The 1996 Acura TL touring luxury sedan marks a significant milestone in the company's marketing history in the U.S. As is obvious from the name, Acura has adopted an alphanumeric designation for this model. Toput the focus on Acura, instead of a growing number of model names, all future Acura models will adopt an alphanumeric designation.
The TL is designed as a touring luxury automobile and offers a sporty and more youthful alternative to traditional luxury cars.A touring automobile is one that's conceivedas a long-distance runner that has the power to take its occupants across the continent effortlessly and in great style. At the same time, it has the handling response, nimbleness and quick reaction to throttle of a sporting sedan. As such, the TL provides a very high degree of luxury, comfort and interior room. The 1996TL Series competes against other mid-luxury cars such as the Lexus ES300, Mercedes C220 and C280 and BMW 3 and 5 Series.
With its combination of luxury, performance and quality, the TL Series further strengthens ACllra'sposition as the number one-selling luxury nameplate in the U.S. market.
Concepts and Goals
The TL is designed to provide:
- Outstanding luxury with a full complement of comfort and convenience items as standard equipement.
- Powerful engines that give excellent performance and response but are also effiecient, durable and reliable.
- Refined and dynamic characteristics, including excellent high-speed directional stability and accurate response to steering input.
- An uncommonly high level of safety in terms of both active and passive safety systems.
- Sophisticated styling that retains a sporty and luxury-oreiented image.
- A spacious interior, with ergonomically designed controls, easy-to-read instrumentation and luxury amenities designed to enhance the driving experience.
Overview
The Acura TL Series, availableexclusivelyin a 4-door body style, comes in two variations: the 3.2TL and 2.5TL.The TL Series has the highest feature content in its class, with Automatic Climate Control and an AM/FM/cassette/CD player standard in all models. And each model is also offered with a Premium Packagethat features an even higher level of standard equipment.
The luxury-oriented 3.2TL is equipped with a 3.2-liter, single-overhead-camshaft, V-6 engine equipped with four valves per cylinder, a VariableInduction System and a direct ignition system. The engine produces 200 hp and 210lbs-ft of torque. The 3.2TL Premium Package also includes a Traction Control System (TCS)as standard equipment.
The sporty, driver-oriented 2.5TL is powered by a 2.5-liter, inline 5-cylinder engine equipped with a single overhead camshaft, four valves per cylinder, Programmed Fuel Injection (PGM-H), a dual-stage intake manifold, electronic ignition and dual knock sensors. The engine produces 176hp and 170 lbs-ft of torque. The 2.5TL also features an innovative, electronically controlled hydraulic engine mount system which helps to reduce noise and vibration.
In keeping with the luxury aspect of the TL Series, both models feature an electronically controlled 4-speed automatic transmission as standard equipment. The automatic transmission features a Grade Logic Control System that reduces gear hunting in up- and downhill driving and provides a more refined driving experience. It also enhances engine braking in downhill driving.
Both TL Series models feature a 4-wheel independent double-wishbone suspension, 4-wheel disc brakes, a standard Acura-designed Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) and a standard drivers and front passengers air bag Supplemental Restraint System (SRS). Both models also feature the advantage of front-wheel-drive technology for excellent directional stability, superior traction on slippery road surfaces and packaging efficiencies that contribute to lighter overall weight.
Structurally, the TL represents the latest advances in rigidity, impact strength and noise isolation. In designing the chassis, the engineers used the latest structural and finite element analysis to provide a tight, quiet interior that effectively damps out road and wind noise. This rigid platform also enhances handling and bump absorption by maintaining precise suspension geomeuy over all road surfaces.