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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  Transmission nightmares! - 1999 Acura CL
  By roadtripgirl - August 13 - 1:45 pm

  Bought a 1999 CL 3.0 new from the dealership. Only the dealership serviced my car. Four transmissions at 67K miles. Dealership and Corporate Acura would not do anything on behalf of customer loyalty to make this right except an occasional free oil change. Do not, do not, do not buy an Acura!

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  Acura Got This One Right! - 2009 Acura TL
  By Acura...EXACURA!!! - August 13 - 4:26 am

  I was in the market for a new sedan and shopped Infiniti G37 and Lexus ES. Stumbled onto the re-designed TL and...WOW!!! This car is a real eye-catcher. Bold new lines, aggressive styling, and it drives like it has more than 280HP. I decided to buy it after one test drive. Very fun to drive, and really decent mileage for a car with this much zip. I love this TL!

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  Acura hit the Sweet Spot - 2008 Acura TSX
  By Mike - August 13 - 1:15 am

  This is our second TSX (we have a 2004) and we couldnt be more pleased with this car. We considered Audi A4, Lexus IS 250 and BMW 3-Series before settling on a second TSX. They each had their strong points, but none of them really balanced the equation of price, performance, economy, features and reliability that the TSX manages. This has got to be the hidden gem of the Acura lineup. Check it out or you may just be disappointed with your next purchase!

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  57K miles and still love it - 2004 Acura RSX
  By Vince - August 12 - 10:32 pm

  This car does nothing great, but does everything well. It has enough power to be useable in daily driving, yet it feels like a different car when VTEC kicks in around 6K RPM. Stock it handles well enough, but go aftermarket for serious handling. The interior is good. Nothing in this car requires the owners manual. Honda has perfected user-friendly interiors. When driven reasonably, Ive averaged 34-36 MPG consistently. The chassis has developed some rattles, mainly when the temps are cold. Other than that, the chassis is solid. I had 2nd gear grinds earlier on, but it now only happens when extremely cold. Overall, I love this car and I think its a great car for the young professional.

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  2003 Acura MDX - 2003 Acura MDX
  By Shirley Hoskins - August 11 - 1:24 pm

  This car drives like a breeze. I had a BMW prior to this MDX and I like the MDX much better. I like Acuras so much, I will never drive anything else.

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  RDX - 2007 Acura RDX
  By judy - August 10 - 5:57 pm

  I love driving this car. It rides smoothly and it feels luxurious. The only thing I really hate is having to fill up the tank so often and having to pay so much because I can only use premium.

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  RSX w/leather - 2004 Acura RSX
  By JohnnyH - August 10 - 10:00 am

  Great car. Fun to drive and 165hp is more than enough. Can keep up with 200hp cars easily. Great deal too for all the amenities you get.

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  What the BMW 5 series should have been! - 2004 Acura TL
  By crvols - August 10 - 2:00 am

  I drove this car after having looked at it for a couple of months and was sold. The car is quiet and comfortable, yet rides and performs like the European cars we have owned. Having an MDX gave us confidence in the build quality and retained value, so it was an easy decision to become a two- Acura family. If the BMW 530 I drove was as good as this, it might be worth the extra $18,000.

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  WHY BUY A LEXUS - 2004 Acura TL
  By Big Al - August 10 - 2:00 am

  I am 55 and still like a sporty car yet luxury. This is the car, quality,reliability, absolutly gorgous. This may be no it is the best car for the money in its class. In fact this is the best car I ever owned.I am buying a second one tomorrrow

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  Excellent car - 2002 Acura RSX
  By indiglo - August 9 - 2:13 am

  Great all around car