2025 Acura TLX Review

Acura’s 2025 TLX is a luxury mid-size sports sedan starting at $45,400. The luxury mid-size sports sedan segment has become relatively limited in choices compared to other segments, so this Acura makes a strong case with its luxury and performance that comes at a value. For example, the TLX Type S variant offers power and all-wheel drive capabilities beneath its stylish exterior. TLX models also provide long-term durability and advanced tech that foster substantial resale value.

MotoPickers Rating: 8/10

IThere are no significant changes for the 2025 TLX after the model’s 2024 redesign, which included:

• A new gauge cluster
• Fresh front bumper
• Nixing of its base trim
• Updated infotainment screen
• Wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto installation
• Three new wheel options
• Two additional colors

At a glance, the 2025 TLX gas has a sharp exterior, a well-tuned chassis for precise handling, and an array of features enhancing its value proposition, such as the available ELS Studio 3D audio system. However, we’ll be evaluating if its drawbacks, like limited rear-seat legroom, touchpad functionality, and performance in fuel efficiency and ride stiffness, outweigh its upsides.

While analyzing these pros and cons, you’ll receive comparisons to the 2025 TLX’s relevant competitors, which include BMW’s 3 Series, Audi’s A4, Mercedes-Benz’s C-Class, Genesis’ G70, Infiniti’s Q50, and Volvo’s S60. Discover whether the Acura TLX is your ideal mid-size luxury sports sedan with the rest of our review below.

Exterior spotlight

The 2025 TLX features a long hood with tasteful lines sweeping down its middle and side portions, a wide body, and a lower, sporty stance with a 5.3” ground clearance. An available rear spoiler and exposed dual exhaust finishers add to this sporty presence, while the peak TLX grade contains quad exhaust finishers.

Regarding exterior lighting, LED tech is present within the headlights, taillights, and side mirror turn signals, but LED fog lamps and puddle lamps are limited to certain trims. Side mirrors also contain a heating feature but limit power-folding functionality to the Type S trim. The A-Spec trim has distinct styling elements such as a piano black spoiler, and exterior color options include Performance Red Pearl, Majestic Black Pearl, Platinum White Pearl, or Apex Blue Pearl—all of which come in tinted clear coats.

Every TLX trim has its own unique wheel designs, such as 19” shark gray split 5-spoke, 19” shark gray machine-finished interwoven, 19” Berlina black alloy, 20” copper alloy, and 20” Berlina black split 5-spoke varieties. The peak Type S trim communicates its performance emphasis via its exterior through elements like a lower gloss black front splitter, an open surface diamond pentagon grille providing engine airflow, and a rear spoiler, further optimizing aerodynamics.

Exterior accessories can include touches such as gloss black emblems, while more typical features are the power moonroof with tilt and slide and acoustic glass windshield. Overall, the TLX’s exterior is one of, if not this model’s most compelling aspects. Sculpted is a word that gets thrown around a lot when discussing car exteriors, but the TLX exemplifies this description with its dramatic lines forming a bold yet sleek profile.

When it comes to the competition, BMW’s 3 Series, Audi’s A4, Genesis’ G70, Infiniti’s Q50, and Volvo’s S60 all contain more conservative designs. The 2025 Mercedes-Benz C-Class is also more conservative than the 2025 TLX’s exterior, but its hood mimics the dynamic line configuration of its Acura counterpart.

Interior close-up

Acura’s 2025 TLX features a unique-feeling interior that succeeds in reflecting the model’s overall design philosophy. There are no cutting corners when it comes to material choices, as this sports sedan contains quality leather and aluminum accents that add luxury to more performance-oriented design elements such as the wrap-around cockpit.

This wrap-around cockpit includes a drive mode dial, paddle shifters, available sports pedals, and an available flat-bottom steering wheel that gives more expensive competitors like BMW’s M3 a run for their money. Full-grain Milano leather trim upholstery is complemented by contrast stitching and bolstered sport seats for secure positioning. Drivers can also select Ultrasuede synthetic trim, providing a more textured surface and additional grip.

