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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  MPG is Poor! - 2002 Acura CL
  By cangold - September 26 - 8:14 am

  This is a pre-cert w/ only 35K. The CL looks like new. I bought w/extended warranty 4/48 because of the tranny issues. Drives like a dream. I do a lot of hwy driving and only avg 18-20 MPG. Did better on my 93 Lexus. Hope to keep for at least 4 yrs.

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  Good, but still a case of Caveat Emptor - 2003 Acura TL
  By saitoman - September 20 - 2:19 pm

  Acceleration, handling and braking are good. Interior fit/finish still the Honda/Acura levels. Reliability an issue. I knew about the recall on the trans, mine was repaired, but then had to replace trans at 52,000 miles. Battery replaced, factory replacement died after 7,000 miles. Headroom could be better as could fuel economy. Seat adjustability needs better range. Bought Type-S instead of Premium because seats fit me better as a taller person (regular seats too cushy and cut head room for me). Exterior striping is a decal instead of black metal which is now bubbling. If buying a 1999-2003 TL research wisely and make sure the car is solid before purchasing.

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  Great Car - 2008 Acura RDX
  By rob - September 18 - 10:19 pm

  Wife loves the car. Easy to park, drive, and back camera is great.

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  Great experience so far - 2007 Acura MDX
  By Seattle MDX Driver - September 16 - 11:18 pm

  Four months and counting in this new SUV We wanted a fun to drive, dependable SUV cut out for city and commuter driving with two kids in the back seat and with the ability to handle snow when needed. I think we got it. Only a couple of downsides so far. The front seat makes my legs ache on long drives - in fairness Im tall but not that tall. Adjusting the seat to unusal configs helps when the legs start to hurt. And the rear view camera has been useless to us so far, very hard to see in most daylight situations, at least for us. I wish I had the rear sensors instead.

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  2005 TSX - 2006 Acura TSX
  By Sean - September 14 - 7:03 pm

  The car is very fun to drive and noticibly more rooms than the 2006 IS250 or 350. I put a lot miles in one year. However, the car has a lot road noise and high vibration. And some parts start to rattle after a couple month. A high end car shouldnt do that. Also the moonroof has some squeaks which the dealer said it was a common problem. Car is missing a couple features and the voice command doesnt really pick up the voice well due to road noise again. Overall, I give it an eight.

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  Very good car - 2004 Acura RSX
  By Roger - September 9 - 6:17 pm

  I bought this car summer of 04 brand new. Its a great car all around. Great handling, nice power and engine sounds. Only problem I had w/this car is 2nd gear goes in rough a lot and 3rd gear pops out sometimes. I took it to Acura 2 times and they cant find the problem.

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  Mid-Life Crisis Car - 2001 Acura CL
  By J.B. - September 9 - 3:07 pm

  I recently purchased this red, 2001 Acura CL 3.2, 2 door coupe, Type S. I had a 1997 Camry for 10 years, which still ran excellently, but the suspension was degrading, and other things were starting to go wrong with it. So, I had heard the Acura was a "fancy" Honda, and took a look at this used one with only 47,000 miles. It was great, and so "zippy"! As a middle aged woman, who has always been sensible, I decided to go for it. What fun! I am really enjoying this car. I do have to watch out for the paint, as it seems to flaw easily. Also, I have heard the trannys are not the greatest, but so far so good with this one. And features!? It practically comes in and cleans the house!

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  Good value, but isnt holding up. - 2003 Acura RSX
  By avixe - September 7 - 2:00 am

  The S is a good car and would be ideal for someone who lives in a smoothly- paved area. Tight suspension makes for a fighter-jet ride at highway speeds, but unfortunately also invites a neck- snapping, spring-bottoming ride over anything less than perfect roads. Likewise, the engine makes fantastic, ferocious noises on highway on-ramps (and at red lights) but around town tends to attract attention unless kept under 3500rpm. The car handles just beautifully, and the level of standard equipment on the S has no equal. I see some have complained about the seats, but I find them both supportive and comfortable (make sure you use the lumbar adjustment!).

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  Good car for price - 2003 Acura RSX
  By unagidon - September 2 - 10:00 am

  Owned car for approx. 1 month now. Love driving it. Very fun, and more powerful than I originally expected. Dont compare this car to a Porsche or M3 or something silly like that... Its a fun to drive, everyday vehicle that gives great gas mileage, and has fantastic build quality measuring up to much more expensive automobiles.

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  A Fairly Solid SUV - 2001 Acura MDX
  By RHornsby - August 29 - 5:29 pm

  We bought this car to replace a Dodge Caravan (yeah, I know). It is an excellent car as far as looks and overall driving goes. However, for the large price, it has had a surprising amount of problems. We have had to get multiple things fixed. It now has around 92000 miles on it, and it has broken a couple of times. It has good acceleration with the V6, and is a solid performer (good handling, acceleration). The interior has had a few problems (seats falling apart, window motors breaking) but overall it is a roomy comfortable car. Gas mileage is okay but it has a large tank. It is a very wide car though, feels a little sluggish after driving sedans, but is safe.