Acura ILX - Gateway to the Brand

It's natural that Acura, Honda's upscale division, would introduce the ILX for 2013. When they jettisoned the RSX after the 2006 model year, they eliminated the crucial entry point for folks to become Acura owners. Since day one of the brand, way back in 1986, there was always the Integra to attract folks for whom a plain Honda just wasn't enough. You can't ignore the Millennials. Now they've fixed that problem.

The car's meaningless alphanumeric names hide its personality, but the ILX, whose name starts with I (is it a coincidence?) has plenty to offer. Based on the always big-selling compact Honda Civic, it wears all the design cues that Acura has worked hard to build. Luckily for all of us, the division has chosen to soften up the shovel face that it inflicted on its cars recently. It's one thing to be distinctive and another to be homely, and the new cars are much easier to take.

The ton-and-a-half car will fit in nicely on today's roads with its overall styling. Interesting is the line that proceeds along the side and hops up over the rear wheel. A lot of creases meet there, creating an interesting and slightly mysterious tension. The ILX does not look much like a Civic, though.

Inside, the car gets the full Acura treatment, with boldly defined dash, doors and console. The sweeping exuberance of the  interior makes riding in the ILX feel energizing, and the tactile feeling of the controls adds perceived quality to the plastic.

The garden variety ILX, which I sampled last Summer, came with a perfectly OK 150-horsepower inline 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine that delivered good fuel economy through an automatic transmission. But this tester, in Silver Moon paint, grabbed the Civic Si's  mightier 201-horsepower 2.4-liter engine, and ran the 170 lb.-ft. of torque through a deeply satisfying six-speed manual. This is a different animal from the plain jane version, and was a hoot to zip along through traffic.

I got it out on some more exciting roads to see how well it would handle it, and it reminded me a little of my old 1986 Honda Civic Si in its taut, communicative steering and suspension and happy whir of its four-cylinder engine. My 90-horsepower Si had 50 percent more oomph than the standard 60-horsepower model. These numbers sound as silly as talking about four-cent first class postage.

The EPA gives the ILX an combined fuel economy rating of 25 miles per gallon (22 City, 31 Highway). I got an honest 27.5 mpg (premium gas). The environmental numbers are a pair of sixes - just above average. The non-turbo 2.0-liter, with its 7 for Greenhouse Gas, squeaks into the SmartWay category. I'm eager to do my part for the Earth, but the 2.4-liter with stick shift is just plain more fun.

There is a Hybrid version of the ILX, as there's one for the Civic, and you can expect 38 miles per gallon in place of 25 - a significant difference worth about $800 a year in gas.

The ILX is built in Greensburg, Indiana, using a Japanese transmission but an American-built engine. Honda has built cars in the U.S. for more than three decades, and most of its cars actually are from U.S. factories.

The performance and look of the ILX make it a worthy playmate, but the Premium Package adds more goodies. These include leather seats, an upgraded seven-speaker audio system, XM satellite radio, an eight-way power driver's seat, 17-inch alloy wheels, a rear-view camera and all the bragging rights. It does amount to a pretty loaded car.

Yes, it'll cost you. The regular ILX, with its standard automatic, starts at $26,795. My tester, with no options, came to $30,095.

There are a few compromises. My tester didn't have a navigation system, which is fine, but the screen in the center dash was pretty small for consulting the other features that run through it. The elegant stitching on the doors is not continued onto the dash, a cost-cutting move.

Acura has just released the 2014 version of the ILX, with a few extra standard features. This might be a fine time to pick up a '13 at a discount. Acura has stocked its showroom with a range of intriguing vehicles, so if they can hook up with you now, you will certainly find something you like later, when you need more doors or seats.

Acura ILX - Return of the Integra

The Acura Integra was introduced in 1986 as the smaller of the two models from Honda’s brand new upscale division. It was popular through three generations until 2001, when it became the RSX (sold in coupe form only) as part of Acura’s change to boring alphabetical names. The RSX disappeared after 2006, when Acura changed its marketing strategy.

