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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  Nighthawk Review - 2005 Acura RL
  By Dale - July 31 - 8:53 pm

  Has a very solid feel, grips road like a sports car. Smooth ride with killer stereo. Draws attention on the road.

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  2007 TL-S type Carbon Bronze Pearl - 2007 Acura TL
  By BabyGee - July 31 - 2:40 pm

  I have a 2005 MDX and recently we needed a second car. After test driving three different Acura models, I chose the TL. The car was far superior to the TSX (in quality as well), and also had a more sleek and mature personality than the RDX. Since we have an MDX, I opted for a nicer, smoother and more sophisticated TL. I chose the S-series to get the manual transmission - lots of fun. The car is subtlely aggressive, yet practical too. My kids fit easily and safely, and the gas mileage is AOK (25 mpg mixed (city/hwy)). Love my Acura(s)!

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  The Perfect Vehicle - 2001 Acura MDX
  By David OBrien - July 31 - 2:00 am

  This vehicle has it all. While it is technically a SUV, it handles and is as comfortable as a car. I call it the perfect vehicle because it suits all. It seats 7 very comfortably without being too big, it has plenty of power with excellent gas mileage. Plus, it is an Acura which will have excellent reliability and resale.

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  my first car - 1991 Acura Integra
  By integra owner - July 30 - 2:00 am

  ive been driving this car for about two months now and i must say that i love this car. although the hp reads 130 it actually feels around 180. the acceleration of this car is simply superb and makes the integra one really fun car to drive. two months have gone by and i havent had any problems or shortfalls, although it is a bit early to say.

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  Great Car! - 2001 Acura TL
  By rcmagic - July 30 - 2:00 am

  To anyone considering a TL. I love it. Its a great car: reliable, quick, good looking. Its just right.

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  Great car and bang for the price - 2005 Acura TL
  By AD - July 29 - 9:20 am

  It is an overall great car. Great pickup and very smooth auto. transmission. Had some clicking noises though on the door and the dash. Interior is better than most of its competitors. Test drove BMW 3, mercedez c280 also but went ahead with the Acura. MB does not stand in the competition. And you get more for the buck compared to BMW.

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  The best Acura ever made! - 1992 Acura Integra
  By 92 integra - July 25 - 2:00 am

  I have had this car for 10 yrs and I am very satisfied with it. This car has been very reliable and I have not had any problems with it, only minor maintenance. I highly recommend this car to all.

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  RL3.5 a winner - 1997 Acura RL
  By cbsimike - July 25 - 2:00 am

  I have been driving my 3.5RL Premium (includes heated seats) for 1 1/2 years. My wife and I love the looks, comfort, and driveability of this car. It was purchased as a certified vehicle and drove as new when I purchased. I currently have 75xxx miles and it still drives like new. I got a great car at 1/2 price of new one.

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  Awesome Car - 2004 Acura TL
  By cdean - July 24 - 3:53 am

  No regrets on buying this car. Excellent all away around. Handling, Style, Comfort, Instrumentation is so cool, of course hands down on Sound and Navigation system the best! and definetely the quality of this car is out far outstanding. If are thinking buyin a BMW, Lexus or other high priced Sporters, take a test drive of this puppy and see the difference. THis car is far less expensive than above. Highly recommended and find out yourself. I allready put on 750 miles in one week, now need to get another car just to cut down on mileage, i want this car to last for a very long time.

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  Loved It - 1995 Acura Legend
  By Decksmooth - July 24 - 2:00 am

  Overall, I loved this car, but there were a few problems. I bought the car with 45000 miles. The transmission started to go at 92000. I sold it at 102000 and got top $ thanks to Edmunds even though the tranny was bad. One more complaint-- while backing out of the driveway after snowplows had created a small to medium snowbank, the front bumper snapped off completely. The directional lights (located in the bumper) conveniently disconnected with minimal damage The body shop guy told me it was designed to happen that way during head-on collisions. He ordered a new piece to reconnect the bumper & $200 later I was back on the road with the same bumper.