[bigorangecounty]

I'm going to be getting a TSX in about 2-3 months. As of now, I am looking at a black exterior, black interior, 6 speed manual (such an awesome gearbox!) without navigation. My biggest question is how do owners of black TSXs like your black exterior? Does it show excessive amounts of dirt? How about owners of Carbon Grey, does it hide dirt well? Also, does the paint protector (or something like that) that some dealers put on the cars make black TSXs look cleaner or allow it to hide dirt better?
Also, I'm seriously considering waiting to order a 2005 model. What kind of improvements has anyone heard will be made? Any price increases?
Note...sorry if this post makes no sense, I didn't really know how to word this well.

 

[larchmont]

Makes a lot of sense, and IMO you worded it very well. First of all, about the '05's: Would you believe, nobody really knows yet. The rumors for the most part have been that there won't be any significant changes, but, I wouldn't put any credence in that. We don't really know.

I have the Carbon Gray, and yes indeed it shows dirt more than the lighter colors, but not bad at all. I don't find it particularly hard to keep clean and looking great.

The black is hardest of all to keep clean, as I think is the case with all black cars. I think a couple of people have mildly regretted getting the black, for that reason, but only a little, and anyway you couldn't really tell if they weren't just being sarcastic. In fact, it has seemed that everybody has been quite happy with whatever color they've gotten, which is quite a comment on what a good job Honda/Acura did in choosing the colors.

The paint protector (which I don't have, but which has been discussed a lot here lately) does make the car look better. Don't know if it "hides dirt," though.

 

[Thorn2004]

I have heard conflicting stories about the paint protector/sealer, some say it is good but then I have been hearing alot of accounts where qualified people are saying it is a waste of money, and alot of money at that, here it costs 600 odd dollars ! The paint is covered by the 5 year warranty anyhow !

 

[O. W. Kone]

I have always owned black cars - they are the most difficult to keep looking clean - but IMO they look awesome when clean and shiny. Mine is balck intertior as well - yes, it shows dirt easily. I use a dusting mitt, simply run my hand over the interior. You will find the mitts in the cleaning section of Walmart or grocery stores - the mitt holds dust by static so there is no residue afterwards. Just shake the dust off and reuse it - good for 3 or 4 reuses easily.

As for the paint protector/sealer I will not pay big bucks for it. I did get that with the undercoating both for $300.00. The undercoating IMO is worth it for 1) slight added noise reduction 2) added protection from salt during winter.

Choose a good wax and apply it twice a year spring and late fall it will provide adequate paint protection. I used 3M's Show Car Paste Wax on my Integra the paint looked good even after 9 years.

Hope this helps

 

[kiteboy]

The thing with coatings (both over and under the car) is that you can't reasonably expect <1mm of polymers to last several years. So it doesn't make sense to pay several hundreds of dollars for them. Like Kone said, waxing twice a year will yield much better results than a single application of paint sealant.

As for rust protection, the problem is stone chips that expose bare metal. It causes preferential corrosion in the exposed areas and it's actually worse than no coating at all. Like regular waxing, I get my car sprayed every year to insure the coating is renewed. I don't trust the dealer to properly "touch-up" their rust protection annually.

Waxes will create a smoother surface which are harder for dust and dirt to stick to. After waxing, I notice my car stays cleaner for much longer and looks ok even after mild rain (I have Indigo Blue).

 

[pocketkiller]

One thing about the 05 model is that due to the falling American dollar and interest rates on the rise, you may see a slight increase in the price of the car (but there might also be new little features like one touch power windows or snrf etc). If $500 or so doesn't concern you then its probably worth the wait. Carbon Gray is one of the top 3 colors for the TSX in my opinion (along with black and satin silver). It does hide dirt better than the black, but not for very long. I wash mine every weekend, and it never really looks that dirty. By the weekend the paint looks dusty, but not really dirty. I would highly recommend the carbon gray. The black or gray interior would also be the best choice.

 

[larchmont]

One thing about the 05 model is that due to the falling American dollar and interest rates on the rise, you may see a slight increase in the price of the car (but there might also be new little features like one touch power windows or snrf etc). If $500 or so doesn't concern you then its probably worth the wait.....

I'm looking for a larger increase -- like $800. But, WTFDIK?

 

[estern]

I'm not kidding here. My girl friend and I both have TSX's. They are Metor Silver/Gray and Silver/Black. Metor Gray is really very light silver-blue. It's the best looking exterior. The chrome and the wheels contrast nicely. The Silver is nice but not as nice. What I like about the Silver one is the black interior. Looks a little more up scale. I had a black car once, never again.

 

[bigorangecounty]

Well, I just had my black on black, non navi, 6 speed manual ordered! I placed an order on a 2005 model, so it should be here in Sept. or October. I'm already looking forward to that car rolling into Gary Force Acura outside of Nashville.

 

[larchmont]

Well, I just had my black on black, non navi, 6 speed manual ordered! I placed an order on a 2005 model, so it should be here in Sept. or October. I'm already looking forward to that car rolling into Gary Force Acura outside of Nashville.

Is this the first person we know of who put a deposit on an '05?

 

[SAZABI]

Buy one in Vancouver and live here... then you will get the <3