Older Acura TLs

frisconick · June 2005

I just don't like working so hard LOL

It's my wifes care, I will let her do the work. :P

delmar1 · June 2005

Don't worry about that frisconick...she will hand over the receipt from her detailer...

BTW....I say that colors are regional. Here in So Calif...there are a ton of anthracites everywhere you turn...followed closely by black....then silver. Have not seen a white pearl yet!

billyperks · June 2005

I have the 03 TLS white diamond pearl and it looks astonishing when zainoed, but I have to admit that my wife's 04 Accord Grey Pearl looks a thousand times better when zainoed.

I love to see the look on the neighbors face when our cars are parked in the driveway- the look of envy.:)

samirshah01 · June 2005

Hello
I am interested in either a 2002 TL Type S or 2002 RL.
I know these are two different cars. I want the power of the Type S but have heard a lot of issues with the transmission. I am looking at the RL for the reliability. I would rather go for the TL Type S (more fun to drive) but would only go to RL for reliability.
someone please tell me that the 2002 TL Type S does not have too many problems.
thanks

laurasdada · June 2005

Actually, it's not that hard to Zaino. Just a lot of steps/time. I put on three coats initially. I:

Washed with Dawn to strip all waxes.
Dried very well, ensured no water spots.
Z6, which is simply a spray on/wipe off.
Mixed ZFX w/Z5 as I wanted to cover up small scratches/swirl marks. Applies easily, comes off easily.
Z6
Z5
Z6
Z2 for its higher optical properties.
Z6

And it looks GREAT! No swirlies, most scratches covered nicely. I spent about 7 hours doing this.

A few weeks later I added another layer of Z2, will probably do a Z2/month 'till it gets too cold to apply. An occasional Z5 for the scratches. It really is addicting...

liferules · June 2005

7 hours! Holy cow! That's called dedication! :surprise:

bodble2 · June 2005

I can't spend 7 hours washing my car! Heck, I barely spend 7 hours in the office some days.

frisconick · June 2005

In Nor Cal I see more anthracites than anything, by far.

laurasdada · June 2005

Dedication. Or I've got to get a life...!

You don't need to do three coats in one sitting. Had I just washed/dried/Z6/one coat of Z2 w/ZFX it is less than a couple of hours. Worth it for the cool, deep shine.

Like I said, it could be addicting. Three day weekend coming up. Can I resist a few more coats???

frisconick · June 2005

LOL :shades:

bhelsdon · June 2005

I am a freak about having a clean car, when I owned a black car I found that I washed it at least 2 times a week and waxed it once a month. It was the same with the red car that I owned. Those 2 colors seem to need alot of maintenance That is why I bought a silver TL. The silver can go for a month without needing to be washed and I have only waxed it once in the year that I have owned it.
Black is my favorite color for any car, but I don't have the time to keep up with it.

xrunner2 · June 2005

The silver can go for a month without needing to be washed and I have only waxed it once in the year that I have owned it.

Agreed. Wife has a silver TL and it still looks pretty decent after rain. Could not say the same about darker colors we have owned over the years - dark blue, dark gray, black. You can wash a black car one day, have it rain the next day, and the car looks bad compared to a lighter color such as silver. Had a very light champaign metallic 98 Accord at one time that also was very good at not showing dirt. A white vehicle we have now is better than black, but not as good as silver in hiding the dirt.

Many colors on TL, such as black, look great. But, I am biased toward silver on TL - think that it best shows shapes, curves, angles of body. Darker colors seem to mask these good parts somewhat.

bruizer · June 2005

I've had the 2002 TL Type S for two months and 2500 miles with no problems. The 2001-2003 TL has had a history of transmission problems, but Acura does have a 7 year, 100,000 mile warranty on the transmission.

frisconick · June 2005

Many colors on TL, such as black, look great. But, I am biased toward silver on TL - think that it best shows shapes, curves, angles of body. Darker colors seem to mask these good parts somewhat.

I agree that the dark colors mask the cool lines and shape of the TL, but the blue is awesome in the sun, in the sade it looks black. The TL shape has a lot of subtle things about it's look that dark colors hide. Don't get me wrong, most of my past cars have been dark. That's why my wife, an artist, chose the Silver.

delmar1 · June 2005

Don't count out the Dark Green Pearl... with the different hues from the pearlized finish...the fender flares and sculptured contours are accented by the various color gradations... Of course...I am a little partial.

ljwalters1 · July 2005

Silver and light metallics, in general, help a car look "clean" longer, and I agree that lighter colors show a car's lines better. Darker colors look "tougher" when a car is clean. I think that's why most car ads show cars in either silver or black (though Edmunds has nice shots of the TL in Desert Mist). My last 2 cars have been silver, as has my wife's last 2 vehicles, so silver had a strike against it.

The other problem I have with Acura's silver is that I've only seen them with black (dark gray?) interiors, and I refuse to get a black interior. Generally, I find it makes the interior look smaller than it is, and it also gets very hot. I'm in FL :shades: , so that might exacerbate the problem, but I had an old CL in NJ with a charcoal interior and had the same problem.

