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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  Very satisfied Honda/Acura convert - 2002 Acura MDX
  By ArmyofTwo - July 28 - 2:00 am

  I was looking for a replacement for my 97 Explorer Limited. Tested the BMW X5 & the Volvo XC90 both were impressive. The BMW had limited cargo space & the XC90 felt underpowerd for the weight and leary of 1st model year. Tried the MDX and found it very roomy, comfortable & excellent "bang for the buck". Great car with the power & economy balance that more than satisfies me. Friends & family that have owned Honda products swear by them for reliability & endurance features reinforced my buying decision. I am not a tree-hugger but I am pleased that the vehicle meets ULEV standards.

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  Nice But Noisy - 2002 Acura RSX
  By argentum - July 27 - 2:00 am

  We replaced a 2000 Eclipse GT with this RSX-S. While this car has a sweeter sounding though less powerful sound system and very nimble handling, I still miss the the Mitsubishi. You cant beat a torquey 6 for power and smoothness. This 4 will get you there ok but the revs combined with a choppy ride and cabin noise is just too busy for my taste. There are some mechanical and logistical kinks that need to be worked out. The low gears are balky in cold weather, our right side inner CV joint boot keeps coming off which allows axle grease to splatter onto the hot exhaust and the engine oil filter is poorly situated which guarantees a mess after service.

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  Beware of Rattling - 2003 Acura RSX
  By phxrider - July 26 - 2:00 am

  This car has been wonderful except for the rattling that has been consistant ever since I bought it. The rattling seems to come from the gauges, also, be aware of a high pitched whinning noise that appears to come from the gauges also.

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  A/C Issues - 2002 Acura TL
  By funpilot - July 23 - 2:00 am

  When you have a car this nice, it is the little things that drive you crazy. My vehicles A/C HISSES LOUDLY all the time as it cycles. It can drown out the radio....but it is "normal" according to the dealer. It cannot be fixed. For me it is so bad, I will NEVER purchase another Acura product....(back to Toyotas)

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  Overall Good - 2001 Acura CL
  By johnlemvp - July 22 - 2:00 am

  Picked up the car used. 2001 CL-S w/ Navigation. Its pretty luxurious, some well though out features. Suspension is pretty stiff, but it is a Type-S after all. The only major thing I hate about it are the rattles. I was able to fix the rear rattling, but I still get rattles from the side. The Navigation is really nice, I just need to buy a never version of the software on DVD.

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  Where is the display - 2009 Acura TSX
  By J.R. - July 20 - 3:40 pm

  I gave my 2000 VW New Beetle to my granddaughter It was a great car, fun to drive and with a turbo, more than enough power. My new TSX w/o nav, is not as much fun. But, my main gripe is that when it is sunny, I cannot see the center display. Acura need to brighten the display or produce it in a color.

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  Waking Up - 2002 Acura RSX
  By German Boy - July 19 - 10:00 am

  Impulse buy. Loved the looks in and out. Now Im waking up. Engine is good - for a motorcycle. Ride is good - for a hay wagon (brutal if pavement is not perfect). Im a 65" driver who has no head room and no legroom... I thought Acura was a luxury brand. I want my Passat back!

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  Honest review from an Acura owner - 2002 Acura RSX
  By bepear01 - July 19 - 2:00 am

  Purchased the car 1 year used with 22,000 miles. Fun to drive, great handling, engine feels solid. Build quality appears to have gone down slightly, but could be due to 1st prod. year. 1st-2nd gear shift is notchy and grinds occasionally (known problem - no fix). Leather is wearing on drivers side. Should have used leather with a higher coefficient of friction (sliding around during cornering is annoying). Replaced factory audio with aftermarket... Bose system was pathetic. As others have stated, there is much road noise.

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  Dont take it to the mountains - 2003 Acura RSX
  By Mustard - July 17 - 2:00 am

  My radiator blew half way up Pikes Peak highway during a vacation to Colorado. My RSX was only 5 months old. We had to have it towed down the mountain and to a local dealership. It was fixed, but not before half of our trip was ruined. The worst experience was trying to deal with the Acura Roadside Assistance people to get reimbursed for some of our travel losses. After speaking to several people, none of whom cared, and writing a long letter detailing my experience, I finally received a short response that said little more than "go to hell". The car has been adequate since, but this experience will keep me from buying another one.

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  Hondas best sedan! - 2004 Acura TSX
  By fedlawman - July 15 - 10:00 am

  People who say that the TSX is "just a re-badged Accord" or complain that it only has a 4 cylinder engine just dont "get" this car. The TSX is the reincarnation of the much loved (and missed) Prelude, only today its got 4 doors, gorgeous interior appointments, and refinement never dreamed of in the former coupes glory days. The TSX engine zings to redline smotth precision, and the 6-speed manual just snicks from gear to gear like its coated with teflon. The nimble chasis is predictable and fun to play with, yet understeer at the limit is typical FWD Honda. If want want an Audi cockpit, Lexus refinement, and Prelude reflexes, this is it.