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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  I love my car - 1995 Acura Integra
  By Amber - January 27 - 10:26 pm

  This car has never let me down. As long as you take care of it, itll last a very long time. I go on road trips all the time. It gets great gas mileage and is super fun to drive, too.

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  08 Acura TL Type-S - 2008 Acura TL
  By BEN - January 26 - 7:14 pm

  Used to own an Infiniti G35, This car is an excellent & fun car to drive, and has many options.

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  Found a winner - 2005 Acura TSX
  By eag - January 25 - 6:33 am

  I have owned BMWs in the past 20 years.The upkeep was quite costly, so I did some research on a new sports car. The TSX was well received by the writers and drivers of the main auto magazines, so I took a test drive. Love at first sight. The 4 cylinder, 200 HP engine has a lot of umph!!Gas mileage averages 28, and at future increases in gasoline approaching the 3 dollar level, this is very good.Im in my 70s and very impressed with this auto. Fun to drive daily.

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  Great and underrated - 2008 Acura TL
  By Chris - January 24 - 5:22 pm

  I purchased my TL after owning a Saab 9-3. The car is exactly what you expect from this type of Acura. This is my third Acura and plan on a new MDX this summer. The one thing that bothers me is that the TL is constantly compared to the Lexus IS, BMW 3-series, Infiniti G35, etc. However the TL is bigger than all of these cars and actually the size of the Lexus GS & M45.

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  Best-kept secret among luxury sedans - 2006 Acura RL
  By dwboston - January 24 - 12:13 pm

  Hands down the best handling car Ive ever driven. SH-AWD completely transforms the drviving experience and benefits both inclement and regular weather driving. Build quality and materials are top-notch and the amount of technology in the car for the price is incredible.

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  TSX aka EuroAccord - 2004 Acura TSX
  By tcgrubbs - January 23 - 10:00 am

  Great smooth shifting 6-speed manual; really fun to drive on mountain highway curves.

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  debs - 2004 Acura TL
  By jesnme2 - January 23 - 10:00 am

  This is my second TL in the past 2 years. I owned a 2003 type-s but once I saw the 2004 I knew I had to have it! I am extremely picky and the few-very few bells and whistles that the 2003 were lacking the 2004 had! Love everything about it!!

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  Great Vehicle - 2008 Acura MDX
  By oscarkat3 - January 23 - 1:24 am

  This is a great all around vehicle. It is roomy but nimble. The ride and handling combo are refined and strike a perfect balance. There are no tippy sensations driving this car. The seat comfort and driving position are perfect, just absolutely perfect. People of very different sizes can all find enough room and the right position. The memory settings are fantastic for multi driver households. The cargo room is good.

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  What a car! - 1990 Acura Integra
  By Mike - January 20 - 11:14 pm

  I had to sell my 05 Sentra SE-R Spec V due to rising insurance costs and many issues with reliability. Found this nice little Integra GS for only 2k. Interior was about the only thing showing some real age on the car. Engine has run great even when I take trips from North Carolina down to South Florida. 13-16 hours nonstop, not even thinking twice about whether or not the car will make it says A LOT about the quality of this automobile. I ended up putting some money into it to fix up a few pieces of trim and the blown speakers, but that was all the car really needed. The paint has held up well over the years, the design is very modern, and the gas mileage is a life saver.

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  Good Times! - 2006 Acura TSX
  By Kingleo - January 20 - 11:03 pm

  This vehicle is beautiful. I waited for the 2006 model to be released and am very glad I did so. The vehicle drives like a dream and has the comfort and technology one would expect of a vehicle costing thousands more. Even though the vehicle "only" has a 4-banger, it is surprisingly quick off the line (Acura has the vehicles total weight in mind, not just the engine.) The interior is well designed and all the fit and finish is immaculate. I have been driving the vehicle for a few days now and find new and fun features that make the daily commute just as enjoyable as the back road joyride. I highly recommend this vehicle!!