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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  Back to Acura - 2006 Acura TL
  By Fred - August 23 - 6:46 am

  Bought this car after much research on features and value compared to BMW, Nissan, Toyota, Infinity. Beautiful ride for the money with a comfortable interior. I get many compliments on the style and color (Royal Blue Pearl). So many features I am still learning.

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  Overall, I am still happy with the car - 2009 Acura TSX
  By unlv - August 22 - 9:01 am

  Have been driving the car for 8 months now. I found the ride too firm at first, but now I am used to it. The grill-design has grown on me as well. Steering feel is also fine it is materially better compared to my old car (a 2004 V6 Camry). While not perfect, it is still a very good daily-driver in my opinion.

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  2004 Acura TL 3.2 Automatic - 2004 Acura TL
  By DCWGOLF - August 22 - 2:00 am

  I am extremely impressed with my 2004 TL. I also own a 2003 BMW 530 and find myself wanting to spend the most time in the TL. The cabin is larger and more luxurious with a knock out sound system and great straight line performance. The BMW wins on overall handling and solid feel. The bottom line the BMW doesnt come close to justifying the price differential.

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  Two Thumbs Up! - 2004 Acura TL
  By Dilbert - August 22 - 2:00 am

  Ive had my 2004 TL for about a month now and I love it. A major improvement over the 2003 Type S version. A smooth confident ride and plenty of power when you need it. The sound system has to be heard to be believed, its like being in a recording studio. I bought the 6y/100k warranty to cover all the bells and whistles, but probably wont need it with Hondas iron clad reliability. Dont buy one though, I like being one of the few to enjoy this exceptional automobile : )

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  What a Great Car! - 2009 Acura TL
  By Xpert37 - August 21 - 11:52 pm

  Just got the 2009 Acura TL/AWD/Tech today. Wow, what a great car this is. The handling was superb and the drive is fun and comfortable. I love the Technology Package and especially the voice recognition system.

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  Best car I have ever owned - 1994 Acura Legend
  By RocketRuss - August 21 - 12:43 pm

  Purchased with 80Kmi on it. I put another 80Kmi on the car before I killed it (accident). Amazing car. 1 yr before I totaled the car, I filled the tank with 1/2 107 octane, 1/2 98 octane. Car ran like a dragster for the next 2 weeks. Thereafter, my fuel economy steadily rose. When I bought the car, I barely made 300-320mi/tank. After the 107/98 octane mix, my fuel economy rose to just over 400mi/tank. I always, always used 93/94 octane. I will miss that 6 speed manual tranny. Only thing I didnt like about the car was the front wheel drive. Car looked like a sleeper, but Id smoke just about anyone...and Im no leadfoot.

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  Problematic RSX-S - 2002 Acura RSX
  By RSX-S - August 21 - 10:00 am

  This is a very problematic car. A lot of them are having big problems. If you really want one wait until 2003 or 2004 models, so that they work out all the bugs.

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  Not a bad one - 2009 Acura MDX
  By 1st MDXbuyer - August 20 - 11:57 am

  Got it a month ago after thorough study and many colleagues bought MDX previously. Overall it is a nice SUV and worth with its price. Good handling and smooth drive although steering wheel is too restrained to turn. For exterior I like front design, but tail looks terrible. Power is good, especially like the manumatic shift to satisfy sporty drivers. A typical sport SUV.

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  Brilliant Car - 2006 Acura TSX
  By Alex - August 19 - 10:03 am

  I purchased the 2006 Acura TSX after months of research, and have to say this car is brilliant. Interior build quality rivals the best in class, with all buttons are well designed and layouted. Very functional. Very roomy. Exterior... what a beauty. Navigation system is powerful yet easy to use. Fun to drive, has quite a bit of power, feels a bit like driving a V6; has decent acceleration. Very good handling. Best bang for the buck I must say.

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  Very impressed for the $ - 2009 Acura TL
  By acuraconvert - August 19 - 1:31 am

  Fast enough, quiet enough, and lots of tech/features for the money. Shopped 335 and G35 but TL had the best blend of luxury/comfort with performance. Its not a compact sports sedan, but it is everything else that you can ask for south of $35K.