Acura TLX - 2018 minor change

The Acura TLX maybe known to be a wilder side of the Honda Accord with a more engaging powerplants, including the one with the DCT on it, but having been around on the road for three years, one can say that whoever drives a TLX can easily find its faults hidden beneath that contrasting design and while some call it more engaging than the Honda Accord, others call it a flaw because its dynamics didn't live up to its expectations.

Now, there's a new version and with that, the TLX tries to become as sporty as the Germans, although the only benchmark the new TLX is in its sights is an Audi A4. At first glance, it comes with the new Acura grille as seen on the facelifted MDX which most observers say it is very ugly to look at, and weird face aside, Acura revamped the wheels and the rear as well as the new sport-oriented A-SPEC trim to make it more convincing than before, although the results aren't typical by some.

The interior remains the same as usual but the hardware's been improved so that now, it features Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. That sounds pretty nice and even though it looks the same as before, it's rather nice to live with even though this is regarded as the Accord's wild sibling. It can still seat five people as with all the other saloons, and it's got numerous amenities to toy around with such as the ambient lighting which is as good as penlights on a concert.

The choice of powerplants remain the same as before such as the 2.4L i-VTEC engine with P-AWS and 8-speed DCT and the powerful but efficient 3.5L V6 VTEC with Variable Cylinder Management  and mated with a 9-speed AT and comes with either P-AWS and a more capable SH-AWD. Because of its same choices, it remains the sane opinion that 

some call it more engaging than the Honda Accord, others call it a flaw because its dynamics didn't live up to its expectations. Well, the V6 variant with SH-AWD is the redeemable variant because it tries hard to be Subaru-ish while gunning down the Audi A4 in its crosshairs but when reality sticks in, the handling's starting to unravel as told by your aching arms but despite that, the behavior is good and with AcuraWatch safety features, it lets drivers drive with confidence.

With prices start at $33,000, the 2018MY TLX is more expensive than the Honda Ccord but less than the Audi A4. Despite the ugly face, the 2018MY TLX tries hard to be as enjoyable as the next one and while it's not as exciting as it seems, it still is good to drive.

Photo: American Honda Motor Co., Inc.