Anyway, for some reason, I really love the desert mist - probably does just a good a job of showing the car off and hiding dirt as the silver. I bet my preference for the Mist was that (1) it wasn't silver and (2) not as many cars have a good-looking tan color, making it more special. Alas, I could only locate a 6MT Desert Mist with a black interior.

So now I've got the Green, I've fallen in love with the camel interior (I put a higher priority on interior color than exterior) and really love how the green changes in different lighting, but I must admit, if I could've gotten the car in red, which I think is the lightest color that could come with a camel interior, I think I'd be better off.

Anyone out there with a red TL who can tell me how it holds up to dirt? Anyone with a Silver or Tan exterior who has an interior that isn't dark gray or black? :confuse:

frisconick · July 2005

The TL looks great in any color. But I have a red (maroon) car for the last 9 years and so the reason I bought my wife a silver TL. Red shows the dirt real bad, but when clean, it's a great color.

I love the black interior, however, I live in San Francisco and it rarely gets hot here. We are foggy usually. :P

bodble2 · July 2005

"We are foggy usually."

Aside from the mental state of San Franciscans, how's the weather there generally? :P

frisconick · July 2005

LOL :P

Best weather to visit August through September, June and July is our foggiest months. SF is different from the rest of sunny CA. :P

laurasdada · July 2005

I believe it was Mark Twain who said (something to the effect of): "The coldest winter I ever spent was summer in San Francisco!"

Evil wife's car is white, my prior car was Platinum (silver variation) and a neighbor has an '04 Anthracite TL. Around here, it seems 75% of the TLs are Anthracite, Silver and Black, so I had to be (a little) different, hence Abyss.

BTW, neighbor complains of no vibration in his '04. No bad vibes in my '05 so far. One rattle, when the sunroof is in the "vent" position the overhead console rattles over rough pavement. Time for A1 service, so that along with the "disappearing temperature" reading will be addressed. Otherwise, what a great car!!! Off to wash and Z6 it...

pat · July 2005

take your winter clothes. I didn't, and like to froze to death in 40ish temperatures.

OTOH, if you go to SF in February, take your summer clothes. I didn't and like to roasted to death in 80ish temperatures.

I have decided that San Francisco is far south of the equator ....

:confuse: :sick: :confuse: :sick: :confuse:

frisconick · July 2005

LOL Pat

Why do you think they sell warm clothes at Fisherman's wharf? That should be a hint to the tourists. It will be nice until about 3 in the afternoon and then the wind kicks up and the fog rolls. :P

giovanni1 · July 2005

Hey Pat, you want to keep this on subject please, I see no relavant TL content in your post. ;-)

frisconick · July 2005

Took my TL out last night and really gunned it and the engine roared. This is one quick, and awesome car. :P

frisconick · July 2005

I have no moving violations, nada, but I love this car. Plus, in spite of what BMW drivers say, this car handles great. :P

nightcrawler29 · July 2005

Well I'm in the process of buying a TL and have had a difficult time choosing a color. My last 2 cars have been silver, and wanted to make a change with the TL... however, the silver color is great, because it does look good all the time, and it doesn't get as dirty as darker colors. I also think the TL looks good in white, but they do show off the dirt, and then for some strange reason, I've noticed that birds tend to poop on white cars more. I'm in Texas and park the car under some trees next to other cars. The other cars with darker colors don't get pooped that much, but the white ones usually get bombarded with bird poop.... so I decided on the silver. I do agree that for interiors there's only black and light gray, and that it might get hot in there.... but that's what the a/c is for anyway!... I like the black exterior but they need lots of maintenance and scratches are easy to see.... besides it gets awfully hot in summer!! :shades:

golfnut5 · July 2005

Has anyone replaced their cabin air filter in a 04 or 05 TL? If so, is it difficult to accomplish and can you briefly explain how?

frisconick · July 2005

Now why would birds in Texas poop on white cars more than any other color? That really cracks me up. LOL :P

ljwalters1 · July 2005

the tan metallic might suit your needs - I think it's beautiful. It should also hide dirt, comes with a black interior...and its different than silver!!!

BTW, I haven't noticed white cars getting more bird poop than others, but I have noticed that even though I wash my car only once every 2 mos, I'm 90% more likely to get pooped on within 24 hrs of getting it washed than at any other time!!! :mad:

nightcrawler29 · July 2005

well beats me!... I just used to have a white car and for some reason it would be the toilet for all birds in town... I just couldn't keep it clean for enough time, and had to wash it at least every week.... now I don't know what kind of birds were those, but they must have been some freak creatures from nature... or something out of the Jurasic Park movie, judging by the pile of white greenish semi-liquid crap that they would leave on my car!!... this thing would splash right on the top or on the windshield, and slowly ooze down as if it had been an egg drop or something of that sort... I love the white TL with tan interior, but even though I'm not sure that thing about birds being attracted to white cars for pooping is true or not, that's the kind of experience I've had with white cars. So I think I'll stick to Silver for the 3rd time, because once your car gets pooped, you have to clean it real quick before it starts damaging the paint...... it acts like acid!! :mad:

