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2015 Acura TLX

Immediately after landing at Washington's Dulles airport, an Acura representative handed me the keys to a 2014 TSX with fewer than 180 miles on its clock. The four-cylinder engine started and I pointed its signature beak towards a destination in Middleburg, VA. It was a curious move by the Japanese automaker, especially considering that I had flown no less than 2,300 miles to drive the discontinued vehicle's ostensible successor, the all-new 2015 Acura TLX.
Yet spending a solid 40 minutes with a sparkling-new version of the outgoing model that still smelled showroom fresh, allowed me an opportunity to scrutinize the dropped sedan and remind myself why it had never really blown me away - it was good at doing many things, but truly great at doing none.
Time with the TSX also started me thinking about the Acura TL, the second model that the TLX will effectively replace. I have better memories of the slightly larger sedan, especially the SH-AWD 6MT trim - it's a solid driver's car - but it, too, fell short in areas where competitors, including the Audi A4, BMW 3 Series, Cadillac ATS, Lexus IS and Mercedes-Benz C-Class, excelled.

Acura rejoins with Seinfeld, sponsors Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee [w/videos]

We enjoyed the opening season of Seinfeld's offbeat Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee web series, a video serial where Jerry Seinfeld picked up his friends in some of his classic cars and... chatted. It was a simple premise that offered some genuinely enjoyable moments, even if the 'cars' connection was often a bit incidental. In any case, Acura must have felt the same way, as it has just inked a deal to be the sole sponsor for the series' next season.
Acura, you may recall, already enjoys a relationship with the comedian - Seinfeld starred in the company's 2012 Super Bowl ad alongside the NSX supercar concept. So perhaps it's no surprise that it has signed on to sponsor 24 episodes of the series, due to roll out this year and next. Naturally, with any title sponsorship these days, you can expect to see some integration of the sponsor - in this case, Acura says such measures will involve its new 2014 MDX crossover, integrating "short, contextually relevant ads at the beginning and end of the episode."
Will you watch? For a refresher on Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee, check out a couple of our favorite first season episodes with Michael Richards and Alec Baldwin by scrolling below.

These are the top luxury cars bought by people entering the segment for the first time

Let's say you just got a big promotion at work or the kids are moving out of the house, and you finally have some extra money. You decide to blow it all at once and treat yourself by upgrading your ride. Naturally, you look to a luxury automaker. What do you choose?
Models like the Audi A3 and Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class may be tailor-made to introduce buyers to the premium segment, but a new study finds that they don't garner the highest rates of non-luxury customer conquests. It turns out that a Volvo leads among folks moving up to a premium brand, and it isn't even one that's made anymore, at that.
A recent study by Polk and IHS Automotive looked at what models had the highest rates of buyers upgrading from a non-luxury segment. The information comes from its new vehicle registration data through April 2014. All ten top models boasted conquest rates of over 50 percent, but the Volvo C70 led the field with 68.01 percent of its customers coming from non-premium brands.