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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  I LOVE my Acura MDX - 2003 Acura MDX
  By Sandy Haulk - October 22 - 2:00 am

  My husband and I searched for several months for the PERFECT SUV. We had previously owned and Exployer and and expedition. We researched SUVs online and visited a local dealership to test drive the ones we liked. The Acura MDX beat all the others hands down. The statement that the MDX is "rather bland" is surprising because I NEVER fail to get a compliment on my vehicle wherever I drive.

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  The Legends Lives on !!! - 1992 Acura Legend
  By Manny2000 - October 21 - 2:00 am

  With proper maintainance.I have a 5- speed LS and I tell you Ive enjoyed every ride in this car.I dont see myself parting with his car anytime soon.Its reliable dependable,and very fast.I dont see anything in its category that compares... U take care of the ride,the ride will take care of U-Its that simple

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  Great car - 1996 Acura Integra
  By Terry48 - October 20 - 2:00 am

  Very economical vehicle. Very reliable

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  2009 TL with SH-AWD - 2009 Acura TL
  By MikeATL - October 19 - 1:43 pm

  My first TL and I now understand all the hype surrounding Acura engineering. The attention to details, the technology, superior handling in snow and ice conditions, and respectable performance for a luxury sports sedan. Looked at Mercedes, BMW and Caddy... no contest!! I really enjoy all the conveniences and I am quickly getting a handle on the voice activated command system. Keyless start is a really is a nice feature as well. Paddle shifters really makes it feel like a performance vehicle. The safety features are second to none, meeting 2010 standards today!

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  Acura Integra, sports car or sedan? - 1994 Acura Integra
  By James687 - October 19 - 2:00 am

  Ive had this car for a few days now, and I have to say that I absoloutley love it. Theres a great feel to it, even though its almost ten years old. It almost feels like an old porsche, kind of throaty. One thing I wish I could have is the keyless entry, but I think it is actually installed on my car its just been disabled (???) So anyway, I have to say I truley love this car.

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  this is such a great car - 2003 Acura MDX
  By urasphoumy - October 19 - 2:00 am

  i absolutely love driving this car. it is smooth and comfortable. the brakes are exceptional. i come from a long line of gmc yukons. i have 3 at home . the yukons are great but this car is different and fun. plus smaller.

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  Money Well Spent - 2004 Acura MDX
  By SCK Sr - October 19 - 2:00 am

  Pure Value sums up every Acura Ive ever owned...Integra, 3.2 TL, MDX! We love them! Fun to drive, service second-to-none, resale that other manufactures envy, reliability unlike any other product I own. ...Its like driving glass when you are behind the wheel!

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  Great car for the price - 2004 Acura TL
  By KenK - October 19 - 2:00 am

  Great car for the price but there are a few detail issues keeping from becomming an exceptional car. Tires are an issue..Poor traction. Rear seats need to fold down..not enough room in the trunk. Cup holder is a P.I.T.A.. Annoying hum (harmonics) when cruising at 50-60 mph.(low rpms in high gear) I thought that maybe this was just my car but it was on all TLs that I tested. Cant hear beep when using the door lock button on the remote. Over all nice car. Alot of this is nit-picking.

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  Lease buyback - 1998 Acura RL
  By Jag - October 18 - 2:00 am

  I bought new in 1998 and comming from Jaguar VDP I was a little bias, but it did not take long for me to appreciate the vehical. The ride is very comfortable and handles very well on bends, I drop a gear and enjoy. Its axceleration is more that adequate to attain highway speeds to allow ease of entry. Have always received compliments especialy from male passengers on the ride and competance the car shows at high speed on the highways. When the lease ended I bought the car for my wife and I still enjoy driving it. A Great Car!

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  A delightful experience - 2003 Acura MDX
  By CD52 - October 18 - 2:00 am

  This car has lived up to its reputation as a terrific family-friendly, luxury SUV (family- friendly because why else would you have the DVD entertainment system?). Its fun to drive, configurable for a zillion different needs, and comfortable beyond what we expected. It compares favorably with our other car -- A Mercedes E Class sedan.