Overview & Reviews

Acura is an upscale automaker known for offering cars with impressive levels of luxury, features and performance. It's come a long way in a short time, however, as the history of Acura is relatively brief. Parent company Honda introduced the Acura brand to the U.S. market in 1986 in an effort to create a separate luxury division for its products. At first, it was just a two-car show: the Legend sedan, which was the first true Japanese luxury car sold in America, and the Integra sport coupe and sedan.

Though essentially a marketing creation for the North American market, the Acura brand was immediately successful. Consumers liked the features, performance and upscale image of Acura cars, along with the fact that Acuras were backed by Honda's reputation for reliability and low ownership costs. In 1991, Acura introduced its crown jewel: the all-aluminum NSX sports car, which offered performance close to that of other exotic cars while undercutting them in price.

As Acura's product line grew in the 1990s, however, the company struggled a bit. Some of its products were duds, and it risked alienating loyal customers when it replaced the Legend and Integra names with alphanumeric designations. The company jumped on the hot luxury SUV bandwagon in the mid-'90s with the SLX. Unfortunately, the SLX was just a rebadged version of an Isuzu SUV, and its quality did not match customers' expectations.

For the new millennium, Acura revamped its product range. An all-new SUV called the MDX debuted, sporting numerous family-friendly features, including a third-row seat. The Integra was replaced with the RSX sport coupe, and an all-new entry-level sport sedan called the TSX was introduced after that. A complete redesign of its most popular model, the midsize TL sedan, followed, as did a redesign of its flagship RL luxury sedan.

By mid-decade the NSX was gone, but Acura filled out its model lineup with the street-performance-oriented RDX compact crossover, the TSX wagon and the ZDX, a fastback-styled crossover that placed unique styling over practicality. Today Acura is still trying to find its ideal niche but there's no denying the quality of Acura's vehicles, nor their appealing mix of performance, technology and value.

User Reviews:

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  Slightly too Expensive for what You Get - 2004 Acura TL
  By Overrated Acura - September 8 - 10:00 am

  The car is very nice, but Acura jacked the price up and now I think I overpaid. The dealer made me think the product was like gold. They said that they were all sold out, for months... Then, lo and behold, one showed up and I bought it for full sticker. I got caught up in the moment and now I am somewhat disappointed. The car is very nice, but not worth 35K. You are much better off getting the 3-series BMW.

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  Surprise, Surprise!! - 2002 Acura MDX
  By D. L. May - September 7 - 9:19 pm

  Bought the vehicle used with approximately 57000 miles on it. Bought the warranty and glad I did. Transmission had a major failure at 73000 miles. So disappointing as my warranty is covering most of the cost of repair to replace the transmission, but not all. I told the dealership I was surprised that a high end SUV would have a major drivetrain failure with just 73000 miles. I cant justify ever purchasing a Honda/Acura after this experience. Advice, dont buy this vehicle.

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  The Last Year RSX - 2006 Acura RSX
  By RR - September 6 - 9:24 pm

  This is a very cool looking and pleasure to driving Japanese coupe. The road noise is notified as a light weighted Japanese sporty car with a little harder struts system.

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  WONDERFUL CAR - 2005 Acura TL
  By Olga hostetler - September 4 - 3:47 pm

  This car is fun to drive,and its packed with luxury functions. Ive had mine for a little over a year now, Ive had a lexus is300, bmw 325i, and i like the acura tl MUCH better.

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  116,000 Mile Acura TSX 6M - 2004 Acura TSX
  By lucky_doggg7 - September 2 - 1:09 pm

  Ownership - Replacement/repairs to date consist of: two sets of rotors (centric premium) and pads (Porterfield R4S) driver and passenger side half shafts (rebuilts at $169 ea. undercuts the Dealer cost of $500+ ea.). Replacing the halfshafts cured the front end shake occuring between 50 and 60 mph. Stock Michelin Pilots lasted >60K miles. The third set of tires are now Michelin PS2s in the size of 235/40/18. This car has presented no other problems, really! The stories of Honda owners claiming they only put oil and gas in their cars are true! This is a very refreshing ownership change coming from Audi cars in terms of operating expense.

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  TSX Kidney Rattler - 2006 Acura TSX
  By I want my Audi back! - September 1 - 6:53 pm

  I did a ton of research, read many reviews, still think Im driving a different car than the rest of you out there. Best looking car in its class, inside and out. Best value for options included in base price. Looks like a luxury car however the body shell is just a tin Honda. Noticed rattles and squeaks after driving it for just one day. Very disappointed in the "extremely" abrupt reaction of the car when it hits the bumps on the road, and the rattles it is creating due to the harsh ride. Id really like to return this car. All they need to do is add some sound proofing underneath and improve the way it handles normal road bumps, and this car would be a winner.

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  2005 Acura TSX - 2005 Acura TSX
  By Driver - September 1 - 5:21 am

  The best drive I ever had in the TSX was the test drive. It makes a very good first impression. This quickly wears off though after you drive it for a month or two. It quickly develops rattles and squeaks and the precise handling quickly loses alignment. Its never starts without cranking too long. The fuel economy is much worse than advertised, even under optimal conditions. Seats are narrow and uncomfortable for an average-sized person. No side-body protective molding. Also, some of the fancy features are poorly implemented. It has power seats but no position memory which is worse (slower and less reliable) than plain old manual seats. Theres no "mute" button for the stereo.

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  Acura 3.2 TL Excellent Value - 1999 Acura TL
  By mark b - August 30 - 2:44 pm

  This model was the first year for the redesigned TL - in which Acura enhanced the look and features of the car, while making the price even more attractive. The net result has been a car that is highly reliable, attractive and an excellent value over time. Although this model is a little more plain vanilla than the latest generation TL it is still a pleasure to drive and own.

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  Incredible Car, Incredible Value - 2006 Acura TSX
  By STLCarGuy - August 30 - 1:44 am

  The car is truly the best value in the segment IMO. Features per dollar and residual value are top notch! Two major contributors to my buying the car. The sporting character of this sedan continues to impress me. Theres a real balance of Economy and Performance with the Engine. I know those two words dont normally go together, but I think they do in the TSX. Four cylinder fuel economy is a huge plus right now, but I feel good that theres enough power to go when I need to. Interstate power availability is more than adequate. For me, the size is just ideal. Compact enough to feel sporty, but roomy enough for four people to be comfortable, plus a fair amount of trunk space.

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  2003TL to 2006 TL - 2006 Acura TL
  By Bob W - August 28 - 2:56 pm

  We loved the 2003, but wanted to get the navigation system and the blue tooth capability. 2006 has more power and more air bags. Great XM radio. great service at the dealer Front head rests are too big blocking view out the side and rear. Passenger seat is too low for short folks. Ride is OK on smooth road, but rough on broken pavement.