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:

• 

  WORTH EVERY PENNY - 2004 Acura TL
  By JIGGY - January 6 - 2:00 am

  IF YOU CROSS AN AUDI A6 WITH AN ES 300- -THIS IS WHAT YOU WOULD GET. FACTOR IN THE VALUE OF THIS CAR, RELIABILITY AND THE PERFORMANCE/DESIGN---THIS CAR IS TOO GOD TO BE TRUE

• 

  Best for your money!! - 2004 Acura TL
  By TL love - January 6 - 2:00 am

  Ive looked at almost all the cars out there on the market and when I drove the TL and saw all the things I was getting for my money, I was very satisfied. This car could sell for mid 40s and Id probably bought it but for $35,000, there was no competition. I love it!!!

• 

  Excellent car - 2004 Acura RL
  By acura rl - January 6 - 12:59 am

  Ive had my Acura for over a year now and enjoy it very much. Ive had no problems with it and love the navigational system, Onstar, and XM radio, all standard features. The Acura wont win a lot of races, but the power is adaquate for my driving, and the ride is smooth, quiet and enjoyable. Lots of people comment positively about the looks of the car when its parked.

• 

  Great - 2004 Acura MDX
  By sro100 - January 6 - 12:44 am

  We love the MDX. Highly recommended.

• 

  RL - 2005 Acura RL
  By Mark Shedrofsky - January 5 - 1:20 am

  Great car. The interior is fabulous, the exterior could look a bit more elegant. With all wheel drive the car handles incredibly well. XM Radio and hands free Blue tooth phone capability is great. Using the voice commands to adjust almost anything is nice, especially in bad weather, when you dont want to take your eyes off the road to adjust a dial.

• 

  Lot of car for the money - 2005 Acura TL
  By Nick Clifford - January 3 - 6:50 am

  With 195,000 on my 95 Accord it was time for a new car; my first thoughts were to buy a used 5 series but after extensive research found out BMWs cost a fortune to maintain. Ive been spoiled by Honda. Prior to my Accord I owned an 85 Prelude with 220,000 + miles .. original gear box and engine. Buying a TL is easy really, there is nothing that comes close to value for money. If these cars are as reliable as previous models long term ownership should be a dream too. No tune up until 105,000 !! Compare that with BMWs ... only problem so far is rattle from passenger window which surprised me ...wasnt expecting this from Honda. Ride is firm which I like but others used to Lexus may not ..?

• 

  Best Car in its Class - 2004 Acura RSX
  By BHMnPalmBeach - January 3 - 12:19 am

  This car is great! I traded in a 350hp Trans Am for this car because I was quite upset with having the brand new TA in the shop for over $5000 worth of work in the year I owned it. I have always hated these little foreign cars. However, after opening my eyes to the actual value, performance, gas mileage, reliability, and outstanding customer service (including a real live, brand new Acura TSX loner car when your car needs even minor service). If you even remotely like to drive compare this $24,000 car to the $24,000 04 Grand Prix (my mom just bought one). All I have to say in closing is a little quote from my favorite periodical, Car and Driver, "Best Car in its Class!!"

• 

  awsome driving!! - 2002 Acura RSX
  By Ron - January 2 - 4:54 am

  I bought this car used in March, 2004. They hold there value well, but there seems to be alot out there. What I like about the RSX-Type S is that you dont seem them everywhere. They seem to be unique.

• 

  I love this car - 2000 Acura RL
  By Clarence - January 2 - 3:13 am

  I bought this car a year ago with 26000 miles on it. I have a 120 mile round trip commute to work and wanted something a little more comfortable than the Acura Integra I had (loved that car too and had no problems ever). I live in the DC metro area and you need to be able to get into traffic on the beltways and highways fast. This car has the power to do it. The comfort is nicer that some of the Mercedes Ive been in and when I test drove the Acura it was up against a Volvo and a Lexus. The Acura won hands down. There was no contest. My only complaint so far was a $650 repair bill for replacing the motor of a rear window. The parts were almost $400. Seems just a little excessive.

• 

  Over 100K miles and going for 200k! - 1999 Acura TL
  By AMTL - January 1 - 3:00 am

  I got is used in 2003 with 75K mis on it, now with almost 110k mis. Just put gas and drive, not much maintenance! Only changed A/C compressor at 100k mis. Acura and Honda owner for life!!!!!