My Review For 2009 Acura TSX

This review is for the 2009 Acura TSX from a 2005 Acura TSX owner.

I got a chance to borrow a 2009 Acura TSX as a loaner when I brought in my 2005 Acura TSX in for my 30K service.

Although I like the fact that the car is a little bigger and wider, I can't say that I like the new styling all that much. I'm still turned off by the new "Power Plenum" grill as it does not look luxurious at all. To me a car's grill should be like a manufacturer's signature. BMW does this concept very will.

Continuing with exterior appearance, I also like the location of the fog lights compared to the previous generation refreshed model's (2006-2008) location. The current generation's rim is comparable to the previous generation's model before the refresh (2004-2005), which are better looking than the refreshed (2006-2008) version. The rear styling of the car looks pretty good. Everyone I talked to likes the back, at least so much more than the front.

The interior of the car is nice, the leather seats are pretty soft and comfortable. However, some of the interior pieces feel too plastic, and the center console is too button happy. In my opinion, a simpler console is more elegant. I thought that Acura would have added rear passenger air vents in this generation's version already, but I guess not.

The car I borrowed, had the Technology Package as it included the navigation and backup camera. I have to admit, the Tech Pack made me even more jealous that I didn't get the navi in my 2005 TSX.

Driving the car... The 2009 Acura TSX feels a lot bigger than the previous generation, but it also seems "peepier." The engine's beefiness is adequent, but I can understand why Acura is releasing a V6 version soon. The car however does not feel nimble like the pervious generation. The automatic transmission comes with paddle shifters instead of the sequential sport shift like in the previous generation. I can't say that paddle shifters is that much more fun than the sport shift, I think it's all preference when it comes down to this, and I rather have the sport shift. It is however cooler to tell someone your car has paddle shifters.

So what does this all mean? At the end day, it's nice to drive around a 2009 Acura TSX, but I'm much happier with my clean exterior looking, simple center console, sequential sport shift, and nimble feeling 2005 Acura TSX. To quote edmunds.com's review: "The last one was better."