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:

• 

  Wifes Car - 2002 Acura MDX
  By GRuss - January 19 - 10:00 am

  For the last 15 years my wife has driven a couple of different SUVs and she says shell stay with the MDX. Handles great in snow and ice. Smooth on the highway.

• 

  The Best Yet! - 2009 Acura TSX
  By The Best Yet! - January 18 - 9:19 pm

  I forgot how a top of the line affordable car is! The car is flawless, sips gas and rides (firm) but solid and handles like the sport sedan that it is. I live in the worst state of the union (Louisiana) for bumpy roads. This car eats up the bumps and returns 26 city and 34 hwy. I am a big guy six foot two and 260 pounds. I have space to spare! Seat is very comfortable for short and long trips. My bluetooth works well and the voice system was easy to learn.

• 

  All that and a bag of chips! - 2010 Acura TSX
  By Kong Vang - January 17 - 9:51 pm

  Took the 2010 TSX for a nice cruise today, and I love how this engine loves to rev! The handling of this car is phenomenal, no body roll at all, and corners really well! To put it into perspective, you know those on ramps that curves and then merges on to the free way, normally I could attack the curve at 45 mph with your ordinary family sedan, then wait until my line straightens to actually speed up. With this car, 65-70 MPH on the curves--no problems, no body roll. The car stays planted and flat throughout the hairpin, very confidence inspiring! Its amazing how it handles like a RWD car! Perhaps that was the point? Love how the rpm climbs so fast, especially when u hit VTEC! Soon to get Hondata FlashPro for it, which engages VTEC at 4500 rpm! And shifts red line to a lofty 8000 rpm, thats a Type-R! Interior fit and finish is excellent. The seats are super comfortable and keeps the lateral Gs in check (as in hugs you when you make tight turns at speeds). The reinforced structural rigidity not only makes this car super responsive in the turns, it makes you feel very safe knowing that youre inside a roll cage! The audio system is top rate and sounds absolutely amazing! Minor Gripes: the electronic steering feels numb at first, but once you get used to it, its not so bad. Just a minor annoyance since you have no clue what the tires are doing, because no feed back through the steering column. Any tire slippage will come by as a surprise. No back up camera or GPS, not a deal breaker. Dont need a back up camera in a small car, its not a truck! And Waze on your phone does a fine job of Navigation. Brakes would be adequate for most; however for me--it leaves a lot to be desired; nothing a little upgrade in brake pads and lighter wheels couldnt fix. You wouldnt notice it unless youve rode motorcycles all your life or drive a lighter car like the Honda Fit modded with lightweight wheels that has the stopping distance of a Sports Bike. I would say the Toyota Sienna and the TSX have similar stopping power. Bottom line 8.9/10 I would recommend this car, because it does everything exceptionally well stock! Its also one of the very few Hondas, if not the last Hondas/Acuras still built 100% in Japan so its high quality and super reliable! With a Timing Chain instead of a Belt, maintenance is also minimal. Cant beat the value!

• 

  Welcome to Reliability City - 1995 Acura Integra
  By Kurt in Sacramento - January 17 - 11:01 am

  This is my second Integra. I bought this one one year ago with 90K miles. Now it has 110K miles and no problems. I had the A/C recharged and thats it. If you want a car that will keep you out of the mechanics shop, this is it. All it needs is an oil change every 3 or 4 thousand miles. If you can find one with lower mileage (ideally) that has not been modified by a youngster or whoever, dont think about it, just buy it! You will be glad you did. Keep in mind 2001 is the last year for the Integra. Suggestion if the car has around 100K miles, make sure the timing belt has been changed or change it yourself for peace-of-mind any more years of service.

• 

  Absolutely love this car - 2006 Acura TSX
  By Jerry - January 17 - 1:22 am

  I have never been happier with a vehicle, and will be keeping this vehicle long term. I get great mileage with the vehicle, ranging from 26 MPG city 30 Highway in the winter, and 29 city 33 Highway in the summer. The car has as much get up and go as I will ever need. The handling is simply outstanding. The only complaints I have with the vehicle is the console doesnt provide enough leg room for the right leg, and gets uncomfortable on long trips. It needs a visor extender on the driver side also.

• 

  Excellent Overall Package - 2005 Acura TL
  By Illinois Flatlander - January 17 - 12:38 am

  I have had this car for 3 1/2 problem free years and believe that it is a great value for its price. I get 20 mpg in the city and 31 mpg on the highway which is very acceptable for a car with this size engine and its performance. The experience with the dealership in regards to service has been better than it has been with any other brand vehicle I had in the past.

• 

  Wow - 2009 Acura RL
  By Tom S - January 16 - 10:29 pm

  This is my first Acura. I have driven about 4 different cars over the last year one of them in the same price range. I am impressed about the handling, the feel of quality material used, the quiet engine (the others had V8s). I enjoy just to go out and drive it, especially on curving roads. It feels like the car is glued onto the asphalt. The bumps in the road of course can be felt, the dont make you feel uncomfortable. The interior feels quite roomy. The interior design looks awesome. The price is on the low side of its class. I put reliability in with 8 points because I have owned the car for only one week. I have had not problems so far.

• 

  Almost Perfect - 2009 Acura TSX
  By Kevin H - January 16 - 9:55 pm

  Most things are fantastic! The ride is good but brake stopping distance is a bit much for a mid-sized 4 cyl. Fuel mileage is excellent, I am getting 26/34 overall. Stereo system is good but I prefer to listen to my music and not be bathed in it! The CD changer functions well but takes up too much interior space. The cup-holders in the door sills are crappy: make sure you keep your bottle top! The storage box next to gear shift deserves a coin holder, Hondas have them. The other "holders" could not hold more than a couple of tokens. The car needs rear heat & AC. I was going to get a TL at first, but glad I did not because I could keep $10K extra. Overall an excellent value for the money.

• 

  Prefer this to my 2008 BMW 535i - 2009 Acura TSX
  By big t - January 15 - 2:56 pm

  Wanted a car with a bit better gas mileage than my 2008 BMW 535i - the TSX is the best car I could find when taking into account gas, performance, style, quality and price. Overall Im amazed at how much power this little 4 cyl gets! Acura has done a great job on interior quality. Car is fun to drive. The tech package is a must.

• 

  Its the best car ever - 2004 Acura RSX
  By acurababe85 - January 15 - 2:00 am

  I love this car. I cant say anything else