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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  Type S - 2002 Acura RSX
  By RSX_S_Driver - August 28 - 8:30 pm

  Great car!

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  Awesome TSX - 2006 Acura TSX
  By LilRed - August 28 - 10:33 am

  I look at other cars in this class namely BMW, Mercedes but cannot do RWD due to winters here in Utah and was even considering getting a 2006 Acura TL but I did a back to back test drive of the TSX and fell in love with it. I felt it was the right size for me and my wife, had excellent all around visibility, luv the exterior handsome styling (everywhere I go it turns heads), Navi with voice command was awesome and nice to have, excellent quick precise steering and feel of the road.Good and responsive power delivery from the smooth revving engine with buttery smooth tranny especially going up the hill (sport shift mode was a joy to use)Â…..overall this car is a smooth and fun to drive machine.

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  for moms who refuse to do the minivan - 2005 Acura MDX
  By carol - August 27 - 10:07 am

  This car is feels custom made for our family of 5 plus 2 large dogs. The seating options work out perfectly for us. I love having 2 "extra" kid seats in row 3 for the kids friends or for when my own lovely children need to be separated. And the front seat airbag sensor means I feel more confident when my older children sit up front. In truth, we should have a minivan -- that is the ultimate in convenience for a motley crew like us. BUT my final rationalization for the MDX was that when it was time for my oldest to start driving that this would become her car. Im sure shell be much happier inheriting the MDX than a minivan!!!

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  Thrilling Ride - 2004 Acura TL
  By EdCincy - August 26 - 10:10 pm

  This car is a thrilling blend of luxury and performance. The power of the engine is awesome, but has me wishing it was rear wheel drive because it would make the full throttle launches more fun. The transmission is so smart.I seldom have to use the manual shifter. It anticipates the exact gear I need. Best stereo system on the market. The DVD-Audio surround sound separation and clarity is amazing. I bought a Bluetooth phone to go with the car and it is truly hands-free and easy to use. If you want to have the latest in high-tech, this is your machine! My dealership experience from sales to service, including loaner cars and fast service processing has been excellent.

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  Nice Car, about to be replaced - 2003 Acura TL
  By HondaFam03 - August 25 - 10:00 am

  Our TL we have had for a little over a year has been very satisfying and has provided us with great value and luxury for the money. But we had to have the rotors turned cause of warpage and the headliner fixed cause it would squeak on broken roads. But otherwise, this car is beautiful and I would love to own this car LONG TERM. Thank you Acura, the design is aging but will be replaced soon. Neo-Classic design that will never go out of style.

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  Worthy investment - 2004 Acura RSX
  By Jay - August 25 - 7:49 am

  Great performance and reliability. No complaints so far. Far exceeds expectations.

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  great car - 2006 Acura TL
  By bob - August 25 - 12:53 am

  this car is fun to drive. good power and got 25mpg in city and hiway. hiway driving at 69mph got 32 mpg.

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  Best quality auto I have owned - 1996 Acura RL
  By J. ANDERSON - August 24 - 2:47 pm

  This vehicle is my first Honda product and I have been very pleased. The car is almost 10 years old and the paint looks awesome. The leather interior is the most durable I have ever had and currently looks to be must younger. These cars do not have the cheap plastic parts that seem to break on most other brands.

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  Original owner still fun to drive - 1990 Acura Integra
  By Energy Man - August 24 - 1:54 pm

  I bought this car new and have used it mostly for city commuting. Mileage is going down slightly with age but can still turn a consistent 23 in city and 32 on the road. Car is fun to drive and easy to maintain for most things, but timing belt, water pump, ac compressor, CV joints are a pain. This cars reliability and the service lead me toward a 2004 TL.

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  Instant Classic!! - 2004 Acura RSX
  By RSXorcist - August 24 - 5:25 am

  Ive had the car for a little over a year and I still find excuses to run errands just so I can drive it. I love this car. While I did grind 2nd gear occassionally, I figured it was more user error than anything. The seats are great, steering wheel firm, transmission precise and handling amazing. I wasnt a big fan of hatchback designs but this grew on me. You have to drive it to appreciate it. Ive taken it on the canyon twisties along with a buddies S2000 and it kept up quite well (probably wouldve kept up even better if the stock tires didnt stink).