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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  An Incredible Car - It Simply Keeps Going - 1994 Acura Integra
  By TegMan - January 24 - 9:51 pm

  I now have over 360k miles on my 94 GS-R and this thing still flies! Never have had any engine work done on it, only typical repairs including brakes, tires, belts, and hoses. Did replace the radiator once, but, it was a simple job costing less than $90. I change the oil about once every 12k miles and it still has no issues. What a car. Fast, fuel efficient, and a blast to drive. I upsized the tires to 205/55r-15 and it makes a positive difference. There is something special about the 94 GS-R engine (many call it the one year wonder engine). Not sure what it is, but, it definitely has more hp than subsequent years (even though the specs dont support it). Get one if you can!!

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  Definite Improvement - 2007 Acura RDX
  By Janice - January 24 - 9:13 am

  We purchased this vehicle to replace the Honda Odyssey that I hated at 13 mpg. I wanted the MDX but couldnt get into that one at the time - should have tried. Anyway, this one has much better mpg, fun to drive, great looks, fairly easy entry/exit for "fat" mama. Wish it had the power lift gate, auto on headlights (my Pontiac did). And I wish I could pair my phone to it-- technology. We love the Navi! Wish our two Fits had that!

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  What a Great Car - 2002 Acura RL
  By Mike - January 23 - 9:02 pm

  I just purchased my RL used recently. If I would have known what a great car it would have turned out to be I would have bought one sooner.

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  Wonderful Car - 2005 Acura TSX
  By Bishopsring - January 23 - 2:39 pm

  It has been two years, two trips to California, Austin and Dallas. The car runs admirably. Lacking in power, it provides gas mileage, comfort, and fun driving. The overhead blue light during the night adds a unique but classy ambiance. The interior and use of all available space provide a wonderful usage for anything and everything, cell phones, chargers, cd cases. With performance being its only down point, I understand the balance, but it needs the extra horsepower or burst of speed off the line. There is one aspect from changing from second gear to third gear where it gets stuck even with the clutch completely down. Great car.

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  Nice luxury sedan value - 1999 Acura RL
  By afsound - January 23 - 8:19 am

  Despite expected poor fuel economy, and despite its premium fuel only recommendations, this car has been everything and more that I hoped for. Only issue so far has been the SRS light came on shortly after purchase, perhaps air bag sensor tripped?

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  Best car of the year - 2006 Acura RSX
  By art - January 22 - 7:30 pm

  I think that this car is excellent and can be driven even by the unexperienced drivers. This car accelerates and handles great. I love it.

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  LOVE the 2017 RDX - POWER HOUSE!!! - 2017 Acura RDX
  By RDX_2017_OWNER - January 22 - 7:35 am

  Excellent handling, powerful acceleration, Space, Speed!!!

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  best sports sedan value bar none - 2005 Acura TL
  By D in T-hill - January 22 - 6:43 am

  You have to spend 10 Gs more to get materially more car. The front has an appealing sneer with some attitude, theres enough interior bling and tech but not to excess, really planted handling, plenty of rev-happy power. Its a fine, quiet highway cruiser too. Average adults have decent rear legroom but if you travel with 4 aboard pack lightly--smallish trunk. I expect great reliability and resale. My previous was an 02 TL Type-S. It was so good for both that this is the first time Ive ever bought the same car twice. However the 05 shares only the terrific powertrain and TL name with the 02. Otherwise its so different that to all intents its a wholly different car.

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  New Owner - 2017 Acura MDX
  By William Moore - January 22 - 12:54 am

  Love the car, though it has only been a month. For price the fit and finish is fantastic and the active safety features are very good. Electronics are good, though some are tricky to learn.

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  Fantastic Car! - 2007 Acura TSX
  By Boise Girl - January 21 - 10:47 am

  This car is fantastic! Fun to drive, very comfortable, and gets up to speed fast! I drive 25 miles on the interstate every day and this car makes the drive enjoyable. Headlights are great, gas mileage is wonderful, and I am a very satisfied driver!!