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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  99 3.0 CL purchased 12/02 - 1999 Acura CL
  By apollonia1 - February 4 - 2:00 am

  Great car and luxury features for the price, $15k used, came off lease with low miles 30k miles and perfect condition.

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  Mini Van on Steroids - 2002 Acura MDX
  By Landshark - February 3 - 10:00 am

  The wife and I got ours when our son was just a month old. We love the mini van like room combined with Acura style, performance, and quality.

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  The BEST Car - 2003 Acura NSX
  By Hector Vaj - February 3 - 2:00 am

  this certain type of automotive is a great buy. its an exotic car and a sporty car with many luxerious fundamentals added with its great horsepower and great performance.

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  Best Dam Car That I Ever Had! (AC/DC) - 1993 Acura Integra
  By seve - February 2 - 2:00 am

  My 1993 Integra has provided me with 178,562 miles of pure driving excitement, and still going strong! Comfortable seating & peppy performance. I modified mine with Intake, Headers, and Freeflow exhaust. The Integra loves to breathe, and outperforms most new civics and the 4th generation Integras. The 93 body style was the best look ever, this car is long and mean with wraparound headlights. Plenty of space for both Mountain bikes in the hatchback. I bought a new Acura CL-S, but I still kept my Integra, I just cannot see parting with it. Still drive it every weekend to keep it from getting too jealous!

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  Great Performer - 1997 Acura CL
  By Tbag - February 2 - 2:00 am

  A blast to drive. Solid Acura quality. Excellent paint and body work. Looks like new after 65000 miles.

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  The Best Overall Value In Its Class!!! - 2006 Acura TSX
  By 2006CarbonGrayTSX - February 1 - 4:53 am

  I researched for months & test drove several entry-level luxury sport sedans before deciding on the TSX. The Acura was the total package. Although it wasnt the fastest, and didnt have the best fuel economy, it was the BEST OVERALL VALUE in terms of features, reliability, performance, handling and price - at under $30K

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  Excellent buy - 1994 Acura Integra
  By Gordonchick - February 1 - 2:00 am

  I bought my 1994 Integra LS used in 1996. I have not had any major problems with it nor has it ever let me sit alongside the road. I would recommend this car in a minute.

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  drive it like you stoled it - 2002 Acura RSX
  By acura---nut - February 1 - 2:00 am

  i had a 2000 gsr and a 2001 type r ,and i have to say this is one car that i really enjoy driving it everyday with out some clown in a $50 civic wanting to race me with a big exhaust pipe.the ride is great,no problems with the trans shifting like most that i heard of (6 speeds are notchy...thats life!) the leather is kind of crapp..cheap? fit and finish is great...every acura i ever had had raildust in it but it does come out with a clay bar..would i buy another one .hummmmm might step up to the CL type s...just a nicer car over all

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  Excellent sports car for the price - 2001 Acura Integra
  By shawnruff - January 31 - 2:00 am

  This car is fun to drive, not only is it quick, but it can handle like you would not believe. I have had absolutely no problems with my GSR, the only time I work on it is when Im adding performance modifications to it.

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  Reformed Integra Owner - 2002 Acura RSX
  By Carol Kelly - January 31 - 2:00 am

  I must admit- the Integra is a hard act to follow- but the RSX is really a better car. I feel like Im driving a real luxury car- got that BMW feel. Very tight and smooth..