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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  Where is the Legend - 1998 Acura RL
  By LinVA - November 12 - 2:00 am

  I owned both the 1988 and 1991 Acura Legend. I have been nothing but dissapointed with the 98 RL. This year both rear electric window mechanisms broke. The plastic pulley wheel in the door (a $1 part) broke (on both doors within two months of each other). The cost for each $244. You can only replace the entire motor mechanism. The power is lacking in the motor. The noise inside is noticeably louder than both of my previous legends. On the bright side, it is as reliable as the sun rising. One turn of the key and it is ready to get me to work.

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  Careful what you wish for - 2017 Acura TLX
  By Eg - October 29 - 7:28 pm

  Ive owned the TLX technology, the navigation is not the greatest it had me turned around a few times , every once in awhile the volume on the stereo would automatically get louder to its highest level and vibrant the car I would take the car in to Acura to find out the problem , only to find out we cant find out the problem, but I was told the next time it happens bring it back in. This was the 2nd time it happened and the 2nd time I brought it in . The paint does not do well on the road with other cars .

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  I miss my CRV - 2016 Acura RDX
  By Prissy - October 9 - 5:25 am

  I like the base RDX, but I am gassing every week, when the CRV was every other week. Its an expensive car that requires expensive up keep. I drive the same miles everyday, actually I am driving 4 miles less since I bought the RDX. I told my husband I was keeping this car, but I think I am definitely going back to Honda CRV.

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  Make awful howling noise - 2003 Acura RSX
  By Cheens - September 20 - 2:00 am

  A big disapointment. While driving on highway it makes a loud howling noise comming from passenger side. I brought it back to the dealer a week later. They hear it but refuse to fix. Does anybody have this problem. Please email me at din99o@yahoo.com

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  think twice - 2003 Acura TL
  By hshanka - September 13 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car last month and have had lots of probs. Some of the them: dashboard makes rattling noise,roof makes a rattling noise,steering wheel makes scratchy noise on rotating more than 180deg,strip coming off the moonroof.What makes the situation worse is the fact that these problems occur one after other and I have to keep making trips to the dealer. I called corporate acura asking if I could have my vehicle replaced or have my money back, but they just werent empathetic and all they said was Id have to keep taking it back to the dealer until I get all the problems fixed!I thought acura was a good car but regret making the purchase.

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  nice car .. too bad Acura service stinks - 2000 Acura TL
  By to be former owner - August 4 - 2:00 am

  Great car, good milage. I will not buy another one because the service stinks. 3k-30k miles, seat belt light goes on (I had a new born so took this seriously). Took 4 dealer trips to get this fixed. 17k front strut goes. Took 2 trips to get it fixed. 55k, need new rear brakes .. they have to schedule me to come back. Meanwhile Acura policy is no loaner car for less than 3 hour waits so I get to reshuffle my schedule. I just cant handle the dealer run-around. Also, too many small problems with a young "quality" car. My 1989 Legend appears to have been built with better quality than these new things.

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  My Last Acura - 2002 Acura TL
  By Jeff C. - July 20 - 2:00 am

  I have now owned two TLs - 1999 and 2002. 1999 had share of problems. This 2002 has been a constant problem. If I didnt know better, I would think I have a 1980 jaguar. The rotors constantly warp - replace 3 times and turned twice. Transmission replaced once. CDRs with labels will get stuck in CD-player. Navigation screen replaced once. And the best part of this horrible car - The dealerships take at least 3 to 5 times to get anything fixed. I will be in a German car for 2004.

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  Bad Transmission - 2003 Acura CL
  By BadTransmission - June 7 - 2:00 am

  All 3.2s have bad transmissions. When ours went bad they had the car for 30 days. So many transmissions were bad on the car throughout the country that there were no parts in the states to repair the car. The problem with the transmission has never been resolved. When your transmission goes bad (and it is a matter of when not if) you receive a rebuilt transmission that has already gone bad and been "repaired". Rather than recall the car and remedy the problem, Acura extended the warranty on the transmission to 7 years/70,000 miles. This warranty extensions hide the real problem. THIS CAR HAS A BAD TRANSMISSION AND IS NOT SAFE TO DRIVE.

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  My car - 2002 Acura CL
  By suggie - May 23 - 2:00 am

  The car is good 2 drive but the interior and exterior design leave a lot 2 b desired

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  Buy a BMW! - 2002 Acura TL
  By NoAcurafan - April 15 - 2:00 am

  A disappointing car. Transaxle failed at 25K miles, took 5 dealer visits to get repaired. ABS sensor failed. Dealer used the wrong viscosity oil on two services. The correct oil (5W20) is down the street at Pep Boys, dealer doesnt care. 40-foot turning radius is huge. Handles heavy, not nimble, plows in turns. Not a "fun" car. Stock tires howl, ride is always jiggly. Rear seat doesnt fold down. No key hole for trunk. No tether for the gas cap! Minimal headroom. Navigation system is a $2000 mistake--way too complex. Buy a gas station map and save $2K. Not a quality car or dealer, and my first and last Acura.