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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  Best car I ever drove - 2005 Acura MDX
  By Natalia - October 14 - 2:06 pm

  I love it! It could use better gas mileage. Very good on handling wet roads, turns. Very smooth and quiet ride. I did not think I would use Navigation system, but I was wrong. It is very helpful, plus I am still learning about the vehicle.

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  Review - 2005 Acura RL
  By Lovin - October 14 - 12:47 pm

  I would rank this car in line with the Audi A6. It has absolutely everything you would ever want on a vehicle...the ultimate in luxury.

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  Dont Buy This Car - 2004 Acura TL
  By Dissatisfied - October 14 - 10:03 am

  Owning this car was a nightmare! The interior quality was poor, parts and materials did not wear well. It had all kinds of interior rattles that the dealer could not fix. The car was in the service dept for a total of 18 days out of the 3.5 months I owned the car for many warranty issues. The final straw came after I picked it up from the dealership and the 6 disc CD changer jammed. I traded it in for a Saab 95 and have never looked back since. More power and better handling. Dont let the Acura name fool you. It did not stand for quality craftsmanship in this case.

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  My RL - 2005 Acura RL
  By grimie09 - October 13 - 3:00 pm

  After driving most of the others in this group, the test drive of the RL was all it took to buy. Experiencing the combination of handling, killer sound system, build quality, technology & solidness was over the top. The car is fun.

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  Best Buy for the Dollar - 2002 Acura TL
  By Scott JT - October 13 - 2:00 am

  I have owned my TL for 1.5 years and the car has been wonderful. I looked at the competition (Infinity, BWM, Audi) and for the dollar none of these compared. I have had absolutley no issues with the vehicle.

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  A excellent SUV - 2003 Acura MDX
  By buttons - October 13 - 2:00 am

  Spent a year testing SUVs. I finally had to decide between the new Lexus GX470 and the MDX. I choose the MDX because although the Lexus had a larger engine I couldnt justify the additional $12,000. Had to wait 6 weeks for delivery, but Im not dissapointed.

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  My New TL - 2003 Acura TL
  By cknelson - October 13 - 2:00 am

  I absolutely love this car. Things that I like best about this car is the feel of it when I drive it. I also loved the heated seats. At first, I thought this feature was not needed and I would never use them. But I use them all the time and I can not imagine not having them now. This is a great car. The only item that I do not like is I think the car is a little too loud when you step on the gas. I would like to hear a very quiet engine and I dont hear a quiet engine. Otherwise, I love my new Acura TL.

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  Fun Drive - 2004 Acura TSX
  By Terry R - October 12 - 4:24 pm

  I love the 25-30 mpg, the 4 cyl is great but wish it was available in v6. It is an excellent car with no problems, going on 28,000 miles.

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  Best Car for the Money - 2005 Acura RL
  By Emile Riendeau - October 11 - 9:55 pm

  Thsi is an excellent vehicle in every respect. It is loaded with electronics that make driving more enjoyable. All the standard features make this one of the best values in this class. Excellent all around performance and cabin comfort. Ideal on the highway and back roads. All wheel drive ahead of its time.

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  Doesnt get much better - 2006 Acura RSX
  By John - October 11 - 9:20 pm

  I had a 2003 RSX-S and unfortunately drove it into a cement wall while going about 70 mph. The car held up great, it was totalled of course, but I was fine. I walked away, so I must say the safety on them is awesome. I liked the 2003 so much that I got the 2006 RSX-S for a replacement. Couldnt be happier, I went with Black on Black. Beautiful car. I love everything about it.