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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  Acura for a family - 2003 Acura MDX
  By me plus 3 - October 16 - 10:00 am

  I chose the MDX after trying out just about every mid-size SUV available. The MDX has the most interior room (almost as much as some of the large SUVs) and fared well in crash tests. Overall, I am very happy with it. My husband and I are both tall and we have 2 babies, double stroller, etc, 2 car seats, but still roomy. It rides well, is okay with gas for an SUV. I love the option of the 2 back seats (although not the most comfortable) The only area that needs attention is the interior (which does not both me) - It is plain, very simple features, not much on the dashboard as far as extras.

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  A GOOD CHOICE - 2003 Acura MDX
  By EK1988 - October 16 - 10:00 am

  A GOOD VEHICLE - WE DEBATED BETWEEN THE ACURA AND A 4 RUNNER LIMITED. SAME PRICE BUT BETTER FEATURES IN THE ACURA. TIME AND CONTINUED USE WILL DICTATE VALUE.

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  Best top of the line buy - 2003 Acura TL
  By nshorejay - October 16 - 10:00 am

  A great value, all that is needed in a car big trunk, seats 3 in rear with comfort. The trunk pass through is actually useful....skis - 2 x 4s

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  Best car for my money - 2003 Acura TL
  By jdgossage - October 16 - 10:00 am

  This vehicle not only looks good it is very comfortable, it drives and handles like a vehicle with a much higher price tag. Acura has built a high performance vehicle with all the features of a luxury automobile.

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  Overrated - 2005 Acura TL
  By Mike Ryan - October 15 - 8:42 am

  We have owned 3 Acuras all purchased new. We will not be purchasing a fourth. Tires on TL wore out after 24,000 miles. Rust on brakes had to be scraped after less than 18,000 miles, not covered by warranty. Passenger side window opens but will not always close. Acura Service tells us it will be $545 to fix. Window service is outside warranty period. There has been no damage to the vehicle that would cause the window malfunction. This is not what you would expect from a company that prides itself in building quality products.

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  Some costly repairs - 2004 Acura TL
  By bassdocta - October 14 - 3:49 pm

  Still love driving this car even after a few years. Like others I am on my second set of tires (Continental conti pros, I think). I had a CPU failure from a stopped up drain that was VERY expensive but covered under warranty. I also had an AC compressor failure which cost me $1200 to fix. Not experiencing the rattles that so many others report, though. Only 60K miles. Lots of torque steer. Everything still works. Mileage is good.

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  SH-AWD is a blast! - 2009 Acura TL
  By michael - October 14 - 1:06 am

  I had a 2008 Type S and loved it. My only complaint about this car was the FWD, always spinning when I needed grip. Most of this problem was made moot when I drove home my SH-AWD two days before the big snowfall in Seattle. I now have 500 miles on my SH-AWD, I can tell you that unless youve taken the SH-AWD in 10 degrees with a foot of compact snow & ice on mountain roads, gliding around corners above freeway speed limits when others could just as well be peddling their cars, you really dont have the data needed to write a review. Ill give you that look of the nose and rear of the body as it comes from Acura arent as cool looking as the 08 Type S, but those two panels could be painted.

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  TL Review - 1995 Acura TL
  By Pimplogic - October 13 - 1:35 pm

  I bought the car for $2,000 cash, it already had 192,000 miles. I have had no problems, it performs great, has plenty of power and luxury, great features, is a smooth, fun, comfortable ride.

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  GREAT CAR - 2005 Acura TL
  By JIM - October 12 - 4:06 pm

  This is the best TL Acura has built. This car is fun to drive, gets good gas mileage. All the extras are included in the price except the nag system. Great job Acura. You have a winner.

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  TL Funny to drive...some quirks! - 2005 Acura TL
  By RL22 - October 12 - 3:17 pm

  I bought this car used...A lease turn-in. I have loved this car from the get go. I am in my mid-late 30s and it fits me like a "T". Fast, stylist and has all the amenities that I would use (wish but dont have nav). I think the car is quiet but I would agree about the some rattles. I have tried to find most and put an end to them which I have except for a couple which would entail a lot of work. I had to put new brakes on it (because it was a lease turn-in with 36M miles)and I have put about 15000 on it in 7 months. Have done nothing else with it...I owned a 2004 Accord that I put 140M on. Honda/Acura make great cars...I am looking into a used MDX for the wife.