Acura bringing back TLX Type S sport sedan for 2021

If sedans are dead, no one told Acura.

Honda’s luxury division doubled down on its commitment to four-door cars, this week taking the wraps off its all-new, seriously invigorated 2021 TLX — including a Type S variant.

The TLX’s new platform not only replaces the pedestrian strut front suspension setup with a double-wishbone arrangement similar to that on its NSX, base models reap a 32% boost in horsepower.

Despite the displacement of the new direct-injection four-cylinder engine shrinking from 2.4 liters to 2.0 liters, the switch to turbocharging pays off with 272 horsepower and 280 lb.-ft. of torque. That’s 66 more horses and close to 100 lb.-ft. more torque. (In fact, at 1500 rpm, the 2021 TLX’s new VTEC four will dish out 123 lb.-ft. more torque than the current non-turbo 2.4-liter at the same engine speed.) All 2021s will come with a 10-speed automatic transmission, regardless of engine.

No specifics from Acura on the output of the turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 that will motivate the Type S version, but the manufacturer said low-end torque will rise by more than 50%. (The 2020 3.5-liter V6 reaches 267 lb. ft. at 4,500 rpm.)

When it arrives this fall, the 2021 TLX will start in the mid-$30,000s, according to Acura. The Type S, set to reach dealerships in the spring of 2021, comes exclusively with the dual-scroll turbo six and, for the first time, all-wheel-drive. On the current 2020 TLXs, the V6 is a $3,200 upcharge while Acura’s “super handling all-wheel-drive” runs $2,000.

The 2021 will mark the TLX’s second generation. The wheelbase is 3.7 inches longer while the body is wider by 2.2 inches. While the roof sits 0.6 inches lower, the front and rear tracks increase by 1.2 inches and 1.6 inches,...