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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  Just the right amount of utility & luxury - 2013 Acura RDX
  By rdxer93 - September 19 - 9:35 pm

  I searched and search for just the right SUV and the Acura RDX fit my needs just right. I was looking for a smaller SUV that was fun to drive, had good gas mileage, the right amount of space, a bit of luxury, and was priced right. After the first 60 days, Im convinced the RDX was the best choice. The RDX offers good styling, a luxury interior, a very peppy ride, quiet inside, and a relatively smooth ride. I wouldnt consider the handling as sporty, but this isnt an Acura TL either. For relatively $10k less than others brands in the category, the RDX is a solid choice.

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  The 2013 RDX is fantastic!! - 2013 Acura RDX
  By riathediva627 - September 19 - 6:22 pm

  Ride Quality: The RDX rides smoothly and has a car-like feel. It has a firm, but luxurious feel. Performance: The engine has pickup. The engine sounds solid and pleasantly aggressive. Interior: The interior is luxurious, yet sporty. The leather is soft and of good quality. The interior is roomy-even for a tall person! The sound system is awesome! The backup camera has 3 views which ensures that you see stuff very well. The navigation system is very intuitive. The car sets itself based on the key in the car (ex. Driver 1 key shows all Driver 1s radio presets and adjust seats to Driver 1s presets). Windows are tinted nicely. The Hard Disc Drive that records CDs is great! Listening to music

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  2011 Acura MDX - 2011 Acura MDX
  By jack1973 - September 19 - 9:37 am

  I had this vehicle for 18 months and recently traded it in due to a couple reasons. - on a combination of city and highway driving I was avging 16 mpg. I understand its an SUV but find this number unacceptable. - The interior in this vehicle is horrrible. Not only is the design bad but the leather is cheap and showed massive wear with only 10,000 miles on the vehicle. The dash is covered in fake wood and there were many rattles in the car. The ride is extremely hard and road noise is prominent. Exterior is really nice but the interior and gas mileage really started to weigh on me. I guess thats what you get when you try to make a Honda a luxury car.

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  LOVE this car - 2008 Acura RL
  By mtfool - September 18 - 4:26 pm

  I bought this car as Certified Pre-Owned, with 70k miles, and its been great in all regards. The stock tires were not good in snow, so I bought snow tires and put them on dedicated rims, and wow! The car is amazing in the snow. Its also a heavy car, so it holds tight to the road, like its on rails. Is quiet and responsive but not demanding. A few minor issues: Chrome on the grill is peeling, which I see on all RLs of that year in our area. Acura had the brass to tell me the "solution" is to wipe down the chrome with a towel after every rain and snow! How about taking some responsibility, Acura!? Also, keyless entry door handle needed replacement, which is a common problem.

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  Happy with my Acura ILX after 4000 miles - 2013 Acura ILX
  By jeepcolorado - September 15 - 10:54 pm

  I purchased the Acura ILX after owning a Jeep Grand Cherokee for seven years. I really wanted a new JGC Overland, but decided it made more economic sense to look for a comfortable 60 miles/day commuter that would still give the feeling I was driving a solid entry level luxury car with most of todays tech features. The ILX has a very well engineered interior that seems well above the luxury level of a Civic or other lower end cars and in line with most other cars up to about 40K. It is a very pleasant place to relax while commuting a couple of hours a day. With a low 30s budget I compared against the Audi A3, VW GTI, Lexus 250H, and Suburu Outback and decided this was the best choice.

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  Great Car, Great Value - 2013 Acura RDX
  By jude123 - September 12 - 10:35 pm

  Have had car for two weeks now and am very happy with it. Seats are very ergonomic and comfortable especially on long drives. Gas mileage is good, about 23 mpg for mixed driving, and about 28-30 mpg on highway. Sound system with the technology package is amazing! Bluetooth works great. Navigation very easy to use and screen is nice quality. Voice recognition is a neat feature. Leather interior is very good quality and durable. Ride is pretty smooth (maybe not as smooth as Lexus RX) but still pretty nice. V6 engine is plenty zippy, never felt sluggish merging or passing. A lot of features are standard (would cost extra with other similar cars), so good value overall.

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  7 year total repairs low - 2005 Acura TL
  By gary171 - September 12 - 8:06 am

  My wife purchased the TL new with the 7 year/100,000 extended warranty. The warranty just expired. Total regular maintenance for 7 years are $3600--all done at Acura dealership. Total repairs on my 2005 Infinity purchased the same day with same warranty are $9300. I love my Infinity, but regular maintenance is expensive. Acura repair bills very low over 7 years.

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  Great 2nd Generation RDX - 2013 Acura RDX
  By chips9509 - September 9 - 10:25 pm

  The V6 / 6 speed transmission in the new RDX is outstanding - quiet, smooth, fuel economy is very good, and it does not have to down shift on every hill. An excellant combination of power and fuel economy. Had 3 passengers on road trip to football game and all commented on ride quality, and how quiet it was. Considered other SUVs in this class, 2013 RX, GLK, and others. Some were a little larger, most had more useable space behind rear seats, but were also many $1000s more. If you want a Premium SUV of this size, dollar for dollar this was simply the best choice.

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  Acura ILX Impressions after first month - 2013 Acura ILX
  By hondafan30 - September 7 - 8:14 pm

  The Ilx is a great car. I am a Honda/Acura fan which is a big part of why I purchased this car. You can get more car for the money with Toyota, Honda or Nissan any day, but if you want the Acura badge and build quality you pay the premium. The car handles extremely well, road noise is pretty low and the interior is one of the most comfortable and aesthetically appealing of any car I have owned. The interior isnt large but its done very well. I really enjoy driving this car and it gets its fair share of looks. Dont judge this car by pictures, I went to the dealer to buy a tsx and left with this because when I saw it the body styling really hooked me in. It is definitely not a rebadged civic

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  Safe car! Reliable - 2009 Acura TSX
  By mwqnj - September 7 - 4:20 pm

  I love the tsx. I have had a lot of items worn but replaced by the warranty. Faulty window switch, bad speakers, worn bushings and cv boots. I had only had it maintained at the dealer, otherwise I would have been in serious debt. Brakes replaced all around and trans flush which were my choice to replace. Service excellent. Back is tight but overall this car is fast, fun and comfortable to drive !! It has 38,000 on it and I plan to run it to the ground. Tires are next, not terrible to maintain oil change n tires only big service besides the warranty replacements.