We have 20,000 miles of good road behind us in the Acura TSX Sport Wagon. With most of our long-term test cars, our goal is drive 20,000 miles within our one year. We passed this number last night driving south on the 405 freeway. I couldn't take a picture of the exact click over because I was in a bit of frenzied traffic. But as soon as I exited and stopped at a red light, I snapped this pic.
This TSX wagon, beloved by many on our staff, is scheduled to go back to the manufacturer on Monday. It will be missed. Both Magrath and I have mentioned that we would purchase this vehicle if it was one of the cars that our company had bought. But it was a loaner from Acura and so we have to relinquish the keys.
In the twelve months that we enjoyed the Acura TSX, our only issue was a cracked windshield which we replaced in December. Other than that it was just the usual maintenance.
Any of you thinking of buying an Acura TSX Sport Wagon?
Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor @ 20,029 miles
7driver says:
12:57 PM, 01/20/12
For some reason that shot of the glareshield over the speedo/tach reminds me of a unibrow.
blueguydotcom says:
01:09 PM, 01/20/12
With a manual I'd consider it. Manual, AWD/RWD it'd be on the list. Automatic and FWD...no.
duck87 says:
01:13 PM, 01/20/12
Give me a stick. And a Type-S suspension package kit. Then yes, I would seriously buy it.
stovt001 says:
01:25 PM, 01/20/12
I'd consider one to replace our Taurus wagon, the auto and FWD would be OK since it would be primarily my wife's car. Too bad it doesn't have the third row like our Taurus does.
someguyposting says:
01:51 PM, 01/20/12
As with others above, I would consider it if it were available with a manual. I understand, though, why it isn't - the market for that is too small. Oh, well.
bimmerjay says:
01:58 PM, 01/20/12
Auto, FWD, 4-cylinder = no sale for me. Car held up really well though, not too many LT testers hit 20K with not a single warranty repair.
hondanut says:
03:30 PM, 01/20/12
As a matter of fact, I did on December 31st. Just like your long termer. It's my wife's car and she loves it. Perfect for our family. Just something nice and reliable.
noburgers says:
05:19 PM, 01/20/12
I would. I love hatches/wagons, but my wife hates them. mutters something about stupid little wagon thing....
I guess I just like a practical car that is lower to the ground than vans/crossovers/SUVs and get better gas mileage. This fits the bill very nicely. I just wish they would drop the word "Sport" from the name because it's not.
noburgers says:
05:21 PM, 01/20/12
@7driver
that dash photo looks like the face of one of those battery powered toy monkeys that clang the tiny cymbals together
church123 says:
07:25 PM, 01/20/12
@noburgers - my SO is the same way. She says she hates wagons (and minivans too), but she absolutely loves her truck - a Chevy Tahoe. Now, admittedly that's a body on frame vehicle, but looks wise, if you lowered it 6" and raked the windshield back a few degrees.......
But I guess marketing wins the day :)
nefariousnigel says:
09:11 PM, 01/20/12
Did anything at all go wrong with it? Anything?
I own the 6-speed manual sedan, but I might have been persuaded to buy the wagon if it had a 6-speed auto (with paddle shifters)....in black.
proe says:
12:27 AM, 01/21/12
I would buy it if it has TL's tranny. In a heart beat if it has TL's engine and SHAWD. Wondering why we dont have TL Wagon?
wheelmccoy says:
08:35 AM, 01/22/12
Bought the 2012 wagon, base trim. I was too slow and indecisive to get the 2011. My family cross shopped it with the Suburu Outback, Honda CR-V, and Mazda 5. I was also very curious about the Mazda CX-5, but couldn't wait till this spring as I wasn't sure our 1997 Odyssey would make it through the winter.
My wife is the primary driver, and the tsx wagon fits our lives very well.
I've enjoyed your posts (and the comments!) on this wagon. Thanks everyone.
nielsmmd says:
12:41 AM, 01/23/12
Well, I have one. Badged as a black (Euro) Honda Accord i-dtec (diesel that is) with a 6-speed manual.
It has now covered over 86k km or some 52k miles. And it hasn't missed a beat, with only one unplanned sevrvice for a broken windshield.
I've enjoyed the posts over and pictures of this lovely car.
dseldin says:
07:28 AM, 01/31/12
Purchased a 2012 Base in November. Very happy with it - a well balanced, thoroughly competent and delightful car. Pardon me for quoting one of your competitors, but this comment rings true to me: "...the TSX wagon isn't an extremely exciting car, but it is an extraordinarily gratifying car."
banksie says:
03:51 PM, 05/16/12
I just bought one (same color and the technology package.) The dealer cost is $32,879 and so you can pick one up just around that price. To be honest, $33k is chicken feed for a car.
I've pretty much owned nothing but German performance cars including BMW Ms, Mercedes AMGs, and plenty of Porsche 911 variants (a Porsche 997TT is the current garage queen, and a BMW E60 550i is the daily.) I bought the Acura for these reasons only: I wanted a basic everyday beater car with utility and no pretentious badge. Yet I still wanted the amenities that I'm accustomed to having (i.e., all the electronic conveniences.) And I also wanted safety (a top pick safety pick from the IIHS) and RELIABILITY. My German cars cost a fortune to maintain and they also create some anxiety in ownership (things tend to go wrong at the wrong time); a front brake job on the AMG was $3000.
There are tons of comments about not enough power and wanting a manual transmission. Those comments are everywhere because a $33k car caters to a demographic that wants a Subaru WRX with a fart can. But this Acura (aka Honda Tourer) is not catering to that demographic. It's a decent car with good reliability that won't own you (like German performance cars.) I can drive the Acura sports wagon in comfort and drive like a normal human being (it's not a performance car), and without worrying about it. If it gets a door ding, so what. I can drive to rural areas and not look like a rich clown (try driving around the Central Valley of CA in a Porsche Turbo.) I can drive onto dirt roads and not worry about damage. I could probably replace the entire motor in this thing for less than the cost of a PDK transmission replacement in the Porsche.
No, it's not an Audi or BMW wagon (much more expensive to own over the years and can be often very finicky) and it doesn't carry the cachet (and that's a positive thing, I hate the stereotyping of German cars.) But it's a perfectly sensible and pragmatic car for the real world. It's very comfortable on trips for exploring new places (again, there's no pretension in a Honda wagon), it handles fine for what it is, it has enough power (unless you have some kind of weird boy racer affliction), and doesn't need coddling in order to remain reliable.