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2009 Acura TL Quality Review

May 2, 2009

COMFORT AND QUALITY | 8 out of 10

Expert Quotes:

Rear seat is spacious
Edmunds

Interior storage space is good
Consumer Guide

Material qualities are first-rate
Car and Driver

As Honda's more upscale brand, Acura is held to a higher standard in the quality department, but reviews read by TheCarConnection.com show that the latest Acura 2009 TL doesn't disappoint.

Inside the 2009 Acura TL you can expect to find what Edmunds calls a "spacious cabin." Up front, Automobile Magazine reviewers comment that the "comfortable seats embrace you with deep side bolsters," and in keeping with Acura's upscale image, "both front seats are power, with memory for the driver's side." Cars.com agrees that "the front seats [are] both comfortable and supportive," while reviewers are equally pleased with the rear accommodations inside the Acura TL. ConsumerGuide reports that "headroom is good" inside the 2009 Acura TL, while Motor Trend notes that "the new TL provides noticeably more rear-seat legroom than the outgoing car." In comparison to some of the Acura TL's chief rivals, Cars.com says that the backseat is "vastly roomier than any of the competition from BMW, Audi, Cadillac or Infiniti."

Aside from offering decent performance numbers, the 2009 Acura TL makes its case as a practical family vehicle, thanks to its decent storage volume. Edmunds reports that the "trunk holds 13.1 cubic feet of luggage, a bit less than typical" for the class but not too low to make it impractical. Even though the trunk falls slightly below the class average, ConsumerGuide finds that "trunk space has been increased," but a "rise in the trunk floor...robs most of the gains." Inside the cabin, ConsumerGuide contends that "interior storage space is good" on the Acura 2009 TL.

The interior of the 2009 Acura TL is dressed up with a liberal dose of upscale materials—Car and Driver says that "material qualities are first-rate, and this car feels more upscale than the previous one did." Automobile Magazine agrees, finding that "the quality of interior materials is very good." ConsumerGuide reviewers voice similar opinions of the Acura TL, and report that the interior features "rich-feeling leather, soft dash and door surfaces, and metallic trim" that help justify the 2009 Acura TL's sticker price.

Build quality is also exemplary on the base 2009 Acura TL, at least if cabin noise levels are any indication. Motor Trend notes that the Acura TL "immediately impresses with its quiet," while Cars.com says the latest TL is "almost Lexus-silent." However, stepping up to the higher-performance SH-AWD brings a noise penalty, as these "versions suffer from road and tire noise that are excessive for the class," according to ConsumerGuide.

Conclusion

The 2009 Acura TL is all-day comfortable yet still manages to keep you from sliding during high-performance driving.

COMFORT AND QUALITY | 8 out of 10Expert Quotes:Rear seat is spaciousEdmundsInterior storage space is goodConsumer GuideMaterial qualities are first-rateCar and Driver As Honda's more upscale brand, Acura is held to a higher standard in the quality department, but reviews read by TheCarConnection.com show that the latest Acura 2009 TL doesn't disappoint. Inside the 2009 Acura TL you can expect to find what Edmunds calls a "spacious cabin." Up front, Automobile Magazine reviewers comment that the "comfortable seats embrace you with deep side bolsters," and in keeping with Acura's upscale image, "both front seats are power, with memory for the driver's side." Cars.com agrees that "the front seats [are] both comfortable and supportive," while reviewers are equally pleased with the rear accommodations inside the Acura TL. ConsumerGuide reports that "headroom is good" inside the 2009 Acura TL, while Motor Trend notes that "the new TL provides noticeably more rear-seat legroom than the outgoing car." In comparison to some of the Acura TL's chief rivals, Cars.com says that the backseat is "vastly roomier than any of the competition from BMW, Audi, Cadillac or Infiniti." Aside from offering decent performance numbers, the 2009 Acura TL makes its case as a practical family vehicle, thanks to its decent storage volume. Edmunds reports that the "trunk holds 13.1 cubic feet of luggage, a bit less than typical" for the class but not too low to make it impractical. Even though the trunk falls slightly below the class average, ConsumerGuide finds that "trunk space has been increased," but a "rise in the trunk floor...robs most of the gains." Inside the cabin, ConsumerGuide contends that "interior storage space is good" on the Acura 2009 TL. The interior of the 2009 Acura TL is dressed up with a liberal dose of upscale materials—Car and Driver says that "material qualities are first-rate, and this car feels more upscale than the previous one did." Automobile Magazine agrees, finding that "the quality of interior materials is very good." ConsumerGuide reviewers voice similar opinions of the Acura TL, and report that the interior features "rich-feeling leather, soft dash and door surfaces, and metallic trim" that help justify the 2009 Acura TL's sticker price. Build quality is also exemplary on the base 2009 Acura TL, at least if cabin noise levels are any indication. Motor Trend notes that the Acura TL "immediately impresses with its quiet," while Cars.com says the latest TL is "almost Lexus-silent." However, stepping up to the higher-performance SH-AWD brings a noise penalty, as these "versions suffer from road and tire noise that are excessive for the class," according to ConsumerGuide. ConclusionThe 2009 Acura TL is all-day comfortable yet still manages to keep you from sliding during high-performance driving. 2009 ACURA TL STYLING | [6 out of 10] Edmunds: "Controversial styling could be a hit or miss with consumers" Car and Driver: "Looks better in the flesh than in photographs" Automobile Magazine: "New interior...is indeed seductive" Acura has apparently decided that the Japanese ...

Read More of this Review:

  1. styling
  2. performance
  3. quality
  4. safety
  5. features

Other Choices:

The Audi A4, also redesigned for 2009, is a front-wheel-drive-biased vehicle just like the TL, but Audi has taken great pains to move its mass rearward and make it a sportier, more engaging drive—and they succeeded. BMW's 3-Series is the benchmark for its class due to its magical ride/handling combination, but it's a tighter fit inside and options are pricey. The Cadillac CTS presents as strong a styling statement as the TL, yet does so in an appealing way; rear-wheel drive, a well-sorted chassis, great powertrains, and a sumptuous interior complete a compelling package. Starting in the low thirties, yet with an interior that comes within inches of a Mercedes S550 for richness and room, the rear-wheel-drive Hyundai Genesis sedan is the value leader here, but soft handling means it won't win in the slalom. Volkswagen's Passat also brings great value and a stunning interior to the table, but just like the TL, its front-wheel-drive setup won't thrill driving enthusiasts.

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See the Acura TL in Other Years:

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Comments (2 total)

  1. By Michael #1, Posted: 6/5/2009

    Put 50,000 miles plus on then lets talk about true quality. You review talks about Acura quality but fails to mention that Acura had to be sued to provide support to previous Acura TL models that had issues with repeated transmission failures. From my experience the quality of the GM products far exceeds what I have seen with the Acura TL. For our money we our next car will not be from Acrua/Honda.

  2. By Craig #2, Posted: 8/5/2009

    The TL has excellent driving characteristics, great acceleration however I wasn't impressed with the ride quality on the sh-awd model, the FWD provided more comfort. The tech package is a must. The voice activation takes a few seconds to execute (all of them do though) but it works well. The ELS sound system is unbelievable and unmatched. The navigation has been on spot so far. Interior is busy with buttons but luxurious. Have owned GM cars for 20 years and will not return to them due to poor fit and finish and bailout fiasco. I hope to remain with Acura as I have been extremely happy thus far with their quality.

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