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 responsive auto with lots of toys - 2005 Acura TL
  By Lois Feinberg - July 18 - 9:50 am

  This is a responsive, powerful, and fun car to drive. I especially like the improved turn ratio. With all the entertainment and communication features, once you get in you dont event mind getting stuck in traffic.

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  LOVE IT, BUT... - 2017 Acura RDX
  By Mia - July 16 - 4:48 pm

  Love my 2017 RDX , only has 1,200 miles, but Ive had to bring it in to dealership for repairs already! First incident: Navigation screen kept freezing up and or did not work properly. At one point, I was in Drive but the screen showed the rear view camera on. Very unnerving! I had to pull off the road on several occasions, turn off engine and then restart the car. When I brought car to dealer, they claimed that they did not see the problem. However, after I picked up the car, the problem seems to have disappeared. Hmmm..... Second incident: The brakes started squeaking. Thought it would go away but, no. Brought it back in and was told that something was defective in the installation. They had to put in brand new brake pads. Really??? A brand new car???? So, Im keeping my fingers crossed that nothing else will go wrong. Love the comfort and safety of the car. Fun driving!

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  Vibration - 2016 Acura TLX
  By Changmin - July 16 - 8:10 am

  Purchased on end of August, only drove 799 miles. After got new car, on the way back to home, felt vibration, sent back to dealer, changed four tires. Still feel vibration at 75 to 80 MPH speed, sent back again, mechanic checked it and felt the vibration, The mechanic also tested driving the dealers loaner car (same model), he felt this loaner car vibration too. service department manager told us that manufacturer know this problem, we have to live with. very angry!!!

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  Good First Car - 1991 Acura Integra
  By LDub - July 15 - 9:26 pm

  Trouble free car, only having to perform regular maintenance. 183,000 miles and still running strong. Love the moonroof, and aftermarket parts are cheap and plentiful customization of this car is limitless. The car is quick for a 4 banger, and handling is top notch. Top this off with Honda reliability and youve got a great car. My only complaints are back seat room is limited, there are no cupholders (which have led to more than a few messes), and the gas mileage could be a little better (i get between 24 and 26 MPG with a mix of city and highway driving). Motor still runs like it is new and there is absolutely no slippage of the tranny. Give this car regular maintenence and it should give you 200,000+ trouble-free miles!! Overall, a good car, highly recommended.

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  Fun little car - 2005 Acura RSX
  By TJG - July 15 - 1:00 pm

  Peppy 4-cyl. Only performance issue is accelerating up a grade, but hey its a 4-banger. I am more than satisfied in the difference I get in fuel economy. I bought the car pretty recently, so maybe the racing seats will grow on me, but I dont really like them so far. The sport-shift works great, especially for mountain roads or gridlocked traffic. I put in an Alpine reciever to play my iPod, and it sounds great on the factory speakers, but not so much on volume level 20 and beyond. Of course, real audiophiles will tear out everything factory anyway. Bottom line, I am very satisfied with my purchase.

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  Nice Car - 2005 Acura TL
  By TLdriver - July 15 - 10:30 am

  Great daily driver. Plenty of power off the line and in traffic. Lots of room in all seats. Love the technology in the car- bluetooth, nav the whole thing and they all work together. Overall fun to drive car thats dependable too.

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  having fun - 2004 Acura TL
  By beverly casciano - July 15 - 2:00 am

  This car provides true driving pleasure with an element of fun and sportiness. The blue tooth enabled phone system and the XM radio are state of the art compliments to an already classy auto. Gets admiring looks while on the road, ( and the jealous glances from the neighbors are noted also).

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  Great SUV for sedan lovers - 2006 Acura MDX
  By xprepairpro.com - July 14 - 9:21 pm

  I wasnt wanting an SUV, I was really wanting a TL or an RL but room (2 kids now) means the 03 accord wouldnt cut it and the TL/RLs dont have much more room. I have never owned an SUV but have driven a lot at an old job. I didnt like the truck feeling of most SUVs so I didnt think the MDX would be so "car-like". I was quite surprised when I test drove it at the dealer. It had a lot of power and steering was very much like a normal car. I wasnt as attracted to the MDX so much for style. I like it very much, but still have my doubts about the front end. Hearing such good reviews and safety and reliability reports, I drove the MDX off the lot the day I test drove it.

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  2002 Acura MDX Love Affair - 2002 Acura MDX
  By bccarguy90 - July 14 - 2:14 pm

  My 2002 Acura MDX has been a flawless partner in all that I have asked of it. Aside from damage caused by accidents, there have been no problems and power has proved more than adequate. It is extremely comfortable particularly on long hauls and can carry anything from garbage to people easily. This is my top pick in the lux SUV category.

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  Best Car Yet at age 65 well, really 66 - 2005 Acura RL
  By Jerome Ney - July 13 - 7:59 pm

  Ive owned 3 Mercedes 1 BMW 1 Audi and this is the best. I enjoy the performance and great features. I also enjoy the top quality without drawing as much attention as one does with the higher profile cars above.