However, with fuel mileage and sales concerns, a compact Acura with a new name (starting with “I”) is once again on sale, slotting in under the slightly larger and more powerful TSX.

As before, the new car is based on the current Honda Civic, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at it. Every line inside and out is different—only the basic platform is shared. Here’s how the new ILX stacks up against the last of the Integras and its current TSX sibling:

Car	Length	Width	Height	Wheelbase	Weight	Engine	Horsepower
2013 Acura ILX	179.1”	70.6”	55.6”	105.1”	2,959 lb	2.0 liter	150*
2001 Acura Integra**	172.4”	67.3”	53.9”	103.1”	2,643 lb	1.8 liter	142
2013 Acura TSX	185.6”	72.4”	56.7”	106.4”	3,470 lb	2.4 liter	201

*Base model.

**Sedan. Coupe had a slightly shorter length and wheelbase.

The numbers show that the ILX is slightly larger and heavier than the Integra of a decade ago, but is still significantly smaller and lighter than the TSX.

The current Civic, while hailed for its spaciousness, design and efficiency, has been criticized for the perceived down-market look and feel of its interior. The ILX, however, has the nicely finished dash, doors and seats of its larger brethren. That includes the gleaming gray sweep on the dash trim and the finely detailed instrument panel. The leather seats are comfy, too, and the overall feel of the controls is solid and precise. The leather-wrapped steering wheel bristles with audio and cruise control buttons, silvery accents and a nice chrome logo in the center.

The 2.0-liter engine provides enough pep for this car, and I never felt it lag. Of course, the automatic took care of business for me—and that’s the only gearbox you can get with this engine. In the olden days, a manual transmission was standard with an Integra, but today, you need to buy the 2.4-liter model to shift for yourself. 

To be fair, this likely reflects the market. For example, my older son, who chose an RSX as his first new car, opted for the automatic. Today in the U.S., manual shifting is reserved for true enthusiasts, such as my wife, who proudly flaunts a manual six-speed in her car.

The ILX’s 2.0-liter engine earns laudable EPA scores for mileage – 24 City, 35 Highway and 28 Average. I got 24.7 mpg, driving mostly in town. 

The ILX’s styling is well proportioned and uses Acura’s revised grille design, but it isn’t groundbreaking. There’s an interesting meeting of lines below the rear side window that borrows from the oddball ZDX hatchback. The front and rear light units are carefully chiseled, and the undulating concave and convex side surfaces give tribute to BMWs of the recent past. My Polished Metal Metallic (gray) tester looked well dressed wherever we went, but no-one asked me what it was.

There are two ways to dress up the ILX: the Premium and Technology packages. The Premium Package adds leather seats, a powerful and fully-featured audio system, and other goodies, such as power and heated seats and a rear view camera. The Technology package gives you navigation along with the premium audio, including high-tech benefits such as real-time traffic and weather information.

The quality is higher than a Civic, but so is the price. Honda Civic sedan prices, with automatic transmission, begin at $17,645 while the entry ILX is $26,795. Even the Sporty Civic Si runs just $24,845. There is definitely a price jump to go for the Acura. When you add the Premium or Technology package to the ILX it crosses the $30,000 mark in a hurry. My ILX with both packages came to $32,295.

What’s the competition for the ILX? Lexus and Infiniti don’t offer anything to match it. The Infiniti G20 from the 1990s might compare, but it’s gone. The Audi A3, perhaps? It’s a five-door wagon, but a sedan is supposed to be on the way. It’s slightly smaller than the ILX, but hits the $30,000 price point and has nearly identical engine power. Cadillac has its new ATS sedan, but it’s more expensive—and its 2.0-liter engine is turbocharged. Lincoln has nothing. The Volvo S40 is gone. So, Acura now appears to have the compact entry luxury segment to itself!

This upscale compact, assembled in Greensburg, Indiana with a Japanese engine and transmission, is a nice car, if a bit pricey, and offers exclusivity.