Integra (A-spec tech CVT) vs TLX A-Spec? Coming from a '17 Civic Sport Touring hatch.

[BarracksSi]

Test-drove a TLX A-Spec over the weekend, really liked it, but I didn't have immediate plans to buy anything. Then my wife says, since the used market is cooling off and my '17 Civic's value will drop (back to normal, really), if I want a new car, I should hurry up.

(not interested in a manual Integra; spouse veto, you understand)

Pros of the TLX: AWD, more power, still not an SUV, very nice interior with cooled seats; Cons: Not a hatchback (I've owned only Civic hatchbacks since 1990), touchpad still TBD (I couldn't get CarPlay to connect to test it out).

Pros of the Integra: nicer seats and interior than my Civic, still enough power, still a hatchback, still a normal touchscreen; Cons: not AWD, maybe not enough of a step up for the money with the interior compared to my Civic.

Cargo space still matters because once in a while I might carry my bicycle, and I'm hoping to get back into playing my tuba with local groups. BUT, we also own a CR-V, so I don't exactly need my car to be a do-all, be-all utility hatchback anymore. If the TLX can carry these things without much hassle, that'll be fine.

I also wonder if I'm just getting influenced by ads and Youtube vids into wanting the newest, shiniest thing.

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[Integra23]

Test-drove a TLX A-Spec over the weekend, really liked it, but I didn't have immediate plans to buy anything. Then my wife says, since the used market is cooling off and my '17 Civic's value will drop (back to normal, really), if I want a new car, I should hurry up.

(not interested in a manual Integra; spouse veto, you understand)

Pros of the TLX: AWD, more power, still not an SUV, very nice interior with cooled seats; Cons: Not a hatchback (I've owned only Civic hatchbacks since 1990), touchpad still TBD (I couldn't get CarPlay to connect to test it out).

Pros of the Integra: nicer seats and interior than my Civic, still enough power, still a hatchback, still a normal touchscreen; Cons: not AWD, maybe not enough of a step up for the money with the interior compared to my Civic.

Cargo space still matters because once in a while I might carry my bicycle, and I'm hoping to get back into playing my tuba with local groups. BUT, we also own a CR-V, so I don't exactly need my car to be a do-all, be-all utility hatchback anymore. If the TLX can carry these things without much hassle, that'll be fine.

I also wonder if I'm just getting influenced by ads and Youtube vids into wanting the newest, shiniest thing.

If you get a Teggy, excellent fuel economy compared to the TLX, get the Tech package. For only a few grand more you get so much. I just had a rental Teggy without tech while mine was getting looked at and wow it's stripped down. It was an Aspec cvt but missing everything.

 

[BarracksSi]

If you get a Teggy, excellent fuel economy compared to the TLX, get the Tech package. For only a few grand more you get so much. I just had a rental Teggy without tech while mine was getting looked at and wow it's stripped down. It was an Aspec cvt but missing everything.

Yeah, I’m spoiled now (so’s my wife). Heated seats and other luxuries are things that we don’t want to give up anymore.

I did some more poking around and learned that the trunk space in the TLX is pretty good even compared with the Integra. I should take my tuba along to the dealer and see it firsthand, too.

https://www.autoblog.com/2020/11/30/acura-tlx-luggage-test/

https://www.autoblog.com/2022/08/11/acura-integra-luggage-test/

 

[havok247]

Test-drove a TLX A-Spec over the weekend, really liked it, but I didn't have immediate plans to buy anything. Then my wife says, since the used market is cooling off and my '17 Civic's value will drop (back to normal, really), if I want a new car, I should hurry up.

Acura of Ellicott City eh? I was just there picking up my Integra! Small world. I came over from a '16 Civic (totaled from a storm). I haven't had much time with it to make a real comparison, but it's a decent step up, but nothing revolutionary. Newer car is newer after all. I did have the "Sensing" suite on my Civic, so the improvements to adaptive cruise and lane centering is noticeable. Integra gets decent gas mileage, but I will miss averaging 38mpg on the regular.

Also driving a CVT due to pressures from the teammate.

 

[BarracksSi]

Acura of Ellicott City eh?

Yessir. Closest dealer to me and no markup games. I might also swing by the Laurel store, and I might have an "in" at Pohanka thanks to a friend. We'll see if anyone's willing to deal this weekend.

I'm leaning heavily towards the TLX, honestly. It's about time I get a nice, comfortable cruiser. I'll give the Integra a fair shake, although sometimes I like my Civic a lot — the FK7 is already such a big step up from my EP3 in creature comforts, and the Integra's day-to-day practical advantage might only be lumbar support.

 

[havok247]

Yessir. Closest dealer to me and no markup games. I might also swing by the Laurel store, and I might have an "in" at Pohanka thanks to a friend. We'll see if anyone's willing to deal this weekend.

The "no markup games" is exactly why I chose them over some others. I wanted a very specific spec and called around a lot. I could've possibly received it faster from say Chevy Chase, but they were "requiring" that you add on their ceramic coat and such. I'm not terribly close to EC, but it was worth the drive to support good business practice.

I'm sure you'll enjoy whatever you get! Good luck!

 

[BarracksSi]

The "no markup games" is exactly why I chose them over some others.

Oh yeah — did they have to bring it from Pohanka in Chantilly? The salesman I was talking to, Larry, said that he made the drive to bring an Integra just in the past week or two. He took the long way around on the return leg — up thru Leesburg, then Frederick, then straight on I-70.

 

[Yane-san]

I have a 20 Civic Sport hatch, chosen specifically because it can haul 2 tubas in the back. Despite more volume on the spec sheet the Integra is not as useful for tuba transport (wishing the Integra had the clever retractable privacy cover of the Civic), I checked, and really dampened my enthusiasm for the Integra. Like you I began to think: “for that much money why not a TLX, I don’t move two tubas that often anyway…..” Decided to stick with what I have for now. Think you can’t go wrong with either Integra or just hanging on to the Civic.

 

[BarracksSi]

Like you I began to think: “for that much money why not a TLX, I don’t move two tubas that often anyway…..” Decided to stick with what I have for now. Think you can’t go wrong with either Integra or just hanging on to the Civic.

I know, right? The reason I’m even considering this upmarket segment are because of markups on Civics, which then made me think, Well shit, for over forty grand I might as well look at BMW or Audi…. Then I came to my senses and remembered Acura.

And yeah, if my Civic actually sucked in any meaningful way, this would be a lot easier. I could see myself keeping it for another ten years, too, just like I kept my EP3.

But by then, where will we be with EVs? Our townhome isn’t exactly EV-friendly yet. I have no idea how the Sony-Honda partnership will pan out. I have high hopes for the upcoming GM-based Acura EV, but that’s an SUV, and I’m digging my heels against owning one myself. So a good part of me wants one final, but good, gas car before we switch over.

 

[havok247]

Oh yeah — did they have to bring it from Pohanka in Chantilly? The salesman I was talking to, Larry, said that he made the drive to bring an Integra just in the past week or two. He took the long way around on the return leg — up thru Leesburg, then Frederick, then straight on I-70.

I did work directly with Lary, but no, I got my car after it was delivered from the factory. Smooth experience largely, but the last leg did take awhile as the car sat in a yard near Annapolis for a week waiting for a truck to deliver it.

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