Gs430Boi

thanks for the info i decieded to purchase a used gs430 now anyidea of wat a used one cost thanks everyone

doug_999

Well now that you have made up your mind, I'll put in my two cents...
For the money, you just can't beat the TL. It is almost as fast as a GS (the people here talking about smoking one have not raced one), has FAR more technology than the GS and has better reliability (per consumer reports) than the GS (ok, I'm comparing the 2002 TL vs. the 2002 GS). I should also add that it doesn't rattle like a GS does either (although I must admit, mine has quieted down since it returned from its month long stay at the dealer, maybe I scared it into being quiet? .

It is however FWD and it is a V6 - so it won't have the torque or the kick your butt out handling that you achieve with a RWD V8 car.

BTW, I am curious if you posted your question on acuraworld.com and if the suggestions were the same as here.

Doug

rominl

iTrader: (4)

depends on the yr and mileage. i think around 35 to 40

it's worth so much more than the tl imho. the power of the gs430 is pretty insane compared to the tl

dbox

can't believe what i just read i guess consumer reports forgot about the (99-03 tl ) transmission failures(my cl-s had 3). my cl-s (same as tl just 2 door) rattled worse than any car i've ever been in. i'm not trying to argue here but i don't see how anyone would want an acura of any kind over a lexus. i have my 99 gs3 and an 00 rl now so i'm no acura hater.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

i am kinda surprised too as my 02 tl-s had lots more rattle than my 98 gs4

Gojirra99

For the same amount of money: Used GS4 > new TL > Used GS3

I' ve had a TL and a CL-S before and I' ve never had problems with the transmissions fortunately.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

well the tranny on my tl-s started to slip when i traded it in, so it's hard to say

Threxx

Maybe I can bring some perspective into this issue, as I currently own a 99 GS400 and went to test drive an 04 TL. I'm not particularly biased toward either brand as I love them both.

After test driving the TL I'm very convinced that it's apples to oranges. Not saying that a new 04 TL is a better or worse choice than a used GS4... I'm just saying that the two cars have very different characteristics.

The TL's chassis definitely feels more BMW-like... very stiff but very controlled at the same time. It definitely handles better than a GS4 as well.

Acceleration was disappointing compared to a GS4... I suspect that a 6-speed 04 TL w/ a good driver would be a pretty even race with a GS4... but with an automatic, no way.

What's more disappointing about the acceleration is that the torque is very weak off the line... the TL has 270 horsepower which will definitely throw you back in your seat at high RPM, but it only has 238 pounds of torque, and the torque doesn't seem to really take its hold until 2.5-3k RPM. The GS4 seems to produce a good amount of torque at just about any RPM.

In terms of noise, the GS4 is also definitely quieter. It also seems to ride smoother- but I guess this is also why it doesn't handle as well.

The place where the TL just absolutely shames the GS is in terms of technology. The entire interior of the TL feels like a cockpit... comfortable, but still, like a machine... everything just falls into hand and looks extremely modern. Then you go to look at the navigation system and the DVD-A surround sound stereo... both of which blow anything the GS4 offers out of the water. If you just put a CD in the TL then the Nakamichi or Levinson stereo in the GS4 is very noticably better. But man, with a DVD-A disc, the TL's stereo is absolutely mind-blowing in terms of imaging and clarity. The navigation system which has an 8" high-res screen and was co-developed between IBM and Honda, is also extremely nice and intuitive. It has a whole ton of cool little features like the ability to sync your phone's contact list with an in-car contact and address list which you can just push a button and say somebody's name and it dials and/or gives you directions to their house. Definitely better than the navi Lexus has out right now.

So overall, if comfort, quiet, torque, build quality, and a reputation for reliability is your deal, I think the GS4 is where it's at.

If you want a manual transmission, a BMW-like chassis feel, better handling, a high-tech 'cockpit', etc, then the TL is a very good choice.

SilverLexo

Quote from Car & Driver:
With 225 horsepower and 216 pound-feet of torque, the standard 3.2TL towed itself to 60 mph in 7.4 seconds, 100 in 20.9, and through the quarter-mile in 15.9 seconds at 90 mph.

My GS4 isn't stock anymore, but when it was it was still faster than that. AND look at the time it took the TL to go from 90-100...a whole 5 seconds? I'll bet my GS goes from 90-100 in way less than 5 secs...
I'll go toe to toe with a TL anyday.

Iceman

225 HP is the old base-model TL. The Type-S had 260 and the new one-size-fits-all version has 270. When you factor in that C&D also says the GS430 does 0-60 in 7.0 seconds ( ), it seems that the cars are pretty close indeed.

GlobeCLK

iTrader: (5)

car magazine tests are usually very unbalanced. Some tested GS430 5.7sec, some 7.0 (that's way whacked). I've seen GS300 tests as fast as 7.0 sec to almost 10 sec. Major BS.

Same thing with the 350Zs, ranging from 5.5 to 6.1sec. WRXs ranging from 5.4 to 6.0. When you compare the fastest tested numbers of the TL to the slowest tested numbers of the GS430, yes the gap isn't small at all. Heck my GS300, if tested at 9.9 sec, is even slower than the Tundra!



I went testdriving the new TL with my friends. It certainly feels good for a FF car. But IMO the TSX and RSX could both do better in terms of handling. Acceleration is good. The interior is not bad, and the gadgets are eye catching. But I can still feel the strong FF feel, being pulled compared to being pushed by rear wheels.

gs400998

Since I have a 02 Type-S and Acura offered free extended warranty for its A/T to 7 years/100,000 miles, I am in no hurry to get another TL soon. Search on 'transmission failure' or 'tranny failure' at acura-tl.com and one will find plenty of readings on its tranny. Not sure whether the new 04 TL with even more ponies has a better A/T, better wait and see whether Acura has resolve this tranny issue.

Gs430Boi

i just got my 2001 gs430 i paid 25000 used it came with 31,000 miles, hids, no dents, only minor scratches with 100,000 mile warrenty bumper to bumper
now my question is that a fair deal or what

doug_999

Sort of. Many car Magazines are just wacked. C&D however tends to be right on the money for a couple of reasons
1. They correct for altitude and for temp - so the times posted are the adjusted times- for sea level and 70 degrees I think.
2. They note when something is out of wack. So when a car with 230hp does 0-60 in 4.6 seconds, they tend to point out that something is not right - and vice versa.

Not really. I took a close look at the numbers and to rate above average, 2% or less of the owners have to have had an issue. From what I have read (on another post), Honda is saying that less than 2% of its transmissions have issues. If this is true, then the Consumer Reports number would be correct. This would also be why the Toyota V6 engines with sludging problems rate so high - it is a small number. Of course if you are one of those 2%, it doesn't matter how small the number is!

gs400998

That's a great price. The Black Books at my CU says $30,390 trade-in price and $34,275 retail price for a clean 01 GS430 with 31K miles.