a new TSX will ring you for about 30 grand even. a fully-loaded V6 accord will ring you for about the same. which would you rather have? the 4-cylinder, smaller car, or the 6-cylinder larger car - features being mostly equal.

of the Japanese luxury brands, it would seem Acura is the one that hasn’t quite got things sorted. i seem to recall a recent web article saying that the brand perception of Acura was horrid - like dead last in a list - despite the reliability cache of a honda. why? i think Acura hasn’t done a good enough job of differentiating its products as you hint at, except in the window sticker department. sure, the acura costs more, but what are you getting for that extra money? it appears most buyers are seeming to figure this one out.

nevermind the fact that recent Lexus ES’s were nothing but rebadged Camry’s, at least the marketing people had established what “Lexus” meant in the public’s mind. it would seem that people don’t know what “Acura” means anymore, other than an upside down “honda” badge.

and JACK: i have another theory for you - in the absence of muscle, people needed SOMEthing to latch onto in their cars. the paradigm shifted from muscle to luxury, much like recently how the paradigm has shifted from SUV to environmentally smug. in the words of SNL’s Coffee Talk lady: “discuss.”