So I went to look at a Mini with my best friend yesterday, and for various reasons, we were really dissapointed with it. Since it was the only car he was considering, we couldn’t really think of anything else for him to try on the spot. Then I thought of the TSX, so off we went to find an Acura dealer. Now, my friend is in an interesting predicament, because he wants to buy a manual car, but he doesn’t know how to drive manual yet. So pretty much, he drives the auto version of the car, to see how he likes it in general, and I drive the manual to tell him how it compares to the other cars we tried, as well as other cars I’ve driven and owned.
Exterior: I rike it, it’s sessy and clean 
Interior: It’s kinda basic, but clean, not too complex and stuff is where it should be.
Seats: Fantastic! These seats hold me really well for a stock seat, the bolsters are great and kept me in place during a VERY spirited test drive. Throw in the fact that they’re heated, and it makes for some very happy motoring.
Steering: Very responsive, lots of feel, and the weighting is perfect. One of the things I hated on the Mini was the excessively heavy steering wheel, it felt like a car with no PS.
Gearbox: Oh dear… I never knew a FWD car can have a gearbox this good. Driving this car actually puts a smile on your face, that’s how satisfying each shift is. The throws are very short, precise and butter smooth. Add in the fact that the gas pedal is hinged at the bottom and very close to the brake, and you have some beautiful heel & toe action.
Handling: Wow. You don’t feel the size and weight of this car at all, it drives like a freakin go-kart. Unless you have coilovers and a good alignment on your 240SX, you won’t be beating any TSXs in the twisties, I promise you, it’s THAT good. You just push it harder and harder and there’s barely any understeer. Body roll was minimal. This is the kinda car you beat on more and more, and it just says “thx lol ^_^”
Motor: Aaaah… here’s the kicker… It’s definitely underpowered. But not by that much, I think that with a few bolt ons, this car could be very good. The motor is very responsive and loves to rev, so it’s not that hard to get it into its powerband. However, I could never imagine having this car in auto, it would be a total, undriveable piece of wood. My friend though drove the auto, and said it wasn’t bad, he felt it had more pep than the supercharged Cooper S that he drove earlier.
Pricing: This was a 2004 6spd with 96,000 on it. I freaked out when I saw the mileage, but when I actually drove the car it was in great shape. The Acura dealer was asking $20,995 for it, which imo is a bargain considering the amount of ass-kicking which comes with the car. If I ever had to get a sedan to boot around in all year, I would buy a TSX for sure. My friend also loved it, and he’s getting one as soon as he finds a black or white one. The one they had was silver, and silver is gay.
