Why Isn't the Acura TLX Type S Better? Video Review

With all the ingredients of a sport sedan, the only thing holding the TLX Type S back is tuning and execution.

Photo by: Motor1.com

Chris Rosales

By: Chris Rosales

Jun 7, 2025 at 10:00am ET

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There are many trite sayings about chefs, ingredients, and the like, as they relate to tuning a car. All of which I would like to say about the facelifted 2025 Acura TLX Type S, because it is a lesson in the importance of execution over raw parts. With its 355-horsepower single-turbo 3.0-liter V-6, frankly excellent all-wheel drive, and dual-wishbone front suspension—it has no excuses. Yet it falls just short.

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Type S has been around since 2001 as a sub-brand within Acura. It always represented something accessible yet forbidden—close to Honda Type R’s but not quite, thanks to a luxury twist. The first was the 2001 Acura CL Type S, but the most truly memorable Type S cars were the Acura RSX Type S and TL Type S from 2002. The RSX got a 200 horsepower, 8,000 rpm K20 four-cylinder engine, while the TL got larger Brembo brakes and a handling package to better complement its 286-horsepower 3.5-liter V-6.

The TLX Type S, then, represents an extreme Type S product. Acura painstakingly developed the aforementioned 3.0 V-6 just for the MDX and TLX Type S. The TLX is a car unique to Acura, with special body construction allowing a large (for a front-drive based car) dash-to-axle ratio. Even with every ingredient, it commits just a few critical (and fixable) sins. Watch our newest YouTube video to find out where it fell short.