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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  Very Impressed - 2005 Acura TSX
  By Jeff - August 16 - 9:03 pm

  Love the car!!! Excellent handling and very quick. Also, I like that it doesnt have DRLs or automatic door locks and headlights, I like to be in control of the car, not the other way around. For the price, it cant be beat.

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  2001 Integra - 2001 Acura Integra
  By Rick H - August 16 - 4:11 pm

  Exceptional handling. This car will "turn on a dime, and give you a nickle in change". High RPM powerband will quickly remind you if you are in the wrong gear. The five-speed manual trans is a must. If pure acceleration is your thing, then go for a Type-R model.

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  Best Honda/Acura Yet!! - 2002 Acura NSX
  By mostafa nosrati - August 15 - 4:27 pm

  very fun vehicle, would definetly buy another, looking forward to the new model comming out in late 2008, a fast vehicle, fun, quick, very responcive, and threlling.

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  Acura MDX - 2003 Acura MDX
  By HrdTsk - August 13 - 2:00 am

  Very Nice ride good handling with creature comfortxs inside and lots of pep to go

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  After 6 years, I still cant quit her! - 2000 Acura Integra
  By C1977 - August 12 - 12:32 am

  This trusty car is such a treat, after 6 years, I still give myself fake excuses to drive in it. Until I hit 105K, I just changed oil and tires - thats about it. I think the balance between assisted steering and feedback on this car is perfect.

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  2003 Acura TL - 2003 Acura TL
  By p glazier - August 10 - 4:28 pm

  Excellent car, typical Honda Product, very well built, fun to drive, no problems. Automatic Climate Control needs to be tweaked if below freezing, works fine the rest of the time. Car gets 31 mpg highway, 23 around town.

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  Acura TSX Good car! - 2006 Acura TSX
  By AB - August 10 - 2:03 pm

  We just bought our Acura TSX. I wanted black, my wife silver. Finally! we bought, you know...silver. We like the car, it is cute, stylish, good interiors, great navigation system. I am getting about 20 mpg, just bought 3 weeks back. Unfortunately, a nail went through our rear tire and we had to replace a tire, $235. Overall, seems like a good buy!

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  My favorite car - 1998 Acura RL
  By my favorite car - August 9 - 9:02 am

  The car has been perfect except for a brake problem - rear brake on right is wearing faster than others - dealer has failed to fix so far.

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  I Love This Truck! - 2006 Acura MDX
  By LovemyMDX - August 9 - 6:54 am

  I saw this truck on the highway when it first came out and had to know what it was. I loved the look. Then I did research and found it was one of the safest SUVs with its wide wheel base. When my husband and I went to test drive it I didnt. I just knew I loved it. So when I picked it up after ordering the color I wanted I enjoyed it more than ever. I just love driving this Truck. My 3 vehicles before were a 77 Camaro, 84 Trans Am, and a 93 Camry. It has great room for the kids and vacations. Plus its very easy to clean.

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  My new 2002 Acura - 2002 Acura TL
  By ARGOLFER - August 9 - 1:40 am

  Very satisfied with my new TL. I was very interested in the TL S but it was so peppy that my wifes neck snapped every time I accelerated. Also I found the ride in the S to be a little stiffer that the TL and I was used to a softer ride. I am disappointed that the dealer didnt tell me when I bought my 2002 that the 2003 would be available in a week.