I had a 2003 Acura TL type S that I took to the dealer for diagnostics, and they replaced the takata airbag without even telling me. That car was a real piece of shit, but man was it fast and luxurious.
I've read the Acura was very nice, Honda quality and really fun with the standard transmission. I had entertained thoughts of buying a used one for a winter car one of these days ...
Mine was in the shop almost every weekend. I replaced the transmission once, and even then it never shifted right. Apparently the automatic transmission was a huge problem that year, and Honda never did a recall. It was fast for a v6 (I took it over 100 several times), but the reliability issues make it not worth it. The frame was solid though; one of my favorite things about it was how satisfying it was to close the door, and also the climate controls where you just set a temperature.
I had a 2006 Saturn Vue Red Line with essentially the same Honda J3 series 6cyl 3.5L engine rated around 250HP (some later Acura's were rated up to 305HP in that J3 engine series). The Vue also had the Honda automatic transmission - which worked flawlessly throght 200K miles). What a snappy 3500lb car! 0-60 in around 6.8s. That's partly why I'd like to get an Acura ... more power, luxury, quality (supposedly) and Japanese made. IIRC, the Acura's with +/-300HP do 0-60 in around 6.0s.
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