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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  The best of RLs yet! - 2005 Acura RL
  By Lessie - August 30 - 11:15 am

  This is the 6th Acura I have owned -- starting w/ Legends. This is the best yet. Love the bells and whistles, plenty of them. Quick movement from 300 horsepower. However, not a knock out in styling, too much like the TL. But performance, top of the line. Happy to be an owner. Sound system is the best ever, listen to the 5.1 surround sound music in this car, I need a chauffer. To the owners who have not learned the detail of this vehicle, you are missing out.

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  Great car! - 2017 Acura MDX
  By Justin - August 29 - 10:48 pm

  I cross shopped multiple vehicles prior to purchasing this SUV. My wife and I sat in and drove many SUVs. We felt like this SUV offered a lot more than the others for the price. The biggest/best surprise is the SH-AWD (google torque vectoring if you havent already) which makes the car a lot of fun to drive and adds a spare tire. The ELS sound system is great. The safety features should be standard on all vehicles -- the technology package adds the blind spot detection which is awesome. I was worried that the transmission would at least take some getting used to given the complaints but its great actually. Their are plenty of YouTube videos explaining why it feels a little funny between 2 gears but I have honestly not had a problem in any IDS mode (sport, comfort, normal). The complaints dont seem to be primarily regarding reliability. I was also worried I wouldnt like the shifter after so many complaints. It is actually very easy to use and keeps me from ever having to look down. It has the added benefit of protecting you from changing gears when you shouldnt (i.e. P while driving, D while shutting off the engine, etc...) which ultimately saves wear on your transmission. Good warranty compared to the other SUVs (7 years on the drive train). The infotainment system is just ok even with the tech package but has all of the functionality I need. I wish that it had a panoramic sunroof. If you compare to other vehicles in the class, for example the Lexus RX, Audi Q7, Volvo XC90 etc.. or even the Pilot, Pathfinder, Highlander, and Forester, I thought the Acura was ultimately the best bang for your buck.

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  Wow! Talk About Bang for the Buck! - 2005 Acura TL
  By Paul - August 29 - 4:36 am

  I bought this after being very satisfied with my 2000 Acura TL for 5 years. This is my 5th Acura overall but what a step up over the old design which I thought was pretty darn good! This car is the most complete package I have seen for the money. Power, luxury, handling, and great looks all for thousands less then the BMWs, Lexus, and Mercedes I looked at with similar features. You cant go wrong. Acura has finally built the perfect car (NSX excluded) and put a head turning body on it for a change! Only minus is the need for premium fuel and less than stellar fuel economy in the city but who cares when your listening to your XM satellite radio or DVD audio player. Right?

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  Type S - 2002 Acura RSX
  By RSX_S_Driver - August 28 - 8:30 pm

  Great car!

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  Awesome TSX - 2006 Acura TSX
  By LilRed - August 28 - 10:33 am

  I look at other cars in this class namely BMW, Mercedes but cannot do RWD due to winters here in Utah and was even considering getting a 2006 Acura TL but I did a back to back test drive of the TSX and fell in love with it. I felt it was the right size for me and my wife, had excellent all around visibility, luv the exterior handsome styling (everywhere I go it turns heads), Navi with voice command was awesome and nice to have, excellent quick precise steering and feel of the road.Good and responsive power delivery from the smooth revving engine with buttery smooth tranny especially going up the hill (sport shift mode was a joy to use)Â…..overall this car is a smooth and fun to drive machine.

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  for moms who refuse to do the minivan - 2005 Acura MDX
  By carol - August 27 - 10:07 am

  This car is feels custom made for our family of 5 plus 2 large dogs. The seating options work out perfectly for us. I love having 2 "extra" kid seats in row 3 for the kids friends or for when my own lovely children need to be separated. And the front seat airbag sensor means I feel more confident when my older children sit up front. In truth, we should have a minivan -- that is the ultimate in convenience for a motley crew like us. BUT my final rationalization for the MDX was that when it was time for my oldest to start driving that this would become her car. Im sure shell be much happier inheriting the MDX than a minivan!!!

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  Thrilling Ride - 2004 Acura TL
  By EdCincy - August 26 - 10:10 pm

  This car is a thrilling blend of luxury and performance. The power of the engine is awesome, but has me wishing it was rear wheel drive because it would make the full throttle launches more fun. The transmission is so smart.I seldom have to use the manual shifter. It anticipates the exact gear I need. Best stereo system on the market. The DVD-Audio surround sound separation and clarity is amazing. I bought a Bluetooth phone to go with the car and it is truly hands-free and easy to use. If you want to have the latest in high-tech, this is your machine! My dealership experience from sales to service, including loaner cars and fast service processing has been excellent.

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  Nice Car, about to be replaced - 2003 Acura TL
  By HondaFam03 - August 25 - 10:00 am

  Our TL we have had for a little over a year has been very satisfying and has provided us with great value and luxury for the money. But we had to have the rotors turned cause of warpage and the headliner fixed cause it would squeak on broken roads. But otherwise, this car is beautiful and I would love to own this car LONG TERM. Thank you Acura, the design is aging but will be replaced soon. Neo-Classic design that will never go out of style.

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  Worthy investment - 2004 Acura RSX
  By Jay - August 25 - 7:49 am

  Great performance and reliability. No complaints so far. Far exceeds expectations.

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  great car - 2006 Acura TL
  By bob - August 25 - 12:53 am

  this car is fun to drive. good power and got 25mpg in city and hiway. hiway driving at 69mph got 32 mpg.