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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  Luster worn off - 2005 Acura TL
  By doug - October 14 - 10:30 am

  When I first got this car I was thrilled with it. After a year and a half though, problems are rising up that are making me think twice. 1) The brakes screech. IÂ’ve had a service done where they replaced the pads and turned the rotors. That silenced them for 5k miles. I now have to drive with the windows up. 2) Rattles are getting noisier. 3) Rust! IÂ’ve got rust bubbling up from under the paint on the trunk already. 4) The originally gray dashboard is quickly fading to an off white. Very ugly. IÂ’m wondering if I should have bought something else.

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  Perfect Blend - 2006 Acura TL
  By Car Rob - October 12 - 8:07 pm

  I love cars, but I hate when they break. My last BMW spend more time in for service than it did in my garage! This thing isnt quite as fun as a 330i, BUT IT DOES NOT BREAK! Plus, I cant complain about 31 mpg with cruise set at 80 mph! You do have to run premium if you want optimum horsepower and MPG. Go with the manual transmission and dump the stock all season tires and you cant go wrong. Couldnt justify spending two grand on a nav system when I can read maps, so I didnt order that. The upgraded Brembo brakes that come with the manual version are simply amazing, but pedal modulation could be a little easier at the top of tip in. So comfortable on any road, find some twisties and enjoy!

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  A Great Compromise - 2008 Acura RDX
  By Jim R - October 11 - 12:32 pm

  Having spent a year and 13,000 miles with my RDX, Im very pleased with the experience. After driving European sport sedans for the past 20 years, I wanted the utility, AWD, and taller view of a compact SUV. However, I didnt want to give up the "fun to drive" nature of my previous vehicles. The RDX delivers. Its very quick. And the ride is somewhat firm -- what I expected and wanted in a vehicle that enjoys attacking mountain curves. Yet, to me the ride is by no means harsh. The interior is well designed and fairly luxurious. Acura reliability is a huge bonus -- I got to know the service techs far too well with my previous cars.

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  Unbeatable Car for the Money - 2004 Acura TSX
  By TraderTom - October 11 - 10:00 am

  I bought this car after shopping the 325i, the A4, the TL, the IS300, the G35 sedan, and the Saab 9-3. After driving the TSX, I just couldnt justify the added expense of any of those cars. The TSX has every option that I was looking for such as the Navi system, a 6 speed, leather seats, sunroof, xenon headlights, etc., and it came in $5000 lower than less equipped competitors. I love driving my TSX. Ive gotten an XM commander installed behind the smaller storage bay in the dash after removing that power port and the worthless storage tray. Its great because the car looks stock when I close it, and its easier to use than the XM built into the TL system.

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  Love This Car - 2004 Acura TL
  By artflyman - October 11 - 10:00 am

  Most fun I have had with a car in years. Sound system is better than anything I have heard in a car or in a house. navigation system, with voice activation, is fun and very helpful. Love the fact that there are so few options, because just about everything you want is already on the car. Exterior design gets many comments and looks.

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  Acura RDX: good deal - 2009 Acura RDX
  By dba - October 11 - 12:00 am

  First SUV I own, and very pleased with it. They did a great job to reduce the turbo lag you can notice it but it is definitely acceptable. Very good looking SUV with the luxury touch you find on all Acuras. Looking forward to try it in snow here in Boston.

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  8 years of reliability and comfort - 2008 Acura TL
  By Jim Blair - October 10 - 6:11 pm

  Have really enjoyed my TL. nothing except routine maintenance and a timing belt which I replaced based on the manuals recommendation. Only issue is the bluetooth link went out and havent wanted to spend the 350 to replace it. I highly recommend the car.

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  You dont need the bling for luxury - 1999 Acura CL
  By dmitzah - October 8 - 2:13 am

  I bought this car private party from the second owner. Continually maintained by specialist shop. Low miles for a 9 year old car (87k). This car is pretty awesome. It has loads of power to spare, its super comfortable, takes the bumps pretty well, and its fairly quiet. If you drive a lot, this car will take a lot of road wear off YOUR body. I drive a lot on the freeway, and I dont even feel the effects. Its a pleasure to drive and has a lot of support in the leather seats. Im 6ft tall too, and the backseats arent too shabby. Really, if you want luxury or a comfy ride, this car is it and its priced well. BMWs, Benz and VWs are good, but you cant beat this price.

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  A great SUV - fun to drive - 2007 Acura RDX
  By rdxster - October 7 - 10:03 pm

  We picked it up this weekend and so far its been all fun. This is a great SUV and drives like a sports car. We had a Maxima GLE but this has way more zip and is great in cornering and feel.

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  Best car Ive ever owned - 2003 Acura TL
  By johnwilliams - October 7 - 1:54 pm

  I bought my TL-S with 60K miles on it 2 years ago and love everything about it. Great power, really good handling, exterior style is head turning, very comfortable ride, decent gas mileage (if you can keep your foot of the fantastic accelerator), and while the interior style is simple all you have to do is put a little leather conditioner on the seats and it stays perfect. My seat heater (driver side) and light for the clock did break as did the radio control on the steering wheel but this is minor stuff. If maintained this thing will run for 250K miles + no question.