Ambient lighting enhances this cabin’s mood with 24 modes. However, this interior lighting is controllable through the touchpad, which we’ll share our concerns about in our tech section of the review. The 2025 TLX does an excellent job of avoiding an overreliance on touch controls via features like the electronic gear selector with push buttons for gear positions like park, drive, and neutral.

Going in reverse involves using a pull lever, and lower drive gears are accessible through the steering wheel’s paddle shifters. The electronic gear selector also creates more space between spaces, such as cup holders. Non-Type S trims get 12-way power seats with lumbar support, but Type S drivers are treated to 16-way power seats with lumbar support, thigh extension, and side bolsters. Heated and ventilated seats are standard within A-Spec and Type S trims, and dual-zone automatic climate control features humidity control and air filtration.

The 2025 TLX’s primary drawback regarding its interior is the rear row’s limited legroom. BMW’s 3 Series, Audi’s A4, Infiniti’s Q50, Volvo’s S60, and Mercedes-Benz’s C-Class all contain more rear legroom for their 2025 production year, with Audi’s A4 taking the lead at 35.7”.

Power and performance

This iteration of the TLX features a direct-injection 2.0-liter VTEC turbocharged engine for its Technology and A-Spec trims, producing 272 horsepower and 280 lb.-ft. of torque. This engine, along with the Type S, works alongside a 10-speed automatic transmission. The Technology trim is a front-wheel drive (FWD) model with a fuel economy of 22 MPG in the city and 31 MPG on the highway.

A-Spec and Type S trims contain all-wheel drive (AWD). The A-Spec TLX shares the same horsepower and torque as the base Technology grade but differs in fuel efficiency with 21/29 city/highway MPG. A Type S TLX produces 355 horsepower and 354 lb.-ft. of torque via its turbo V6 engine. Mileage for the Type S is 19/25 city/highway.

Acura reports its 2025 TLX as its most rigid sedan ever, made of lightweight materials. While these design elements contribute to solid handling, the rigidity makes the ride stiffer than desired. An available adaptive damper system enhances cornering grip on a variety of road surfaces, and Brembo brakes excel in corners with their electro-servo configuration derived from the automaker’s retired NSX supercar. Drive modes consist of Comfort, Normal, Individual, Sport, and Sport+.

When comparing the 2025 TLX to its rivals’ base non-performance variants, Audi’s A4 finishes last with 201 horsepower and 236 lb.-ft. of torque, while BMW’s 3 Series presents the most competition but still falls short of the TLX at 255 horsepower and 295 lb.-ft. of torque. If you’re seeking the most power within a competitor’s performance variant, a plug-in hybrid Volvo S60 offers 455 horsepower and 523 lb.-ft. of torque.

Tech overview

The 2025 TLX contains dual 12.3” displays—one of which is a digital instrument cluster and the other for controlling vehicle features. In addition to wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, each 2025 TLX comes standard with a wireless smartphone charging pad. Drivers can get more out of essential features like Apple CarPlay with the available ELS Studio 3D Premium Audio System, which boasts 17 speakers, including four slim overhead speakers. Still, the base audio system is also respectable, with 13 speakers.

This luxury sports sedan’s optional navigation system with a 3D view can maintain fast load speeds without a cell signal via its hard drive data storage. Voice command compatibility with natural speech recognition allows you to enter destinations more conveniently, and map details include specialized displays for navigation through interchanges, freeway ramps, and forks in the road.

You can streamline their reception of data that includes but isn’t limited to directions via the 10.5” head-up display (HUD), digitally projecting this information onto the windshield within your road line of sight. The 2025 TLX’s WiFi hotspot can accommodate up to seven devices, and the AcuraLink app allows you to complete remote vehicle commands and contact resources like roadside assistance through your smartphone.

