Acura TSX 2009 Review

Acura TSX 2009 Review

Acura’s redesigned 2009 TSX sports sedan has unwrapped, weeks ahead of its official intro at the New York International Auto Show, at Tokyo. Its more pwerful than ever before, just to raise the standard for Acura’s entry level sedan.

TSX: Based on Japanese-Euro Accord: has powerful double plenum grille (same as that found on the new 2009 Acura RL) and all.

In the grand scheme of things, Honda does two Accords. One ‘narrow body’ car for Japan and Europe. Then a ‘wider body’ model for North America with different looks. So it goes that this 2009 TSX is closely linked to the new European Accord, which coincidentally went live and got its official launch party at the Geneva Salon in early March.

Photos by Honda

Acura: Going Diesel vs. Hybrid

The real headliner, though, is the introduction of Honda’s second-generation 2.2-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel, a state-of-the-art, ultra-clean engine Honda has confirmed will launch in the U.S. in 2009 and seems all set to drop into this new TSX.

Dubbed i-DTEC, it’s said to be smoother, cleaner and even more refined than the acclaimed i-CTDi engine, Honda’s first diesel that’s sold exclusively in Europe to date. So clean, in fact, that the i-DTEC already meets America’s tough ‘Tier II Bin 5′ emission standards, Honda says, and the next stringent European benchmark — Euro 5 — as well.

True, the diesel won’t have the outright power of the gas 2.4 but if the European TDI is any guide, (it develops a massive 258 ft. lbs. at just 2,000 rpm) it will be in another league for torque. Both gas and diesels come with six-speed manual or five-speed auto boxes.

The big question mark with the diesel will likely be price. Diesels cost more to build and to buy, but offer excellent economy over time and distance. So the price premium needs to be weighed carefully. For fast, smooth-revving driveability, though, these latest-generation Euro diesels are simply a world away from all the clattery diesels of the past. And if gas prices keep rising, the eco-charms of Honda’s efficient new turbodiesel could suddenly win a whole lot of friends.

Acura tsx rear view

TSX’s Euro Style

Visually, the Acura TSX gets a different grille and set of wheels compared with Europe’s new Accord. Size, meantime, takes a sizeable leap upward, the new model being more than 2 inches longer and 3 inches wider, also sitting some quarter-inch lower.

Underneath the rakish new sheet metal lies a substantially more rigid platform with new front double-wishbone and rear multilink suspension

All along, the Acura TSX has been a worthy alternative to the benchmark BMW 3-Series, despite having ‘only’ four cylinders and front-wheel-drive.

So it’s no surprise Acura is rolling out a new one and like its European/Japanese Accord relation, it clearly packs a lot of promise.

Acura TSX : $ 28,960