The 2016 Acura TLX Elite is a mid-sided sedan with sporty handling, a roomy interior and luxury features. We tried the car for the week to see how it handles in the busy city and in the quiet suburbs.
Exterior
The exterior with the black colour speaks sophistication and class in this luxury sedan. Good smooth lines along the sides of the car, but nothing too stunning.
There is a good amount of trunk space especially if you’re putting luggage in the back or larger items.
The wheels look ok, but its missing a bit of pop to have it stand out. The overall look kinda blends in on the road. If you are getting a higher end car, you want people to notice.
Interior
The auto-dimming rearview mirror is great for when you’re in a parking garage and need a better view of your surroundings.
The metal and the wooden finishes in the interior clashes a little bit.
The Acura Navigation System and touch screen is decent, but I wish they had Apple Car Pay or Android Auto built-in. The other technology packed into this car is pretty standard, but still above other car companies.
The gear box and the parking break has become more sleek and replaced with buttons. At first, this seemed a bit strange and hard to get used to. It does take a while to get a handle on this, but it will come.
My husband and I share a car and we always had different setting when driving in the car. I’m a tad shorter, so I needed to be a little bit closer to the steering wheel and I prefer to sit more upright compared to him. Once thing I liked about this car is that you can pre-program 2 seat settings so it can save your sitting preferences.
There is a good amount of leg room in the back compared to other cars.
In a hidden compartment, you will find the USB port and the power outlet.
The rear view camera is great for backing up into parking spots confidently. The blind spot indicator by the side mirror is great for helping you merge successfully. These 2 features are great for those who aren’t too confident in their driving abilities. It helps give you more eyes around your car so you don’t get into an accident.
Drive
The engine is 2.4-litre, 16-valve, Direct Injection DOHC, i-VTEC 4-cylinder, and has 206 hp @ 6800 rpm. A pretty strong engine and accelerates quite well. The smart all-wheel-drive system that helps keep you safe on both wet and dry roads.
One touch engine start is a nice feature so you don’t have to dig the keys out of your bag.
One feature that I found annoying was the idle stop, even if I was stopped at a stop sign for a few seconds, the engine would turn off. It doesn’t feel smooth and at first its very jarring. The function is intended for you to save fuel when you are stopped for some time, but most of the time I had to end up turning this feature off since I wasn’t stuck in traffic for a long time.
Final Thoughts
The 2016 Acura TLX Elite performs well, but the exterior is modest looking and doesn’t stand out too much from the crowd. It kinda blends in. If you are looking for a classy car that doesn’t break your wallet, the Acura TLX is a good choice at $35, 490.
Website: http://www.acura.ca/tlx/2016
