Drove CL2 Luxury Auto this morning. My impressions were:
- Looks ok but is quite bulky at both front and rear and seems to have lost the "sporty" look. Too many unresolved lines but looks better than the Mazda 6.
- Grille is better than the US TSX but is still pretty awful. The sports grille option looks better but is nothing special.
- OEM wheels look crap! Lux 18's look like cheap aftermarket wheels and the 17's on the standard look worse. I have been happy to live with MY06 CL9 Luxury standard wheels but couldn't live with any of the CL2 wheel options.
- Front seats were nice and I loved the P Leather. Feels very good indeed and the leather is softer to the touch than that in the CL9.
- Memory function on the driver's seat is good.
- There doesn't seem to be much if any increase in actual interior room. It looks bigger but doesn't feel it. The rear legroom seemed less if anything with the driver's seat set where I wanted it. I was surprised as was my 18 year old daughter.
- Steering wheel looks good but feels less so. Perhaps a little on the small side.
- Dash looks quite nice when you first step inside but the controls for stereo, air etc are too fiddly, just too many buttons and switches etc.
- Initial impressions are that you are definitely in an evolution of the CL9. You kind of feel "at home" if you know what I mean.
- Accura like satin metallic dash garnish looks classy and breaks up the black.
- Dials are very Civic like and that's a bit disappointing. Again a bit fussy for mine.
- MP3 input is great. Daughter loved it!
- Better outlets for rear air con.
- Boot is OK but access is via a smaller opening than on the CL9. This would make getting larger objects in quite difficult.
- Temporary spare is a real bummer on the Lux with 18"s. Not appropriate for our roads and driving distances IMO.
- Driving was generally good although it wasn't an overly long drive. I did get to give the car a bit of a decent run though through some bends and up a couple of reasonable hills. Power and torque felt good though not more responsive than the CL9 IMO. Probably accounted for by the extra weight and bulk.
- Steering was too light IMO and lacked feel. Also the wheel seemed to twitch in the hand as you steered round a bend.
- NVH was good and probably better than the CL9
- Despite the 10 speakers the stereo sounded much on the road the same as my 06 Lux.
- Saw the same fit and finish issue that someone else mentioned where the side skirt meets the front guard.
- The car looks much better with the OEM full body kit but it is quite expensive. There was one in the dealership for delivery and they took me to have a look. The fit is good and the front and I think also the rear skirts are entire bumper sections and not added to the standard.
- Braking was sure and steady and very responsive but then I have found this to be the case also with my CL9.
Overall I personally wouldn't spend money to change up from my CL9. Maybe if I had 100+ks on mine I'd think about it but with only 40ks it would be quite a large changeover for very little gain in features and I'd end up with a less balanced looking car to boot.
Maybe when the first upgrade comes it would be worth another look.
Cheers
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