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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  A Precision Driving Machine - 2008 Acura TSX
  By Have Car Will Travel - June 30 - 3:35 pm

  This is my 4th Acura, and 2nd tsx. The tsx is a real drivers car. You have the feeling that you have a precision instrument in your hands. A feeling of tactile feedback from the steering wheel. The sound of the engine has a pleasant resonance. Acceleration off the line is decent, and top end acceleration is excellent. The front seats are exceptionally comfortable, and the car is very reliable. It gets about 25 mpg. It is fun to drive, and it runs like a Swiss watch.

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  Worth every penny - 2007 Acura TSX
  By Lone Star - June 30 - 1:32 pm

  Bought my TSX from the dealer where it was a courtesy loaner for its first 10k miles. Fuel economy is excellent IMO, reliability is excellent, car has never let me down or had any trouble besides a slightly loose drivers seat, but the dealer replaced the track and all good. After putting 40k miles on it myself I have some gripes, head rests should tilt towards you, voice recognition is poor, door sill is too high to comfortably rest your elbow and turning radius is worse than my Ford Truck. Overall, I love this car and plan on upgrading to a TL or MDX due to the excellent quality and reliability of my first Acura.

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  Comes with everything, good first car - 2010 Acura TSX
  By AJNYC - June 29 - 11:42 pm

  It was between leasing this car brand new and buying a used 08 Audi A4. For the price, this car comes with everything. I didnt order the tech package, which I regret but this car comes with everything - bluetooth, satellite radio, heated seats, sunroof, nice hid lights, leather, etc. The seats are so damn comfortable! They literally wrap around you and you dont feel like crap after a long road trip. Driving this car people always stare at it at lights. This car is pretty fun to drive and the MPG is amazing. Expect to get 25 mpg cruising down the GSP or NJ turnpike at 80-85 mph. In NYC traffic I get about 20-22 mpg which is amazing. The torque is a little on the low side though!

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  Best car ever owned - 2000 Acura RL
  By Erik - June 26 - 9:22 pm

  This car ran so well it is the only one I have named. Gracie is hands down the most comfortable, reliable, and best car I have ever driven. I would fly home and get the best rental I could and still would pine for when I would get back to her. Mileage may not be the best but with my lead foot its as much my fault, and when I sit in her I feel it was made for me. It may be a 10 yr old car, but she drives like shes a newborn.

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  3rd Aura TL - 2010 Acura TL
  By RFW - June 21 - 9:16 am

  Recently took possession of 2010 Acura TL with tech package. this vehicle replaced 2006 TL. We also had a 2003 TL. Already bullet proof TLs keep getting better. The 2010 is bigger than the 06 and more comfortable. Also bigger trunk. Combined mileage in mis 20s with a bigger engine. Very substantial hard drive for loading CDs. Excellent interface for Ipod. With all this audio power, XM radio is not necessary. key fob is handy for my wife. She can keep it in her purse. I plug it into dash receptacle as I am afraid it will fall out of my pocket. A lot of compliments on the blue pearl color.

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  Not Boring - 2009 Acura TL
  By Mile high - June 20 - 8:00 pm

  I can say that this is the first car I have ever purchased that I love. Great styling (not boring). Very quick, sweet interior with plenty of room, I am 64" and have no problem fitting in the front or back. Decent gas mileage for the power you get. Yes a Honda Accord V6 may be similar but they are a totally different car. Drove the Accord and found it boring (every family has one). Get looks in this car all the time. This car looks like a $50,000.00 vehicle. Great value for the price compared to BMW, Lexus, Nissan Maxium, Audi, Mercedes. If you want a car that will have style and is reliable and a fun drive that not everyone on the block has this is the car for you.

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  Better tham Bimmer - 2010 Acura TL
  By cartalk - June 20 - 10:59 am

  Purchased this manual transmission TL SH-AWD based on the praise it received during editor test drives. Let me just say that it exceeded my expectations. It handles and drives better than my 335xDrive BMW with more room and comfort. Those considering a German car costing you thousands more would be foolish not to try the TL. I rushed to get one because Acura is stopping (or has stopped already) production on the Manual Trans TLs. Get one now before theyre gone! Great balance of power, handling, and technology (best NAV) if you can deal with the polarizing styling.

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  Nothing compares for the price - 2010 Acura TL
  By montoro - June 17 - 5:50 pm

  Bought the car a few months ago and love it. The handling and power is unbelievable. I find it extremely easy to cruise on the highway and the tech package is a must with an actually easy to use nav. i looked at other cars and the nav always seemed very complex.

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  Best luxury SUV on the market - 2010 Acura MDX
  By CAMDX - June 17 - 4:32 pm

  The mdx is my first Honda/Acura, and after almost a month of ownership Im thoroughly impressed with the quality, workmanship, and technology features of the mdx. It has plenty of room for a family of 4 . The handling and acceleration are top notch for an SUV of this size and weight, you feel confident driving it. Love the navigation, voice activation, and bluetooth connectivity. Dvd entertainment system works great. Awesome sound system. Well thought-out interior. Aggressive exterior design. Definitely a better buy for the $$ compared to other luxury SUVs from BMW, Mercedes, and Volvo. Highly recommend to others!

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  Nice Commuter SUV - 2010 Acura RDX
  By bob - June 16 - 8:14 pm

  I finally found it, a compact crossover SUV that has the right combination of luxury, comfort, and drivability at a reasonable price. My daily big city commute requires superb acceleration and smooth handling to ensure a safe drive. The Acura RDX gives me this, is fun to drive, and gets reasonable gas mileage. The seats are wide and welcoming for my 50+ year old body. The RDX is a very good value compared to other luxury SUVs. The base model cost 10-15% less than the other SUVs that I considered, yet had all of the features that I wanted. And when I sit in it, I can tell that Acura delivers a high quality product.