We've driven both versions of the Acura TL: the one most buyers will choose, with the SportShift automatic transmission and all-season tires; and the sporty iteration with the six-speed manual gearbox and wider, stickier tires. Our driving routes traversed suburban neighborhoods, two-lane backroads and multi-lane highways, and included a racetrack, where limits could be explored without interruption from flashing red lights and screaming sirens, or the unexpected bus or motorhome. In all but two measures, the new TL easily met or exceeded expectations.
The V6 engine delivers its abundant power smoothly, pulling strongly all the way to its 6800-rpm redline to the accompaniment of a deliciously tuned exhaust note. Even with traction control active, the front tires can be made to chirp while accelerating out of corners, or when mashing the gas pedal from a full stop. One of the few dynamic complaints we had with the TL torque steer, has been addressed in the 2006 model. Revised engine management system and steering angle sensors combine to help reduce this phenomenon, common among powerful front-wheel-drive cars.
TL is powered by a 3.2-liter, single overhead camshaft, 24-valve, 60-degree V6 with Honda's F1 racing-developed variable valve timing and lift system (VTEC). For 2006, it's rated at 258 horsepower and 233 pound-feet of torque. Fuel economy is an EPA-rated 20/30 mpg City/Highway when fitted with the six-speed manual transmission. The engine meets California's LEV-2 ULEV standards, the second most stringent in the nation for gasoline-fueled cars and exceeded only by limited production, small-engine subcompacts and hybrids (some of them Hondas).
The automatic transmission works well. With the SportShift left in auto mode, gear changes are almost imperceptible, slicker and smoother than in some cars costing more than twice the TL's price of entry. After shifting the automatic into the manual mode, only the upshift from first is automatic, occurring just south of 5000 rpm. Higher gears are held right up to the rev limiter, which steps in around 7000 rpm.
The shift linkage on the manual gearbox is taut and precise, though clutch takeup requires a little getting used to.
The variable-assist steering reacts to road speed and driver input to make for effortless parking and sure tracking on the highway. Hours spent in the wind tunnel reduced to a whisper the inevitable whistles around the outside mirrors. Barely noticeable hissing around the side windows' trailing edges could well have been more reflective of the test car's early production status than of any design shortcoming.
The TL felt comfortable and relaxed at speed on the Interstates, although we noticed more road noise with the fatter, stickier tires on the six-speed model. On two-lanes, the standard setup was no slouch, feeling ill at ease only when taken where most drivers will never go, and by which time all the assorted active safety technologies will have been alerted. At these extremes, the sportier version delighted, its Brembo brakes confidently hauling it down from mildly irresponsible speeds before it tracked unerringly and with aplomb through tight corners over sometimes bumpy pavement. Perhaps, just maybe, Acura has unearthed the secret to BMW's vice-like grip on the top rung of the sports sedan ladder. Unlike BMWs, though, the TL is front-wheel drive, and the front washes out when accelerating hard around a bumpy corner, a point at which the TL does not feel like the ultimate driving machine.
On the track, the SportShift and the all-season tires proved to be a good match. Only carelessness or inattention could get somebody in trouble with this package. The six-speed manual worked well, too. Its six, close-ratio gears allowed the engine to work in its powerband's sweet spot. And the limited-slip front differential properly apportioned the power between the front tires while negotiating fast, sweeping curves and tight, power-sapping, left-right-left esses.
The brakes never evidenced the slightest fade, despite the ever-present bouquet from super-heated pads at the end of each on-track session. But the suspension disappointed us in this closed-course, don't-try-this-at-home setting, waiting a bit too long before taking a set on entering a turn and then bobbing side to side an extra time or two when making quick, directional transitions in the midst of a compound turn. The experience was no where near egregious or over-the-top, just enough to invite a little earlier brake application and a gentle feathering of the throttle the next time around. In the race to catch BMW, Acura is close, but no cigar. Not yet. Perhaps it's the difference between front-wheel drive and rear-wheel drive.
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