3.5L A-Spec Pkg 4dr SH-AWD Sedan
2020 Acura TLX Review
Valencia Red Pearl. That’s the story with the 2020 Acura TLX PMC Edition. We got to see this limited edition TLX sedan at the New York Auto Show last year, but now it’s in my driveway. The show lights don’t do this paint justice. The setting sun reflecting off the deep and vibrant red ... now that's how this car is meant to be gazed upon.
Like I mentioned in the video walkaround above, the TLX PMC Edition is hand-assembled at the Performance Manufacturing Center in Ohio. The body-in-white is trundled across town to the NSX supercar factory where those technicians do the rest to make it road-worthy. All 360 of them are being wrapped in their own special car covers and delivered to dealers on an enclosed truck to make sure it arrives without a single exterior flaw.
About that paint
Valencia Red Pearl is a $6,000 paint option on the Acura NSX. On the TLX PMC, it’s $0. The paint process itself is time consuming and intensive. Acura says the vibrancy and high-color saturation is thanks to nano pigment technology.
“Engineered using mica, metal flake and super-high transparency nano pigments, the paint is applied using PMC's advanced robotic paint system in multiple base coats to enhance color intensity. This is followed by two clear coats to increase the paint's luster,” Acura’s description reads.
The five-day process is well worth it. I’ve tried my best to illustrate it through photos and video, but it’s still not representative enough of this red paint. It has a depth and shimmer to it, as if the body panels were a swimming pool, awaiting a cannonball dive into the deep end.
This car being an exclusive, special edition vehicle hasn’t destroyed the value proposition either. In actuality, the TLX PMC is the one to buy if you want a fully-loaded TLX. Acura doesn’t allow you to option the A-Spec and Advance packages together with the standard TLX, but both of those are included with the PMC Edition. If you were able to combine all those packages, the final price would ring up to $50,650. The final price on our test car is $50,945, including the $1,995 destination charge on the sticker. Basically, you’re getting every option in the book at around list price, plus all of the special PMC Edition extras for next to nothing. Why yes, of course we’ll have the PMC Edition.
It drives just like the TLX A-Spec — check out our full review of that car here. The 290-horsepower 3.5-liter V6 sings a classic Honda soundtrack to about 7,000 rpm, and the nine-speed transmission is remarkably responsive in Sport Plus mode. It becomes a sloth in any other mode, even resisting downshifts in Sport. That SH-AWD system continues to be a joy when pushed — it’ll even provide for a playful rear end if you turn off traction control. The straight line speed doesn’t compare to quicker, turbocharged rivals (neither does the interior), but the talkative steering and confidence-inspiring chassis makes this a true sport sedan.
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