The 2025 Acura TLX Type S is really a four-door NSX

We are all a product of the times. Being a Millennial car enthusiast meant growing up with the most annoying of crowds. Civics and Preludes with their wounded kazoo exhausts and 17-second quarter-mile times. We mostly brushed them off. But there was always one Honda we didn’t (well, one Acura) – the NSX.

What if they made a four-door NSX? What if they already did?

The 2025 Acura TLX Type S Overview

Sport sedans aren’t far behind sports cars or dinosaurs. The options are dwindling. Only the strong survive.

In one corner, we have cars like the Audi S4 (dead), the Infiniti Q50 (is it dead yet?), and the Lexus IS (not dead, but geriatric). In the other corner, cars like the BMW 3 Series, and this Acura TLX – important for their respective brands, and continuously refreshed and updated.

There’s a base TLX with four-cylinder power, or this Type S. It plays in an odd space – more expensive than the IS, far less than the Bimmer with a base price of $57,750. But it has the goods of a true sports sedan. A 3-liter turbocharged V-6, good for 355 horses. There’s all-wheel drive to help negate its front-wheel origins. And it looks like it could slice you in half. Very sexy.

Acura never made a four-door NSX, though they’ve always touted their Type S models as having similar DNA. Is it finally true?

Performance Score: 9. Dancing partner

As much fun as a 1,000 horsepower and slick rubber is, I find that I make the best connections with cars that are precise and balanced. Though I’m usually indifferent when the press guy comes to take the cars away, I wasn’t with the TLX.

Yea idk, can’t find the keys boss.

Engine

Hondas (and by extension Acuras) never make big power, instead going for an even approach. I don’t always agree, but the three-liter V-6 in the Type S is a really sweet piece.

This 355-horsepower unit offers refinement in its normal drive mode, where you might think you’re in a regular Acura. Turn the drive dial to Sport or Sport Plus to bring it alive, with a rumble emitted from four bazooka tail pipes. The power here isn’t stratospheric – it’s all there by 5,500 RPM. What’s nice is the torque – 354, all ready just off idle at 1,400. This gives you a solid whack off the line, and then a nice rush to the top end.

With a redline just north of 6,000 RPM, it’s not a zinger like Hondas of yore, but you can still play a lot with that tach space. Would I be mad with 100 more horses? Of course not, but I never said “too slow, junior” like a Fast and Furious extra.

And the sound? I like it a lot – a baritone crescendo that rises with your right foot. Is it fake or real? Hard to tell nowadays. But it provides another reason to rev.

Transmission

I can’t imagine a scenario where you might need ten speeds in your transmission, but Acura’s unit is the first with as many gears that never calls attention to itself. It never hunts and pecks, confused as to what gear it should be in.

Pull the small paddles behind the wheel and fire off upshifts like you’re snapping Legos into place. So satisfying.

What’s weird? How about the gear selector. It has buttons of all different shapes and sizes, forcing you to look down when you use it. Guys, come on. Just put the gear lever back.

Steering and Chassis

The base Acura TLX is a front-wheel drive sedan, with the Type S adding SH-AWD. SH was actually a Prelude thing (Super Handling), but it means something quite different on this car.

First, the steering. It is excellent, precise, and something I wish every Mercedes or BMW had. Despite the car’s all-season rubber, there was nothing that suggested slop or laziness in the rack. And if you think the TLX’s front-wheel origins are bound to reveal themselves, think again. The only way to provoke torque steer is to crank the wheel hard and floor the gas. Only the most ham-fisted would attempt.

If this were a mainstream car magazine, then I suppose it would mention that the TLX’s ride is never really smooth, and in Sport mode can turn crunchy and rough because of its adjustable dampers. But this isn’t a mainstream car magazine, so I can say that it never bothered me. You want soupy handing? Buy a Volvo.

The reward is excellent body control – I was always aware of what the rear of the car was doing, and how close to the edge I was. That communicative steering helped too, and it all equals a chassis that exhibits poise and precision. The four-door NSX moniker is earned right here.

Brakes

The Type S gets searing red Brembo calipers in front, and they work really well. The discs themselves are nothing exotic – no carbon ceramic or cross drilling nonsense, but they offer perfect pedal firmness and feedback. I was curious, so I looked up braking distance from 70 MPH. The TLX stops in 155 feet, two feet shorter than a BMW M340i. Impressive indeed.

