Acura TL 4th Gen (UA8/UA9)

The fourth-gen TL is the one with the controversial 'Power Plenum' shield grille — Acura's senior management called it bold; the rest of the world called it the gladiator-shield TL. Polarising, but the engineering was strong. Front-drive cars used the 280-hp 3.5-litre V6; the SH-AWD option came with a 305-hp 3.7-litre V6 — at the time, the most powerful engine ever fitted to an Acura — and from 2010-2014, that 3.7 SH-AWD was available with a 6-speed manual transmission. A six-speed manual full-size all-wheel-drive luxury sedan is genuinely rare; the closest equivalent today would be an Audi RS3 or BMW M3, both of which are much faster and much more expensive. A 2012 facelift toned down the grille, swapped to a six-speed automatic, and refreshed the interior. The TL was discontinued at the end of 2014 and replaced by the TLX. Used market is a sweet spot now — manual SH-AWD examples hold value, but automatic FWD cars are very affordable.