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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  Best Move My Parents Could Make! - 2003 Acura TL
  By DancinBug7 - December 6 - 10:00 am

  Being a college student, my parents were very concerned about my safety on the road and a reliable car that was going to take me back and forth home and also around town. They found all they were looking for in this car. It has lots of trunk space for hauling things, lots of front seat room to give you comfort for long distances. Sound system is awesome. For a factory sysytem, I give it rave reviews.

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  Great first impression - 2017 Acura RDX
  By Robert Prinz - December 5 - 11:44 am

  Have had the RDX for about a month. So far, nothing but 5 stars in all areas.

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  Love it - 2005 Acura TSX
  By Adam - December 2 - 10:26 pm

  Its not a TL, but its damn near close!

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  A Home Run! - 2004 Acura TL
  By dan127 - November 30 - 2:00 am

  Acura really did their homework with this one. My father has been driving cars for two years but finally decided on the 2004 TL. For a decent price, you get tons of features all wrapped up in a gorgeous sedan with gobs of power and refinement. Even if the new BMW 5- series were offered at the same price, my father said he would have purchased the Acura. Youd be making a huge mistake by not adding this car to your test-drive list. This model is tons better than the 2003 (better looks, more power, AWESOME sound system, higher quality interior)... Great work, Acura!

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  Awesome Car - 2007 Acura TL
  By RickKim - November 29 - 7:00 am

  This is our first brand new car purchased in 26 years. We are very glad we waited for this. The car is everything we coud ever have wanted and more. The nav, sound system, fit and finish... truly superb... and then you get to drive it. WOW. Only concern is the mpg which should get better with added miles.

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  Great Midlife Crisis Car - 2001 Acura CL
  By bpats - November 28 - 10:00 am

  I put lots of miles on my car every year. I have taken the 3.2 over all the major and most minor roads in CA. The 3.2 is a blast to drive. It is quick, fast, and handles well. For fun try Hwy 36 from Scotia to Redding and you will see for yourself.

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  Great Car - 2012 Acura TL
  By John - November 27 - 9:12 am

  Had to sell my new 2015 Honda Accord. Did not like the driver seating ergonomics. They did not reveal the issues during the test drive. Went with this used TL instead. Wow. What a car. Very comfortable. I can actually see the gauges instead of the steering wheel nearly completely blocking them. Very quick. I really have to watch the speed. Quiet. Quiet interior with respect to tire and wind noise. Great package. The low speed shifts are a little wonky, but that is my only complaint.

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  best car ever purchased - 2005 Acura TSX
  By j - November 27 - 2:30 am

  This acura is the best car that i have ever puchased. it rides very nice and handles well too. The engine has plenty of power. The stock tires are a little sluggish though.

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  Must test drive new TL - 2004 Acura TL
  By Foghorn - November 23 - 2:00 am

  Excellent car, best value in class by far. Fun to drive, yet luxurious.

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  WWWWOOOOOOWWWWWWWW - 2007 Acura RDX
  By Wedgebolt - November 22 - 2:06 pm

  I went in to the dealership just looking to test drive the RDX and ended taking one home. The RDX drives more like a sports car and I had to catch myself this morning when I was doing 90 mph without even feeling like I was speeding. Interior is well constructed but I feel like I am in a spaceship with all the buttons and features on this vehicle.