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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  Sweet Car - 2005 Acura TSX
  By sylvester vanchiro - October 4 - 8:13 pm

  I looked at 3 other cars in this class, and after it was all said and done, I knew this was the car I wanted. Two years later I still am one happy driver. This car has and does everything I need in a car and the reliability has just been great. Cant really say enough about this car, just happy I made the right decision.

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  Unparalled Bang for the Buck! - 2007 Acura TSX
  By cajun jake - October 4 - 5:55 pm

  Outstanding overall value. You cannot beat what comes standard on the TSX for the price. Leather, bluetooth, 360 watt stereo (XM, 6 CD changer), heated seats with memory, sunroof. On top of all this, the TSX is extremely fun to drive and very agile. This car wants to be pushed to the limit and it eagerly responds. Note this is a sport sedan not a luxury car that floats on the road like grandpas Lincoln. MPG is OK, average around 24 in mix driving and around 30 on the highway. I guess I was expecting a slightly better MPG given the TSX comes with a 2.4 liter 4 cylinder engine, however the TSX is engineered to maximize full use of this engine.

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  BEST OVERALL... - 2006 Acura TL
  By VTC - October 4 - 1:23 am

  Overall a great HighLine Luxury Vehicle, got style, performance, brembo brakes avail; body kit avail. very quit inside, Overall is stll a well rounded off car for riding smoooth everyday to work and roomy for guests.

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  Great performance, annoying rattles - 2007 Acura TL
  By DWW - October 3 - 6:50 pm

  I had a 2003 Type S and loved that cars ride, so thought that in purchasing the 2007 Type S Id be just as pleased. The new Type S has unbelieveable power and acceleration and handles like a nimble sport car. All in all a very exciting and sporty ride. The sporty suspension does make the ride a little harsh. Almost every imperfection in the road gets transmitted through the steering wheel. The comfort is great and I love the navigation system and telematics. However, the interior rattles drive me crazy. No excuse for a luxury sport sedan of Acuras caliber to have this problem.

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  Mines a Red One - 1995 Acura NSX
  By OZZY - October 3 - 3:05 pm

  Dont even think about buying one without T-tops, what a blast. Just sounds terrific, handles great and there arent many cars around thatll beat you away from a light. Holds two sets of golf clubs and gets amazing gas mileage. Built like a swiss watch and sturdy as a tank. And if youve ever driven a Viper, you wont miss the 200HP - NSX build quality and driveability leave the Dodge embarassed. Big wow factor, even at the club, too much fun for what I spent, pleased with my purchase.

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  Unbelievable price - 2004 Acura TL
  By Walker - October 2 - 2:00 am

  This vehicle may be the best car I have ever owned. I traded a 02 Audi A6 for the TL. This car beats the Europeans in performance and styling hands down. The 270 hp is amazing. All features normally offered as options on the others are standard here. Amazing for under 35K. im 6ft 3 and i have plenty of leg room.

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  New Car - 2004 Acura TL
  By C J - October 2 - 2:00 am

  Just bought it 2 weeks ago. Love it. Awesome sound system, great looks. I have been complimented daily on that car. Really happy with it. Oh yeah, it cooks.

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  New TL - 2004 Acura TL
  By DanBuz - October 2 - 2:00 am

  270hp selective shifting,unique dash design,neat flowing exterior design,look out Maxima and G35 here we come on your heels oops bye bye...

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  Great new car - 2010 Acura TSX
  By Robert Trotter - October 1 - 2:09 pm

  Its a one-owner car we bought it brand new. Wonderful in every sort of way. Cant say enough good about it. Would have bought another but they were too expensive.

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  RDX is the best! - 2007 Acura RDX
  By lrpba300 - September 30 - 8:23 pm

  This SUV/CUV is the best all around vehicle Ive ever owned! It has it all. It has a great interior, comfortable seats, great handling (like a sports car!), ride is firm, but nice, solid build, room to haul stuff, paddle shifters, great looks. Im very happy and have had many vehicles before due to leases for work, but I bought this one and couldnt be happier.