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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  RL-Refined Luxury - 2004 Acura RL
  By Bucciarelli - July 16 - 2:00 am

  Last year for this body style for the 04 Acura RL so you can negotiate a great price on the flagship Acura car. It is fully loaded including navigation system, OnStar, heated seats, XM Radio and real wood trim. This car may not turn heads with its dated body style but it will provide you a luxurious, quiet, and spacious ride while providing years of quality and enjoyment from the precision craftsmanship.

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  Even Better Than the Last TSX! - 2009 Acura TSX
  By Rick - July 15 - 12:10 pm

  The new 2009 TSX is great. The car has paddle shifters, iPod USB download up to 2000 song directly to the car. It has weather forecasts. I love the way it drives and the way it looks. Its a winner!

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  Best car for the money - 2004 Acura RL
  By Douglas Don Carlos - July 15 - 2:00 am

  Excellent car, luxo cruiser, built like a tank, excellent dealer service...I love this car..Great leather intirior, I beet the hell out of my cars...this think is tough...

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  Falling out of love with my Acura - 1997 Acura CL
  By Dr. Rich - July 14 - 2:00 am

  There were so many things to love about my 97CL: handling, performance, good looks. But alas, during the past 6 months, Ive had to replace the starter, AC condenser & evaporator and routine maintenance are costing almost $3,500. I only have 82,000 miles and I really pampered my CL. Sad to say, I dont love this car anymore. Other people will rave about its reliability, but that has not been my experience, and the cost to repair is hideous. My last 2 cars (1989 Camry 146,000 miles and 1994 Nissan Quest 163,000 miles) were not nearly as expensive to maintain. Maybe I expected too much, but I thought this car would last longer without so many repairs!

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  How I Love My RSX!! - 2002 Acura RSX
  By holyuntogod - July 14 - 2:00 am

  This car is phenomenal, I would sincerely recommend this automobile to anyone who is in the market...There is ample space for at least 4 and plenty of cargo room. As far as performance, it has exceeded my expectations daily. There is no car in its class that comes close in comparisons, PERIOD!!

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  So far, so excellent - 2004 Acura MDX
  By phenry - July 14 - 2:00 am

  Not gone too far yet, but so far everything I could hope for. Drives like a Acura sports sedan and almost as good as my quatro Audi. A dream on the highway, especially if you are used to driving an old fashion SUV. Nav system very intuitive and impressively accurate.

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  Excellent car with some build issues - 2004 Acura TL
  By tazman2058 - July 14 - 2:00 am

  This is a fabulous car for the money. I considered a loaded 2004 BMW 330i before choosing the new 2004 TL. Features such as 270 HP, wonderful auto with stick shift, excellent sound system, slick navigation, voice control, and the $35k price tag sold me on the new TL. The TLs handling is about 70-80% of the 330i with sport package; auto to auto comparison. Had a number of build problems. In the first 1,200 miles, the car has been in the service department 3 times. The dealers service department provides excellent service. I do have a problem with a 35k new car rattling. The tech had to reinsulate all the cars doors plus added components.

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  Awesome design bad build quality - 2005 Acura TL
  By ak2001 - July 14 - 12:26 am

  This car is a rattle box. I love it when I look at it, but when it comes to driving, you hear rattle noise coming from everywhere. At 4000 miles, Navigation, airbag and door frame trims replaced. The footprint of airbag showed up on the dashboard. Japanese designed an awesome car but executives chose the cheapest suppliers for parts in US or where ever parts come from. It is a fantastic looking car, especially with 18 inch graphite color Acura rims, it is a shame that it was so cheaply built.

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  Ride quality - 2007 Acura TL
  By wepawn - July 13 - 12:46 am

  This is my 3rd consecutive Acura (01CL, 04TL, 07TL S-type). i was not satisfied with the ride on the 04TL, and replaced the OEM tires with top line Bridgestones. ride improved dramatically. My 07 S-type has a harsh ride with the OEM tires. I realize it has a beefed suspension, but a tire change might be in order. Otherwise I am delighted with the new Acura TL S-type. It is an awesome vehicle in all respects.

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  My RSX - 2002 Acura RSX
  By Ian Macomber - July 12 - 9:00 pm

  You can not go wrong with this car. They only reason to not get it is because you are not fond of its appearance.