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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  My first step up. - 2015 Acura MDX
  By Lee Nalley - August 8 - 1:47 pm

  I have had my MDX for 10 months now and have several problems that cannot be explained: The indicators for blind side vehicles will go off when no one is by them the gas cap light will go off when nothing is wrong the front breaking light will go off when there is nothing in front of me and the windshield wipers will go off when it is nice and bright and sunny. Im told at the service area that they cant find anything wrong and cannot pinpoint the problem, but will keep checking the their update sheets and if anything comes across, they will let me know. This is a safety issue as far as Im concerned as the breaking light comes on, my reaction is put the breaks on. Also, have a problem with the windows being down at high speeds, the tailgate wants to try to pop open, you can see gaps appear along the sides. Again the service agent cannot find anything wrong. I have the heated seats and it feels as if they were never turned off, making it a little uncomfortable during the summer months. The interior is comfortable, but with a lot of road noise handling is good and acceleration is really good. I am sorry that I spent what I did for this car.

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  Avoid at all cost - 2010 Acura RDX
  By David Collantes - August 8 - 10:56 am

  Very unreliable car, poorly manufactured. "Leather interior" is not quite leather, instrumentation will not give you details on battery not charging, or similar issues until it fully dead. Ride is not comfortable, "eats" gas like a monster. Overall craft of the car is poor. Will never buy an Acura again, unless it comes straight from Japan.

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  Great if you can live with the compromises - 2008 Acura RDX
  By Drew Engstrom - August 6 - 4:27 pm

  The RDX is sports sedan masquerading as a luxury SUV. Cornering and acceleration? Great. Cushioned, quiet ride? Nope. I chose the RDX because there are many SUV and truck drivers where I live and I wanted to sit a little bit higher than I would in a sedan - and I am completely sold on Honda/Acura reliability and quality. Quality and reliability have been excellent and the driving position is comfortable with excellent visibility my advice to prospective buyers would be to simply understand the trade-offs: 1) The turbocharged 4 cylinder is very responsive and fun to drive - but, dont expect to get much more than 16 MPG when youre zipping around town, or about 23 MPG when cruising on the highway. 2) The taut suspension makes for great handling - but, dont expect a plush, Toyota-ish ride quality you will feel and hear road imperfections. 3) The car is very nimble and comfortable for an SUV - but remember, this is a smaller SUV and it really isnt any roomier than a smaller sedan (think Acura TSX) Conclusion if you like the Acura feel (tight suspension, cornering on rails) and you want something with some power, this is as good a combination of value and quality as you can get in a small SUV.

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  Baby Acura for the Win! - 2003 Acura RSX
  By Steve - August 6 - 3:33 pm

  I bought this car to replace a gas hog (mustang gt) for college. My job is roughly an hour and a half away and I needed something decently efficient on gas that didnt have the price tag of a Prius, and could still do the work and school trips on one tank. I came across one of these on a local craigslist and havent had any regrets. Its one of the only Acuras (to my knowledge) that doesnt require premium gas or throw a fit if you dont put it in the tank. It usually does in the mid 20s mpg in the city and high 20s if not low 30s mpg on the highway. As long as you dont stomp on the gas pedal this car will do amazing no matter where you drive it which was one of the selling points for me. The only downsides to this car come when you have to either replace belts, headlight bulbs, headlights or taillights. Because the car is so small, space under the hood is in short supply therefore things like belts typically mean removing the entire front bumper to replace. The headlight bulbs (usually for the passenger headlight) also require removal of the entire bumper, which means youll need to schedule some time aside for certain "simple" projects. If you need to take an entire headlight or taillight out of the car, the bumpers need to be removed completely as well since the retaining bolts are underneath the headlights and taillights. Besides those downfalls, the car is amazing. If you can find a type-s (200+hp) and dont mind driving a stick, those are the way to go. If a manual transmission isnt your thing the base models still have a good amount of kick to them (150+hp), and parts for these cars are extremely easy to find and arent a whole lot of money either.

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  Love my Black Beauty!!!!! - 2007 Acura TSX
  By Kara R - August 5 - 8:54 pm

  My mom has been an avid Acura lover for as long as I can remember. The first Acura she bought was a Legend back in the early 2000s...that car is still running great to this day. Since then, we have owned a TL, CL, and a TSX. I bought my own 2007 TSX a few months ago. I LOVE THAT CAR!!!! No issues, she runs like a dream. Great acceleration and braking, very sporty and so much fun to drive!!! I bought mine with 217 k. My sister has over 300 k on her 05 TSX. Just a great car! Im so happy with my purchase and I find Acura and Honda vehicles to be very reliable vehicles. If you are looking for a good car, the TSXs are amazing!!!!

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  Literally the best car out there - 2004 Acura RSX
  By Zack - August 4 - 10:42 am

  I purchased a 2004 Acura RSX base model with 28,XXX miles on it a couple of months ago (Id still be driving it if I hadnt rear ended somebody). In the tim i had this amazing car, the only thing thag went wrong was an o2 sensor and it only cost me $40 tp replace. This car is absolutely impeccable! Everything about it is extremely amazing. The only complaints i had were the comfort of the seats at long car rides and the quirky shifting from 1st to 2nd gear. Other than that, I wish i still had this car.

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  Many many issues and trips to dealership - 2014 Acura MDX
  By Allan De - August 3 - 11:42 am

  The voice control does not work Fit and finish is not up to par Door out of alignment Steering needed update Shim kit for squeaking noise in engine needed Infotainment system is the worst ever - you are locked out of basic functions while driving Nav system is a joke

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  farm wifes truck - 2014 Acura RDX
  By mp - August 3 - 8:43 am

  THis car is one of the best I have driven. I have had Mercedes, and Lexus. My Acura is s mudder, and a snow machine. It is convenient to haul everything from grain to kids. The awd is super, and handles all weather. Also is a nice dress up car for church. One thing...........terrible connections for my iphone. You have to have a flashlight to find the charger. I would buy another rdx.

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  Its on the inside what matter - 2015 Acura MDX
  By Tanner - July 31 - 11:46 pm

  The 2015 Acura MDX is not a "flashy" car to the normal eye but certainly does hold its own against other luxury SUV. Handling is very light but easy to get used to. The interior is where the MDX shines, materials are very nice inside and easily accessible however having the tech package you certainly must be good with todays technology because at certain points it can feel overwhelming. Road quality if very nice as well, having owned the Audi Q7 it is very comparable. However only having 15,000 miles I cannot touch base on reliability quite yet.

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  I love my 1996 Acura rl butt.... - 1996 Acura RL
  By Lisha - July 30 - 4:58 pm

  Ive only had my used Acura for almost 2 months now. Great car but the motor to adjust the steering wheel stopped working. My review mirror keeps falling off. On top of that my transmission is starting to make a weird noise. Im scared to see what else is going to happen in another 2 months. On a better note it is good on gas, quiet, comfortable, beautiful interior, lots of space, great speakers, and handles country roads beautifully. I really wish it wasnt falling apart on me i love car.