay with the Acura.
The Accord Sport 1.5 has the upgraded infotainment with apple car play and android auto. No sunroof, better interior with power driver seat.
Only black interiors on all sport models. Though on the plus side, I'd be irresistible to women.

Get an Accord with the 10 speed automatic. The English language lacks the adequate words to express how hard and long CVTs suck.

roadburner · April 2020

oldfarmer50 said:

Scotty also says that Honda CVTs are reliable. He’s only down on those made by Jatco. His point about a small turbo being more stressed and therefore likely to wear faster makes some sense to me.

Just for future reference, any sentence I encounter beginning with "Scotty says" is automatically unread and goes immediately to my neural Delete folder.

jipster · April 2020

driver100 said:

jipster said:

sda said:

jipster said:

stickguy said:

jipster said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

I’d still ask for the original deal. I can’t imagine that they aren’t desperate to sell those cars. Seems foolish on Acura’s part to cut incentives when their inventory is growing weeds.
The email I got back from the sales manager wasn't very encouraging. He said Acura wasnt going to increase incentives, the high incentives were to move inventory and help consumers during the corona crisis, and they would be getting the new TLX's in "soon". Made no effort to try to sell me the car. Basically here's the price, take it or leave it. So, still on the fence with this one.

After doing a little research, I think I will take a look at the Honda Accord. It's base model is very well loaded, and more importantly it's interior is suppose to be as high quality as their higher trim levels (minus the leather). I do like the exterior styling as well. Hopefully it's cloth seats won't be as cheesy looking as some I've looked at. Hard to tell by just looking at a video.It does have the 1.5 liter turbo and CVT..Scotty says "booooo" on both. But, what does Scotty know?. ;-)
do you want any of the features of the TLX that a lower level Accord won't have? Stuff like a good stereo, power passenger seat, moonroof, heated seats, LED lights (just a few things off the top of my head)? They are still nice cars, but IMO that the LX (which admittedly has had some content added to it including Honda sensing) is a bit cheaped out. The sweet spot to me is the EX, if you don't require leather, or EX-L if you do.
Want? Sure. Need? Not really. Would prefer not to have a moonroof. Heated seats and better stereo would be nice. The leather interior of the TLX was excellent. Ride, comfort, reliability, good power (doesn't need to be great) and nice interior are tops in my book. No touchscreen on the base Accord, which I would like. If I went up to the Ex or ExL price point, I'd probably just stay with the Acura.
The Accord Sport 1.5 has the upgraded infotainment with apple car play and android auto. No sunroof, better interior with power driver seat.
Only black interiors on all sport models. Though on the plus side, I'd be irresistible to women.
It sounds like the Acura dealer (the lady with the nice nails) didn't tell you the special offer was expiring. That seems like poor customer care to me. And, I don't believe their story completely......selling cars is going to be even more difficult in a few weeks, they may come out with a better deal somewhere else. It seems to me that dealer did absolutely nothing for you Jip.

Yeah, the sales manager addressed me by the wrong name too...Dan.

He asked if I was a bottom line or payment buyer. I responded "bottom line". He has not responded back. This was 2 or 3 days ago.

roadburner · April 2020

graphicguy said:

Having to fight a ticket by a speed camera I was a victim of last year, their accuracy is indeed dubious, at best. What I did find out, at least around here, they don’t quite have the additional man power to show up for all those who allegedly were speeding and decided to have their day in court (like me).

Mine was the first encounter and probably the last in the area the municipality says I was speeding. They used a panel van on the side of the road with the camera operating in it.

I have not seen that panel van, again....anywhere in the same city where I allegedly sped.

They gave me a choice. Pay $200 with no points on my record, or go to court. Clearly, it was a money grab. But, I guess most who were cited decided to fight it, as I got a call from the police dept stating they were dropping the charges. When I asked why, they said there were too many who were willing to go to court and they could not tie up officers and/or prosecutors to handle the amount of cases.

The good guys won.

As I've noted previously. speed cameras and red light cameras are first and foremost a money grab. I'ts not worth it to the state to take cases to court- and almost certainly losing them- even in the People's Republic of Ohio.

