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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  Awesome Car !! - 2009 Acura TSX
  By KW - January 4 - 9:36 pm

  Have had the car for two weeks and love it!! It handles great and has better than expected acceleration. Its comfortable all around and the build quality is great. I am averaging 28 mile per gallon (local driving). Compared many cars to the TSX but the Acura consistently won because of features and price. I got a great deal on the purchase and am so glad I decided on the TSX. Get this car, you wont be disappointed.

• 

  Hard to beat - 2008 Acura TL
  By Mark in Tulsa - January 4 - 3:26 pm

  The car is hard to beat. I compared it with a wide variety of cars, the Jetta, BMW 328i, Lexus RX330, Infiniti G35, and Honda Accord. I kept coming back to this one as the standard. It met all my expectations and the value is definitely there. Its not the most exciting car, but its very handsome, and it suits my driving style just fine. The ride is nice, I love the nav and reverse camera, and the interior is gorgeous. I think there are a few problems with rattles, but other than that, its hard to find fault.

• 

  Best value out there - 2005 Acura TL
  By Very happy TL owner - January 4 - 1:33 pm

  This vehicle is amazing! Rides like a dream, pickup like a monster! I know Im driving the best luxury value on the market every time I get into this vehicle. Heres to many happy years of motoring!

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  Glad I did not wait for 2009 TL - 2008 Acura TL
  By Blah Blah - January 4 - 10:16 am

  Love the car! Midnight Black with dark interior and 6-speed. This card flies and is a blast to drive. Love the standard gadgets. This makes the buying experience very easy.

• 

  Wow - 2017 Acura RDX
  By BMcC - January 3 - 10:25 pm

  I owned a 2009 RDX with technology package and thought it was great. This one is even better. We had a 2012 BMW X3 for a short time but missed features of the RDX. We love our new RDX and because of the safety features the insurance is even cheaper than it was for the 2012 BMW.

• 

  Best Car of the Year! - 2010 Acura TL
  By dryworks - January 3 - 7:53 am

  Exterior- Non-Generic. Unlike most cars on the market that all look the same, its edgy look and smooth lines are sure to last a decade (forget about what critics says, its not ugly). Interior- from the moment you sit in, the cock pit, dash board, wraps around you like its a perfect fit! High quality material. Technology - Voice act. SUPURB AUDIO SYSTEM, HDD, SH- AWD, IPOD, 8" VGA NAVI Screen, live weather, traffic, zagat, shift pad...etc, it has one of the easiest navigation systems on the market. The handling is incredible, and it has one of the most silenced cabin in the Acura line up. This car is a Sexy, Fun, Tech-junkie, and sporty. It is THE CAR to get if you are looking for a Luxury Sport Sedan.

• 

  Outstanding Car - 2009 Acura TSX
  By Ualboy2 - January 2 - 3:40 am

  This is a outstanding car. The interior quality is refined and conveys quality. Nav is easy to use and the gauges are cool looking. The ELS sound system is truly fantastic. The car has plenty of power for Its size, and when I tell people its only a 4 cyl. They cant believe it. I personally love the new exterior look. It looks aggressive but classy. The steering is not as bad as some reviews have stated, and really you would need to be on a track to notice any difference. I will admit the ride can be a bit stiff, so if you are looking for a cushy ride, this may not be the car for you. This car has an outstanding value compared to BMW, and Audi. A+ Acura love this car

• 

  Fantastic - 2007 Acura MDX
  By TerribleJ - January 1 - 9:56 pm

  It is a fun SUV to drive. The engine is smooth, the white lights are super bright, the sound system is amazing and it does not feel like a big car behind the wheels. It handles amazingly well in the snow and would likely recommend it to anyone. I just went through a B1 service, oil change and tire rotation, which cost me $56. It seems fair compared to the maintenance on the Audi. We do a lot of highway driving and average 19 MPG and it took about 7500 miles before the service light came on. We have an Accord and Honda USA treated us well. We got rid of our Audi and went with a Honda product. We made the right choice.

• 

  Best of the bunch - 2009 Acura RL
  By John Paul - January 1 - 11:56 am

  I just upgraded from a 2005 to a 2009 RL with tech. Fabulous car. I cant imagine how anyone could actually drive this against the Lexus GS, the Infiniti M, or the 5 series BMW and not buy the RL. I suppose there is a lot more to luxury car buying than performance, price, features and road feel.

• 

  Second to none - 2003 Acura RSX
  By LuvnmyRSX - January 1 - 2:00 am

  I test drove the Mitsubishi Eclipse GT and GTS,Toyota Celica GT,RSX Type-S,and RXS.My choice was an easy one when I looked at initial quality,price,resale value,and fun to drive factor. I just didnt feel the extra horsepower the RSX Type S has and the insurance was much higher than the RSX. I also liked the feel and quality of the cloth seats. This is the funnest car I have ever driven. I just cant believe how quick and economical this car is. It suits me perfectly.