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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  So Far So Good - 2009 Acura TSX
  By Chunster - March 9 - 1:30 pm

  Having owned this car for less than a week, I can tell you it was a better choice than the other cars that I have researched (VW CC, Camry XLE, Altima 2.5SL and Hybrid, Maxima S). My goal was to find a car that was the best bang for a price range of $25-30k. In the end, the TSX had the most features for your dollars, as well as a luxury feel and quality. The only negative is the premium fuel requirement. The other thing I will need to get use to is the seating requires you to lean back more than I am use to (comfortable feeling but different from the other cars). I hope to put in another review after a few months of use.

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  Good Value - 2008 Acura TL
  By firebird - March 9 - 1:19 pm

  For the great lease you can not beat the value of this car, lots of options that cost extra or cannot get on other cars. The ride is a little on the stiff side especially when temps are below 30 degrees.

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  Never Buy First Year Car - 2003 Acura RSX
  By joe249 - March 9 - 10:00 am

  My radio makes a electrical click when turned on. The relay swich under glove box clicks twice when you turn on ignition.The brake pedal is soft and I only have 4400 miles on it. You step on brake pedal and you get an electrical switch click also.

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  Heres the skinny... - 2002 Acura RSX
  By pocket - March 9 - 10:00 am

  Excellent overall. I choose the base model since the difference in performance was was not of great importance to me (.7 sec faster for type-s 0-60 and 1/4 mile) Handling is particularly admirable. I had a 3- series BMW before this.. and this car handles every bit as good. If you want to smoke people while drag racing, get a WRX. If you want a classy car at a great price, the RSX is fantastic. Great value for the dollar.

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  Great Driving Car - 2003 Acura TL
  By goleonar - March 9 - 10:00 am

  I bought it for my wife, but I keep looking for excuses to drive it. The power, predictble and precise handling (for a for door sedan) make driving effortless and enjoyable. Wish it had a stick.

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  GREAT car! - 2008 Acura TL
  By Rio Rebel - March 9 - 9:41 am

  The bigger engine in the TL-S made a big difference to me. I was set to get a G35 until I drove the S model. Great quality, thrilling to drive. I LOVE this car. Only thing I dont like is the lip spoiler in the S. In fact, my wife loved it so much we got her a base model TL two weeks later!

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  Its exactly what its supposed to be - 2006 Acura TSX
  By TSXNJ - March 8 - 3:20 pm

  This car does exactly what its meant to do, and it does it perfectly (for 28k!). No, its not going to tear up other cars when you want to race them to the next red light, but it has decent acceleration and great passing power. It handles beautifully. The technology on this car is downright addictive. The Nav system is top notch and SIMPLE to use. There are about a billion voice commands which the car can recognize, and the blue tooth hands free link is incredibly convenient. Its bigger than a civic, but smaller than an accord - very nice size. Plenty of trunk space. The iPod jack is just icing on a very sweet cake. Want a drag-racer? Buy something else. This car is perfect.

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  Best value in class - 2005 Acura TL
  By tngm - March 8 - 12:53 pm

  The combination of speed, comfort, handling, luxury and features is a true marvel at less than $40K. The BMW 3/5 series handles better but falls short in every other category. The Infinity G35 is quicker but doesnt have the build quality and falls far short in all other categories. The Lexus is for those that want total isolation from the road and cant remotely be considered a "drivers car". I purchased mine on the way to the BMW dealership to by a 330!

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  7 passengers and no sweat !!! - 2005 Acura MDX
  By united_airline - March 8 - 2:43 am

  I was very impressed with my 04 Acura MDX touring, navi. I had 7 adults and this baby climbs hill like I was sitting alone by myself. I dont have to add additional gas. I did not hear the engine make any noises when going up hill. It is truly remarkable.

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  Love my Acura TL - 2006 Acura TL
  By AZ_michael - March 7 - 7:00 pm

  I have been waiting 2 years to get a TL. I have been watching this car since it came out in 2004. Researched and test drove all of the others 325i, G35, C230, ES330 and others. This car is the flat out best car for your money. The car drives like a dream no rattles and it is FAST. The Navi is awesome and voice recognition is very cool. You can say "go home" and the car will calculate the best way home. Love the interior quality, leather is plush and cushy. Interior layout is advanced but not overwhelming. Love the LED blue lighting. If your looking for a car with great features test drive a TL youll want to buy one.