Clearly, nothing fundamental has changed on the Acura TSX since the last time we drove one. Quoting from our last test of a 2004 model with a manual transmission: “It’s an amazingly refined and sporty four-cylinder, front-wheel-drive sedan with a powerful and responsive engine, flawless suspension, seductive gear shifting, and a classy leather interior.” After spending a day driving the updated 2006, we feel the same way – as long as we’re discussing the TSX with the manual box.

On the first leg of our trip driving the freeways and back roads of Las Vegas, we got stuck driving… ahem, I mean we were given the opportunity to drive a 2006 Acura TSX with the five-speed autobox. In normal traffic, the automatic is sufficient for navigating hills and making quick lane changes but doesn’t bring out the sporting characteristics of the car. Get behind the wheel of a TSX with the six-speed manual, and if you could drive blind-folded (please don’t try this at home), you would swear you were in a different car. The TSX comes to life when the 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine is kept in the higher end of its rev range. Unfortunately most drivers won’t run the TSX in the rev range it loves best. Many won’t even approach it before each shift. It would be nice to have more of the power down low where it could be appreciated during day-to-day driving, especially for those choosing the automatic. Shifts are smooth and precise and with a redline of 7,000 rpm, if you dare run it in the sweet spot, the TSX loves to run hard. This powertrain combination is sweet, but sadly, most buyers of the TSX opt for the automatic transmission. They just don’t know what they’re missing.

During our drive we traversed many types of road surfaces. The 2006 Acura TSX was quiet and, in our opinion, the chassis actually behaved better than its big brother, the Acura RL, over the rough stuff. The TSX’s steering was exceptionally precise and nimble without being over-boosted, and fluently transmitted all necessary information from the road. Though the Acura TSX is not a sports car, it is aimed at the enthusiast driver and for the most part holds its own on twisty back roads. Thrown into a corner, the TSX exhibits slight understeer but remains neutral on exit. Keep the revs up on the manual transmission and the Acura TSX can be tossed from corner to corner with confidence. With the automatic, the TSX just doesn’t exhibit the same fun-to-drive characteristics but the reality is that customers opting for this transmission aren’t likely to be driving assertively over twisty back roads.