By Jim Meachen and Ted Biederman

Gaining that wonderful feeling that all is right with the world can be achieved without the benefit of mind-altering substances.

It’s possible to reach this level of nirvana on the open road behind the wheel of an automobile that fits like a glove — a car that has the rare ability to become one with the driver, a vehicle that answers all requests with a “can do” attitude, and it’s affordable.

By Jim Meachen and Ted Biederman

If you need a third-row seat and enough towing capacity to pull a recreational vehicle or a boat, you can skip this review.

If you need the security of a sophisticated all-wheel drive system in a high-riding vehicle that goes fast, handles like a sports car and pampers its passengers with luxury appointments, then continue reading. In other words, if you want a small, nimble crossover with luxury intentions and loads of excitement, you have arrived at the right place.

By Jim Meachen and Ted Biederman

The automotive mantra when a manufacturer launches a new or significantly upgraded vehicle is that it has held the line on prices, particularly when figuring in equipment now standard that was optional last year.

But Acura is making no such claim for its all-new MDX premium sport utility. And it can’t, because prices have shot up between 7.6 and 8.1 percent depending on packages selected. Acura says it has figured in all the new features now available as standard equipment and the price hike is just 6.2 percent.

By Jim Meachen and Ted Biederman

The Acura TL is one of our favorite vehicles with its combination of style, performance, impeccable fit and finish and remarkable bang for the hard-earned buck.

More bang has been added this year, the fourth of its current iteration. The Type S edition has been reinstated after a three-year hiatus, which means extra horsepower and a stiffer suspension setup. It means more driver enthusiast enjoyment in a vehicle already chock full of smile-inducing highway pleasure.

By Ted Biederman and Jim Meachen

Gaining that wonderful feeling that all is right with the world can be achieved without the benefit of mind-altering substances.

It’s possible to reach this level of nirvana on the open road behind the wheel of an automobile that fits like a glove. A car that has the rare ability to become one with the driver; a vehicle that answers all requests with a can do attitude.

By Jim Meachen and Ted Biederman

We were blown away by the looks of the 2004 Acura TL when we first encountered it in 2003. The clean exterior design that moved away from the cookie-cutter look of so many mid-sized sedans in the early part of the decade, including the previous iteration of the TL, came with a load of newfangled technology, outstanding performance, a knock-'em-dead sound system and wonderful day-to-day livability.

By Jim Meachen and Ted Biederman

We have known a few people over the years who probably desired and could certainly afford luxury in their new-car purchases, but abhorred the thought of being seen as ostentatious; something they felt was inherent in owning a BMW 7-Series or a Mercedes S-Class or even a full-sized Cadillac (going way back).

By Jim Meachen and Ted Biederman

Prior to the Acura TL’s complete redesign for the 2009 model year, we were unabashed fans of the mid-sized sports sedan.

We loved the overall driving dynamics of the 2004-2008 TL, and we loved the styling. It was a home run in our eyes. Then along came the new TL, more refined and more powerful and a better car in many ways than the previous generation. But to this day we still can’t get our arms around the new styling, specifically the big-shield grille.