This TLX’s most significant tech downside is its touchpad for the central infotainment system that’s located on the center console. This touchpad lacks an intuitive design with its screen cursor that can easily jump around the display, creating frustration.

While the 2025 TLX is a leader in its class with 17 high-quality speakers, Audi’s A4 offers an available sound system containing 19 speakers. If you’re searching for the largest central infotainment display, BMW’s 3 Series has the largest of its segment at 14.9”. Most competitors similarly have a 12.3” instrument cluster, but Infiniti’s Q50 lags with 7” and 8” options. The 2025 TLX impresses with its 10.5” HUD, but the Mercedes-Benz C-Class has a slightly larger HUD measuring 12”.

Safety capabilities (300)

IIHS (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety) officials have not yet rated the 2025 TLX’s passenger crash protection capabilities, but the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) gave the model its highest rating of five stars in this category.

The 2025 TLX groups many of its standard driver-assist safety features under the AcuraWatch label, with the complete list including:

• Collision mitigation braking system
• Adaptive cruise control with low-speed follow
• Lane keeping assist
• Lane departure warning
• Road departure mitigation
• Traffic jam assist
• Traffic sign recognition
• Forward collision warning
• Pedestrian detection
• Blind-spot information system
• Rear cross traffic monitor
• Auto high-beam headlights
• Front/rear parking sensors

The collision mitigation braking system will provide automatic braking when a crash with another vehicle is deemed imminent. This feature is complemented by pedestrian detection, as some frontal automatic braking systems aren’t as equipped to recognize pedestrians. Forward collision warnings will precede this automatic braking.

Adaptive cruise control with low-speed follow is also significant, as certain competing adaptive cruise control features will limit their operation to higher speeds. Traffic jam assist works alongside adaptive cruise control with low-speed follow to handle automatic braking and acceleration during stop-and-go traffic.

Lane departure warning gives you audible and visual alerts when you’re drifting without a turn signal, while lane keeping assist helps you maintain a centered position with subtle automatic steering inputs to help you avoid these warnings altogether. Traffic sign recognition will communicate posted road info like speed limits onto your display, while the blind-spot information system limits its operation to warnings instead of adding automatic steering assistance.

The rear cross traffic monitor works with front and rear parking sensors to make reverse driving far less stressful, and auto on/off high beams eliminate your need to manually toggle brights at night.

Trim guide and owner considerations

Below is a list of starting prices and highlight-worthy features distinguishing each of the 2025 Acura TLX’s four trims.

Technology (base) – $45,400

The entry-level Technology grade is equipped with FWD, a 13-speaker audio system, and dual 12.3” displays for the central infotainment system and driver instrument cluster.

A-Spec – $50,400

An A-Spec trim enters AWD territory while containing sport seats with perforated milano premium leather and ultrasuede-trimmed interior with contrast stitching.

Type S – $57,750

The Type S boasts the most power with 355 horsepower and 354 lb.-ft. of torque and contains 16-way power front seats with heating and ventilation.

Warranty info

Acura offers 2025 TLX buyers a four-year or 50,000-mile basic warranty and six years or 70,000 miles of powertrain coverage.

Final verdict

Exterior and interior design/looks are the 2025 Acura TLX’s most significant strength. The exterior is highly dynamic with its prevalent use of sweeping lines, and the interior contains a driver-centric configuration with its wrap-around cockpit and electronic gear selector, opening up more space for the center console area. The upholstery choices are stylish with quality textures, and dual large displays solidify its contemporary appearance.

This Acura’s primary downsides are its fuel economy and power levels, even within the Type S. We mentioned that the hybrid version of Volvo’s S60 surpasses the Type S’s horsepower and torque, and this competitor holds a lower starting price. However, you will receive a more conservative exterior and an interior with awkward-looking vertical AC vents surrounding the central infotainment screen.

Still, a plethora of standard safety features and more wireless connectivity help the 2025 TLX remain competitive despite its shortcomings, which is why we’re rating it at 8/10.