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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  Probably the best car Ive ever owned - 1996 Acura Integra
  By Rick Ides - November 2 - 2:00 am

  Well, after 6 years, the car has cost me basically nothing other than normal maintanence and one new battery. (Ok, 5 years is pretty standard for a battery.) The car handles responsively, accelerates smoothly, the cockpit noise level is a little high, and theft rate is off the chart.. Secure yours well!

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  Best SUV - 2007 Acura MDX
  By Joe - November 1 - 9:03 am

  This is a very fun and smooth SUV. I have owned it about three weeks, and have the best time driving it. The gas mileage is not the best but I can live with it. Do wish that the roof rails, side running boards, and side body moldings did not have to be extras, but they make the car look so much better.

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  1991 Legendary Coupe - 1991 Acura Legend
  By Legendary Coupe - November 1 - 2:00 am

  Proud owner of a 1991 Acura L Coupe since 1994. Today, the coupe continues to turn heads. People want to buy the car right on the spot. I say, No Way! Traded the coupe in for another car...the next day I got my coupe back. It is dependable, durable and the besting looking car on the road.

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  2001 Acurat TL is a 10!!! - 2001 Acura TL
  By kcchef - November 1 - 2:00 am

  Its the best ride ever!!! Its amazing and FUN TO DRIVE!!! YEs, its a big car, too, with plenty of room for five and gear. The styling is luxurious and I get LOTS of compliments. Simply the best ride on the road for under $30,000.

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  LOVE MY ACURA TL - 2004 Acura TL
  By Corky West - October 31 - 10:00 am

  Fun to drive. Plenty of power. The inside is very comfortable and the navigation system is excellent. Voice recognition is the way to go.

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  Big bang for the bucks - 2004 Acura TL
  By aloha - October 31 - 10:00 am

  Effortless acceleration makes driving almost intuitive; by the time ive had the thought that id like to be ahead of that tractor-trailor, I already am. You are never hindered by lack of power. Cruising at 80 on a steep uphill, I can effortlessly accelarate without even flooring it. It feels so "at home" at high speed that with the windows shut you can creep up into the nineties without even noticing. So far, I havent found a piece of highway that it cant handle at twice the posted speed.

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  Acura TL - 2004 Acura TL
  By okcspike - October 31 - 10:00 am

  Weak spots-some road noise at 70 mph, although otherwise very quiet, cellphone adapters are poorly placed. Navigational system and excellent right are easy to get used to and appreciate, but my 2002 Impala has a lot more features at 60% of the cost.

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  Best Car Ever - 2005 Acura TL
  By THEMAD1LV - October 31 - 6:53 am

  This vehicle is one to go down in the record books. Its quick, sporty, and at the same time affordable. The design of this car compliments the interior. The navigation system includes voice activation of certain components. The audio system fills the car completely. The LED back lite gauges complement its style and attention to detail. The back seat in the vehicle is very comfy and definitely a road trip car. Overall this car is the only car I NEVER had buyers remorse on. I highly recommend this vehicle.

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  This car had been underrated by so many! - 2002 Acura NSX
  By NSX Prototype - October 31 - 2:00 am

  For those who rate sports cars by its ability to "flex" its muscles (i.e., Raw Horsepower), then youll be surprised that this "merely 290HP" NSX can outrun most stock sports cars that has more much more HP on the drag strip as well as on the track. The engine has the 2nd best soundtrack of any sports car (I rank Ferraris on the top of my list). Words arent enough to describe the feeling this car gives to the driver or even the passenger. You MUST drive this car for yourself to realize its worth every penny.

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  Excellent Car - 1999 Acura TL
  By Terence - October 30 - 2:00 am

  I think the TL is a very nice car. Its really roomy inside and well designed. The TLs acceleration is just ridiculous. You can drive at 80 mph and not even know it - thats how smooth this car is.