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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  TL trumps 330i and C240 - 2004 Acura TL
  By msmsse - January 24 - 10:00 am

  This car is beyond the Merceded C class and BMW 3 series in every category known. While the handling is not as sporty as the BMW, the luxury is second to none. If youre looking for bells and whitles combined with sporty style, this is the car for you. It was for me!

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  A good car, but it has issues - 2004 Acura TL
  By rdz - January 24 - 10:00 am

  For those who compare this to a BMW or Mercedes, forget it! Its still not in the same league, nowhere near it. This is the third Acura Ive had, and will be the last. Its really more Accord than ever has been, and as long as theyre front wheel drive, itll never ride and handle as well as a German car, re: Infiniti G35. Its got some real issues, such as the vibration around 1500 rpm between 50 and 60 MPH in 5th gear, the entire car shakes. AT hunts back and forth a lot between 4th and 5th, and is hesitant to downshift. HP is great, but with front wheel drive comes torque steer. Tires are pure trash, completely useless in rain and tbd in snow.

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  Not as thrill asi thought to be - 2016 Acura ILX
  By Ronnie - January 24 - 3:18 am

  I came from a manual stick shift 2003 Acura RSX Type S. I love that car and the only reason why I stick with Acura. I need a small compact 4 doors vehicle since Im a family man with two kids. I looked at the Civics, the Accords. But they just blah and not exciting in terms of styling. Plus. I didnt want to be like 80% of the car out there on the road, so many of them. From teeny boppers, grandmas, Grandpa, to your soccer moms. No thanks. So there it is, I got the 2016 Acura ILX with premium/Aspec package. Honestly, its not really an upgrade from my RSX. Everything about this car feel cheap and could be better. Feels like they are rushing it. The gears always shifting. It can never stay in one gear long, it always shift to make sure the gears are highest fuel economy at the current speed. Its good for gas saving but when you trying to merge or switch lane, you need it to be in a gear that responsive to the throttle. Instead, the car will downshift creating that half to second delay acceleration. Coming from a cable, maybe it have to do with the new electric drive by wire, who knows but its really annoying when you need that quick acceleration. Now on the other hand, the Dual Clutch mode is awesome, stellar and works perfectly. I think that pretty much the only part of the car that stands out. Very responsive, smooth gear transition from downshift and up shift. The steering is numb and you dont feel that much road feed back. The handling is good. Not much body roll. The car puts me to sleep. I need some excitement, the thrill of a screaming VTEC kicking in. Instead I got a very boring tone. The seat doesnt have much bolster to snug you in. I feel Acura lost touch with its racing heritage. My other pet peeve is the head room, Im 511" but it really cramp in there. Only about in of space left from the ceiling to my head. I will probably pass this car to my wife in a few more years and get myself a stick shift car. If you like driving like grandma, just chill, relax, cruising and looking good in it. Then this car is for you.

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  Love It!!!!! - 1997 Acura RL
  By Prettyklassy - January 24 - 2:00 am

  I brought an older car because I wanted something decent. Im so glad I didnt go with the Infinity Q45, I love this car! The wheel is soft but I see no other flaws. Wonderful!

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  Wonderous - 2003 Acura NSX
  By Julius - January 24 - 2:00 am

  I love the feel of this car. When Im traveling 80 mph, I feel like Im on cloud 9.

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  The Tranny Got Me - 2001 Acura TL
  By ValueDriven - January 24 - 2:00 am

  The performance and styling of my 2001 Acura TL are first rate. Fit and finish are good. Excellent reliability reports for the TL were an important factor in my purchase decision so imagine my surprise when my transmission started going out on me at 19000 miles. Apparently Acura is having a problem with this year and model and has extended the transmission warranty. They even tell you what to watch for. One other thing that has gotten on my nerves is the road noise. Racing-style tires and minimal noise insulation are probable reasons.

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  In love! - 2016 Acura TLX
  By Lissie Davila - January 24 - 1:04 am

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  Gotta Love the GSR... - 1998 Acura Integra
  By Kinnlash - January 23 - 2:00 am

  Precise in so many ways, and that vtec 8100 redline make this one of the most fun cars I have driven. Four doors and dull green paint give this car the sleeper look. I defy anyone who likes to drive to take this up to the redline without grinning from ear to ear. Sure there are the old style muscle cars, but the pure joy of feeling the power come on between 5 and 8k rpm is something to behold, Especially with the roof open on a sunny day. Small size and loud exhaust whine when revving only add to the intensity of the experience.

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  so fine!!!!! - 2002 Acura NSX
  By cfirstchoice - January 22 - 2:00 am

  We rented a Ferrari for three days and hated it. One test drive in this car, my wife and I found out all our dislikes with Ferrari could be eliminated with an NSX!! Now we have all the power and great ride with amazing mileage but she looks so hot in her red NSX!! Ah what a problem to have - sorry Ferrari.

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  Awesome GSR - 2000 Acura Integra
  By X-GSR - January 22 - 2:00 am

  By now I have moved on to an S2000. The Acura was everything I need it, didnt realize then but . . . This car was the ultimate driving machine. Never had a problem, gas mileage was great.