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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  Fun to drive and turns heads - 2005 Acura TL
  By Mike_in_Jax - April 6 - 1:50 am

  This is probably the most fun car that I have ever owned. I just wish I had waited to get a 6 speed manual with navigation. I got the automatic, which is fine, but the manual seems so much faster.

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  Great job Acura! - 2007 Acura MDX
  By AcuraReview - April 5 - 12:56 am

  Excellent ride and lots of bells and whistles for the price. Safe vehicle great for our growing family. My wife and I are expecting our first child in a few months. We purchased this car so she could have a safe, reliable vehicle that could also be great for kids and have some class/luxury to it as well! Very happy with our MDX purchase! The class leader in our opinion!!

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  Lovin My MDX - 2003 Acura MDX
  By Tracei C - April 3 - 2:00 am

  An EXCEPTIONAL vehicle! The softest leather Ive ever encountered in a car, the BOSE sound is truly premium, handles like a dream, takes corners like a hot knife through warm butter! Build quality is superior to every other SUV Ive driven by far. Have had my MDX for over 1 year now, and still lovin it as much as I did the very first day. A TRUE DREAM MACHINE.

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  Go Buy One! - 2002 Acura RSX
  By The Doctor - April 2 - 7:43 pm

  The Type-S is flat-out the most fun car I have ever owned/driven. The ride is smooth, and there is plenty of power under the hood. The interior is one of the most impecibly designed in a sub-$30,000 vehicle I have seen. And because Honda makes it, I know it will last a long, long time with few problems.

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  Fun To Drive - 2004 Acura TL
  By Mainline - April 2 - 10:00 am

  Great car and so fun to drive. Glad I stayed away from the BMW. More money for alot less. Love the navi system and the great DVD sound. Satellite radio is also a plus.

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  Great car! - 2016 Acura MDX
  By Judith Sousa - April 2 - 12:50 am

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  Love My Race Car - 2002 Acura RSX
  By Rob P - March 30 - 2:00 am

  I have drvien hundreds of cars in my life. . Other than the NSX. . .I have never driven a fun, exciting, envigorating car as the RSX Type S. . I cant say enough about it!!!!

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  Happy Acura Owner - 2000 Acura TL
  By mmarco - March 30 - 2:00 am

  This is a great car with above average performance from a smooth engine, quite operation (quiter than our Lexus), and excellent comfort. Were going to buy the new 2004 3.2.

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  All I can say is WOW! - 2002 Acura RSX
  By Dimka.m - March 29 - 2:03 pm

  The car is a blast to drive. With the i-VTEC kicking in it becomes a roaring monster! So you have the power when you want it and the MPG that you need.

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  AMAZING - 1995 Acura Integra
  By DAKPOO - March 29 - 2:00 am

  The Integra is truely a wonderful car. Beautiful,long-lasting, and well worth its price.