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 bought one... - 2003 Acura RSX
  By jtree91 - September 7 - 11:07 am

  I recently bought a 2003 RSX and I have to say I am very satisfied. The first quality that jumped out at me when I first drove it was its tight, sports car handling. This car handles beautifully and I am able to take turns at speeds I never could have imagined in my previous car, a grand am. The interior is leather, two toned sports seats that really add to the cars sportiness. There is a body kit on the car so it looks really sharp and sounds great with the magnaflow exhaust. Overall, im glad I bought it. I feel as though honda makes very reliable cars and the rsx is no exception.

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  Very nice car - 2013 Acura RDX
  By linn81 - September 6 - 10:55 pm

  Before considered Q5, but Q5 the back seat is too small. Because people often sat in the back seat, so choose the RDX, driving up also pretty comfortable, overall satisfaction, I like the new RDX

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  Almost an investment than liability - 2000 Acura RL
  By hemy - September 5 - 4:43 pm

  I bought this used 2 years ago with 80k miles and I cant complain. Starts every time, all the amenities you can ask for and reliable. Being 12 years old when I bought it, I expected wear signs. I have to tell you, the interior was a 9.9/10. it held up well and still looked brand new! Could not say the same thing for my earlier legend whose leather was falling apart after 10 years. Replaced my own rear window regulator myself (normal for this car) at the cost of $180. Replaced oil pressure switch myself (causing minor oil leak) for $8. Paid shop to have normal 90k service for $800 (radiator, belts, fluids). Other than that, runs great! One strange water leak into car after hard rains?!

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  a reliable honda - 1991 Acura Integra
  By refri3dnoodle - September 2 - 6:58 pm

  I have 266k miles on mine. replaced the head gasket at 265k along with the distributor. It is a reliable car and really good on gas...most other cars of the same year are usually somewhere in a scrap yard.

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  Quiet and smooth-hardly - 2013 Acura RDX
  By jtwi - August 31 - 1:36 pm

  Read all the reviews I could get my eyes on months before the purchase. All said quiet and smooth ride. Test drive seem to follow suit. I have almost 3K on the car. Every bump I hit, I hear and feel. Im not talking about potholes, I am talking about road bumps which has me questioning the suspension. Inside you hear the bump-bump bump-bump bump bump. Or maybe I am missing the cabin accoustical material. Cant have people saying the car is quiet and smooth and i get just the reverse.

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  Not a luxury car - 2011 Acura MDX
  By sinew23 - August 29 - 1:13 pm

  I leased this car last year because it had the lots of leg room and cargo space and overall seem like a good choice. Unfortunately after driving it for a year, Ive been disappointed numerous times by the way Acura cut corners to save a buck. It just doesnt feel like a luxury car. It basically feels like a Honda. This car is not nearly worth the $50K price tag it touts. To add insult to injury, the sales team at the dealership was horrible. Do not buy your Acura from Hendrick Acura!!! Im so disappointed by this car and the service that Im in the process of transferring my lease. I just cant drive or pay for this car any longer.

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  Acura did not stand behind their product. - 2012 Acura TSX
  By chelocueva - August 28 - 10:33 pm

  I bought this car last December, after two weeks of driving I notice a whistling noise coming out of the dash, only when the AC is on and the car is moving, it is a high pitch noise that come and goes in intervals of seconds, very annoying, I call the dealer, by the way the dealer was great they did everything in their power to fix this issue, it took 3 tries to notice but finally they heard it, to make a long story short, my car was out of commission for 60 days, 30 days straight, they replace the expansion valve, evaporator, performed recovered/vacuum/charge the system, and Ill almost forgot they replace the bluetooth too cause was not working, finally after phone calls and sending letter

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  Wouldnt sell this car. - 1996 Acura Integra
  By wrongfire - August 28 - 9:16 pm

  Performance - 3 This is the weakest aspect to me, of course this is just the RS, but its slow. It handles great, I love taking corners with it. Its FWD, so if thats your thing then you will love it. Comfort - 4 The chairs are nice but not great, driving for more than an hour gets uncomfortable.. The cup holders are pretty small. Value - 5 This car has so much going for it, and the price is excellent. Fun- 4 Awesome car, but just slightly too slow, and spongy. Interior - 5 Mine is black and blue.. its immaculate. Exterior - 5 The design is still excellent and eye catching. Build - 4 140k miles and still holding together very well. Reliability- 5 140k miles and nothing is wrong.

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  Very pleased with my first Acura, love the 2013 RDX. - 2013 Acura RDX
  By busyworkingmom - August 24 - 5:12 pm

  I spent a lot of time researching this auto purchase. I needed a car that I can commute in but also travel up the Utah canyons for skiing and also, take on road trips. The 2103 RDX was the perfect fit for me--size, features, price, gas mileage and reliability. My neighbors have an earlier RDX and have little good to say but when I saw the reviews and the gas mileage on the 2013, I knew I had to drive it. Very glad I did. I was on the verge of purchasing another car--and the RDX quickly changed my mind. Its fast enough, the interior is well designed, it looks classic so it wont be completely dated in 10 years (I keep my cars a long time!) and I love all of the features.

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  Awful Voice Dialing Takes the Joy Out. - 2013 Acura RDX
  By roadrunner56 - August 22 - 10:45 am

  My wife and I purchased a 2013 RDX AWD with Tech Package about 3 months ago. Overall impressions of the car are good, but voice dialing is a disaster. Heres a comparison of the steps necessary for pre-2013 v. 2013 voice dialing: Pre-2013 1. Press Call-Pick Up 2. Say name (and dialing initiated immediately). 2013 (per manual) 1. Press Voice Command 2. Say "Dial by Voice Tag" 3. Wait for beep, and Press Voice Command 4. Say name. 5. Wait for system to repeat name back and beep. 6. Press Voice Command 7. Say "Dial." Not only is the new approach slow and frustrating, in my view its downright dangerous since it lengthens substantially the interval when the driver is distracted