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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  Love at first sight! - 2003 Acura RSX
  By RSX chick - August 12 - 10:00 am

  I bought this car a month ago an Im still excited everytime I drive it! It is an eye pleaser and a head turner! I owned a Ford previously and I will never go back! This is the best car I have ever driven!

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  Cant be beat - 1990 Acura Integra
  By mem200 - August 12 - 2:00 am

  NEVER had a problem with this car except for headlights needing replacing. Still on original engine...sad to let it go but my 91 yr mom has trouble getting in and out of it and my one daughter cant drive stick. What a dream of a car!

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  GOOD - 2004 Acura RSX
  By noodleman27 - August 12 - 2:00 am

  GOOD CAR....VERY GOOD CAR AND I LOVE IT

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  2004 MDX - 2004 Acura MDX
  By philcosal - August 12 - 2:00 am

  Tried them all and the MDX was the winner. No regrets after 8000 miles. Nav unit simply marvelous - can find about anything any where. Update price a bit stiff. Only nit piks are driver position in respect to steering, girls love it the long legged guys find it less than ideal. Road noise too noticable - gets old after 8 hours of interstate. Detest the service requirement for differential fluid, only available from Acrua/Honda no alternative found, they charge $60 to change - seems a bit pricy. Might not have purchased MDX had I known this in advance. Dont like sold here only deals. Live and learn. 4Runner next choice.

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  awesome!!!! - 2005 Acura TL
  By moneyfool - August 11 - 11:30 pm

  migrated from honda to acura and this is awesome. all the features are good. nav is amazing and controls are all within easy reach. leg room for the rear seats is a little tight for tall people. i could never get the dvd audio to work on the systems. rear seats do not fold.

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  Awesome, just awesome!!! - 1992 Acura NSX
  By Bartak59 - August 11 - 2:00 am

  All I have to say is that the NSX is a Japanese Ferrari (except with better handling). If youre okay with not having the "prestige" of owning a European sports car, then this is the car. As far as Im concerned, it beats the pants off comparable Porsches, Ferraris, Lotus (junk), etc. Highly recommended!

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  Trading up from ML320 to MDX - 2004 Acura MDX
  By terry woram - August 11 - 2:00 am

  My previous suv was the Mercedes ML320. After driving the MDX I felt that I was trading up to more features and convenience for the price. Living in the DC area I can not tell you how amazing the GPS is. Also, the camera for backing up is a great feature since I have young children and it is my greatest fear to injure someone while backing up.

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  Loving this! - 2004 Acura TSX
  By Louie - August 9 - 10:00 am

  This is a great buy. A lot of features that stand out. The best value!

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  Awesome - 2004 Acura TL
  By TL Lover - August 9 - 10:00 am

  I tried em all in this class and my friends, Acura is back. I expect a lot and this one delivers. Any negative reviews must come from those with an attitude against FRD vehicles

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  My new best friend - 2004 Acura TL
  By mrsBenti - August 9 - 10:00 am

  I love my car. If youre thinking about getting one...dont hesitate and do it. Mike Choate at Clair Acura is the best salesman I have ever dealt with. Good luck