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:

• 

  Best of the Best - 2007 Acura MDX
  By daf - April 11 - 9:30 pm

  From its luxurious ride to its fit and finish - this is truly a luxury SUV.

• 

  I Love these Acuras - 2000 Acura RL
  By Loves Acuras - April 11 - 7:20 pm

  I used to have a 1991 Legend and decided to replace it. It was a great decision. This car is well worth the money. It is the not the best on the gas but not worse than any other car in this class.

• 

  Acura RSX - 2005 Acura RSX
  By Michelle Stanley - April 11 - 4:54 pm

  This is a fine car for the price. It is fun to drive and the sportshift feature is a fun feature.

• 

  Harrys 2.3 CL - 1998 Acura CL
  By Harry - April 10 - 10:34 pm

  Ive usually driven coupes, including two top-of-the-line BMWs. There isnt a better combination of elegance, looks, economy and comfort (Im 62") around for twice the price. I get 31-34 mpg on the interstate and 22-24 in LA traffic. It is quiet with great ergonomics and despite its 4-cylinder engine, its fast and responsive enough for all but the most egregious showoffs.

• 

  One of the best SUV on the market - 2003 Acura MDX
  By Alexander Kopitko - April 8 - 10:00 am

  We bought this car last week after testing Murano. Its bigger, more powerfull, more comfortable.

• 

  What Problems?! - 1997 Acura CL
  By Satisfied CL Owner - April 4 - 4:07 pm

  Purchased my 2.2 CL brand new in 1997. 125k miles later, its still running wonderfully. Ive performed the required maintenance every 7500 miles and its never had any problem other than replacement of worn parts like brakes, tires, headlights...etc.This car gets the highest rating in reliability. Im not sure if the other reviewers just got lemons, but driving style, weather, road conditions, and quality of your mechanic do influence how well the car holds up.

• 

  Awesome - 2007 Acura MDX
  By Jed - April 4 - 7:46 am

  Beats every expectation. Fast, nimble, great turning radius, and full seating for 7 when necessary.

• 

  Awesome - 2005 Acura RSX
  By Freddy - April 4 - 12:51 am

  I like my newly purchased RSX because it is extremely fun to drive and quite fast. I have fun driving anywhere I go. The car itself makes most of my friends jealous. Great gas economy and reliable.

• 

  amazing car - 2002 Acura RSX
  By anacc2nv - April 3 - 5:56 pm

  amazing car i love it more and more everyday..has paower torque and style

• 

  Im in love with my car!! - 2005 Acura RSX
  By Nita - April 2 - 10:47 am

  When I drive by people, they dont stare. I guess to them the RSX looks plain or ordinary. Its hard for me to understand!! I think its a beautiful, classy, sports car!! Not only is it beautiful outside, but the inside is so comfortable, great quality, and it is fun to drive! I bought the base model, with leather interior and manual transmission. I think this model has more than enough power for me. I am not going to drive on a racetrack and I have a heavy foot as it is and dont want to get any speeding tickets!!! The automatic climate control works great and as long as your not going to always transport people in the back there is plenty of room in this car.I love it!!