frisconick · July 2005

Sounds like people with white cars should get car covers. :surprise:

bhelsdon · July 2005

Not too terrible of a job
1. Open the glove box and remove the stoppers on each side and the shock absorber on the right side so the door can swing all the way open( you might want to take everything out first. )
2. Take the 2 phillips screws out of the bottom of the glove box hinges and remove the glove box it self.
3. at the top you will see 2 push pins with a small circle in the middle of them, push the circle part in until it stops and them remove the 2 pins.
4. then pull the plastic piece that was behind the glove box off BE CAREFUL OF THE MAIN TRUNK RELEASE SWITCH you need to unplug it so you don't rip the wires out of it.
5. now you should see the cover for the cabin air filter remove and replace and put it all back together.

xrunner2 · July 2005

Plus, in spite of what BMW drivers say, this car handles great.

We all know that FWD cars feel different from RWD. But, test data show the TL equal to or better than a number of BMWs according to Road and Track slalom test. The TL also handily outperforms cars such as the Chrysler 300 (non-SRT) and other vaunted RWD marques.

Find the data in Road Test Summary of magazine usually about 20+ pages before last page. R & T uses a standardized slalom test, so comparison between cars is meaningful.

The TL is much maligned for being a FWD. Browse through R&T and see that another FWD car, Mini Cooper, beats a number of Porsches in the slalom. I know, the Mini is lighter than the Porsche. But, the Porsche has more power.

golfnut5 · July 2005

bhelsdon,

Thanks for information.

frisconick · July 2005

Great points, the TL numbers are impressive in all tests. It is faster than most BMWs, and handles great. I believe the FWD stigma is over stated. :P

terryl · July 2005

As a self-declared driving novice, my input for someone who does not push their car particulary hard but is considering this car is that the relatively wide turning radius of the TL is a much bigger daily driving dissatisfaction than is any "torque steer" which I only notice when accelarating very hard, and which is quite manageable. It is not something I noticed in my test drives but it may have had me reconsider my purchase. I have read that the Maxima radius is even wider and wonder how anyone parks one of those things!

Also, although I admit I am bitten by the bug for faster cars and would love AWD, the cost in gas mileage as these become more available has me wondering how far I will let myself go in distinguishing "wants" from "needs."

My two cents,
Terry

ljwalters1 · July 2005

Kudos on your turning radius comment. An important drivability facot I don't hear too much about. It is something I'm disappointed in. I think my Toyota Sienna has a smaller turning radius than my TL!!!

bodble2 · July 2005

In all honesty, I have not noticed the turning radius of my TL to be an issue in everyday driving.

terryl · July 2005

Yeah, it is probably as simple as having to park in a situation (which isn't particuarly narrow) wherin with the ability to crank the wheel just a bit more I wouldn't have to do it in two additional steps. After weeks it has become onerous. But if I was just driving straight in to something, you are right, I might not notice it.

Terry

ljwalters1 · July 2005

for me it comes into play when doing a u-turn around a median. If the other side has 1 lane and a small median, I have to do a K-turn, which means I need to wait for a lot longer opening in traffic.

pat · July 2005

Hmm, I never heard "K-turn" before - that's a perfect name!

ljwalters1 · July 2005

I must admit, I didn't invent the term

pat · July 2005

That's okay - I think it's super!

dmarcus48 · July 2005

When I was taking my driving test in 1967 the tester told me to make a 'K' turn. Maybe its a regional term. ;-)

Dave

pat · July 2005

in any case, it can't be age. You took your driving test one year before I did!!!

Ahem. Perhaps we should get back to the TL.

yakuza · July 2005

I had a 2002 Maxima and its turning radius was 40ft. I had to adjust my driving by anticipating when I needed to make a tight turn into a parking stall or a u-turn. It was somewhat of a pain but minor in comparison to the positives of the car.

I just bought a 2005 TL 6-speed and the turning radius is only 0.3 ft better (40.0 ft vs. 39.7 ft) but I do notice the improvement. Oh and by the way, my father has a 2004 Toyota Sienna and its turning radius is much better than either car at 36.1 ft. Correct me if I'm wrong but I seem to remember reading somewhere that the newest Maxima 2004+ has a turning radius of 44 ft. I thought we had it bad in the TL!

frisconick · July 2005

I got used to the large turning radius, however, I have cars with this problem before, and you become skilled at parking, and making U turns. :P

bodble2 · July 2005

Exactly. You learn to "play the angles" to compensate. Therefore, IMO, not a big deal. Not in North America anyway. I suppose it may be an issue if you live in some of the Asian or European cities with their narrow streets.

frisconick · July 2005

Well I live in San Francisco with many narrow streets, and it's still no big deal for me, I have learned to compensate, really not a big deal.

terryl · July 2005

If compensate means get used to putting it in reverse more than with other cars, I still consider this an annoyance. When one needs to "turn in tight," unless I am missing something, there are limited options to get around this. I just feel this has the potential to be a significant driving factor that many people would not get a flavor for even in a long test drive.

Terry

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