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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  Goods and bads - 2003 Acura CL
  By freddie - September 1 - 2:00 am

  Fun to drive. accelerating to enter traffic is a fun time, but watch the speedometer as you will quickly reach speeds you did not entend to achieve. Driving up Mount Raineer and Mount Saint Helen gives you a good example of the vehicles road handling characteristics, which are very good. You always feel secure. Glad I bought it. Using 92 or 93 octane I have been getting up to 29 mph.

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  My Driving Experience - 2003 Acura RSX
  By TypeSRsx2003 - September 1 - 2:00 am

  My experience with this car has been great. I love the handling and the high revving engine. Such a small car with a powerful engine is a great combination.

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  Adults toy - 2007 Acura TL
  By envzak - August 31 - 4:33 pm

  It was time for me to to get rid of 2003 RSX type S that Ive been driving for years. The 2007 TL type S not only filled the gap that Ive been missing in the RSX-S, but surged my adrenaline beyond my expectation. Smooth and precise 6 speed manual gear box w/ limited-slip differential and 256 lb-ft of torque are the 2007 TL type S strongest points that clinched my decision to buy this car. I got to admit that I missed the scream from RSX-S between 3rd and 4th when VTEC kicked-in, but TL-S substitutes that w/ tourquey, high-pitched rumble exhaust modulation. Superb and very comfortable interior supports my decision to buy another 6 speed manual car, otherwise Im going to fall asleep.

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  Luxury and 30+ MPG - 2009 Acura TSX
  By Wilson - August 31 - 5:46 am

  After two weeks of ownership, I am thrilled. Best blend of luxury, performance, reliability, comfort, technology, and fuel economy that money can buy. Period. A comparably equipped Lexus, Infiniti, or BMW will cost $5,000 more, minimum. The Acura comes loaded with standard features, and the TSXs size is just right; roomy but not too big. A surprise has been the 35-40 mpg highway (on cruise control), 28 mpg with some city driving thrown in. With the larger 18.5 gallon tank, its now possible to drive almost 600 highway miles on a single fill up. Amazing.

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  Owned - 2002 Acura RSX
  By haevolution - August 30 - 10:00 am

  This is the sport compact car to buy, no question about it.

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  review - 2003 Acura MDX
  By L Faber - August 30 - 10:00 am

  This happens to be the best car Ive ever purchased. Its classy, roomy, and handles beautifully. I have 2 children under the age of 4 that sit comfortably along with enough room for all the bags I have to take along. I would recommend this vehicle to anyone looking for the ultimate luxury SUV.

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  myacuraTL - 2003 Acura TL
  By tulips - August 30 - 10:00 am

  Smooth ride, luxurious and comforatble interior. Excellent Bose System. Just the right mix of class and sportiness for the right price.

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  Excellent used vehicle - 1996 Acura TL
  By D. Mullaly - August 30 - 2:00 am

  Bought a wll-maintained 3.2TL Premium and can only marvel at it. Love the understated exterior (take that, Aurora!), and the interior is ergonomically perfect. Only wish the shift points on the automatic transmission were smoother, but I am comparing them to a much newer Honda Odyssey and realize the advances in technology since 1996. Ride quality nicely toes the line between sport and comfort, but body lean is slightly pronounced. Overall, this is a great car.

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  Nelsons Point of View - 2004 Acura RL
  By Nelson Kaesberg - August 30 - 2:00 am

  I visited a dear friend in southern CA that has a 2002 RL. I was truly impressed with the ride, handling and comfort. When the lease on my Seville expired, I test drove the RL and had to have one. Although it is much different than the Seville, its effortless response, comfort and overall good looks have not disappointed.

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  nice suprise - 2000 Acura TL
  By jalan - August 30 - 2:00 am

  I had a 1995 BMW 740IL when I bought this in 2000... so I thought it would be a big adjustment... I was very pleasantly suprised by the TL. Nice drive !