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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  Routine Mx & Go - 2003 Acura TL
  By Grandpa - June 12 - 2:56 pm

  We traded in a Lexus SC 300 to purchase the TL new, and havent regretted it. Other than routine maintenance and the trans which was recalled, the only thing weve had to replace is the wheels. (Hit a deep pot hole, blew both tires & bent both wheels). Wife is primary driver, with 75,000 miles. Now that the kids are gone, would probably prefer the CL which isnt made anymore.

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  TL missing something - 2006 Acura TL
  By Robert - June 11 - 4:36 pm

  I purchased this vehicle because of the rating/ review I read on Consumers Report and other sources. After about ten months now, I can say that--at least in my case--it does not meet my expectations in a number of areas. 1. Annoying vibrations when accelerating; 2. Bad BLIND SPOT on right rear (passenger) side; 3. Keyless entry problems--especially with trunk; 4. Potential electrical problem--ex: windows sometimes open spontaneously; 5. Substantially less MPG than advertised (though, I imagine this is the same problem with many vehicles). 6. Brake Handle not covered properly; allows items to fall into crevice. 7. AC fan automatically sets to MAX when turn on fan, defroster, etc

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  I luv my car! - 2004 Acura RSX
  By robynrmlf1 - June 11 - 10:00 am

  Had a 93 integra 2 yrs. ago, loved it, crashed it, got a new eclipse,wanted an acura but got sucked into the triple zero deal, loved it, crashed it (neither accident my fault, my luck sucks!), finally got a 02 RSX, silver, high spoiler, the works. Only complaint, the stereo could be louder, and road noise is annoying(but I knew that and it didnt deter me. Herb Chambers sucks at cust. service, never gets back to you when they say, (i had some issues and it took months to resolve) once they had my money (19950.00 CASH) they dont wanna know you. But I love my car!

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  New to Acura - 2005 Acura TSX
  By Aaron - June 10 - 11:56 am

  I have owned a 2005 TSX about a month now and enjoy driving it every time. I have taken it through its paces and it handles nimbly and with ease. I do find the seats to be a bit uncomfortable on long trips and the gear shift a bit cheap feeling, especially when in sport shift mode. Overall, I feel the quality and reliability to be one of its strong points. I chose this car over the Audi A4 due to its standard features, reliability and performance. It looks really cool in black with tinted windows.

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  Auto, no nav - Very, very happy - 2007 Acura TSX
  By Woof - June 9 - 2:52 pm

  After nearly a year, Im still very happy with my TSX. It was the best blend of features I wanted at a great price (i.e., handling, fun to drive, good fuel economy, safety features). It moves well and emergency handling has been great. Its also a good size for city driving and has all the oomph I need. Im appreciating it more and more all the time.

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  TL rating - 2002 Acura TL
  By Toni Donnet - June 8 - 10:00 am

  The car has had excellent reliability. Its power is marvelous and the ride is comfortable. The interior could be buffed up a bit to make it match the cars performance capability.

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  Great Sporty Sedan - 2002 Acura TL
  By JS - June 6 - 12:36 pm

  I picked up my 02 TL in Florida and drove it up to Minnesota about 64,000 miles ago. I now have 112,000 miles on it and it still drives just as nice. I just put in a timing belt, brakes, rotors, crossover cooling line. Acura gave me a 100,000 mi. warranty on the transmission since there were issues with a select few. The only thing I notice is that there sometimes is some hesitation when shifting into D5. You have to wait 1-2 seconds before applying the gas. Great fuel mileage. 26-28 city / 28-31 hwy. Record trip was made with a 34 mpg tank.

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  The jury is still out - 2008 Acura MDX
  By CDouty - June 6 - 11:39 am

  Ive had my MDX for three weeks and cant say that I love it. Chose it over RX350 because I wanted something different - around here if you drive an RX you see yourself coming and going. Had 3 MB MLs, very happy with them, especially the last one, but didnt like the new ones. The MDX feels very solid and safe, and my daughters think the interior is huge. It is no longer than our ML, but it is wider. Acceleration kind of sluggish, mileage so far not as good as my MLs. The interior looks cheaper than my 2005 ML, but in fairness, so did the standard interior of the new MLs. Too much gadgetry for my taste, but my husband drove it to work one day and loved it. Hope it grows on me.

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  Fun to drive!!!!!!! - 2004 Acura TSX
  By wanggo - June 4 - 10:00 am

  I got a manual tsx and this baby can really howl!!!! Its fun to take the tach all the way near the red line. I love the deep howl the exhaust makes. Awesome handling, very taut and quick

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  Beauty Thats Only Skin Deep - 2007 Acura TL
  By joelsaxton - June 2 - 3:02 pm

  Aside from the nice appearance, this car has been a grave disappointment. I test drove the TL on a nice flat road. But in the real world, when I am accelerating over an uneven surface, the wobbliness of front wheel drive become painfully apparent, especially with 286HP. I have had persistent issues with cabin noise - there are constant creaks when going over bumpy roads - it makes the car sound cheap. I had a defective starter which needed replacement. The nav system is not very smart. The tranny had issues with the 3rd gear that needed fixing. Most importantly, the 3.5L engine is prone to pinging.