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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  Flawless - 2000 Acura RL
  By beancounternc - July 5 - 9:02 pm

  I bought my RL new with 6 miles on it. It now has over 205,000. This rascal has never let me down and while components have failed they have been silly things (trim across back glass, and cup holder gets stuck now and again). The EGR system and driver/passenger seat belt buckles were repaired/replaced under warranty. Ive had to pay to have a passenger window regulator replaced ($450), front chin spoiler two times ($125ea) and the rear window trip three times ($125ea). Other than that...everything works as it should. Others complain about power but I dont have any complaints at all. This car moves when I want it to. My "older" car is a 1988 Legend L 5sp coupe with close to 380,000 miles.

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  compares to other luxury vehicles - 2009 Acura RDX
  By ronispeech - July 4 - 2:13 pm

  We have driven Lexus, BMW, Jeep and Infinity SUVS and have been most impressed with our Acura RDX!! This SUV handles beautifully and we have only required scheduled maintenance for oil changes. We plan on purchasing/leasing a second RDX this spring.

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  Stiff legged - 2011 Acura TSX
  By mugman1 - June 28 - 9:00 pm

  I have 1700 miles on my 2011 TSX. Overall this is a very nice car. Im coming out of a 2002 VW Passat GLX and miss the V6s low end torque, but the 4 cyl engine helps the car get out of its own way if you rev it. The suspension is a bit stiff but not in an overly uncomfortable way. Unfortunately, I cannot get comfortable in the seats. Before buying, I took it overnight and drove it over 100 miles, but after buying, I learned while driving it on a 2 hour continuous trip that the long seat cushion compresses a part of my thigh making my right leg fall asleep. Now I only look forward to ending my drive which is incredibly disappointing. Looks like my wife has a new car instead!

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  Excellent Value and Perfect Size - 2011 Acura TSX
  By kimard8 - June 28 - 8:54 pm

  The TSX is an excellent overall value in the entry level luxury sedan category. For background, previous cars were 03 328ci, 07 328, 11 M3, 08 4 Runner. The smoothest shifting manual transmission that makes it so easy to drive, even in So Cal traffic. Shifts are short and the clutch is light and soft - could use a little more feel. 2.4L engine is silky smooth with adequate power (not as torquey as the Germans) but fuel economy is awesome (450 miles to tank in mixed driving). I love the fact that the only option was Navigation. Xenon, bluetooth, sunroof, leather are all standard vs. options on Germans. Negatives: understeer (FWD), steering lacks go-kart feel of CRV.

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  No complaints - 2002 Acura CL
  By xtbkidm3 - June 28 - 4:30 pm

  I bought my CL in 2004 with only 19k and drove it until 140k. I changed the oil, tires, and brakes and thats it. Never had a problem. The transmission went out at 90k but the dealership replaced it under warranty. This is a great reliable car that also is great in the winter as well. I would recommended this car to anyone.

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  Second TSX - 2011 Acura TSX
  By larryken - June 25 - 7:42 am

  Former owner of a 2008 TSX, which I had for almost 50K miles. The new model is an improvement in interior size, quieter cabin and handling. Exterior design is pleasing also. Fuel economy is the same to the former model, average mixed driving is 30 mpg and highway 33 to 36 mpg. When hard accelerating the exhaust note growls. Steering has plenty of feedback and the suspension is stiff but not teeth rattling. Im pleased with the evolutionary improvements.

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  Precision Crafted Performance - 1991 Acura Integra
  By golfdino - June 23 - 2:26 am

  If all cars could have Acura quality - then it would be a perfect world. I drove this car new - 120K miles. Never any major issues. Great gas mileage, perfomance, handling, utility with the hatchback. AC might stink with mold issues - so you need to keep it on all the time. Added a Dinan chip for more power and installed a Sony Headunit with CD changer. Timing belt needs to be changed at 60K miles to ensure nothing breaksdown. Great manual transmission - great car.

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  Noise from transmision - 2010 Acura TL
  By 2010acuratl - June 22 - 4:29 pm

  My 2010 Acura TL has experienced severe noises since new which is felt at when I shift gear from park to drive and releas break lound noise come from transmision. I have been bring back to deler 4 times for mechanic(s) to check it out but they cant figure it out. The car has I couldnt be any more disappointed than I am with the vehicle and Acuras response.I would not recommend this car to anyone.

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  Would buy it again if not for transmission issues - 2003 Acura MDX
  By texan100 - June 15 - 4:05 pm

  I got CPO MDX after lot of research and consumerReports guide which rated MDX as the BEST suv. I did drive for 5 years and was very happy with my car. I never had major issues and never paid any money from my pocket as it was all under warranty. They did find problem with engine mounts, battery and some tubes that needed cleaning which was all taken care by Acura warranty. I did regular maintenance. Dealer did charge me 600 or so for 60k mile service. Last year I did find that car was not going smooth. It was driving rough sometimes and smooth other times. I also read about transmission issues when it hits 100k. Since mine hit 92k I sold it.

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  Better then most - 2010 Acura RL
  By jrtala - June 8 - 7:11 am

  Though the RL is my wifes car I have driven it many times. In the past 20 years I have had several Mercede Benzs & BMWs (eleven total). At present we have a 2010 corvette & 2010 RL. The RL beats all my other cars in build quality, comfort, reliability and great value. I feel I am in a much better position to make an evaluation on the best cars then most critics. For the money, the Acura RL is one of the best luxory cars on the market. Better then most cars and we finally found reliability the way it should be.