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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  Got A Lemon - 2007 Acura TL
  By 2007 TL - May 31 - 9:58 pm

  In first 11 months car was back to the dealer for 34 business days for repairs. While the car has some zip, many problems have plagued this car. Engine would not turn over 3x and have replaced 3 batteries due to short in Hands Free Link and took dealer 2 times to correct the problem. Car alarm chip has been replaced 2x as alarm goes off randomly. Trunk latch has broken 2x and replaced by the dealer. Car handles well in warm weather but does not handle snow well at all. Expected a better experience for the price I paid for the vehicle.

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  This is a special sports sedan - 2008 Acura TSX
  By Bob in Beaufort SC - May 31 - 1:21 pm

  The steering, transmission, clutch and the running gear are all in tune. This is a very solid sports car feel, in a small sedan, still with ample room for 4 people. Having had Hondas since 1986, this was a major step up for me, and the car is solid, planted and fun to drive. Too bad that it has to use premium gas, buy thats the way Honda gets 205 HP out of the 2.4L four cylinder. This is a drivers car, with a nicely snubbed-up ride that is not harsh.

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  Turbo is design flaw - 2007 Acura RDX
  By sad rdx - May 31 - 8:26 am

  Be very careful of the RDX: the front end has a problem that will need to be addressed - it feels a little like the shocks but it isnt. The turbo has a major problem - my car has been in the shop for over a week they are tearing it down and do not have any idea what is wrong no warning indicators it may have cracked the head but the dealership isnt talking. They do not know why the turbo is malfunctioning but it appears at the 50,000 mile mark you can look for major issues of course that is when the warranty expires. Powertrain is 70,000. Everytime I have had to deal with warranty issues (3 dealerships) they try not to fix. Good luck sorry you have this car and sorry I have this car.

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  For the Most Part -- Happy Owner - 2008 Acura RDX
  By RDXer - May 31 - 8:02 am

  The style, speed, handling, AWD aspects are great. The fuel economy could be better but is improving as the miles drive increases. Dealer did have to replace the left front brake caliper due to a rattle noise but dealer assured me it was a new, factory replacement part not rebuilt. Would be nice if it had auto on/off headlights and if the air conditioning "auto" function would always work with the recirculating button engaged -- living in the city you have to pretty much keep the recir button on all the time.

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  Why spend more when you dont have to! - 2008 Acura TL
  By Michael in Montreal - May 31 - 7:33 am

  My brother, who had recently purchased a 2008 Acura TL S-Type, recommended that I test drive the car, and stop looking at more expensive cars that I was considering, such as the Jaguar XF and the Audi A6. Well, we are both now driving the same car, except his is Silver and mine is Pearl White. The car is solid, fast and luxurious. In Pearl White, the car is a very sexy sharp-looking car. I was sold within 5 minutes of the test drive, and the driving experience just gets better with time. It will take me time to learn how to use all the features that come with the car, but with the money I saved, I will study the owners manuals as I tan on the beaches in Southern Italy this summer

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  Still a great car - 1995 Acura Legend
  By Janice - May 31 - 1:20 am

  I have owned my car for 12 years. I recently have had some work done cv boots inner and outer, new tires etc., but in all these years other than normal maintenance it has been terrific. I love this car and although i also own a jaguar i just cant sell or trade it. It looks great, never had any accidents, only 80000 miles. So although it is 13 years old it still looks great and I still get compliments on the car. Cant beat that.

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  Awesome first luxury car! - 2005 Acura TL
  By Elizabeth - May 30 - 12:53 pm

  I am so glad to be in a well-made vehicle. I am 25 and getting into my career as a commercial interior designer, so this car is still fun to drive for my age, but has the luxury that I need to take my clients around.

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  Best entry level sedan for the price - 2004 Acura TSX
  By ManG - May 30 - 10:00 am

  Test drove the A4, Mazda6, BMW 325i, and TSX. This car is the best overall value in its class. Handling is terrific for a FWD car, and the only option is the nav system - which is the best in the industry! Interior design is near flawless, big gauges, big nav screen, nice heated leather seats, good lumbar support..on par with Audi.

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  nice, but flawed - 2006 Acura TL
  By nccx - May 30 - 4:20 am

  PRO: Lots of engine power,and a nice sound system. CON: It does have several big problems. The torque steer in first gear with a stick is SCAREY. IT CAN almost steer YOU OFF THE ROAD. The low wind dam under in the front will scrape on most downhill driveways. The turning Radius is very large for a midsized car, It remind me a large truck. The lack of a bump strip on the sides has resulted in may dings on the doors. The rear bumper seems to get dinged easily. It not a great amount of fun to drive. It drives more like a good family sedan (Accord, Passat, or Camry) than a sport sedan.

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  Acuras are the base car made - 2005 Acura TL
  By Dubuc - May 29 - 7:43 pm

  I have owed this TL since the first one came out in 2004 and that is one of the best car I have ever driven.