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:

• 

  My TL is AWESOME - 2004 Acura TL
  By Sonnie - October 8 - 10:00 am

  Cant find anything wrong with my TL - Its the best car ...

• 

  MDX Touring with NAV - 2002 Acura MDX
  By RCTANNING - October 7 - 2:00 am

  We researched, and test drove them all. The MDX on our first trip was a dream to drive. The car type ride, performance ,luxury feel, full size, and egonomics sold us. 26 MPG freeway driving. I and friends strongly recommend it.

• 

  Awesome Sports/Luxury Car!!! - 2001 Acura CL
  By Jeff Mac - October 6 - 2:00 am

  Please test drive this car before you pass judgment. This Type S is just awesome. I have a Black CL Type S with tinted windows and tan (parchment) leather interior. Put in 6 of your favorite CDs in the CD changer, roll down the windows, open the sunroof and go. 260 horsepower!!! This Acura is fast. There will be few cars that can beat it 0-60. Very few. Vette, 911, but nothing more comfortable, afordable and with so many standard features. What a great ride. Highly recommend. Enjoy!

• 

  Awesome High Tech SUV - 2007 Acura RDX
  By Lewis - October 5 - 9:46 pm

  Ive had my RDX for two weeks and love it! Its plenty powerful, has loads of futuristic technology, including a voice recognition system which works very well, and is lots of fun to drive. Im getting 23 comfortable miles per gallon around town and on the highway. I looked at other SUVs and was impressed with the Acuras quality, performance and high tech features.

• 

  Lot of car for the money - 2005 Acura TL
  By PAUL - October 5 - 4:56 am

  Have only had the car for 3 weeks but am very impressed with all aspects so far. Before buying my TL I considered the Toyota Avalon (very tempting), the Infiniti G35, and the Lexus ES. For the price the TL offered more features as standard equipment than the others. I find it hard to understand some reviews that I read which were very critical of the quality, ride, etc. I hope my favorable impression does not change in the future.

• 

  Why want more? - 2003 Acura MDX
  By GAaliveDRIVE - October 4 - 2:00 am

  This is a vehicle that satisfies in most every area required. Highly competent handling, power, roominess, when combined with the sweet purr of the V6 Honda engine could bring a smile to the most ardent critic. I considered many others before driving the MDX and knew in an instant that this one, although not perfect in every regard, was the one. Come to think of it, what ONE vehicle is perfect in every respect? The answer is NONE of them. The MDX comes as close to doing everything well that Ive encountered.

• 

  Acura TL - 2006 Acura TL
  By jeff titelius - October 3 - 3:30 pm

  Great ride, power on demand, and fun to drive. No problems at all. recvd in perfect condition. Great value as well

• 

  The RL Experience - 1999 Acura RL
  By BigH - October 3 - 2:00 am

  The Acura 3.5RL is in the luxury cruiser class. The 3.5 is beautifully built and tight in the finish. My 3.5 has over 120,000 kilometers now and still drives without any rattles or strange noises. The car has plenty of power and drives fantastic at highway speed. When we go out my friends or co- workers want me to drive so they can ride in the Acura. This is one of the nicest cars I have ever owned. This car is a great value when compared to other cars of this caliber. The sound system (Bose) is very good for a car. The transmission shifts so smoothly between gears that you really appreciate the quality and design of this Japanese masterpiece.

• 

  TRADE IN WORTH. - 1993 Acura Legend
  By PAUL GEO - October 3 - 2:00 am

  HAS BEEN AN EXCELENT CAR.HAS BEEN IN ONE ACCEDENT,BUT WAS REPARED TO ORIGINAL.

• 

  Awsome SUV - 2003 Acura MDX
  By ppg - October 3 - 2:00 am

  Its a great SUV, compared to what we have in the market. The Volvo XC90 fairs well too, but this one has lots of features which the Volvo does not have and costs lots more when you buy the pacakges.