This is a real-deal sports sedan, with its only drawback being a ride that might be too harsh for some. Acura, can I have it back for a week with some summer tires on it?

Lifestyle Score: 5. Size S

If you were to look at the 2025 Acura TLX Type-S from just the outside, you might be fooled into thinking it’s a big car. Math says it’s nearly ten inches longer than a BMW 3 Series, four inches wider, and has a half-inch more space in the wheelbase. Then you get in.

Yea, it’s tight. The roof is low – so low that even if I were to lower the cushion all the way, my hairline is still brushing against the headliner. It’s fine, and I’m on the taller side. There’s also not much leg room in the back seat, so though you can make a family of four fit, if space is important to you the TLX is a tough sell.

But I will say that everything is very comfortable. The front seats are supportive in all the right spots, and the bottom cushion is long enough to support my legs. They hold you in place well during silly time too. The trunk is fine – I fit my roadie case in there, a sign that it will fit my life if need be. It’s a bit shallow compared to some other sedans though.

The effect here is the interior room of a Lexus IS – cross shop wisely.

Fuel Economy: 5. Less with more

The TLX Type S is rated at 21 MPG combined, and I more or less saw that during its stay with me. I will admit to pushing it a bit, so consumption dipped.

The issue here is that while the engine is gutsy and a very nice piece overall, 355 horses doesn’t really justify the drinking problem. I hate to bring it back in, but a BMW M340i averages 26 MPG, a car that features nearly 400 horses and a transmission with two fewer gears.

The Type S is far cheaper though, so perhaps you can use what you’ve saved for gas monies.

Features and Comfort: 7. Here, mousy

The TLX is a great place to be, and has all the tech you’d need. Actually, almost all the tech…

Don’t touch me

It would be impossible to tell the story of this car without highlighting its infotainment system. By now, pretty much everyone has touch screens in their cars, for both good and bad points. But they also feature a dial or knob that can control the system a secondary way. With the TLX, there’s only a mouse pad – no touch screen.

Using this is an exercise in futility. Hold down on the edges to scroll by page, otherwise the mouse won’t move, and don’t scroll too fast or you’ll fly by the app you need. They call is the “True Touchpad Interface”, but I’d love to give you all sorts of colorful metaphors to utilize in its place. Try this out before you buy.

Beyond that, the Acura mostly redeems itself. Opting for Urban Grey on the outside unlocks stunning and soft red leather, with heated and cooled front seats. There’s Apple CarPlay, a HUD, eight million ambient light options, and a configurable digital dash. I’ll also mention the HVAC – good that it’s separate from the mouse, but does it need to have the graphics of the alarm clock I used in high school?

Acura’s ELS sound system is pretty good, and overall, it’s a really high-quality cabin. Just don’t touch the screen.

Have a slice

I’ve had a crush on Acura’s large sports sedan ever since it was called the TL, and this current generation is extremely good-looking.

Painted in Urban Grey (I’d opt for Apex Blue), the TLX is a stunner in Type S form. A unique body kit with black accents, quad exhaust pipes, and Audi-eqsue headlights give an Iron Man vibe.

I love Iron Man.

There’s also 20-inch gloss black wheels (Bronze wheels with summer rubber are an option), and the overall effect here is subtle but mean. I believe it’s one of the best-looking sedans on the market today.

Others sport sedans to consider

• Lexus IS 500
• Audi S4
• BMW 330e
• Subaru WRX tS

The 2025 Acura TLX Type S has earned the right to stay relevant

The Nissan Maxima used to come with a little decal on the window, “4DSC”. That’s four-door sports car.

Acura isn’t so pretentious, but they could be. They have one of the few revered automotive Japanese names in NSX, and even though it’s gone again, the name is like Supra, or GT-R. It’ll never die.

Acura’s problem with that car was always when they had to park it next to something like this TLX in the showroom – never really translated. No more. The 2025 Acura TLX Type S is a real sports sedan, with no excuses made. It would make a great daily, as long as you can get past its infotainment quirks.

Without fail, my email will bark at me at least once a week with a note asking “what kind of car should I buy?” from a random internet follower. Ask me that question in regards to sports sedans before today, and I might have said Lexus IS 500. I mean, that motor…

But the TLX is more than just a motor. It’s been refreshed and updated to keep pace with the competition, and so I might just pick it over said Lexus. It’s a better and more complete package. This is Machines With Souls after all, not Motors With Souls (that sounds fun too though).

Just don’t put a ridiculous exhaust on it.