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Acura TLX Type S vs. BMW M340i xDrive | Sport sedan comparison test

Luxury sport sedans are still turning up on the market, and the Acura TLX Type S is one of the freshest cuts of meat in the window. It’s AcuraÂ’s big return to Type S performance models. Benchmarked against the proverbial best performance sedans of the segment, Acura is aiming to not just to compete, but to win dogfights like these. To see if the return of Type S is all itÂ’s cracked up to be, we decided to pin it up against the historical king of sport sedan shootouts: a BMW 3 Series. Specifically, the Type S is taking on the M340i xDrive, which is this AcuraÂ’s most natural competitor from Munich. Should the diehard BMW driver make the switch to Japanese performance? Does Type S do enough to lift this Acura up to best GermanyÂ’s finest? There are a lot of variables at play here, and they all make it complicated to choose a winner. The similarities between these two begin from the top of the spec sheet and go down. Both have 3.0-liter turbocharged six-cylinder engines — BMW arranges its cylinders inline, while Acura chooses a V configuration. Quick-shifting automatic transmissions are standard. BMW uses an eight-speed unit, while Acura uses a 10-speed. Both get electronically-controlled dampers, big brakes and sticky summer rubber. They each offer up usable backseat space and reasonably-sized trunks. WeÂ’d feel just as confident showing up to an important business meeting in either one as we would at a track day. ThatÂ’s the beauty of this mid-tier performance segment. After looking at their specs, it shouldn't be surprising that the M340i is the quicker of the two here. Its 382 horsepower and 368 pound-feet of torque hit noticeably harder from any speed than AcuraÂ’s 355 horses and 354 pound-feet of torque. The Acura is also carrying an extra 232 pounds of curb weight over the Bimmer, which makes the M340iÂ’s 1-second advantage in the 0-60 mph sprint make perfect sense. For the record, BMW quotes a 4.1-second time, and Acura only offers an approximate time of 5 seconds. Both estimates feel accurate. Beyond sheer acceleration, both engines offer up their own version of tingly feel-goods. BMWÂ’s inline-six is as smooth as ever as it plays its sonorous note all the way to the 7,000 rpm redline. There are few sounds in the automotive universe that surpass the glee we feel when listening to a BMW inline-six at full-chat, and that rule still applies to the M340i.

Honda to lead Rose Parade with hybrid tech

What are you doing New Year's Day? We're probably going to watch Urban Meyer's retirement bash the Rose Bowl, but we love a nice parade, too. To kick the day off, Honda will be leading the 130th Rose Parade with its own float, an Insight hybrid and an Acura RDX crossover. Not only will Honda be celebrating the new year, it'll also celebrate its 60th anniversary in the U.S. As such, the main float will be shaped like a 25-foot-tall birthday cake. And 60 band members from the historically black colleges and universities' marching bands — which recently took part in a battle of the bands sponsored by Honda — will represent the candles on the cake. It'll also be decorated to re-create the look of the automaker's first storefront in Los Angeles. The float will be called "Celebration of Dreams," a fitting title for a company whose founder Soichiro Honda famously said, "The day I stop dreaming is the day I die." (The first thing you see when entering the amazing Honda Collection Hall at Twin Ring Motegi is a large, circular glass sculpture with the word "Dream" and Soichiro Honda's signature). For the parade, the Honda Insight will serve as the official pace car, while the Acura RDX will play the role of sound car. The float itself will be propelled by a modified Honda hybrid powertrain. The main float will be flanked by five "satellite" floats, each representing facets of the company. These will include a Honda Super Cub motorbike; a floral representation of a 1975 Civic CVCC; a float with crash test dummies and an arch with five stars to represent safety; a Honda Accord, which is built in the U.S.; and a float incorporating elements from the HondaJet to represent the future. The Rose Parade broadcast begins bright and early at 8 a.m. Pacific on Jan. 1. Check out the rendering at the top of the page to get a sense of what to expect. Related Video:

Acura Integra's racing hopes hinge on Honda

The 2023 Integra has mostly failed to create the stir from long-time enthusiasts that Acura had hoped it would. However, all is not lost; Acura could perhaps regain some street cred if they took the Integra racing, like they did with the Integras of the 80s and 90s. Brand head Jon Ikeda wants to take the 'Teg to the track, but it all depends on whether the leadership at the American Honda mothership permits it. "We want to race this thing, but maybe the Honda PR and marketing guys might have different ideas," Ikeda told Road & Track. That's because the Integra is largely a 2022 Civic Si with a hatchback form factor and new sheetmetal. Honda already sells a Civic Type R race car in several tunes for various classes in the TC America touring car series. That was based on previous-generation Civic, but in all likelihood will continue the program with the latest gen. A racing Integra, then, would seem redundant. On the other hand, Acura has been highly active in motorsports, from 24 Hours of Daytona-winning IMSA DPi prototypes to NSX GT3 race cars to Pikes Peak hill-climbers. Even Honda's F1 cars were re-branded with Acura livery at last month's U.S. Grand Prix in Austin. And it's not like the Integra doesn't have a long history in motorsports. The nameplate as competed in various North American series from SCCA Pro Rally to IMSA sedan to the Import Drag Racing Championships. Perhaps the most well-known Acura Integras to race, though, were Peter Cunningham's white and neon orange RealTime Racing Type Rs that dominated the SpeedVision World Challenge championships around Y2K. Ikeda has said before that he wants Acura to be the performance brand of Honda, and a rumored Integra Type S is in the works with a more potent engine, possibly a version of the upcoming Civic Type R's mill. "We're the performance division of Honda," Ikeda emphasized to R&T, "So we're not going to shy away from Honda, you know? We're going to just have a little bit more fun." While an admirable goal, the brand will struggle if it's merely the performance arm of Honda. It has to be about performance cars, period. That was part of Acura's magic in the 90s; it offered products that, while sharing components with Honda, were distinct and had their own personalities. The Integra was Civic-based, but it had noticeably better handling, more power, and unique design.