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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  Lots of mechanical issues - 2005 Acura MDX
  By MHirt1 - May 16 - 1:27 pm

  I am the original owner of my 2005 MDX, and currently have about 130,000 miles on the car. We have had many mechanical issues with this car, including: - failed torque converter at about 55,000 miles - failed transmission cooler at about 85,000 miles which caused intermingling of transmission and radiator fluids - not good - failed electrical harness unit - had to wait to get one from Germany! - numerous suspension issues - rust appearing on front of hood and in all four wheel wells starting at around 100,000 miles Even my 15-year old Saab has had far fewer, and less expensive, mechanical issues. I am not sure whether I will buy another MDX.

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  Its that kind of thrill - 2015 Acura TLX
  By marktlx - May 15 - 9:55 pm

  I was impressed with the new ad campaign for the Acura TLX. This brought me into the showroom and as a long-time purchaser of this brand, I looked forward to the test drive. I have since purchased a 2015 Acura TLX and am extremely impressed with the drivability, power and efficiency of the 2.4L engine. The TLX is every bit the Audi, BMW or Mercedes in its class. This brand is fun to drive, efficient and safe. Dont spend thousands more for a European car when the Acura TLX will beat any of them at their game. It is "that" kind of thrill to drive.

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  Amazing Car! - 2015 Acura ILX
  By robin707 - May 14 - 4:45 pm

  I just purchased the 2015 ILX 2.4 6 speed manual and must say, this is the most fun car Ive ever had. It handles great on curvy roads, the seats feel like they were made for me. The price was even reasonable for the performance and comfort. This is the best manual I have ever driven, its smooth, its fast and its so much fun! I highly recommend this car to anyone who wants a sporty, yet functional car.

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  Perfect Combination of Sport and Luxury - 2003 Acura CL
  By xrodriguez1992 - May 13 - 9:43 am

  I am really enjoying driving this car! It blends sport and luxury perfectly. You have all the luxury features you would expect out of an Acura such as leather seats, memory seats, climate control, heated seats, Bose stereo, Xenon headlights, etc. But with the CL-S you get the quicker 260 hp/232 lb-tq engine and the 6-speed manual makes it a thrill to drive. It handles great but the suspension isnt too rough for daily driving. The Honda-made J32 engine is extremely reliable and should last for many more years to come. I cant think of too many other cars that combine all of this in one package. If you can find one with the 6-speed, buy it now!

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  Love it - 2014 Acura ILX
  By wdc6446 - May 11 - 11:34 am

  The more I drive this car, the more I love it. Like many others, I was a little worried I would miss having a turbo but loved the combination of economy, luxury,reliability and good looks that this car offered, at a price I could feel good about. Feels sporty, smooth, and responsive. I can honestly say I havent missed the horsepower. I cant believe it doesnt get better reviews. I have the Tech package, and love the bluetooth, the navigation, and the sound. I rarely get less than 30 mpg and that with considerable city driving. When you give it gas, it has a healthy rev, and cruises very comfortably at 70-80mph. Passing is never a problem.

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  Fast, stylish and feature filled - 2014 Acura RDX
  By hoplover - May 10 - 7:20 pm

  We have had our RDX for a year now (17000 miles). The RDX has a stylish exterior and a very comfortable driving position. The base comes with a long list of standard equipment including bluetooth,xm, backup cam, heated leather and sunroof- options packages on most competitors. Upon entry it sets the seat and mirrors to your settings. Pulling out, the strong engine and smooth, fast transmission make you feel confident in any traffic situation. The brakes are fully capable. We have averaged about 23 MPG in mixed driving. The cylinder deactivation takes a little getting used to, but helps in efficiency. The interior features are logically laid out and work flawlessly. Very good purchase.

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  Excellent car all around - 2008 Acura TL
  By Icu Nursing - May 7 - 12:03 am

  This car was an amazing buy. I couldnt have asked for anything more. It has just the right amount of luxury and sport. I drove my brothers TL for a month and absolutely fell in love with the Acura. The TL was perfect in everything besides for the power (preference). So I bought the type-s. If you plan to commute this car gets 33 mpg on freeway at 70mph when Im not driving it hard. When you want to have fun it will take on most cars on the road (auto). If I planned to constantly race I would have looked for a manual which has much better drag performance (6speed). When I see other type-s owners on the road my eyes enjoy this vehicles unmatched unique design.

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  2014 MDX - 2014 Acura MDX
  By chris441 - May 3 - 9:27 am

  I would steer clear of this redesigned MDX. I looked at a few different Suvs before purchasing my "New "MDX". Was thrilled to have my first ACURA. What a rattle trap it has become. Noises from the front to back. Engine has strange noises. Interior trim coming loose. Made an appointment with the purchasing dealer only to have them tell me it needed tires.(21,000 miles) and alignment. Could not find the noises. Said if I came back and purchased a set of new tires $1300.00 they would look at it some more. Talked to Acura about this and they said it was a dealer issue and I would have to take care of it by working it out with the dealer. What happened to my warranty?? No more Acuras for me!

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  My beloved CL 3.0 - 1997 Acura CL
  By hondalover41 - May 1 - 6:36 pm

  I sold my Acura CL 3.0 in March of 2015 to buy the new more practical Honda CRV EX-L. I bought this car new in 1997 and didnt realize how much I loved it, until it was gone. At 198,500 miles and 18+ years it was time because I felt it was becoming less dependable, and much bigger repair bills were on the way. The day I bought it I walked into Acura to buy the 4 cylinder 2.2 CL with cloth seats, and drove away with the much more powerful six cylinder 3.0 CL, with heated leather seats, lots of other goodies, and the super cool alloy wheels. It was a blast, and Im so glad I did it. Best looking interior I have ever seen in a car. Even now! Great job Acura &Honda. As of May 2016, I still see this car around town from time to time. They guy who bought it from my mechanic loves it, but he doesnt take care of it like I did. The last time saw it parked on the street, I had never seen it so dirty. Today I am still glad that went out and bought the new 2015 Honda CRV. It makes a lot more sense for me in this time of my life. BUT.......... if then I had extra parking space the old Acura it would probably be sitting in it, right next to my new Honda CRV. I hope I never miss another car like I did this one!

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  Love this car - 2003 Acura CL
  By Kane Jones - April 28 - 3:35 pm

  Bought a 2003 acura 3.2 cl 2 years ago from a friend of mine who owns a mechanic shop, and I must say that this car is an amazing car, the engine sounds great and at times I would just turn the radio off just to listen to the engine purr as it has a distinct sound to it that sounds so good, the only issue Ive had so far is with the power steering making a whining noise which turns out to be the power steering pump, but otherwise this is a great car, I updated the deck to a double din screen, hooked up a back up camera to it and installed an amplifier with an 18 inch sub woofer and now my wife is driving in style lol....I will buy another cl for myself.