At 1500KM now, I've formed a few opinions compared to my TLX.
It's not very comfortable on the average streets of Vancouver. Coquitlam is great (our roads in this city are very good) and Surrey is either really good or really terrible. It's definitely not as cushy of a ride as my TLX. As far as 'luxury sports sedan' goes, it seems to lean more towards 'sports' than 'luxury' (to me luxury is comfort).
In 'Comfort' mode, the difference in suspension isn't that big to me, the steering feels non-linear, but it could just be in my head. I did just swerve around someone this morning to avoid them as they drove in and out of my lane and that seemed to have gone alright in 'Comfort' mode
The manual/paddle mode turning back to automatic has really turned me off from even trying to drive it in that way but I'm starting to get used to it. I think I'll gradually start from only using it when I need a responsive start/passing to getting back to driving with paddles all the time. Still annoying. The shifts are also very rough. My TLX shifted faster and more smoothly, making me really wish I had a dual-clutch. With that said, given the power curve, I don't really need to use the paddles that often.
Unlocking all the doors by double tapping the button the door is something I still haven't gotten the timing down for so my girlfriend is usually left waiting. The keyfob buttons feel kind of terrible. Probably the only cheap feeling thing about this whole experience.
Gas wise, my average for the 1500KM accumulated is ~11.7L/100KM. In the city I see 13-16L/100KM based on how energetic I'm feeling with the first 1KM being REALLY terrible and highway gets me 10.7L/100KM.
The metal trim around the shifter and drive mode knob is really blinding when it catches the sun. The 'Park' gear shift being a button is incredibly annoying. I always shift up and expect to be in park and I'm actually in 'R'. Fortunately I keep it in mind and I'm extra careful about it. Pain in the butt switching between cars though.
I think I'd like the steering
wheel to be a bit thicker. I find the side bolster a bit shallow once you use the lumbar support but if you keep the lumbar support shallow, you're good.
Reaching for the lane-keep assist button on the left is a bit of a reach for me (5'10") but I also seem to have long legs so that might have thrown off their ergonomics plans. Unfortunately, since it's a bit of a reach and I can't actually see it while driving, I worry about pressing the trunk or gas lid release buttons. It seems like they didn't really want you to turn it off/on while driving compared to my TLX where the button is on the steering
wheel.
The turn signal doesn't turn off after a turn as well as my TLX, it's like it expected more of a turn and the turn I made wasn't turny enough.
The sound outside is great at idle, when you rev it the sound's a bit underwhelming compared to how it idles. Inside, the engine sound on enhanced is fun but sounds fake.
Listening to music is great but the sound system lacks the granularity I have in my TLX for EQ, with no setting for subwoofer volume aside from 'bass', despite having so many subwoofers. The special audio processing algorithms also don't really 'wow' me like the ones in Acuras. But it's still very good and plugged in via
CarPlay sounds so much better than just Bluetooth that I guess it doesn't really need the algorithms.
Performance wise, I absolutely love it. It puts the power down so well. I think the combination of the tires and AWD make it ridiculously controlled. There's a bit of turbo lag but if you plan a second ahead, use the paddles, and watch your torque/turbo gauges, you won't have surprises.
The suspension is perfect for what it aims for. That near-accident today? I felt extremely planted despite the fast hard turns of the steering
wheel. On the Sea-to-Sky highway last weekend my girlfriend and I had a ton of fun. The seats held me in, the lack of rolling felt great with the curves, and the power was predictably available with the paddle shifters or just automatic.
In 'Sport' mode the steering
wheel is perfectly weighted and feels precise, predictable, and responsive. It's fantastic.
Everyone loves how it looks. I love how it looks. My parking stall neighbour told me, "It's the prettiest thing I've ever seen." I've noticed a good number of people turning their heads. Then again, mine's a red car in a sea of grey, white, silver, and black BMWs, Mercs, Acuras, and Lexus with the occasional Porsche.
All-in-all, this whole experience has made me want to buy a G80 Sport for my girlfriend next year or whenever the next refresh might be.
