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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  i thought i was the only one!!!!! - 2003 Acura CL
  By lesley5272 - March 7 - 10:00 am

  oh my god, i am glad to know that i am not the only who constantly complains about the squeeky and rattling noises that come from my dash and sunroof. i have had my sunroof worked on at least 5 times. every time i take it there is a bulletin recall but the problems has yet to be solved so i give up.and now im complaining about the whistling noises that ac makes but of course they say its normal.take my advice the service dept of southern motors acura sucks. ishould have purchased a lexus!

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  TL automatic - 2004 Acura TL
  By Park - March 4 - 10:00 am

  Best car ever in all respects except the ride and seats. The ride is a bit harsh and the front seats are not comfortable on a trip. Not enought padding on the bottom and the side bolsters are too close even for my weight and size (175 lbs/6 feet)

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  Needs more - 2006 Acura RSX
  By Jenn - March 2 - 6:52 pm

  Looks great, very reliable, but for the money, this car needs MORE! I feel like I bought a hot car with stripped down basic features, but paid a lot because of the name Acura. And, geez, this car has no pick up whatsoever! I hit the gas and nothing!

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  Great Car - 1995 Acura Integra
  By me - March 2 - 6:05 pm

  I have been driving a 1991 civic for the past year, and i hated it. i just upgraded to an integra and it is absolutly amazing. the car is faster, looks and sounds better, and has gotten me alot of credibility. extremly mod-able, i have put an intake in it, a performance muffler, and new wheels/performance tires and havent had any problems with any of that. i also had it painted and got those cool coloured acura emblems. it looks great and im in love with it.

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  Awesome - 2005 Acura TL
  By pepboys856 - March 2 - 1:23 pm

  Performance is unbelievable. style, luxurious, sporty all in one. Great vehicle. Highly recommended

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  Always Room for Improvement - 2005 Acura MDX
  By ELC - February 28 - 12:26 pm

  Overall, this is a great vehicle. The comfort and features are fantastic, but the handling could be better. My engine sometimes "jumps" during quick acceleration and the vehicle does NOT inspire confidence during sudden/emergency braking. I love the Navi system, but the voice control is horrible -- it never recognizes what we say, so we just use the touch screen. On the positive side, the MDX is very roomy and comfortable, and the Bose sound system rocks.

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  Not 100% Pleased - 2008 Acura TL
  By Alex Lee - February 25 - 2:46 am

  Low end torque is not as good as i had hoped. above 2500 rpm the car moves well. The manual side on the 5A is sluggish, upshifts are not crisp. The engine has some noticeable vibrations at 1500 rpm, 2000 rpm and 4000 rpm. The 2000 rpm point is most noticeable at takeoff, it is felt in the steering wheel and foot pedals.

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  ELECTRICAL - 2003 Acura TL
  By THOMAS (NY) - February 24 - 2:00 am

  Ive had this car since July and have had no transmission problems. However, stereo control on steering wheel has gone haywire. Speed is excellent. Dont get a flat, will set you back about $200.

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  3rd Acura - 2nd MDX - 2006 Acura MDX
  By SLS - February 21 - 6:01 pm

  This is my third Acura. Have always found these cars a great value for the money. Had my first 2002 MDX for 4 years and was looking for a new SUV but no matter how much research and test drives I did I kept coming back to the MDX because the price to feature and luxury ration could not be beat.

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  Amazingly reliable, equally fun to drive - 1996 Acura Integra
  By COIntegra - February 19 - 12:49 am

  I purchased this car with approximately 60,000 miles. The car now has nearly 100,000 miles and I have never encountered any problems. I drive the car with spirit and it never lets me down. Combining decent fuel economy, fantastic reliability, and true enjoyent while driving, this car will always be one of my favorites. (Go with the 5-speed to achieve the most power.)