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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  WOW!!! - 2011 Acura MDX
  By becca00 - May 11 - 9:46 am

  This is my second Acura (first was a 2010 TL Tech). I fell in love with Acura after my first one, this one is even better. I came out of a 2007 Suburban into the TL. Great for me but my kids (boys, 16 & 12) didnt have as much room as they would have liked in the back seat. So.. traded it for the MDX. This is, by far, the BEST SUV in its class. I wake up everyday and cannot WAIT to drive it! Somewhere, anywhere, I dont care as long as Im driving. I live on a curvy, hilly road and this car handles like a sports car (I have a MINI S too, so I know). Handling, braking, steering, interior, exterior- all perfect. Only one thing... just a LITTLE too much road noise. Still the best!!!

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  Love my new TL - 2012 Acura TL
  By tcilover - May 5 - 6:21 am

  Ive had my new TL for about 3 weeks now and love it, traded a 2009 TSX and what a huge step up! More room, power and luxury. The interior is beautiful , lots of storage and comfy seats. The front end redesign helped in my decision .

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  Simply Awesome - 2011 Acura MDX
  By tolson37 - May 3 - 11:58 pm

  Very nice package - Ive had about 30 different new cars and trucks over the years and this is a package that has sport, utility, technology, comfort, reliability, and safety all wrapped into a single package. I have 2500 miles on my 2011 Tech with Entertainment system. Not one thing has gone wrong. Enjoy every ride / trip in it. Plenty of power and nice powerband with 6 speed transmission.

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  MDX quality and reliability - 2011 Acura MDX
  By xfbai - April 29 - 9:27 pm

  Was so happy after bought a 2011 MDX Base model on Saturday, however discovered a problem the very next day that it would jerk when decelerating from 35~40MPH to around 15MPH without breaking. The jerk is 100% reproducible and getting worse and worse. Brought back to dealer twice and finally convinced them it is problem that need to be fixed. Eventually they figured out that a secondary valve on the transmission is faulty! How could this happen on a brand new car? After replacing $200+ part, the problem is fixed. My new car has to stay in the shop for 3 days in the very first week. Really worry about the build quality. It will be my last and final MDX.

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  Worst car ownership experience - 2011 Acura MDX
  By acuraleak - April 26 - 5:14 pm

  Within two weeks after purchasing the MDX, with 300 miles only, transmission fluid leaking was found. It took 2 days for the dealership to fix the problem. Its a nightmare owning this car. This will be my first and last Acura.

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  Love This Ugly Car - 2001 Acura MDX
  By scullymo - April 26 - 4:31 pm

  Bought it used from an individual with 100k on it. other than a transmission job at 190k, I have had no problems with this vehicle. It is by far the ugliest thing I have ever driven but I would buy another in a heartbeat! I now have 235k on it and Im hoping to make it to half a mil!

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  Rides a Show Stopper - 2011 Acura TSX
  By securiti - April 22 - 8:05 pm

  Ive got almost 900 miles on my TSX and Im trying to find a way to unload it. The dealer test drive was performed on smooth asphalt which didnt reveal the bone-jarring ride this car offers on anything but glass-smooth surfaces. I love everything about the car except the ride and steering, which completely lacks feedback and makes moving in a straight line a chore. Handling is exceptional (one of the best Ive driven), interior is high quality throughout and mileage is very good for a car this size. If you can get past the lack of suspension, Id highly recommend this car. However, on certain types of road, it will literally make you sick.

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  Love This Car! - 1997 Acura Integra
  By naturegirl3 - April 20 - 2:04 pm

  I bought my 97 Acura Integra Hatchback (150k miles) used last year (2010) from a young woman who owned the car. Nothing was modified on the car.. it was just as it was from the factory. Ive never owned an Acura before and I am VERY impressed with this car. I was very skeptical of buying a used car, especially one that was 13 years old. My previous car was a Grand Cherokee Jeep - pile of crap. At 150k miles, it was falling apart and needed major work and only got 15mpg on a good day. My Acura has been an adjustment due to how small it is, but for commuting back and forth to work and trips around town, I couldnt be happier with the gas mileage (30 city - and its 13 years old!)

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  Love it!!!! - 2011 Acura MDX
  By urstruly83 - April 17 - 8:14 pm

  I have had this car for about 3weeks and I LOVE IT. Ive owned an Acura before so I knew what to expect. I traded my Infiniti G35 for this AWD. I Love EVERYTHING about the car except a few things like not having a push start, and the Gas Millage could be a lil bettter. Moving to Cleveland so will need an AWD cant wait to see how it does!!!!

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  Rattle Trap - 2008 Acura RDX
  By andreadavis1 - April 13 - 10:30 pm

  Cute, Fun car to drive. Rough ride. You can feel every bump and vibration in your head rest and seat. Isnt this supposed to be a luxury car? Stiff suspension causes things to rattle in the car. Not enough compartments. Just a big deep hole in the center console. Not large enough to fit carseats behind drivers seat.