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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  Awsome Vehicle - 2002 Acura RSX
  By rsxc - January 10 - 2:50 pm

  Ive owned two 02 ACura RSXs Premium. Bottom line is that they are very reliable. They will last a long time before they break. But like any car once they break they will cost a small fortune. Most aftermarket retailers do not carry the parts that usually break on this car. This means you must go to the the dealer to get the part, which can be hole in your pocket. All in all, I love this car. Its very cheap on gas, it has a very attractive sporty look, its got all the goodies like: leather heated seats, heated powered mirrors, power windows and doors. I would definitely recommend this car.

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  Good car but not great - 1997 Acura TL
  By divergentdan - January 8 - 3:35 pm

  I bought a 97 TL because the trannys on the 99-03s are notorious for failing. Bought the car with 138K and now its up to 176K. Ive replaced radiator ($150), axles+tie rod ($450), fuel pump ($250), starter ($150). Also replaced regular things (battery $100, rotors and pads $300). The car does tend to overheat, but its usually caused by air in the cooling system so you just need to bleed the system when it does and it takes care of the problem 95% of the time. Gas mileage is just OK (26-28 highway, 24 combined). Slow windows is a universal problem. Otherwise its a good car.

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  Seat/ride comfort: Love it or hate it - 2011 Acura TSX
  By sumrtoy - December 31 - 9:53 am

  2010 and 2011 TSX review have similar comments about comfort... hate the seats/ride... love the seats/ride. In my case I hate them. Cant get comfortable no matter the setting. To be fair the car is very fun to drive on short 15 min trips, I have a blast. Get to the 30 min + and it can get miserable. And likewise with the ride. Feels like a go cart. After while it gets old. Overall however the quality is great. For sporty folk the ride and seats may work great. If you are from the Buick generation.... dont get this car. For me... its usually parked and i take the wifes mini van on most drives. If i owned it, itd take the loss and sell it, but its a lease... bad move.

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  2004 Acura TSX Bad Paint - Stay away! - 2004 Acura TSX
  By bizop007 - December 25 - 9:40 am

  Would like to recommend it, as long is it is not Milano Red. Her cars paint, along with everybody else who purchased the vehicle - from what I can gather from various Acura forums on the internet fades and turns pink. Not one or two but pretty much all Milano Red 2004 TSX vehicles. The car was pretty much garage kept, both at home and in a parking garage at work. It was waxed each spring and fall, but still it is turning more pink each day! Yes I know it is red and red fades not this much. Both Acura Canada and the dealer - Acura on Brant in Burlington, ON would do nothing. Terrible customer service - stay away - would not recommend the purchase n Acura vehicle!

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  Love my TSX - 2004 Acura TSX
  By rcush10 - December 19 - 2:23 pm

  I love this car. I bought it used with 110k miles on it mid 2010 for $10k. It came uniquely equipped with a trunk lid spoiler and a front body air dam giving it a little extra style. It is quick and the 6-speed manual is slick. I have put 50k miles on it and I get 27-28 mpg consistently. Despite my admiration for the car, I have had to put a little $ into it. The starter died a couple weeks after I bought it. It consumes oil fairly quickly. 1 headlight was very foggy. The backlight behind my dash buttons doesnt work. Drivers side seat heater doesnt work. At 50+ mph, something rattles somewhere under the middle of the car. I think it is a part of the exhaust system.

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  13 Non Tech AWD RDX - 2013 Acura RDX
  By clquake1 - December 18 - 9:00 pm

  As an owner of an 08 RDX and a 13, I can tell you the ride quality is much better, dont let the harsh reputation of the outgoing model discourage you. Its also not a floaty car, if you want that, go with a Lexus, or 70s-80s Cadillac. Despite my very heavy lead foot, averages 21 mpg in heavy city/stop & go driving. This is not a CRV as another commenter/troll said, who clearly does not own any RDX. Uses premium gas, dont listen to a) the sales guy or b) someone who thinks they know better that the teams of engineers that designed it. Brakes are a bit touchy. Materials quality not on par with MB/Audi, but also not priced like MB/Audi.

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  GREAT RIDE LOVE IT! SH-AWD - 2010 Acura TL
  By deezeer55 - December 18 - 12:30 am

  I switched to this TL from a Lexus LS. It is obviously a hugeeee difference but I am a fan of the sportiness. The TL turns heads everwhere I drive and the exhaust note is beautiful. The design is great and it is really a fun car to drive. I am a fan of Acura now. I will probably never turn towards german. I like my japanese cars and will always stay with acura and lexus. Havent drove the car in the snow yet (excited to try it out). Great car overall. Fun ride. Reliable. Worth the price. Turns head. Overall 9/10 overall happiness.

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  120,000 miles - 2003 Acura TL
  By sandie09 - December 17 - 11:24 pm

  Bought the car in 06 with 20k on it! Flawless until 120,000. At 120k the coil went, 4 weeks later transmission dead. I drove it to the dealer and traded it in on an 09 MDX!

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  Good - with minor complaints - 2011 Acura MDX
  By bgf18 - December 10 - 7:48 pm

  2011 MDX - Tech Package. Decided to buy out our 2011 MDX lease...my wife loves it that much. This car is very comfortable on the road as it is reasonably quiet and seats have excellent support. Visisibility is good for an SUV. Room for luggage is minimal with all three rows being used, very good when only two rows. The SH-AWD works really well, but I would GLADLY give it up for a front-wheel drive version if GAS MILAGE would improve. Fit and finish is good, although I could live without the three square feet of PLASTIC wood on the dash. For a family of three, this is the perfect SUV. Fam of four would be ok, five would be tight. More than five is pointless unless going on short drives.

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  If I ever leave BMW I would buy another Acura - 2006 Acura TSX
  By npalafax - December 6 - 12:31 am

  Bought my 2006 TSX in 2009, was pre-loved. Was a great upgrade from my Mazda6, the car was very reliable basically a Honda in a different skin all the way around. Nice car I would seriously have trusted it to go AT LEAST till 200k. But I took a friend to buy a new car.. a BMW... and ended up trading it in for one also. By far a great safe car. Love the standard bluetooth in a 2006! And all the standard features vs not so standard on bmw :(