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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  My Car - 2002 Acura RSX
  By Zachs Dad - October 30 - 2:00 am

  Its tough to keep the keys from my wife. The 6-speed is a blast to drive. You really notice the difference between this car and any other comparable ride when youre accelerating through the turns. It digs in and powers through. The only thing is that to get that type of performance you feel all the little bumps on the road too. Its a great sports car and Id recommend it to anyone, but you have to like the sports car ride for this to be the car for you.

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  Great Car! - 2001 Acura CL
  By Ange - October 30 - 2:00 am

  This car is fun to drive, very comfortable and sharp! I couldnt have asked for a better more reliable car. Its the smoothest ride ever.

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  Great All Around Touring Car - 2001 Acura CL
  By terri2 - October 30 - 2:00 am

  Quality is very good on this car. Drive feel is smooth and controlled. Great reliability.

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  Buy it - 2002 Acura RSX
  By Aaron Richtmyer - October 29 - 2:00 am

  The RSX is a great value. With the Type- S package you get a lot of options for a great price. I was able to get my car new for $22,500. Much cheaper than any other car in this class with these options. Fun to drive and easy to live with. If you plan to sell, it also has a high resale value.

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  almost a 10! - 2003 Acura RL
  By Misi - October 28 - 2:00 am

  THIS CAR DRIVES LIKE A DREAM! THE STEREO FANTASTIC, THE FIT AND FINISH IS EXCELLENT, THE INTERIOR VERY USER FRIENDLY. LUXURY FOR EVERY DAY - ACURA RL.

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  2003 Acura RSX Type-S - 2003 Acura RSX
  By bigdaddyd919 - October 28 - 2:00 am

  Drives smoothly, accelerates fast, best interior design Ive seen in a car in a long time and best of all, its a joy to drive. If you ever decide to purchase one, opt only for the Type-S.

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  Excellent Car - 2005 Acura TSX
  By Tophmac - October 27 - 5:26 pm

  The car is simply amazing! I was just looking at vehicles when the sales person showed me the car I needed. The TSX is an excellent car for economy and has and style. You will not find another car that has what you are looking for at this price.

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  Owned for a year - 1998 Acura TL
  By gomizzou - October 27 - 2:00 am

  I got a great deal on this car when I bought it and have never looked back. It rides great and looks just as good. Acura spares no expense. I will have to think long and hard before I ever stray from the acura brand. I love it.

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  MORE FOR YOUR MONEY - 1991 Acura Legend
  By M. LEBRON - October 27 - 2:00 am

  THIS IS A GREAT VEHICLE. PERFECT FOR GOOD FAMILY FUN. AND FOR US GUYS THAT ENJOY LUXURY BUT WANT A TOUCH OF SPORT, THIS CAR WILL FOFILL BOTH CRAVINGS! ENJOY THE RIDE, I DO.

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  everything - 2003 Acura NSX
  By aliaz - October 26 - 1:00 am

  everything is good. every the manual and the automatic. i love the nos and turbo.