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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  Reliability>Safety>Quality>Value - 2004 Acura MDX
  By Goli - September 15 - 10:00 am

  3.3K. I am happier with it every day. QUALITY- no a rattle/squeak. Great leather. PERFORMANCE- fast, powerful, effortless. SUSPENSION-comparable SUVs are either too soft or too stiff, MDX has perfectly balanced a comfortable ride with very good HANDLING. UTILITY useful ample space, turn seating for 7 into open flush space in just seconds. My dogs love this vehicle (BTW- the optional CARGO LINER is a must-have (tailor-made for the MDX protects interior from dogs, bikes, scuba gear, etc). COMFORT-very quiet (although some wind noise at very high speeds), comfortable, and great seats. AC is great! SE FL resident on a Black/Black.

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  happy in Bonsall - 2004 Acura TL
  By driver52 - September 15 - 10:00 am

  very happy with preformance and milage, also sound system. Quality is exceptional. I testd BMW and Audi, and liked the new TL as a better value and better equiped.

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  3 years and still in love... - 2001 Acura CL
  By lil_dreamer13 - September 14 - 11:39 pm

  I purchased my 01 CL Certified in September 2002. I fell in love with it then and am still in love with it now. At the time, I was also looking at the Lexus IS, but it felt like I was cramped up in an upgraded version of my Civic SI. The CL has all the luxurious interior features, a powerful engine so it is at a great value. The transmission was recalled, but Acura replaced it at their cost. Ive been a CL owner for 3 years now and dont even have an itch to look at other cars because Im very happily satisfied. When Im in the market to purchase a new car, it would definitely be another Acura hands down... Perhaps the TL. )

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  rsx - 2004 Acura RSX
  By acuRaSX - September 14 - 2:00 am

  its fun to drive and great to look at.. if you r into modding your car this car is great

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  TL tops list - 2004 Acura TL
  By ceebee - September 14 - 2:00 am

  I have had my TL for a week now and I hate having to park it in the garage at night. Find myself now driving to a 7- 11 store that I used to walk to. Power, head turning curb appeal blended with hi-tech electronics and a classy interior. What more could you want? Was looking at 4 other cars in its class and I am already sure that I made the right decision. Look out BMW,Audi,and the rest, the Acura is stealing your thunder !!

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  New TL - 2004 Acura TL
  By rjam - September 14 - 2:00 am

  This is my second TL, I had a 1999 which I received 50% of its original value at trade. Great car, reliable and fun to drive. I believe for what you get this is the best value in its class.

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  The Best of the Best - 2004 Acura TL
  By TEX - September 14 - 2:00 am

  Have been looking at the TL since it showed up on the dealers lot last fall. Have looked at the G35 and the Lexus 330. Just purchased this month, it well worth the wait. Out shine both Infiniti and Lexus.

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  Excellent Safe Car - 2004 Acura TSX
  By Gore - September 13 - 4:29 pm

  This car is very safe. Imagine going 65 on freeway all of the sudden someone from the right side pressed gas and merges into your lane without looking I had to look over and quickly react. Luckily due to the excellent control that this car has I avoided a collission which saved money and my car.

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  Type S - 2005 Acura RSX
  By Trader - September 13 - 6:23 am

  Ive put 3600 miles on and have had no problems. This car is so fast, loves to rev. Seems like the car is begging you, "come on push me, ive got plenty more power for you"! The stereo sounds great and who wouldnt love zipping through those 6 gears. Seems like the cockpit was designed just for me. And the sound of that exhaust at high revs, wow. Im sold on Acura.

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  Best car I have ever owned - 1994 Acura Legend
  By alvin m - September 13 - 12:42 am

  I purchased in 1997 with 35k miles, it now has 198,000. I just now replaced inner tie rods and front struts. I have had to replace two water pumps and the fuel pump switch. I have the 6 speed transmission. Even with the high mileage, you can barely hear the car idle!