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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  Nothing like it. - 2004 Acura NSX
  By six7777 - October 12 - 2:33 pm

  To have this car in my garage, and drive it whenever I want, is a dream come true. This is my 2nd NSX, my first one was a white 1993. The 2004 is amazing. I have the yellow/yellow. The paint on this car is flawless. Just an amazing car in so many ways. Love the fact that not many people "get" what this car is all about. Its not about power, its about balance. You have to own one to understand. I have owned many cars, but nothing compares to the NSX, and I will have it for years to come.

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  Best Little Acura Yet - 2005 Acura TSX
  By HuskerFan27 - October 12 - 3:03 am

  Owned 2004 and had to replace it with a 2005. All the little gripes that most forum users had are addressed with the 2005 model. The car is top notch for the price point. Not that 29K isnt a lot of money, but compared to quality and features, you cant beat it.

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  Pretty great! - 2003 Acura RSX
  By christineeee - October 11 - 5:39 pm

  Bought used, ended up paying more that I normally do for a used car, but still a great value. Car is excellent to drive, inside console seems to be made to mold around driver. Only thing I wish is that the seats were a little bit cushier, but all in all a great car!

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  Love this vehicle - 2007 Acura RDX
  By kcosta - October 11 - 2:42 pm

  My husband needed a new car for work to haul people around. This vehicle is what we were looking for. It has enough luxury to impress but is still not over the top. Great performance. Although it is small, it is spacious inside. After getting used to a WRX we wanted something that did not lack in the performance department but didnt break the bank. This vehicle is perfect.

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  Great family SUV can be improved - 2007 Acura MDX
  By Baymate Diego - October 11 - 2:31 pm

  We bought a 2007 Acura MDX tech package more than a month ago. Great handling. Overall excellent interior and exterior. Both navigation and backup camera are great additions. Vehicle is wilder than comparable vehicles so think about parking in crowded garages before purchase. We bought this over competitions because of excellent value and the 7 seat capacity. Third row seats practical only for kids. There is sometimes wind noise coming from the right side when driving on freeway. Have not figured that one out yet.

• 

  traded for a Audi Q7 - 2007 Acura MDX
  By jadladrad - October 10 - 2:38 pm

  First and probably my last Acura. Big Honda fan so had high expectations that were not met. I liked the styling and it was fun to drive but overall the build quality and use of cheap materials got tiresome.

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  Great Car! - 2008 Acura RDX
  By Great Car! - October 10 - 1:17 pm

  After purchasing this car almost two months ago, I decided I had to write a review considering I have found the reviews out on Edmunds to be very helpful. I purchased the RDX after my 2002 VW Jetta broke down which happened frequently. The Acura is a wonderful car in general, and the RDX is great! I couldnt be happier with my decision. It is easy to drive, easy to park, has great acceleration when needed. It is super comfortable and just big enough that I feel like trucks can see me better on the highway. I would recommend this car to anyone who is looking for solid reliability and easy maintenance.

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  InLuvWithMyVigor. - 1993 Acura Vigor
  By JoPro@ElPaso - October 10 - 4:09 am

  Ive owned my Acura Vigor for 10 months and Im happy with my purchase. Handling is on point, pickup is awesome and style is excellent. Acura has won me many races along with my heart!

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  Great Car, But The Build Quality Killed - 2005 Acura TL
  By ecb - October 9 - 1:36 pm

  The pros of this car are very obvious... 1. Very fast and responsive engine. Fun to drive. 2. The navigation system is the best on the market, by far. Also, the voice integration and bluetooth capability works perfectly. 3. The list of standard features are more than any other vehicle under $40K The cons are the following: 1. The build quality was horrible. I had numerious interior rattles. From the centre compartment, to something in the upper left corner of the dash, to another by the right front door ... they drove me crazy. Also, the interior quality was not good for a luxury car. The aluminum scratches easily and just looked cheap 2. The dealer installed tires bad

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  Acura - Great Vehicle - 2006 Acura RL
  By mjg1629 - October 8 - 7:13 pm

  Great autormobile for driver, not so great for passengers. Front passenger seat should be 6 way to go up and down, not just forward and back. Back seat area is small for long trip for two guests. For driver a perfect car,best Ive ever owned and Ive had them all.