The folks over at redline reviews did few 0 to 60 runs & got around 4.7 secs. They also ran head to head against an Audi S4 and the Type S was quicker.

 

Trying to understand the target customer for the tlx type s. I get the honda/acura enthusiast. But who else? With the bmw 3 series, the genesis g70, the is350 and is500... why would someone get the tlx instead?

the sh-awd is impressive though and the engine is ok. I think the interior is awful though.

 

They should have released with the Type S to build enthusiasm vs starting with the stand edition. Also, Germans always publish conservative times and usually the mags beat those numbers pretty easily. The Japanese tend to be a little optimistic about their numbers or right on target. I'm surprised they just didn't up the horsepower to 375 to better compete.

 

I guess in a way it's a bit like the Stinger to Kia, a vehicle not so much made to be a volume seller or be competitive with other brands but to serve as a halo model for Acura as a brand, albeit in a more accessible manner than the NSX. The Type S itself and its marketing do everything in their power to invoke the nostalgic Honda/Acura days of yore, and such marketing is so specifically targeted at those who grew up worshiping Honda/Acura that I don't see it bringing much value to anyone else who couldn't give a rat's bottom as to what a "Type S" or "VTEC" is.

I've seen a couple members on Acurazine say that the only reason Acur marketinga is even bothering to compare the Type S to the Germans with the Type S despite being inferior in almost every metric is so that the owner of a Type S who grew up with fond memories of his beat-up Civic can feel that he's "made it" as the VTEC kicks in.

 

This is an easy answer for me since I am ready to replace my car and looking at many of these. This is just how I feel, not preaching it as fact.

BMW 3 - too small. I fit in a TLX and ATS, but not a 3 series. Not sure about an IS or G70, never sat in one. Also, BMW reliability isn't known to be the best, especially coming from the Lexus family.
Genesis G70 - not ready to go off major brand yet. It's a beautiful car, but I just don't trust it yet. I also want something a little more upscale and the Genesis ranks at the bottom of the list for me.
IS 500 - if I fit comfortably and it isn't overpriced it will be at/near the top of my list.
TLX Type S - Plenty of power to have fun with, especially if the 4.5 sec 0.60 is true. On paper it is a great 'middle of the pack' car with a middle price to match. I think it's a very good looking car too.
CT4 Blackwing - Great looking, great performance, also near the top of my list. I just have bad luck with Cadillac.

 

Stinger is flop. Sales have collapsed. The relevance of a halo is nothing. And quality is really bad. There was a owner on here who traded in after just one year.

 

Most other reviewers drove the Type S on a track or really got on it on a empty curvy back road where Doug basically just drives it on the highway and does not really hammer or fully exploit the handling in the cars he reviews(which is likely why owners let him drive their multi million dollar cars). It seems the Type S shines more in a track/empty back road setting when you really get on it as opposed to just some street driving, it also seems to accelerate better from a roll vs from a standstill which maybe why Doug was more impressed with the acceleration on the roll as he does not really do a bunch a 0-60 runs.

It sounds like once broken in a little or trying it a few times the Type S will do sub 5 sec 0-60's and could even get into the mid 4's based on the reviews.

 

Stinger did its job and helped elevate Kia's brand image. That's the whole point of a halo. And from all accounts, it's a better car than the TLX.

 

I wouldn't even consider G70 or IS350 if I were looking at Type-S

 

Not quite all accounts. Savagegeese said exactly the opposite while driving the TLX sporty model.

 

This makes no sense to me. I'm 6'4" and have been driving 3-series for 22 years because it's one of the few cars that size that will actually accommodate a genetic mutant like myself. That's an E46 and an E90, both of which are dramatically smaller than the newer F30 and G20. The current G20 is a full ten inches longer than the E46 I started out in.

There's a lot of things the 3 series gets wrong, but space is not one of them. It is the roomiest car in the compact luxury segment by a country mile.

 

Except that Savagegeese undermined his own opinion by including Jack Singapore, who echoed mine and most others' complaints about the TLX.

 

Hey, I'm not the one who voluntarily chose the phrase "by all accounts." But okay. You win the Internet.

 

For whatever it's worth, the savagegeese video was anything but negative... they definitely praised a lot of aspects of the vehicle, particularly the handling. The only things they were underwhelmed by had to do with the engine and transmission.

Regarding dimensions, it is funny to me that the TLX is more of a midsize vehicle on the outside, yet doesn't have much more, if any, interior space than a typical compact sport sedan (a la 3-series). An IS has pretty much identical front and rear legroom combined, and actually has more headroom. Width is, of course, better in the TLX. However, I'd imagine a 3-series will be even more roomy when it comes to legroom. This is one of the reasons I did not look at the TLX... something about making the car a full 3 inches wider than the average in the segment, yet not appreciably improving interior space, made it seem to me that Acura was over-compensating for the FWD platform on which the TLX is based.

 

arentz, I agree. I heard some commentator say that the existence of SUVs in the Acura lineup gave their engineers "the courage" to remove all the rear seat room from this vehicle. That courage takes the TLX right out of my consideration set. I think it's ridiculous to occupy this much space, power and cost to deliberately build what amounts to a 2-seater with a cushioned package shelf. It's Accord-based, yet only the cheaper car has room for four adults. That's bass-ackwards. (And I believe the poster who said the 3 actually has much more rear seat room than the TLX—which, given the TLX's design parameters of a forward-mounted engine, is doubly unforgivable.) My current car is an older Acura sedan, but given this fact, I won't even consider the TLX as my next one.