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:

• 

  Absolutely AMAZING car! - 2004 Acura TSX
  By deepen03 - April 14 - 12:27 pm

  Had this car in family since 2004. Purchased it used in September 2004, for around 24k, with 20k miles on it. I started driving it myself in 2006 when I first got my license and have put over 50K miles on it myself. Just a well-built awesome Acura. Its sad how the TSX has become such lower quality in the 2nd generation models. I just love this car in ever way and have no complaints at all. I have 104k miles right now and plan to keep it going to 200K if I can!

• 

  Love my TL! - 2006 Acura TL
  By gtj1715 - April 6 - 9:38 pm

  For years, my kids heard me say "see that TL over there - THATs the one I want". Now its more like an unspoken "I love my car" (I bought it last summer). I love the 2004-08 body style - those before and since just dont have that same sleek, wedge look (the groove was so iconic that recent Accords copied it). All my research pointed to the 2006 being the most reliable of the bunch too. You ever get *exactly* the car you want and never, ever look back? Yeah, its like that.

• 

  9 year owner of TSX - 2004 Acura TSX
  By lamike1 - March 31 - 2:38 pm

  I wrote my first review on my TSX back in 2008. Since then Ive out another 60k miles on it. I bought it brand new in 2004. Dont hesitate to buy one of these, they are reliable. I never did anything but my normal maintenance (oil changes, fluid changes, timing chain at 100k miles, brake jobs, etc...) the car never gave me one problem ever. I finally parted with my TSX yesterday and sold her. It was just time for a new car. She was at 130k miles when I told her good bye! Lol great car, Acura did awesome with this thing.

• 

  Sharp car! - 2013 Acura TSX
  By zoomzoomn - March 28 - 7:30 am

  I got the TSX SE primarily because of an agressive lease deal. Overall its s a really fun car in search of being a really great car. While the chassis is willing and the interior is very attractive (in SE trim), the four cylinder drivetrain and lack of the technology package (on the SE) leaves me wanting. Its been awhile since I had driven an Acura. The recent "beak" phase in their styling department is thankfully and slowly becoming a travesty best left as a faded memory. The TSXs styling is crisp and attractive from pretty much every angle. The SE trim only adds to this, especially on the interior. From the red accents to the anthracite headliner, it is a very attractive package.

• 

  Very good initial impressions - 2013 Acura RDX
  By aidano2 - March 26 - 11:37 am

  Its comfortable, fast, and has a good amount of room in the front and rear. Also has nice simple, but solid, cabin features. Its very good in pretty much every area -- which almost makes it feel a little boring to talk about.

• 

  Spectacular - 2013 Acura TL
  By ijkmno - March 24 - 9:33 am

  This is an astonishingly good car. The AWD technology gives it remarkably precise handling (and Ive owned Porsches and BMWs). The engine is agile and powerful. The sport setting on the transmission allows for tightly-wound driving without a bunch of shifting. The interior appointments are first-class (excellent sound and nav systems). The combination of performance, features and price makes this car a great value for a drivers car.

• 

  I love my MDX - 2003 Acura MDX
  By andy3631 - March 23 - 2:09 am

  I have had my Acura for about 7 years now and I absolutely love it. I bought it with 70,000 miles on it and I currently have 209,000 miles. I have never had any major problems with it. I actually drove about 2000 miles from Chicago to California and it drove great. I hope to have it for another 200,000 miles.

• 

  Awesome SUV, But Missing Luxury Brand Minimum Features - 2013 Acura RDX
  By even_further - March 20 - 7:01 pm

  This is a great SUV and a winner in the market place. But being an Acura its missing minimum luxury features mid/upper vents for rear passengers, LED tail lights, blind spot monitoring. The guts are a smash hit motor, size, AWD, cargo space, 6 speed trans.

• 

  Smooth as butter - 2004 Acura TL
  By gerardoesq - March 18 - 12:50 pm

  What a car. This is my second Acura actually. My first was a 2002 Acura RL fully loaded which I got with 100k and drove from VA to FL several times. NEVER gave me one dang issue. After going through several other different brands, I came back to Acura. I never really understood why I went anywhere else. This car is simply brilliantly built. Transmission shifts smoothly, suspension is rigid but comfortable, all electronics work harmoniously, leather holds up great unlike BMW and Audi. The car is simply the most reliable machine you can get for your buck while still driving something that is luxurious, fun (I got the six speed) and great on gas.

• 

  RDX - Get what you expect - 2013 Acura RDX
  By cerebus1 - March 15 - 7:14 am

  Ive owned my 2013 RDX for about 6 months now. Youre going to get what you expect from an Acura ... good performance and reliability. Im getting about 18mpg, less then I expected ... but no highway driving. Last month my wife spent more and got herself a 2013 Volvo XC60. Im jealous ... wish Id spent a little more and got the Volvo also.