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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  17 years after it rolled off the assembly line... - 1997 Acura Integra
  By ecidloc - April 30 - 1:54 am

  I have never been much into cars. True, I owned an Acura before and I have heard of the name Integra, but it did not attach any meaning to me until recently when I bought a 17-yr old used one as a second car for the family. From styling, handling, dynamics, ride comfort and practicality, this car surprises me in every single way. It has simply and functional designs, it has a peppy and efficient engine, it has no fancy equipment, it has a styling that can stand in time, and it has 17 years on the road and still running in a typical Honda fashion. This is a car built for driving, and it was built to last. We need more cars like this in todays car industry.

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  Amazing car for the price. - 2013 Acura TL
  By dcstriker25 - April 26 - 2:57 pm

  I have had this car for a couple months after trading in a S5 for a more family orented sedan. I looked into the A6, and Lexuss but felt they were to pricey, when a collegue told me to look into the TL. I was shocked when I looked into the price on the fully loaded TL AWD compared to the the comparible lexus(Power wise) and A6 (size and power), A4 was to weak of an engine. The sticker might have been 46k but I was offered the car for 40,650 + 1,500 cash for trading in the car. The car was great inside and outside styling was much improved over the 2009-2011. The car drives smooth, tech features are great, and AWD works extreamly well in the NE winter.

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  Love my ZDX - 2012 Acura ZDX
  By goddard6 - April 22 - 4:29 pm

  Just bought my 2012 ZDX w/Advanced Package. This car is great!! Bought it brand new from the Acura Dealer, no one wanted to buy it, which made it good for me!

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  best deal in town if you do your homework - 2013 Acura ILX
  By sethwas - April 22 - 9:52 am

  How to sum this car up - there are no other vehicles in this size that have this many features at this price. That could be good or bad. There are larger vehicles that have this many features at this price (with no gas mileage penalty) and there are plenty of vehicles that are this size that are less expensive and have less features. So if you could lease a Civic EX-L or a premium package ILX (same monthly payment after you factor in gas and insurance) which would you choose? If you could buy a loaded Accord or Mazda6 for the same price which would you choose? Does the badge or dealer experience matter? All are amazing vehicles - you just need to decide where you want to be.

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  After searching many I chose TL - 2013 Acura TL
  By damonpod - April 19 - 10:59 am

  I test drove BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, Acura, volvo, Audi, Cadillac, Hyundai and a few others before making my final decision. I honestly didnt consider Acura a luxury brand until I drove one! I narrowed it down to Lexus ES and Acura as both offered the best deal for the money. I am tall so BMW, mercedes and audi were cramped. After test driving the Acura TL several times I was hooked. The acceleration, interior styling and cabin room were second to none. The sound system is tremendous, and the Technology package works with ease. My dealership experience at Mungenast was the best dealership experience I have ever had when buying a car. Had the car for 3 months and no problems to report so far.

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  Absolutely AMAZING car! - 2004 Acura TSX
  By deepen03 - April 14 - 12:27 pm

  Had this car in family since 2004. Purchased it used in September 2004, for around 24k, with 20k miles on it. I started driving it myself in 2006 when I first got my license and have put over 50K miles on it myself. Just a well-built awesome Acura. Its sad how the TSX has become such lower quality in the 2nd generation models. I just love this car in ever way and have no complaints at all. I have 104k miles right now and plan to keep it going to 200K if I can!

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  Love my TL! - 2006 Acura TL
  By gtj1715 - April 6 - 9:38 pm

  For years, my kids heard me say "see that TL over there - THATs the one I want". Now its more like an unspoken "I love my car" (I bought it last summer). I love the 2004-08 body style - those before and since just dont have that same sleek, wedge look (the groove was so iconic that recent Accords copied it). All my research pointed to the 2006 being the most reliable of the bunch too. You ever get *exactly* the car you want and never, ever look back? Yeah, its like that.

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  9 year owner of TSX - 2004 Acura TSX
  By lamike1 - March 31 - 2:38 pm

  I wrote my first review on my TSX back in 2008. Since then Ive out another 60k miles on it. I bought it brand new in 2004. Dont hesitate to buy one of these, they are reliable. I never did anything but my normal maintenance (oil changes, fluid changes, timing chain at 100k miles, brake jobs, etc...) the car never gave me one problem ever. I finally parted with my TSX yesterday and sold her. It was just time for a new car. She was at 130k miles when I told her good bye! Lol great car, Acura did awesome with this thing.

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  Spectacular - 2013 Acura TL
  By ijkmno - March 24 - 9:33 am

  This is an astonishingly good car. The AWD technology gives it remarkably precise handling (and Ive owned Porsches and BMWs). The engine is agile and powerful. The sport setting on the transmission allows for tightly-wound driving without a bunch of shifting. The interior appointments are first-class (excellent sound and nav systems). The combination of performance, features and price makes this car a great value for a drivers car.

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  I love my MDX - 2003 Acura MDX
  By andy3631 - March 23 - 2:09 am

  I have had my Acura for about 7 years now and I absolutely love it. I bought it with 70,000 miles on it and I currently have 209,000 miles. I have never had any major problems with it. I actually drove about 2000 miles from Chicago to California and it drove great. I hope to have it for another 200,000 miles.