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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  1999 RL - 1999 Acura RL
  By John - August 9 - 1:39 pm

  What a great car - A quality Honda product that is good looking and has superior fit and finish. Very nice on any type of road trip. Mileage could be better but not a big deal to me. Found mine used with only 29K on it 4 years ago and it still looks like it is brand new after a good wash/wax and detail.

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  Great car and value - 2010 Acura TL
  By John Voorhees - August 8 - 4:37 pm

  I took my new TL for a 800 mile road trip right after the purchase. What a car. The handling was wonderful and the feel of luxury was all about the cabin. The electronic were easy to learn and I used them all on the trip. My 2006 TL was a nice car, but this one is a dream. Besides being a great sport type luxury sedan, this is a real value.

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  05 MDX - 2005 Acura MDX
  By mdxer - August 7 - 4:55 pm

  Replacing Cadillac Eldorado and more than happy with the change. The MDX had 82,000 miles when I got it, 97,000 six months later without any trouble, except with an a/c vent cover. Early on I had the opportunity to drive for several hours in a blizzard with complete confidence. I have also had it on unimproved old logging roads with equal confidence. I would not take it where I would take a 4Runner, but I prefer cabin comforts. The cabin is awesome and the toys are awesome. Front seats are 5 star. This is my favorite car ever. I installed after market transmission and power steering filters as a precaution. The trannys are suspect. I drive in D4 around town and D5 only over 60 mph.

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  Dump the Car if You Can - 2003 Acura TL
  By Nadine - August 6 - 2:59 pm

  I bought my TL at around 87K miles and it has been nothing but a headache. Last year the transmission had to be replaced. Im very gentle with the car. The the engine was gummed up so that was another large expense. The rear view mirror had to be replaced because some chemical in the mirror started leaking out. Now the PCM Unit has failed and it will cost $1200 to repair. Im quite angry with Hendricks Acura in Charlotte right now because they didnt mention that I could get an exchange or a reconditioned PCM which will cost less. They also want to charge me for a 2nd diagnostic before they replace the PCM. This is the absolute worst car I ever owned!

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  Great Car but - 2010 Acura TL
  By KC - August 5 - 3:15 pm

  This is my third review. Now I have over 10k miles. Im always on the road as always and i love driving this car. Sound system is awesome. I wish I was able to watch DVD on navigation screen when Im sitting somewhere, like other cars do. One problem I have right now. My Third gear. sometimes when I shift into third gear, it feels like it has shifted into third, but when I tried to release the clutch, it makes grinding noise, like the gears have not engaged and the shifter comes back to neutral. Does this happen to others? I wonder. Besides this, I love this car.

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  The Best car overall - 2005 Acura RL
  By Kim - August 5 - 2:24 pm

  I searched for a luxury used car after my BMW 525 totaled by an accident. Acura rl was the answer. Its interior is beautiful and comfortable. I wasnt impressed by exterior first but it keeps growing on me. Navigation system is the best so far. My wife and baby daughter love back seat sunshades. It doesnt drive like a BMW but its awd really works. The cabin is Lexus- quiet and stereo sound is the best I ever heard. RLs unpopularity, price is more reasonable which was good for me. Unfortunately, fuel economy is pretty bad in city. For luxury used car for a price, rl just cant be beat. Last, I am happy with acuras reliability which I had suffered from BMW.

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  Worst car ever purchased - 2007 Acura RDX
  By Terrible car - August 5 - 11:31 am

  In the first 3 months this brand new car was in the shop for electronic malfunctions, sunroof malfunction, rear hatch cracked, turbo replaced, warning light indicator malfunction, "flooding issues" and engine noise. This has been our worst experience with a car purchase, Acura service was terrible along with Acura Canadas response. I would NOT recommend this car, it is noisy, rough and unreliable.

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  Too noisy, never an Acura again - 2006 Acura MDX
  By Rr - August 4 - 10:31 pm

  Typical Honda noise. Cannot have conversation at highway speeds. Engine whistling noise during highway speeds while accelerating. Brake drum rolling noise while backing up and during braking at low speeds. Terrible Bluetooth integration. Only good for incoming calls. Backup camera never good when needed most, too dim and is not useful when backing out from garage.

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  Good Car - 2009 Acura TSX
  By TSX 09 lover - August 4 - 2:09 pm

  I brought my Acura TSX about 5 months ago. The only issue I have with this car is the cheap speakers. I had to replace the speakers at the dealership two times. Other than that the car is perfect no other issues.

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  Great first Acura - 2009 Acura TL
  By Dave04 - August 4 - 12:12 pm

  My 09 TL with the tech package is everything I wanted in a CPO Acura. I traded in a 2008 Audi A4 and wanted an upgrade to something larger and more spacious. The car drives great, handles awesome (without the SH-AWD too!) and has all the features of a BMW, MB or Lexus for a thousands less. I highly recommend you test drive a TL before making your next car purchase.