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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  Awesome wheels! - 2004 Acura TL
  By bioteacher1 - April 25 - 10:00 am

  You get a lot of car for the money. It is a true sport/luxury car with much pep.

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  Tell a friend - 2004 Acura TL
  By ernie1 - April 25 - 10:00 am

  This car is a joy to drive. When pressed, the car can avoid problems with its quick response

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  Love my Ac-Rite - 2002 Acura TL
  By James C - April 23 - 12:18 am

  This Acura TL is what put Acuras ability to make luxurious sporty mid sized sedans on the front burner of every car review outlet. I mean, the 3.2 VTEC V6 that comes standard is LITERALLY bullet proof. Check the internet for em, wait..dont. Because no one needs em. Why? This thing was mechanical engineering genius. The car is stupid smooth and quiet on the inside. Helluva travel car. Have taken it all across the west coast and for good reason. The technology is what one would expect for an 02, but man does she shine when you ride. I get compliments almost everyday for how it drives and purs...and she is up to the 174k MILE MARK! On stock engine, STOCK TRANSMISSION, and up till a few thousand miles ago stock radiator. This car is my first car that my parents gave me and even though she takes a beating, I cant trade her in. Why? Because it can take turns at 40+ like Miata, accelerates with the current muscle cars (seriously), and rolls past Lexus owners and laugh. The stock sound system is BOSE and straight bumps, as a teenager this is huge! I love my Ac-Rite. People dont understand; treat any car with regular oil changes, fluid flushes (INCLUDING TRANNY FLUID), and constant monitoring...anything will take you far. But we bought this with about 30k on the dash, and at first we didnt care for it. But once I got it, I drove it constantly in manual (speed stick, speed slot), keep it below 6k revs, and gave SYNTHETIC oil changes every 4,000 or so and itll run. Why? Because ACURAs are Hondas and they are built fantastically.

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  Great Car Bad Stereo - 2003 Acura RSX
  By rob217 - April 22 - 2:00 am

  Love the car. Its quick, fun to drive & the six speed is the best Ive ever driven next to the NSX. Gas milage is fantastic for a car with this amout of power & performance. Its hard to find more bang for your buck in this price range. Driving this car gives me a zen type felling that I havent had since I sold my Corvette.

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  GSR--->Type S= Perfection - 2003 Acura RSX
  By flyin_swo - April 22 - 2:00 am

  I was the proud owner of the original Acura pocket rocket- a 1996 Integra GSR. I was worried that Acura would mess this one up, but my hats off to them. WOW!!! The GSR is all grown up, but it is still fun as ever to drive. This is my third "Integra" to own, and I am so glad I bought this. The RSX has all the underpinnings of a sporty coupe, but is much refined over the previous DC2 platform. It is smoother, quieter, faster, and more comfortable to drive. Acura did their homework with this one.

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  New MDX - 2003 Acura MDX
  By MyMDX - April 22 - 2:00 am

  Just picked up my new MDX. What a fantastic car, comfortable seats and plenty of space. Trade in my 2000 TL w/nav, this car is even more comfortable on the highway!

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  Acura RL - 2005 Acura RL
  By Rocker - April 19 - 4:43 am

  This car is awesome. It has all of the gadgets. It takes turns like a dream.

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  Not a minivan - 2007 Acura MDX
  By New to Acura - April 19 - 3:53 am

  I told my wife the MDX had seating for 7, and she said we bought a minivan. I dont think so. With the more aggressive styling, and exceptional handling, this absolutely will not be confused with a van. While not in the SUV class of my old 4Runner, Ive come to the conclusion my time spent off-roading is in the past. For the streets, you cant do better. The fit and finish is excellent, there is little road noise, and electronic capabilities (Nav, voice, and sound systems) of the car are outstanding.

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  Exceptional Quality - 2007 Acura RDX
  By Bob - April 18 - 1:26 pm

  This is my 5th Acura. The drivability wasnt as smooth as some other SUVs Ive driven but considering the "sports package" its understandable. Power galore for a 4 cylinder. Maybe a bit overpriced but you get what you pay for.

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  amazine - 2003 Acura RSX
  By mike saasa - April 17 - 10:00 am

  this car is reliable and you will never get board of drining it its 200 hp engine is hella strong. and with full skirt pacage and high spoiler the car looks outstanding from the outside. not to mention a bose stereo system and subwoff.great leather and the 6 speed trany is fun to. this car is a 20 0n a scale of 1-10. for the money and its class the acura rsx type S is THE BEST ........GO PICK ONE UP YOU WONT BELIVE THE FUN YOU WILL HAVE...THE CHICKS LIKE IT TO.