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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  Navigation freezing up - 2007 Acura TL
  By NAVIGATION - May 23 - 11:01 am

  I love my Acura, but been having things go wrong Navigation has been replaced once already, and now is still freezing up. Dealer says not sure what problem is. A lot of rattles inside cabin, Engine panels are being scratched by hood, along with the strut hood support. Plastic caps on door, and door panels rattle loose, plastic covering comes off on door pockets. Front grill piece of Acura logo, starting to rust. Why did they put a tape cassette player in it? Plugging in i-POD cable a joke and hard to operate when wire is snaked through arm rest. Why put heated seat buttons near cup holder? Coin collector keeper comes loose all the time when arm rest lifts up.

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  So So - 2009 Acura TL
  By Dookie - May 19 - 1:01 pm

  Had taken my 2008 TL Type S in for some routine maint and given the 2009 TL. Must say I was not disappointed but not overly impressed. Kinda left me feeling a bit ho-hum *yawn*. The styling of the 2009 TL is confusing. Its as if they attempted to include everything on the exterior and the result is just big question mark. What was the statement? The interior is just as confusing with all its swoops and swirls... definite disconnection. The ride was comfortable, stereo sounded great, seats comfortable. Acceleration was quite lacking as Ive become accustomed to much more in my 08 Type S. Overall not a disappointing ride, however, nothing spectacular. The Tech package is extraordinary.

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  Fast car but un-reliable - 1991 Acura Legend
  By zanebrant - May 18 - 8:07 pm

  This car is very fast and fun to drive. It also has a lot of interior space and pretty comfy in general. The sound system and electronics are high quality. The "leather" seats have quickly become ripped and torn. And the cooling system has given me many problems, it is always springing leaks or just generally not cooling well.

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  Cool Car - 2009 Acura TL
  By CH - May 18 - 1:53 pm

  Great Car, I dont like the material used on the grill and trunk as the finish is already tarnishing after 2 months. I dont like rust on brake drums as well. Gas mileage needs improving. Other than that, great car!!

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  Too bad...not enough comfort - 2009 Acura TL
  By neilman - May 16 - 8:56 am

  Tested both base and SH-AWD. Would have been a great car to buy...but base model seats are too hard, could feel pressure in the lumbar area. SH-AWD ride is too firm...lots of noise driving over reflectors on the road etc. Lots of reviews from extensive research say ride is too firm for a luxury car. Also, unfortunately...armrests are decorative and not functional...just leather covering over a hard surface. Comfort is important to me...resting my elbows on hard surfaces while driving does not work well. Too bad...most manufacturers do not think of this, even Lexus. American cars are much better on comfort...been driving GM for 20 years. Although the 09 Maxima does offer great comfort.

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  I Looooove This Car!!! - 1990 Acura Legend
  By BDCarguy - May 15 - 2:14 pm

  I just bought this car for my first car about 2 months ago and I must say I am very pleased with it all the way around. To my surprise and delight I found out that a 19 year old car with 230k miles can still kick on the highway. The torque produced by the low volume V-6 makes this car jump off the line like no other! I dont think Ive seen another front wheel drive car that can burn out. I had to drive it hard for a while just to break it in and get a feel for it and found that it is surprisingly easy to chirp the tires into second and I even heard a squeak into third. The comfort factor on the seats has to be a nine but the lack of cup holders is disappointing...

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  Great Car! TL-S - 2003 Acura TL
  By dasa - May 15 - 2:00 am

  I upgraded from a top of the line Camry. It has great power and features that come standard. It feels well-built and reliable--yet sporty.

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  The Air cond. doesnt cool in Arizona - 2006 Acura TL
  By Jim - May 15 - 12:36 am

  I loved this car for the 1st 18 months I owned this car except for the over weight front doors that are out of balance. Performance, comfort, handling, gas mileage and overall looks were all great. Last summer it stopped fully cooling down on hot days. I took it in for warranty service 3 times and they said it was working as designed. Really sad, now Im trying to get rid of it. You cant have a car with bad air in Arizona during the summer.

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  Happy - 2003 Acura RSX
  By Sharon - May 11 - 3:58 pm

  I happy with my acura. I bought it from a private party and the previous owner kept it in great condition. Fun to drive, really happy with the fact that the back seats drop which creates a good space to store stuff. Draw back. Dash rattles, and the headlights begin to dim.

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  04 TL - 2005 Acura TL
  By Ice Art - May 10 - 4:56 am

  After about 1 year, several squeaks and rattles have developed in the cabin. The handling is a bit spongy around turns. Great acceleration. Awesome sound system.