The 2019 Acura ILX, the automaker's entry-level sedan, offers refined style and premium features without tipping into the luxury price bracket. This makes the ILX a satisfying choice for buyers whose aspirations exceed their budget.
What's New for 2019
The ILX carries new front and rear styling to reflect the brand's latest design language. The AcuraWatch suite of safety of technology is now standard, bringing automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning, lane keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, and road departure mitigation to the sedan. Interiors receive sportier trim and reshaped seats with standard lumbar control.
Choosing Your Acura ILX
The front-wheel-drive ILX is powered by a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 201 horsepower and 180 pound-feet of torque. All models use an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission with paddle shifters. The EPA rates this setup at 24 miles per gallon city, 34 mpg highway, and 28 mpg combined.
The ILX is offered as a single model with a series of comprehensive equipment packages:
CarsDirect Tip
The Premium Package is essential to providing the near-luxury experience most buyers want from the 2019 Acura ILX. Whether to upgrade further with the Technology and/or A-Spec Packages is purely a matter of style. The sporty details of the A-Spec look great, but have no effect on actual performance.
Youthful face, old bones. Walking up to the 2019 Acura ILX, you’d be forgiven for expecting a cutting-edge model. The angular grille, calligraphy LED headlights, and chunky rear pillars all point to youthful exuberance.
But underneath, the ILX hides an aging skeleton. It’s built on the bones of the last-generation Honda Civic. Honda replaced the car in 2016, but the underpinnings have survived in luxury form.
The sculpted exterior can’t entirely hide the ILX’s resemblance to the older car. The interior feels a little dated, too – base models get a center stack covered with buttons, and the air vents come straight from an economy car.
Sport sedan minus the sport. Although the new Civic boasts an engaging ride, the ILX hasn’t caught up yet.
In the Acura’s favor, the engine and transmission are both excellent. Only a single engine is available, but the 2.4-liter unit revs happily and provides plenty of thrust. The eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission is a highlight of the drive. Acura has added extra sound deadening to the cabin, so noise levels are low.
The steering is where things start to go wrong. It’s light and numb, with little to no feedback filtering up from the tires. The ride isn’t much better. It’s soft enough for long trips, but allows too much body roll to feel remotely sporty.
An A-Spec Package makes the ILX look sportier, but it adds nothing mechanically significant. The larger wheels do no favors for the ride, and the exterior body kit is about aesthetics alone.
Premium features … One area where the ILX makes a decent case is features. It makes an affordable entry point into the world of luxury sedans. Most of the basics are included: synthetic leather upholstery, power features, USB charging, heated front seats, and a power moonroof.
Even better, Honda’s excellent safety features extend to Acura. Automatic emergency braking, lane keeping assist, and adaptive cruise control are all standard. Those features join largely excellent crash-test scores from federal and independent testers.
The ILX falters only at the finishing touches. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility is optional, bundled into a package with an 8-inch infotainment touchscreen and leather upholstery. Adding the package doesn’t make the ILX prohibitively expensive (it costs $1,750), but more competitors are including these features as standard.
… But economy head room. That power moonroof may look the part, but it cuts into head room that was already scarce. The front seat gets 38 inches of head room, and the second row gets just 35.9.
That’s less than competitors like the Mercedes-Benz A-Class, which gets 40.3 and 37.2 inches, respectively, for the two rows. It’s even down on the new-generation Honda Civic.
The story improves slightly behind the rear seats. The ILX’s trunk can hold 12.4 cubic feet of cargo, which is better than the A-Class and about on par with the Audi A3.
It still feels small for a luxury sedan, especially one that prioritizes comfort over sportiness. And once more, the real competition here is the Civic – with 15.1 cubic feet behind the seats, the ILX’s mainstream sibling wins out yet again.
Final thoughts. The 2019 Acura ILX hits a few bright points. A zippy engine is a delight when paired with the ILX’s high-tech transmission, and Acura still manages to offer a luxury package for less than the competition.
