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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  TL Special Edition. Great Upgrades for the money. - 2013 Acura TL
  By mrminsky1 - July 25 - 5:07 pm

  My 2010 G37 lease was about to be over so I decided to see what car I would get. As much I loved the car, I wanted something different since the car are just the same. The new Q50 would priced much higher because it is too new and it is not out yet. So I drove all the usual suspect. the BMW 328 is so overpriced for the $. Want Sirius radio? Great, you need the $2000 plus package. Want leather? Great, here is another $3000 package. Forget it. The A4? Too small. The Es350? too much $ for what it is. Volve S60? Not sure if it is reliable. Avalon? Maybe ,but dont like the dash. Honda Ex-l V6? Maybe, but for a few extra $, you get the better appointments, drive, details, dealer experience, etc

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  Lack Of Ride Comfort - 2013 Acura RDX
  By average_joe3 - July 23 - 9:27 pm

  They disregard the new car warranty. I bought a new RDX six months ago and it has 5,000 miles. This so called luxury vehicle bounces more than a Magic Mountain ride, even in flat surfaces. The service technician agreed that it has a rough ride, yet the dealer did not even put it in a hoist to check if the suspension is loose. I get a headache every tim I drive it. Acura customer service considers the rough ride to be normal.

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  Keep away from 2014 MDX - 2014 Acura MDX
  By sundragon3 - July 23 - 4:31 pm

  I purchased a 2014 MDX base on 07/04.. It was quiet on test drive and looked much better than 2013 model.. But build quality is too poor.. Fit and finish is much below the average.. The steering wheel is not position in the center.. Annoying sound from the glove box.. Took the car twice for repair.. The dealer fixed the sound problem.. but it stills goes to the right.. Have to take it again.. Keep away from this car.. Nothing but a problem..

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  1997 Integra GSR - 1997 Acura Integra
  By gsr_pilot - July 19 - 4:05 pm

  There are not many cars built even today that can match the driving fun / parts available for upgrade / utility / reliability that the GSR hatchback offers. Add good fuel economy even by 2013 standards for a sports car category. For 16 years its been a serious winner & I can see why thieves are the biggest detriment to owning one ! Shifter / clutch are light feeling even when traffic gets heavy this car does not let you feel like its a liability. The best places are roads with numerous curves to exploit the " handling on rails " feeling ! My tachometer redlines at 8000 rpm so I get the feeling of F1 performance from a car costing $20K when it was new. Basic interior.

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  Balanced and competent vehicle! - 2014 Acura RDX
  By patrick28212 - July 16 - 5:46 pm

  I purchased my 2014 Acura RDX about three weeks ago and I love it! I traded my 2006 BMW 530xi for this vehicle because the maintence costs were really adding up for me. I was looking for reliability and performance and this car has both! It accelerates well and provides great comfort. The size allows for passengers to be pampered without wasted space or bulk. Mileage is reasonable for this type of vehicle (20-22 in mostly city driving and 26 hwy at 75-80 mph). The car is a good value based on content and performance.

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  Best Luxury in his class. - 2014 Acura MDX
  By tonirive04 - July 10 - 6:46 pm

  I have had the 2014 MDX since the first day it went on sale. I was following this car since it started the road test on Germany. No disapointment yet. I got the top trim with SH-AWD. My first trip on the hightway the MDX averaged 31.4 MPG, no cruise control, I was speeding around 67 to 70 MPH, a long road trip this weekend average city and highway 28 MPG, so Im happy so far with this. One of the tech parts I most love is the ACC and LKAS, this is basically a self driving car, a small touch to the weel from time to time is the only thing you have to do. The Aha service provided with Acura-Link is not as responsive as I expected. The interior is comfortable, quiet, and well-crafted.

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  Good vehicle but lacking - 2013 Acura RDX
  By spottedone - July 9 - 5:21 pm

  I have had my RDX for over a year and 17000+ miles. Overall I like the car especially when I was averaging 23+ mpg. Over the last several month my mpg has dropped to 21, still not bad. I have had it to the delearship for a full synthetic oil change. I also had to pay for a front wheel alighment which was needed. I have upgraded my gas to Chevron on their advice but it has not made a difference. I noticed that the 2014 MDX has the same mpg ratings and now has touch screen controls which I miss on my old Pioneer flat panel. I also agree that I do not feel like I am riding in a luxury car. One serious problem which I took to the dealer was tire slippage when turning from a stop.

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  First Maintenance Visit - 2013 Acura RDX
  By traveldr - July 9 - 8:04 am

  The RDX with a US News Car Rating of 8.5 was chosen over other vehicles with better US News Car Ratings, e.g., Subaru Outback 8.9, Lexus RX350 8.6, etc. Other vehicles had better Maintenance plans (60000 free maintenance on Outback) and better interest rates (0% vs. 1.9%) First maintenance visit -- had to come back to dealer for replacement of damaged sensor wire -- physical inspection of part shows either misassemble or installation error by tool marks on part + I purchased road hazard insurance and was still charged $185. Car pulls slightly to right after maintenance visit - tires rotated without trueing, rebalance or road check which any reputable tire dealer would hve done

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  Acura Beats to a Different Drum! And I Like It! - 2014 Acura RLX
  By thkim - July 7 - 5:01 pm

  Acura plays by no one elses rules as far as I can tell. Every competitors car that Acura claims the Acura RLX competes with is either rear wheel drive or all wheel drive. The RLX is front wheel drive with Rear Wheel Precision Steer. Initial marketing reasons would conclude its silly for Acura to say they compete with those other cars, but the truth is when you drive the RLX and feel how wonderfully precise it is and how nice the drive is you have to ask yourself why would I want all wheel drive with more things to break and horrible fuel economy. I have had my RLX now for 1000+ miles and I love it. The more I drive it the more I love it. I have owned Lexus LS430, ES300h, BMW...

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  Great Car but Some Flaws - 2005 Acura TL
  By cooldiesel - July 5 - 7:11 pm

  I bought my 2005 Acura TL with about 90K miles on it. For the most part the car is fantastic, feels very high quality and rides excellent. At 80 MPH - typical cruising speed in Los Angeles when not stuck in traffic - the car feels as if it is on rails, and is very quite. Some people on internet forums have complained about squeeks and rattles from the windows in the doors when driving. I have found that this is true, but not to the point where it is a problem. The 6-speed transmission model which I have is probably not the best. The shifter is clunky, and the engine not suited to a manual since it has very little low-end torque.