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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  My 2009 MDX - 2009 Acura MDX
  By kurtkbee - January 3 - 10:38 pm

  I researched this car for over 1 year before purchasing. While I test drove the BMW X5 (3.0) and the Audi Q7 I always came back to the MDX (Tech/ent). While the other SUVs offered some minor technologies not found in the MDX, those features would have satisfied less than 1% of my needs but when they were configured with all the features of the Tech/Ent MDX the competitors were $8k-$10k more. The performance of the car is really great and even when taking a bend at a high speed it seemed to handle the road better than my coupe. The exterior design is very nice and gives the SUV and aggressive look. My wife and I love the SUV but really miss the efficiency that we once had with a sedan

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  Wow - 2017 Acura RDX
  By BMcC - January 3 - 10:25 pm

  I owned a 2009 RDX with technology package and thought it was great. This one is even better. We had a 2012 BMW X3 for a short time but missed features of the RDX. We love our new RDX and because of the safety features the insurance is even cheaper than it was for the 2012 BMW.

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  Best Car of the Year! - 2010 Acura TL
  By dryworks - January 3 - 7:53 am

  Exterior- Non-Generic. Unlike most cars on the market that all look the same, its edgy look and smooth lines are sure to last a decade (forget about what critics says, its not ugly). Interior- from the moment you sit in, the cock pit, dash board, wraps around you like its a perfect fit! High quality material. Technology - Voice act. SUPURB AUDIO SYSTEM, HDD, SH- AWD, IPOD, 8" VGA NAVI Screen, live weather, traffic, zagat, shift pad...etc, it has one of the easiest navigation systems on the market. The handling is incredible, and it has one of the most silenced cabin in the Acura line up. This car is a Sexy, Fun, Tech-junkie, and sporty. It is THE CAR to get if you are looking for a Luxury Sport Sedan.

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  Good Performer - 2009 Acura RDX
  By hsm - January 2 - 3:39 pm

  I have had this vehicle for a litle over 2 months now. Just got back from a ski trip with the family. First, let me say the SHAWD is the best AWD system I have ever had. The vehicle handles snow like you are on asphalt! Mileage is all in how you drive - I am getting between 21 to 24 mpg combined with conservative driving. Beware that the suspension is stiff - trade-off the vehicles handles very nicely.

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  Outstanding Car - 2009 Acura TSX
  By Ualboy2 - January 2 - 3:40 am

  This is a outstanding car. The interior quality is refined and conveys quality. Nav is easy to use and the gauges are cool looking. The ELS sound system is truly fantastic. The car has plenty of power for Its size, and when I tell people its only a 4 cyl. They cant believe it. I personally love the new exterior look. It looks aggressive but classy. The steering is not as bad as some reviews have stated, and really you would need to be on a track to notice any difference. I will admit the ride can be a bit stiff, so if you are looking for a cushy ride, this may not be the car for you. This car has an outstanding value compared to BMW, and Audi. A+ Acura love this car

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  Fantastic - 2007 Acura MDX
  By TerribleJ - January 1 - 9:56 pm

  It is a fun SUV to drive. The engine is smooth, the white lights are super bright, the sound system is amazing and it does not feel like a big car behind the wheels. It handles amazingly well in the snow and would likely recommend it to anyone. I just went through a B1 service, oil change and tire rotation, which cost me $56. It seems fair compared to the maintenance on the Audi. We do a lot of highway driving and average 19 MPG and it took about 7500 miles before the service light came on. We have an Accord and Honda USA treated us well. We got rid of our Audi and went with a Honda product. We made the right choice.

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  The good and bad of the Type-s - 2007 Acura TL
  By scorched_675 - January 1 - 5:37 pm

  Most cars I have owned I either loved or hated, my 07 Type-s is a true love/hate relationship. I love the looks and styling, as well as the performance and sound of the engine. OK now for the hate, I hate that my almost $40k car rattles everywhere inside! The center speaker cover rattles. The rear subwoofer make the deck rattle. The interior itself is very impressive, perforated leather seats and all. After a month I also added tint to the windows, and had it immediately ruined by the drive scraping a cut in the tint.

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  Best of the bunch - 2009 Acura RL
  By John Paul - January 1 - 11:56 am

  I just upgraded from a 2005 to a 2009 RL with tech. Fabulous car. I cant imagine how anyone could actually drive this against the Lexus GS, the Infiniti M, or the 5 series BMW and not buy the RL. I suppose there is a lot more to luxury car buying than performance, price, features and road feel.

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  Second to none - 2003 Acura RSX
  By LuvnmyRSX - January 1 - 2:00 am

  I test drove the Mitsubishi Eclipse GT and GTS,Toyota Celica GT,RSX Type-S,and RXS.My choice was an easy one when I looked at initial quality,price,resale value,and fun to drive factor. I just didnt feel the extra horsepower the RSX Type S has and the insurance was much higher than the RSX. I also liked the feel and quality of the cloth seats. This is the funnest car I have ever driven. I just cant believe how quick and economical this car is. It suits me perfectly.

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  4 door sport car - 2002 Acura TL
  By lefty - January 1 - 2:00 am

  well rounded with many features at a good value