A funny example of the Law of Unintended Consequences: The draconian speed enforcement tactics of the Ohio Highway Patrol encouraged a couple of Engineering majors at the University of Cincinnati to develop the original Escort radar detector. Back in 2012 my son rode with Mike Valentine in his 911 GT3 RS 4.0 at Mid Ohio. My son asked Mike what led him to start designing radar detectors. Mike said, "I like fast cars, and I like to drive them fast."
I'm trading my V1 in on a new 2nd generation V! when the pandemic hysteria finally calms down; I'll especially need it if I buy that orange GTS.

stickguy · April 2020

The Accord sport has very minimal sidewall though and I suspect a stiffer ride, so definitely want to try that out. And I have driven a few Honda CVTs and did not find them objectionable. I think they are one of the better done ones (along with Subaru). The Sport 1.5 is pretty much stripped but the 2.0t is loaded up for some reason.

And as noted, dealers find out the new incentives the same time we do, so they are not hiding anything.

I was thinking too that yes, they want to move inventory but on the flip side, since factories are closed, if dealers get the OK to reopen (and people can start leaving their houses) there could be a little flurry of pent up demand buying, and dealers won't be getting any fresh stock in for a while. So maybe they figure they can sell some during the lockdown, but overall will be better off sitting on the stock waiting to the market to open back up.

Mike, for masks, you can use just about anything. old T shirt, a Bandanna, whatever. I have seen some pretty funky ones. And a whole cottage industry sprung up (big on Etsy) with people making them at home. So unless you have a few doctor styles (the lightweight ones like a dentist wears) you can easily find of make a DIY one.

stickguy · April 2020

I did finally read the fine print on one the many Emails I keep getting from car makers touting how they are helping people out during the corona era. As suspected: "Finance charges will accrue on the full amount financed during deferment"

pensfan83 · April 2020

There is no free lunch.

bwia · April 2020

Well, I finally sold my 1999 Rav4 without really trying and it cost me dearly. Here is the economics of the deal.

Original invoice price…$2,500
Freight and insurance….$2,450
Total CIF………………$4,950
Import duty @ 133% …$6,574
Total final cost ……$11,424

I sold the vehicle for $5,000, resulting in a ($6,424) loss. Sounds like a bad deal, true, but the appraised value was $6,625, so in my mind my economic loss was only $1,625, the difference being depreciation.

Some here may remember I imported the used right-hand-drive RAV4 directly from Japan to the Caribbean in 2014 for $11,424 with 98,000 km on the odometer and sold it 5 years later in 2020 with 136,862 km on the clock for $5,000. I found the car held up well considering the poor condition of some the narrow roads on the Caribbean.

As an aside, as of February 2020 Toyota has sold 10 million Rav4s since its introduction in 1994, not bad for the ugliest SUV on the market.

benjaminh · April 2020

@jipster : I test drove the current Accord before getting my TLX, and I felt the Accord was a lesser car in almost every way. And I was/am a big Accord fan, having owned 4 Accords before the TLX. The only advantage the Accord had that I can recall was more legroom for backseat passengers. Even though Acura's incentives on the TLX are slightly lower than they were a few days ago, they are still good enough that they can put you into a TLX for a very good price on a lease. At the end of the 3-year lease there's the residual price, which on a base model TLX will be something like $17k. At that point, as you know, you can either turn in the car or buy it out for that price.

I think a base TLX is still price competitive with a comparably equipped Sonata, Accord, or Camry. But there's no way a TLX can compete on price with a used Altima. If you really want to save money above all else, that may be the way to go.

AndroidAuto/AppleCarPlay have important features and functionality, and my guess is that it'll be a good idea to get those features on your next car unless you are dead set against it. AA/CarPlay provides you with great navigation—maps and turn by turn directions as you are driving—to anywhere you are going. Once it's set up you just plug in your phone each time you get in your car. In my humble opinion it would be a good idea to get it on your next car whatever brand you are buying.

stickguy · April 2020

I love car play, and I only ever use it for Google maps. Occasionally will do texts with it. Though once we can start using the RDX more I might play around to see what else I can make it do that is useful (I know the wife wants to be able to try podcasts).

if my next car does not have it (Likely it won't since I am probably getting an older car as a spare/toy) I might end up getting a new head unit that comes with Carplay. I assume you can get that, but not sure it would be all that functional without a big screen!

benjaminh · April 2020

stickguy said:
....if my next car does not have it (Likely it won't since I am probably getting an older car as a spare/toy) I might end up getting a new head unit that comes with Carplay. I assume you can get that....

I don't think you can add CarPlay/AndroidAuto onto an old car in a functional and cost effective way.

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