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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  So far, just worries - 2005 Acura RL
  By AcuraRLBlue - March 13 - 3:03 pm

  My 2005 RL came with diagnostic codes indicating problems with the AWD and emission systems. The dealership just deleted the codes and explained that it was just "temporary codes" for other issues. This is hardly assuring, and further inquiries to the sales person/his service manager are being ignored. No one should be expected to have to worry about a $50K+ car. To be fair, the car is fun to drive, and my rating is "temporary" in nature until I get to the bottom of what it really means to have these diagnostic codes. If there were real problems with my car that were ignored by the dealership before handing the car over to me, I expect the dealership and Acura to make it right.

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  Surprising value & fun - 2004 Acura TL
  By RobG - March 12 - 7:33 pm

  Loaded with great features, its been just about everything Ive expected. 6M is sporty, (dont expect BMW responsiveness, but still surprisingly nimble yet very comfy --nice blend of sport and luxury. Quiet, authoritative. Xenon lamps, Bluetooth, excellent Navi, quite impressive audio (5.1 DVD audio surround, XM, & more) & voice recog. Great back seat, OK trunk. Wonderful power: punch it & 0-60 <6.0 secs, almost NO TORQUE steer (controlled by VSA computer. With snow tires, it climbs steep driveways in fresh snow! Climate control excellent and well- balanced. Memory system excellent - settings for seat, outer mirrors, temp & radio, etc.

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  Great for road trips... - 2005 Acura RL
  By Woods46 - March 11 - 6:17 pm

  Just finished a 4000+ mile trip in this vehicle - performed great! Mostly interstate driving, but some dirt road travel for hiking, and through Vail pass during a major snow storm. Handling was great, no performance problems. The X-M radio and Nav package were really nice to have on a trip like this, although the Nav package got confused a couple of times with new construction - but I guess that is what updates are for.

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  Integra good little car - 1997 Acura Integra
  By kim - March 11 - 11:37 am

  I use my car for work, so I do a lot of driving in the country and in winter driving conditions. Very good on slippery roads. Dust is a problem when on gravel roads when the moon roof is open. VG acceleration on exit ramps. Good acceleration in the Rocky Mountains. Drove from Calgary, AB to Vancouver BC. Great gas mileage and a very reliable car, even with -30C winter weather. Stereo isnt that great-replaced that right away.

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  awsome - 2003 Acura RL
  By salvador padilla - March 11 - 1:27 am

  i love my acura and hope fully this year or next i will trade it for a brand spanking new one,from now on only this type of vehicles i will buy,no matter what i have to do to get it.

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  Ok so far - 2006 Acura MDX
  By Tina - March 10 - 10:04 pm

  I needed the space so I traded my 04 TL- I am dissapointed in the lack of power, compared to the TL, however the layout is nice- I hate where the parking break is- its in the way of stretching out my left leg.Wish the stereo was better and illuminated, and placed higher on the steering column. Clock should be where heat display is. Wish the nav. creen was programable as to what is displayed.I like the look of it but would like to see the front end redesigned. Gas mileage is acceptable for such a roomy SUV. I wanted white with a black interior but, your stuck with the light colored interior WHY?? doesnt acura change the limited color choices? I hate the light interior- it gets too dirty

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  time has told - 2005 Acura RL
  By ewelker - March 9 - 5:41 pm

  We bought the car last summer and traded our 2001 E class because of the continuing Mercedes dying battery problem when the car was left unattended. We have always had Mercedes, Audis and BMW and hoped the reliability factor would be better with Acura/Honda...it is. The only issue was with the tire balance and Acura replaced the tires! Service has been wonderful and the car is far better in every way than the Mercedes. The Mercedes mileage was a little better, about one MPG, but we average 21 overall and 26 to 28 highway so it isnt bad and, of course, best of all, the reliabiliy factor after six months is great.

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  best for less - 2004 Acura MDX
  By herman rapp - March 9 - 6:37 am

  ccomfortable vehicle, fun to drive.

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  Its perfect so far! - 2008 Acura TL
  By William Carter - March 9 - 2:40 am

  I love this car. I was driving a 2000 BMW 328 (my third one) and the second I test drove this car, I put my BMW up for sale. My 328 sold and I picked up my new Acura on Sat, Aug 11th. First the car handles amazingly well for a car that is quite a bit larger than the BMW. The TL S type has an amazing engine with more than enough power. The interior is beautiful to look at with the two tone leather seats and sharp accents. My cool younger friends and my 18 year old nephew raved about this car and both the exterior and interior. Everybody seems to like it. I got the bronze color which looks amazing with the rims. I love everything about this car!

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  Its excellent - 2004 Acura MDX
  By Andyrew - March 8 - 2:00 am

  I have a 2003 MDX it is ecxellent. I love it very much, and i am happy with it. Although after a while sitting on it it isnt so comfortable. And if your haul around all of the seven it can fit its not so comfortable.