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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  New Acura 1 month old - 2017 Acura RDX
  By Jim Andrews - June 6 - 8:50 pm

  Prices vary greatly among dealers, negotiate.

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  Best bang for your buck - 2007 Acura TSX
  By 2007TSX - June 6 - 3:22 pm

  Spent 3 months shopping around for a new car. Looked at a long list of cars (TSX, TL, G35, IS 250, Camry, Altima, Mazda3 5-door). In the beginning, I was looking at the TSX and came full circle with it. The car is great, definitely a good and reasonable investment. I was willing to give up the performance for fuel economy. Even with the inline 4, the car moves its not like a TL-S or G35, but its enough for everyday driving. The car looks a lot better in person than in pictures. I love the car more and more everyday!

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  My RDX - 2007 Acura RDX
  By cnmec - June 6 - 10:19 am

  The turbo is peppy, but takes a second to kick in. The road noise is a bit more than I would like and it is a stiff ride, which some people dont like.

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  Great Car, Great Buy - 2007 Acura TSX
  By Tom - June 6 - 9:15 am

  TSX has everything you want/need included: XM, Bluetooth, leather, trip computer, peppy engine, smooth trans, exceptionally comfortable driver seat, great handling, fun to drive.

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  Classy, conservative, luxury Acura 3.5 RL - 2004 Acura RL
  By Mike - June 5 - 9:19 pm

  I recently purchased the 2004 Acura 3.5 RL and I love it! It has a very smooth ride and all the luxury features you could want including an awesome sounding 10 speaker Bose system, Alpine/Acura navigation system, and real burled camphor wood interior. I bought the car with 80,000 miles on it and didnt think twice. I am a Honda man and know this car will be very reliable. I have already put 4,000 miles on it and it runs like a car with 10,000 miles on it. Previously, I have owned 3 Accords. I wanted something more luxurious and bigger... this car is perfect! I love the Acuras classy, conservative stance that remains tasteful and luxurious looking. The RL has more than adequate power.

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  B-E-A-utiful car - 1998 Acura Integra
  By brantegra - June 4 - 1:55 pm

  I bought this car in early 2004 with 109000 and Ive got 129000 now and let me tell ya, it doesnt feel any older then my friends brand new EVO and Ive almost got it just as fast as well. Must haves for the ultra performance person: coilover shocks, cat-back, short ram air intake, header, rims and good tires, lightweight flywheel, stage 2 clutch, and some lightweight pulleys and youll be beating v-8 mustangs in no time.

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  sport sedan - 2003 Acura TL
  By stewart8888 - June 4 - 10:00 am

  A bargain amoung entry level sport sedans, the equipment level stands out, as compared to the competing makes.

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  Great ride - 2007 Acura RDX
  By Lainey - June 1 - 2:22 pm

  Ive been looking for a car that had everything I wanted in a size I wanted. The technology package has everything I was looking for. There are a few things missing, but they werent deal breakers. The navigation is easy to use and the bluetooth is superb. The seats are comfortable and the a/c blows cold (important in the desert). This car has good pick-up and has a great ride.

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  What a nice car - 2007 Acura MDX
  By Paul - May 31 - 11:28 pm

  I love this car. Driving is so fun with powerful engine and active damper control. I dont regret any penny I spent on this car. Well designed amenities are very user friendly. Improved voice recognition functions are so useful in inserting address on the navigation system.

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  Love, love, love. Bought new in 96! - 1996 Acura Integra
  By Gayle - May 31 - 10:42 pm

  This has been and continues to be a great car. I will probably keep many more years. Very reliable and so much fun to ride. The back is always reserved for my dog. The moon roof is wonderful and after almost 11 years I have finally installed a CD player. My original research paid off. Many have tried to buy from me and I tell them "no". No big major repairs, just keep well maintained. Highly recommend.