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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  Great sport SUV - 2008 Acura MDX
  By Former Cayenne Owner - October 9 - 5:40 pm

  Traded a Cayenne and could not be happier. The 300 HP provides great power, especially when downshifted. Base model has all any true driver would need. Really, how often does anyone need to use a GPS or call a restaurant while on the road or, for that matter, not know what is behind their vehicle. This is a vehicle which can complete with the top SUVs on the market and retain its value. Third seat is not for adults. SH-AWD is truly for those who want to "push" the vehicle while maintaining control in all conditions. I have found the seating position for the driver to be very comfortable. Sound system with the subwoffer can blow your teenager out of the vehicle.

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  Love my TL with NAVI - 1999 Acura TL
  By atlantapraline - October 9 - 2:00 am

  This has been a quiet,comfortable, luxurious car that has lots of energy on the highway to voom, voom, voom. I have loved my Acura with its GPS navi- never getting lost again. I cant wait to buy my next one.

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  New RSX - 2002 Acura RSX
  By BillR - October 9 - 1:56 am

  Nice solid riding car!

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  Acura: A 20 Year Love Affair - 2007 Acura TL
  By Paul Stringer - October 8 - 10:50 pm

  As a proud owner of Hondas and Acuras for over 30 years, I can attest to the quality of the these very fine automobiles. Although a Honda man for over 10 years, it was a girlfriend who turned me on to Acuras and its been a beautiful partnership for the past 20 years. Recently, I was involved in an accident that resulted in my hitting a tree and the car tipping over. The Acura absorbed the impact well enough for me to make it out of the car without a scratch. Yes, I thanked God for watching over me on that day. And I also thanked myself for having the wisdom to purchase one of the best built cars on the market. Thank you Honda/Acura.

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  INTEGRA - 1993 Acura Integra
  By PETEY - October 8 - 2:00 am

  This vehicle, although its more than a decade old, is still a very reliable automobile. I use it for my daily driver and it hasnt given me any problems yet.

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  FINALLY, The Near Perfect SUV - 2004 Acura MDX
  By Mother of Kam & Aly - October 8 - 2:00 am

  With a 16 year old high school football player and a carpool of 13 year old girl soccer players, this vehicle is perfect for me! With seating for 7 (including the driver), I always have room for "one more." I traded in my Mercedes SUV for an SUV that drives like a car, is reliable mechanically, is confortable, useful and looks great!

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  satisfied customer - 2005 Acura TL
  By chuck carter - October 7 - 12:46 pm

  I researched this vechile more than any I have bought and found it the most highly rated in its class. After 3000 miles, I concur with what I have read. The navigation system is easily learned, I am 64 years old with moderate computer skills and I use it regularly as I travel to find not only my destination, but banks, resturantes, etc. I average above 30 mpg on the road and above 25 in town. I am a large guy and find the seats comfortable at 240 lbs.

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  RSX type S - 2004 Acura RSX
  By PMPIN8easy21 - October 7 - 2:00 am

  When i went looking for a car i wanted a dependable, fast performance car and thats what i have gotten with the RSX-S

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  Great so far - 2004 Acura MDX
  By BAV - October 7 - 2:00 am

  Purchased Sage Brush Pearl w/ touring package 11/03, only 500+ miles so far. Ride and handling are great. Also test drove Murano and it was more fun/sporty but felt MDX was more solid, much nicer interior, and proven long-term reliability, and 2004 changes were right on (side curtain air bags, slight body modifications, interior display). Also thought about 4runner but preferred MDX compromise of eco- friendly V6, great cargo and seating space, luxury options, and safety.

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  excellent - 2004 Acura TL
  By TheRegulator - October 7 - 2:00 am