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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  Do not let the exterior fool you. - 2004 Acura TL
  By msdearus - August 9 - 10:00 am

  Acura TL has a niece new look but overall I am not satisfied with the car. The reviews Ive read before was right on point (I thought that previous purchasers were hard to please). Theres a rattling sound that comes from dash area (near the phone adapter plug) when the car accelerates. The leather is awful, Ive had the car since April 2004 and it looks like Ive had it for years. I do not have anyone the passenger seat is not used on a regular basis and it looks terrible. I am very cautious when placing items on my seats, matter of fact I do not items on the systems trying to avoid staining them.

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  Love of my life! - 1995 Acura Legend
  By jasonatl29 - August 8 - 2:00 am

  Im an accountant who makes about $50k a year. The lease on my 99 Accord ended in 6/04 and I was planning on buying an 02 Accord. The dealer had my 95 Legend on the used lot and I fell in love. I bought it with only 62k miles on it and now it has just over 90k. Ill drive it until it dies! This thing is amazing. I want to find another low mileage one to garage until this one wears out...its that good!

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  A/C OUT - 2000 Acura TL
  By mike felix - August 8 - 2:00 am

  GOT 30000 PLUS MILES ON CAR AND THE A/C STOPPED WORKING.TOOK IT TO DEALER THEY SAY IT HAS A HOLE IN COMPESSOR AND NEED 1250.85 TO FIX.30000 MILES AND THEY WANT ME TO PAY FOR THIS SO CALLED HOLE IN COMPRESSOR.QUESTIOND THE SERVICE MAN AND HE SAID ITS THE SEAL IS BAD NEED TO PUT NEW COMPRESSOR ON TO FIX.30000 MILES AND JUNK BECAUSE ITS OVER ON THE YEAR BY 5 MONTHS.TOLD HIM IS THIS A PROBLEM WITH A/C HE SAID 03 HAVE THAT PROBLEM.I DONT FEEL LIKE PUTTING 1200 DOLLERS EVERY 30000 MILES. JUST MY 2 CENTS

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  Disappointed with steering - 2007 Acura MDX
  By rperret - August 7 - 4:26 pm

  I just traded in my 2002 MDX for the New 2007 MDX and am about to trade again! The new car is significantly smoother to drive except the steering is so heavy it feels as if your are driving a truck 3 times heavier. The whole driving experience is that of a much larger car then the old one, but when I get out and look at it, it looks much smaller then the replaced MDX. My wife actually has a hard time parking in small parking lots because of the steering. This is a big negative. The build quality is superb and there are lots of improvements, but be warned the driving experience is anything but nimble.

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  Acura MDX Best of the Class - 2004 Acura MDX
  By Mike Schurr - August 7 - 2:00 am

  We purchased this car for my wife who had two Toyota Land Cruisers back to back for the past six years. To say the least she loves the MDX as do I. I may not be as big as a Land Cruiser but the build quality, performance and ride are exceptional. The engine is pure Honda, it is barely audible when running but when you put your foot in it the power is fantastic for an SUV. By knowing the dealer cost via Edmunds, visiting one dealer and getting a price via the net we bought the MDX for dealer invoice. Yes it can be done! A great car at a great price, what more could one ask for.

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  A real Mean machine !!! - 2004 Acura RSX
  By The Alpha - August 6 - 2:00 am

  My first "new" car. It simply rocks. Pretty good gas mileage. A head turner to say the least !!

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  Great Value - 2005 Acura TL
  By Rob R - August 5 - 11:26 am

  Strengths: Fantastic sound system; smooth, powerful engine; sharp, short- throw manual transmission; perfect driving position; top-notch safety equipment; perfect build quality; enjoyable dealership experience; tons of car for the money. Weaknesses: Manual transmission- equipped cars hard to come by; OK, there is also a little torque steer.

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  No Brainer for *This* Segment - 2007 Acura RDX
  By changomo - August 5 - 5:23 am

  This is not the perfect car, but it is the perfect choice for the entry level small-luxo-SUV market. Felt the RAV4 and CX7 were not as refined. X3 is the only real competitor in this segment. The X3 was a nice car, but would cost about $10K more similarly equipped. I thought the ride was a bit fairer on the BMW, but I felt the handling and power on the RDX was superior. It has ridicoulous amounts of technology, plenty of power, and sport-sedan like handling.

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  Amazing, This car rocks!!! - 2004 Acura RSX
  By NC - August 5 - 2:00 am

  AMAZING. Accelerating in this vehicle makes you feel like your in a plane.

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  Big Sporty Value Champ Car - 2002 Acura TL
  By davidO - August 5 - 2:00 am

  Ive had my 02 TL-S (non-nav) for some time. Considered BMW 325xi/330xi, Audi A4, Nissan Maxima, Saab 9.3, Lexus IS300/ES300. Acura won by being $10k less than the BMW for the same features and being more reliable. Audi A4 not reliable enough. Maxima not luxury-oriented; Saab to expensive and not reliable. Lexus IS300 is rear-wheel and so not appropriate in the snow; ES300 wont handle -- too soft.