Acura will give the TLX its motorsport debut at Pikes Peak
There will be two TLX 2.0T models in competition with a third Type S prototype serving as a pace car.
The 2021 Acura TLX is already a looker, but Acura is also betting that it's more than just a pretty face.
Acura will make Pikes Peak the official motorsports debut of its extremely handsome TLX , or, more accurately, two of them -- both prototype versions of the TLX that are packing breathed-upon 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engines. There will also be a TLX Type S pace car with a 3.0-liter turbo V6.
The turbocharged nature of the TLX engines is a big deal too, because at the extreme altitude that Pikes Peak is run at -- I was there last year and that air is thin, friends -- means that they will have much more power at the summit than a naturally aspirated car would. I'm expecting it to be a pretty quick car. Of course, Acura won't be letting the TLXs have all the fun. It's also bringing out the time attack-spec NSX that it managed a fourth-in-class finish with last year as its final entry for the year, which promises once again to be great fun.
Probably the coolest thing about Acura's continued Pikes Peak efforts is the fact that the entire Pikes Peak team is comprised of volunteer engineers from Acura and they're responsible for everything. That means developing and testing the cars, prepping the vehicles for the race, supporting the cars at the race itself and actually driving the cars up the mountain.
Now, that isn't to say that Acura is running a real grassroots effort here, but it's definitely scrappier than when Volkswagen turned up in the ID R, for example.
The important takeaway is that Acura should probably go ahead and let me drive one of the TLXs up Angeles Crest after the hill climb "for my work."
Anyway, the 98th running of the Pikes Peak International Hillclimb is set to happen on August 30th and it's going to be amazing, so keep your eyes peeled on Roadshow for more coverage.
