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:

• 

  Great car, best in class - 2005 Acura TL
  By Chris - December 4 - 7:43 am

  There is a reason why this car is a top pick by Consumer Reports. For the money you are not going to do much better. The vast array of incredible standard features is just amazing, its an awesome car to drive and seems to do everything you could expect for a car of this price. Sure the new 3 series handles better, but youd have to spend $40K+ to equal the features of this car, and unless you live on a race track it isnt going to make any difference. This is a fast, luxury car that does everything you expect and more. I love mine and if I had to do it all over again would make the same pick.

• 

  Oh what a car - 1990 Acura Legend
  By yoji6365 - December 3 - 9:32 pm

  Beautiful car, nice ride, but as with most high end cars, a pricey maintenance bill. But it wont break down and leave you stranded in the snow.

• 

  Still a winner - 2002 Acura MDX
  By PCH - December 3 - 1:11 am

  Car delivers as promised. Theres a reason why it continued to win editors choice awards after 3 years. Interior design is good, could be a bit more luxurious. Gas mileage excellent under 70 MPH (23.5 MPG highway on my last trip - awesome for a mid-sized suv!). Minor build quality issues back of drivers seat broke off, cup holder latch needed to be replaced. Like that they used to be rare on the road

• 

  One Great "SUV" - 2004 Acura MDX
  By Emile Riendeau - December 2 - 9:35 pm

  This vehicle rides and handles like a luxury car. It is a great value because it comes with so many standard features. It was $8,000.00 less than a Lexus GX470 & the BMW X5. Seats are extremely confortable and the navigation system is user friendly. a joy to drive everyday. The dealer options available really dress this vehicle up.

• 

  Great car but where is the Honda reliability - 2002 Acura TL
  By Honda owner - December 2 - 1:26 am

  This is a great car with some quality control issues. Transmission is not the greatist thing, mine is starting to slip and car only has 22k on it. Other problems is it took the dealer four tries to figure out why my sunroof was rattling, finally they replaced the entire thing, no problems since. Engine is excellent. Comfort is great. Gas mileage could be better. I get around 19 in the city. I wish the car was rear wheel drive because there is occasionally too much torque steer. Otherwise great car.

• 

  A REAL IMPROVEMENT! - 2005 Acura RSX
  By Soloseeker - December 2 - 1:22 am

  Having owned an 04 RSX previously,I can say the changes for 05 are quite noticeable improvements. Finally, an all around terrific car now with comfortable seats, a ride that doesnt pound your brains out over broken pavement, and is quiet on the highway. Better brakes and quicker and lighter steering make the car almost perfect. I happen to like the new headlights, and, (believe it or not) they actually look similar to those in the new RL, and more importantly, they do a better job of illuminating the road. I think they dumped those cheap sounding speakers, and even gave the horn a more European tone. With the 05 improvements, I cant think of anything to complain about.

• 

  luv my rsx - 2005 Acura RSX
  By tinosbabe - December 1 - 11:13 pm

  I love this car. The new model looks like it comes with a body kit.I hope it performs as well as my old Integra.

• 

  Dont waste your money - 2003 Acura MDX
  By apersistent1 - December 1 - 10:00 am

  This is the worst QUALITY car I have owned in 25 years. You would not expect a “luxury” car have constant noises and problems. First, noise in front wheel well that took 3 weeks to find/fix. Next, the sound of the fuel sloshing in the fuel tank - Acura says it’s "normal" for this car. Next, stereo speakers in the doors started vibrating. Next, door noises. Turns out the seal "needs lubricating". Next, the brakes make a clunking noise - Acura says a "slight clicking". Whenever you shift, and apply the brakes, the calipers "adjust". Acura says this is normal. Caliper adjustment IS, the noise ISN’T!

• 

  great - 2003 Acura MDX
  By asgoldstei - December 1 - 10:00 am

  It is a great experience to have this lovable SUV in our garage!

• 

  All arounder - 2003 Acura MDX
  By car dude - December 1 - 10:00 am

  A great family car. My wife drives the kids around. Just went camping - Thule box on top, 4 bikes on the hitch and cruised the mountains with 3 kids watching a DVD in the back. Up and down between sea level and 2700 ft. and got 21 miles to the gallon. No problem. Take features, luxury, size, ride, performance, handling, price. This car is an 8 or 9 across everything. What other car can do that?