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:

• 

  First Acura, Not the Last - 2002 Acura RL
  By Buford - September 25 - 11:50 pm

  Purchased 11/05 and have loved this vehicle since. Test drove 2002 Lexus 300 ES and 2003 Infiniti I35 same day. The RL ride was outstanding, precise, solid, but not harsh. White Pearl finish is outstanding, like new. Interior fit is great. The only nuisance so far is the SRS light comes on periodically and appears related to the driver seatbelt. Easy to reset. I have read that this is a common complaint. Overall, a great, underrated vehicle with outstanding features.

• 

  2004 TSX w/ AT (No Nav) - 2004 Acura TSX
  By klossfam - September 25 - 9:28 pm

  At 30,000 miles, perfect reliability (not one issue - even minor). Its the best FWD car platform ever in my opinion. Great blend of luxury and sport. Worst part of new TSX are the Michelin Pilots. A switch to Falken 512s tires made a great car greater. Right on the EPA mileage ratings. Cant be beat for the price and the ability to hold a high resale value borders on ridiculous.

• 

  The benchmark for family/sport sedans! - 2006 Acura TSX
  By dalahu - September 25 - 1:16 pm

  After 1 ½ months of ownership, I still jump at any excuse/reason to take it out. The TSX is the top rated sedan for residual value after 5 years (per Edmunds.com article “Top 10 Cars With the Best Residual Value”) and it’s also a Consumer Reports “Best Buy”. The TSX may not offer the best performance in any one category, but everything works together to create an ideal driving experience. Fuel efficiency, in mixed driving conditions (50/50 city/hwy), has averaged at 25 MPG. Braking performance is on par with generic (non premium) sedans. The factory sound system is marred by cheap and inefficient speakers that lack mid- range frequency response.

• 

  2006 Acura TL - 2006 Acura TL
  By jw - September 25 - 10:31 am

  Have had the car for two weeks, been an absolute joy to drive. Agree with some previous raters, this should be rear wheel drive (although Im surprised by how well Acura has managed the torque steer). Interior fit and finish are excellent, cabin layout is efficient and well done. Looked at 3 and 5 series as well as G35/M, when adding in the cost component, this car doesnt take a back seat to any of the aforementioned cars.

• 

  Awesome car. - 2002 Acura CL
  By PB - September 25 - 5:50 am

  Although used at 68000 when I purchased it, the car was immaculate in and out. It runs well but might need new springs,struts. Also the navagation system needed upgrading. That aside, the car is a dream to own and drive. Love it.

• 

  Hands down the best SUV on the market! - 2003 Acura MDX
  By Laurena - September 25 - 2:00 am

  After having tested out the BMW,VOLVO,TOYOTA,ACURA,INFINITI,LEXUS,H ONDA,AND MITSUBISHI.I found myself with only one vehicle that not only caught the emotional side of me,but also the important practical, and family oriented side. Basically to make a long story short I spent 2 months learning everythng humanly possilbe about everyone of these vehicles, and the Acura MDX by far took the lead.Once I purchased the vehicle I was reminded of the 0 scheduled maintenence for 105k miles, and 7,500 miles for every oil change. To anyone reading you MUST,and I mean MUST look into the Acura MDX before you purchase an SUV.

• 

  First time Acura owner - 2006 Acura TL
  By scott720 - September 24 - 8:08 pm

  A loyal Honda owner, I thought it was time to move up the food chain and try an Acura. This is a fantastic car - powerful, full of feartures, great looking and I know I have the reputation of Honda behind it. My only reservation is with the total cost of ownership - requires the expensive gas, the tires are rumored to cost upwards of $300 a piece (and I didnt buy the high performance tires, the stock tires are W rated), and Im guessing the repairs, when I face them, wont be cheap.

• 

  Almost 1 Year - 2006 Acura TSX
  By BJ Mark - September 24 - 11:34 am

  We purchased this car last November and recently completed a 4500 mile road trip, The gas mileage has held pretty steady at 29-32 mpg hwy and around 25-26 city/combined. The drivers seat has been replaced once due to a creak and this has appeared in the new seat (after about 4 months) - Acura will take care of it. The car has been totally reliable, fun to drive and lived up to expectation. And the nav system is one of those "never had before/never not have again" extras and served us well on our recent road trip.

• 

  Great Car - 2003 Acura TL
  By Mark - September 24 - 9:09 am

  Best car I have owned. I like the look better than the re-designed 2004 models.

• 

  Even better than the 2003 - 2006 Acura MDX
  By econ1 - September 23 - 8:16 pm

  We had 78,000 miles of our 2003 MDX (which we loved - never any problems - still had the original tires, brakes, etc.) and didnt particularly like the looks of the 2007, so opted for a new one minus the DVD package, which we never used. Its an unexpected significant improvement over the 2003 -- its more quiet, LOVE the Handsfreelink, and the NAVI systems works even faster than the one in the 2003 model. May have slightly more power, but the 2003 had plenty. Added a trailer hitch to this to tow PWCs. Have thoroughly enjoyed the XM radio as well. Weve already put 5,000 miles on this one in 2 months.