Driving class, part two: Acura TSX review
Our class leader at the Mid-Ohio School really loves Hondas and made a point of thanking Honda for all they do as sponsors of the school. According to Dave, their last set of class cars went 300,000 miles without an engine breakdown - and while I'm sure he meant total, not per car, those would be miles spent entirely on the autocross or track, so that's a proper endorsement. He also told a story of a student who tried for a fifth to third downshift, missed, and got fifth to first instead. It trashed the clutch but nothing else, which is a pretty cheap price to pay for a botch like that.
Mid-Ohio set up their TSXes with seasonal high performance tires and undisclosed "minor improvements," and of course they have five point harnesses for the drivers. I liked those cars. The had enough torque to charge hard down the autocross from any corner, but no noticable torque steer. I thought the shifter could have been a little more short and precise, but I couldn't believe how light the clutch was. When I finally got back in my WRX at the end of the day and put my foot on the clutch, I briefly thought I must be pressing the brake instead. The effort I always took for granted suddenly seemed totally unreasonable. Nice. Sadly I just could not love the interior. The dashboard slopes away from the driver at the top, and yet the windshield is so raked that there's still a very deep dash. It made the car feel bulky without being spacious. I want the driver's seat to feel like a cockpit, with everything right to hand and wrapped tight around me, not slope off into space to satisfy some design stylist. In the early 90s, Acura's design staff knew exactly what I wanted. Not so much anymore.
You know what would have been awesome? Same autocross track, in Honda Fit Sports.
Mid-Ohio set up their TSXes with seasonal high performance tires and undisclosed "minor improvements," and of course they have five point harnesses for the drivers. I liked those cars. The had enough torque to charge hard down the autocross from any corner, but no noticable torque steer. I thought the shifter could have been a little more short and precise, but I couldn't believe how light the clutch was. When I finally got back in my WRX at the end of the day and put my foot on the clutch, I briefly thought I must be pressing the brake instead. The effort I always took for granted suddenly seemed totally unreasonable. Nice. Sadly I just could not love the interior. The dashboard slopes away from the driver at the top, and yet the windshield is so raked that there's still a very deep dash. It made the car feel bulky without being spacious. I want the driver's seat to feel like a cockpit, with everything right to hand and wrapped tight around me, not slope off into space to satisfy some design stylist. In the early 90s, Acura's design staff knew exactly what I wanted. Not so much anymore.
You know what would have been awesome? Same autocross track, in Honda Fit Sports.