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| 2011 Acura TSX Sport Wagon |
As we’ve watched the crossover genre take on a bajillion different permutations of late, it’s refreshing to see a good, old-fashioned station wagon like the new Acura TSX Sport Wagon appear. This is especially true at a time when even the most established wagon-makers continue to withhold or withdraw their best five-doors from the U.S. market.
Then again, we shouldn’t exactly call this a good, old-fashioned station wagon, based as it is on the nimble, handsome Acura TSX (which itself is a fancified version of the European Honda Accord), a car that we at Car and Driver have generally enjoyed in sedan form for years. When it arrives here this summer, the TSX wagon will be offered only in front-wheel-drive form, powered by the TSX sedan’s base, 201-hp four-cylinder engine mated to a five-speed paddle-shifted manumatic. It’s not as exciting a combo as, say, a V-6 and a manual, but it’s a setup that will afford greater odds of success.
The rear end features not just a longer roof and thus a taller, more capacious cargo area than a regular trunk, but also three hidden compartments beneath the cargo floor, as well as a removable side panel behind the left rear wheel housing that allows for lateral placement of long items like a set of golf clubs. Otherwise, the interior is pretty much identical to that of the four-door TSX, and will include lots of standard features, such as power leather seats, a sunroof, Bluetooth, USB/iPod connectivity, and Acura’s latest navigation system. And good news for audiophiles: Acura’s superb ELS surround-sound audio also will be offered in the TSX wagon.
To many of us, however, the wagon model simply satisfies our contrarian streak that loves to see something purportedly “domestic” outfitted with super-fat twin tailpipes and muscular haunches. Acura predicts that the sporty-wagon segment will grow 40 percent by 2014. (What, from eight sold each year to 11? Hi-oh!) We hope the forecasters are right, as we’d love to see more slick wagons like this one arrive to satisfy the demand. Pricing has yet to be announced, but we are told to expect it to land in the mid-$30K range, between the four- and six-cylinder TSX sedans.
The rear end features not just a longer roof and thus a taller, more capacious cargo area than a regular trunk, but also three hidden compartments beneath the cargo floor, as well as a removable side panel behind the left rear wheel housing that allows for lateral placement of long items like a set of golf clubs. Otherwise, the interior is pretty much identical to that of the four-door TSX, and will include lots of standard features, such as power leather seats, a sunroof, Bluetooth, USB/iPod connectivity, and Acura’s latest navigation system. And good news for audiophiles: Acura’s superb ELS surround-sound audio also will be offered in the TSX wagon.
To many of us, however, the wagon model simply satisfies our contrarian streak that loves to see something purportedly “domestic” outfitted with super-fat twin tailpipes and muscular haunches. Acura predicts that the sporty-wagon segment will grow 40 percent by 2014. (What, from eight sold each year to 11? Hi-oh!) We hope the forecasters are right, as we’d love to see more slick wagons like this one arrive to satisfy the demand. Pricing has yet to be announced, but we are told to expect it to land in the mid-$30K range, between the four- and six-cylinder TSX sedans.
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