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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  nicest car weve ever owned - 2003 Acura CL
  By coopinde - February 26 - 9:12 am

  Our daughters were off to college so we didnt need our 1993 Roadmaster Estate Wagon with 240k mi it earned a rest. Found and purchased a one owner used Acura CL with 68k mi for $9500. Transmission mis shifted 94K mi. Honda replaced with new 5 speed auto - free of charge. Turns out that first owner had transmission serviced but not with Honda Z1 ATF, Car gets almost 26 MPG on regular gas. Excellent power and stable handling predictable steering. GM has miles to go to get close to this car. I will buy Acuras from now on. I most highly recommend this car.

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  nice car - 2009 Acura TL
  By galil71 - February 26 - 12:08 am

  I love this car. For a FWD vehicle, wheels torque is minimal. One of the reason I choose this car is that most features are standard. The steering is not fast, but in normal driving I dont even realize it. The TL doesnt offer sport package, however standard tires give sporty feel and keep the car very stable.

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  So many problems already - 2010 Acura MDX
  By Vincent - February 25 - 12:50 pm

  I have owned 5 Acura and Honda products in the past (2 Acuras and 3 Hondas). All of them have been pretty much "bulletproof" in quality and reliability. This one has been a terrible disappointment! Where do I start? My MDX has been in the shop 3 times already in just 4700 miles! The transmission jerks erratically. The ELS sound system was fixed under warranty, and the vehicle pulls strongly to the right (Alignment has not fixed the issue).

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  My 2010 verse 2007 - 2010 Acura MDX
  By stma1 - February 25 - 5:26 am

  I just picked up a 2010 Base Model, it is much improved over my 2007, the new six speed transmission really makes the vehicle responsive, the handling is awesome, improvements over the 2007 include, thicker more comfortable steering wheel , higher quality leather, new " xenon" like interior lighting, and yes I do like the front much better, overall a much higher quality feeling vehicle , my 2007 had over 95000 miles when I traded it in, no major issues at all, hoping for the same with my 2010.

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  Best car for the Money - 2010 Acura TL
  By Eugene Owens Jr - February 24 - 10:51 pm

  WE have a Mercedes E350 and this car is what that car aspires to be! Real leather, not synthetic, check the German rivals carefully, you might be surprised that for what they charge it is an option, Technology galore, drives rock solid, build quality is second to none. The hardest part was picking the color, due to Acuras lack of option based pricing the car comes loaded when you add the technology package. Even without the technology package a lot of things that are options on the German cars are standard. Log on to the German cars websites and add the options that come standard on the TL and see what you get for the money. There is only one option for the money. TL Hands Down!!!

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  The Japanese Alfa Romeo Sedan - 2008 Acura TSX
  By sportscarnut - February 24 - 9:47 pm

  The 2006-2008 TSX has perfect balance of performance, luxury, and economy. My 2 previous cars were an M3 and M5 BMW. I was honestly not expecting to like this car when I first drove it, but I love it. It has the most balanced handling of any front drive car I have ever driven. You can almost throttle steer it through a corner. The engine revs like a Ferrari V8, and the car feels much faster than the numbers indicate. The 2006-2008 cars have a markedly improved performance due to a larger throttle body and intake system, and the updated front/rear fascia and rocker covers make it look substantially sportier. All the controls are perfectly placed, and the fit-and-finish are outstanding.

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  Transmission issue - 2006 Acura MDX
  By blondie - February 24 - 5:41 pm

  I bought my vehicle in the end of 2007. I have loved my vehicle to date. Recently I started experiencing a shaking, shuddering when I let off the gas and then go to accelerate again. It appears to happen at about 40 mph. I have found out that it means I am going to have to have the torque and transmission replaced. Apparently this is common on the 2006 and earlier MDX. I am not at all happy and am now looking for a new vehicle, since this is a $7000 repair and I have no warranty. Apparently there is a recall on vehicles 2005 and earlier for the converter torque. Very disappointed since I bought this vehicle to keep long term.

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  Solid Car - 1998 Acura CL
  By Steve - February 23 - 2:34 pm

  I purchased the car with about 40k and have run it up to 150k. It has been mostly trouble free. The only major expense was a new alternator. Its a really solid car, now 12 years old the muffler is still the original. The interior has held up well, a few cracks in the drivers seat leather. At this point in time if you are reading this you would be considering a used car purchase, I would suggest it. My 98 has at least another 3 or 4 years of good strong life left in it. If you need a nice, solid two door coupe this would be a very good choice.

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  Shop around for best prices - 2010 Acura RDX
  By Chuck - February 22 - 1:43 pm

  I recently purchased the Acura RDX front wheel drive with technology package. Excellent car alot of power for a 4cyl. Interior controls are very accessible. The handling is very good for a SUV. The sound system is really good. Overall I love this vehicle would definitely recommend to friends.

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  Great experience - 2002 Acura RSX
  By Scott - February 21 - 8:29 am

  Love this car. Very reliable. I had ZERO problems with it for the 50k miles I drove it. It has a comfortable, cockpit like feel for the driver, the Type-S is a blast to drive. Its very peppy, though the engine is tuned so that the acceleration doesnt really kick in until after you hit almost 6k RPMs. This wasnt a problem, except for the fact that I wasnt aware of it for almost 3 months!