But the reason for the price is clear. The ILX is built on a last-generation economy car, and no amount of styling can cover it up. The handling is bland, standard tech is less than stellar, and the cabin could use a few more inches of head room.
Most importantly, we’re left wondering … why not just get a Civic?
This Safety Rating comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which evaluates how this vehicle performs in crash tests. NHTSA conducts frontal, side and rollover tests because these types account for the majority of crashes on America's roadways. This Overall Crash Safety Rating combines scores for these three crash tests.
Engine - Cylinders/Horsepower/Torque
This Safety Rating comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which evaluates how this vehicle performs in crash tests. NHTSA conducts frontal, side and rollover tests because these types account for the majority of crashes on America's roadways. This Overall Crash Safety Rating combines scores for these three crash tests.
2.4L I-4 / 201 HP / 180 ft.lbs.
Transmission
This Safety Rating comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which evaluates how this vehicle performs in crash tests. NHTSA conducts frontal, side and rollover tests because these types account for the majority of crashes on America's roadways. This Overall Crash Safety Rating combines scores for these three crash tests.
8-spd Sequential SportShift auto-shift man w/OD
Drive Type
This Safety Rating comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which evaluates how this vehicle performs in crash tests. NHTSA conducts frontal, side and rollover tests because these types account for the majority of crashes on America's roadways. This Overall Crash Safety Rating combines scores for these three crash tests.
Front-wheel
Fuel Economy - City/Highway/Combined
This Safety Rating comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which evaluates how this vehicle performs in crash tests. NHTSA conducts frontal, side and rollover tests because these types account for the majority of crashes on America's roadways. This Overall Crash Safety Rating combines scores for these three crash tests.
24 / 34 / 29 Mpg
Passenger Capacity
This Safety Rating comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which evaluates how this vehicle performs in crash tests. NHTSA conducts frontal, side and rollover tests because these types account for the majority of crashes on America's roadways. This Overall Crash Safety Rating combines scores for these three crash tests.
5
Bumper to Bumper Warranty
This Safety Rating comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which evaluates how this vehicle performs in crash tests. NHTSA conducts frontal, side and rollover tests because these types account for the majority of crashes on America's roadways. This Overall Crash Safety Rating combines scores for these three crash tests.
48 Months / 50,000 Miles
Mechanical Specs
Engine - Cylinders/Horsepower/Torque
2.4L I-4 / 201 HP / 180 ft.lbs.
Drive Type
Front-wheel
Fuel Economy - City/Hwy/Combined
24 / 34 / 29 Mpg
Brakes
4-wheel Disc
Front Suspension
Strut
Rear Suspension
Independent Multi-link
Spare Tire And Wheel
Fuel Tank
13.2 Gal.
Recommended Fuel Type
Premium Unleaded
Average Cost To Fill Tank
$50
Dimensions & Capabilities
Maximum Cargo Volume
12.4 Cu.ft.
Passenger Volume
89 Cu.ft.
Exterior Length
182.2 "
Exterior Width
70.6 "
Exterior Height
55.6 "
Front Headroom
38.0 "
Rear Headroom
35.9 "
Front Legroom
42.3 "
Rear Legroom
34.0 "
Front Shoulder Room
55.6 "
Rear Shoulder Room
53.6 "
Front Hip Room
Rear Hip Room
Curb Weight
3,095 Lbs.
Wheel Base
105 "
Turning Radius
18.4 '
Exterior Features
Door Count
4 Doors
Wheels
17.0 " Machined W/painted Accents Aluminum
Paint
Clearcoat Monotone / Pearlcoat Monotone
Exterior Mirrors
Dual Power Remote Heated
Bumpers
Front Body-colored With Chrome Insert
Grille Moldings
Black W/chrome Surround
Rear Spoiler
Lip
Exhaust
Stainless Steel With Chrome Tailpipe Finish
Interior Features
Seating
Passenger Capacity
5
Seat Trim
Leatherette
Front Seat Type
Bucket
Heated Front Seats
Driver And Front Passenger Heated-cushion, Heated-seatback