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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  Fun to drive and reliable too! - 1999 Acura Integra
  By ttuong - April 3 - 2:00 am

  This car is great for driving around town and on the freeway. the shifter is smooth, the acceleration isnt bad either but you do have to rev the engine pretty high to get the power from any VTEC engine. This car can use more sound dampening, as it gets loud at freeway speeds. The factory wheels are alittle loud and when you replace them, it quites down a bit. I get on average about 28 miles per/gal. The back is very cramped if you have to carry passengers back there. Theres alot of after market companies making silly stuff for this car if you like to make it look different.

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  great buy! - 1996 Acura TL
  By reesk - April 3 - 2:00 am

  I have had this car for six months now with no problems whatever. I am so happy. I researched a million cars before buying and I am defintely a satisfied consumer! It handles well with good pick up. Its so quiet which is a MUST with me. Its roomy but not too big. Jumping from a Nissan Sentra to this I was a little worried feeling like I was driving "too" big of a car but I dont feel like that at all. The only downside I had to that is getting used to the lower miles/gallon.

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  Best Acura Yet! - 2002 Acura RL
  By lizzylou - April 2 - 2:00 am

  Ive now owned 3 Acursa and this 2002 3.5 RL is easily the best of the group. I can not find any flaws or faults with this car. Easily the best value proposition in the luxury car market niche. Far and away better value tha Lexus LS or Infinity Q45 or BMW 5-series.

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  marlands review - 2005 Acura TL
  By o5 3.2 tl,nav - April 1 - 8:10 pm

  lot of fun too drive excellent interior nav is awesome

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  Great car for the money - 1996 Acura TL
  By Trey - March 31 - 2:00 am

  I am 16 and this is my first car. From the first time that I saw it, I knew it was the one I wanted. It has the Acura/Honda name so you know it is reliable and luxurious. There arent that many performance parts and stuff for it out there, but you can do a lot of stuff to it and make it look really nice. check out www.acura-tl.com if you want to see some of them fixed up!

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  sunroof rattle fix - 2003 Acura CL
  By tliang - March 30 - 10:00 am

  for those of u who has the same sunroof rattle/noise problem. put some armor all on the sunroof weather strip. it works really well. I dont hear a thing for a long time since.

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  An American Compact would have broke! - 1999 Acura Integra
  By Andynnola - March 29 - 2:00 am

  This isnt the best car on the market but for reliability and fun to drive at a reasonable price this car is second to none. I have owned it for three years and anything American at this price would have been an unreliable rattle trap by now (based on how I drive it). The GSR is solid and quick enough to get around without guzzling gas. Not impressed with Acura service but it doesnt spend much time in the shop. I am looking forward to many years/miles of trouble free flogging in the future.

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  Practical Performance - 1995 Acura NSX
  By Compasso - March 29 - 2:00 am

  This is an all around great car to drive. I wish Acura of Columbus performed like the car!

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  A Conservative Statement - 1999 Acura TL
  By olso1509 - March 29 - 2:00 am

  The TL is perhaps the best car in class! I decided purchase mine only 9 months ago, and would recommend this car to anyone. I feel that it is by far the most luxurious vehicle for the money. Not only are you driving around in sheer luxury, but in one of the most reliable cars on the road. I purchased my first Acura (Integra) in 1998, and wont buy anything else! I refuse to drop money in vehicles other than maintance, and Acuras one of the only manufactures that can offer me that until 100,000 miles.

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  Excellent Vehicle! - 2001 Acura MDX
  By blaws - March 28 - 2:00 am

  This is truly an excellent vehicle. Fit and finish are flawless. The engine is very responsive, has plenty of power, and transfers that power to the wheels very well. I am averaging 16-17 mpg in town, and over 23 on the highway. The ride is somewhat firm, but without letting you feel excessively jarred or beat up. Handling is also tight and responsive. The Navigation package could use a little improvement. Overall, in my opinion, Acura has a winner here.