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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  Acura MDX Base Model - 2004 Acura MDX
  By Walter_NH - October 18 - 2:00 am

  Had a Jeep Grand Cherokee for 9 years. After looking at the flexability, performance, winter driving and reliability of Lexus, BMW, Volvo, Infinity, Nisson, VW,Toyota and Acura; there was really only one choice - the ACURA MDX. A test drove all the SUVs and read information for two months before making the final pick. I paid $36,500 ($400 under invoice). It was the base model. For an extra $4,000 to $6,000 I could have got some nice extras (NAV, DVD, Sound system, etc.) but decided the base model was a great deal. We just had our first big snow storm in New England 15" to 30" and the MDX was perfect, I mean just great in the snow and sleet !

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  Regret Purchase - 2017 Acura TLX
  By BIndi - October 16 - 12:31 pm

  I own a 2010 Acura TL and it was time for an upgrade and I chose a 2017 Acura TLX. I cant tell you how disappointed I am in this car and the regret I feel for spending this much money on a car with so many flaws I cant begin to explain them all. The dashboard technology is so ridiculously behind and out of sync with other brands but of course I didnt realize how bad until after I owned the car and had a chance to deal with it on a daily basis. Just an example is turning on heated seats requires pressing a button on the touch screen then selecting again a level of choice. If you want to change it again that same two steps is required each and every time. I get so frustrated with how ridiculous this is when you think about safety and distracted driving. If you use voice control its the same two step process if it recognizes what you are saying. The car is completely gutless and unresponsive and I dont drive it the same as my 2010 TL because I cant. Im discouraged I spent so much money on this car when the manufacturer hasnt corrected the past problems with their brand and went cheap by not updating and keeping current with technology offered by other auto makers in the same class. Some things in this car just dont make sense and you wont know it until you drive it for awhile.

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  Poor Build Quality - 2003 Acura CL
  By qrqr199top - October 16 - 10:00 am

  Having been a long time Toyota owner, I am really disappointed with the build quality of my Acura CL. So far, my fog lights have burned out twice, my sunroof still rattles, my rear quarter panel had to re-welded, interior trim panels were falling off and still the car rattles and squeaks... Ive told the Acura dealer that my 96 Corolla with 120,000 miles makes less noise than my 2002 acura.

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  Great car, great value! - 2003 Acura CL
  By Einsatz - October 16 - 10:00 am

  After over six months of research before buying my first new car, there was no doubt of which car I had to buy. I considered the BMW 3 series (add up all the options & accessories to compare with the CL-S and it was too expensive-short and long term), the Lexus IS-300 (OMG the interiors are cardboard! FUGLY!), the Solara SLE V6 (I used to own a 92 Camry LE, they were basically the same car, also overpriced), and Audi A4 (too big). The CL-S has the best bang-for-the-buck. Built solid, looks good in and out, and lives up to its "Type S" name.

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  overall an excellent car - 2002 Acura MDX
  By Anna and Peter - October 16 - 10:00 am

  My 2 year old loves being in the car; its just so smooth and comfortable.

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  30 Year GM Owner-Employee Goes Acura - 2005 Acura TL
  By Bill Jobe - October 15 - 11:06 pm

  After working for and driving GM cars for 30 years we looked at the new models and felt that we were in a rut to purchase another GM product. Working for them was worse as I saw all the flaws that were brought to are dealership on a daily basis and could not believe that there was any quality control. Most recently I accepted a position working for a Honda Franchise and found the highest quality vehicles I had ever seen with extreme owner loyalty. We test drove the Acura TL and were sold in the first block. We not only bought one but our son picked his up the same day. We said "SO LONG GM" and could not have made a better purchase of a finer car. Class, Style, Performance sums up the TL.

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  All-around quality from Acura - 2005 Acura TSX
  By colleen - October 15 - 10:46 am

  So fun to drive. The all-around quality of this car especially for its price is above all others! Do not waste your time test driving other cars. You will love the TSX. The heated leather seats and new satellite radio are awesome. I love the heated side mirrors, especially in the San Francisco morning fog. Well-balanced everything.

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  BMWs Loss is Acuras Gain! - 2007 Acura TL
  By BMW No More - October 14 - 4:03 pm

  First, let me just say that I have been a staunch fan of the BMW 3 Series for years, but I have to say that they have lost me with the newest model, sedan and coupe. Specifically, the interior is low rent\ugly, and for $35K+ it shouldnt be. So, I test drove the TL and, wow, what a car! Granted, its not quite the road handler that a 3 Series is, but it is just as good or better in every other respect. Build quality, check! Ride quality, check! Interior space\comfort, better! Acceleration, better! Value, much better! A similarly equipped 325i would have cost me $7,500 more. Thats some serious dough! Bottom line; BMW lost me, but Acura found me!

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  Excellent Vehicle - 2005 Acura MDX
  By Chicago Rich - October 14 - 12:23 pm

  This vehicle is outstanding. Everyday I drive it, I find new conveniences. Ive owned several SUVs including the BMW, Lexus LX470, and Dodge Durango. This one takes the cake. It is larger on the inside that it looks, and the car is smooth with no problems. I am frugal in my praise, which has led two friends to also purchase the vehicle. Great for families and excellent in the Chicago snow.

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  Great SUV - 2004 Acura MDX
  By Apple - October 12 - 2:00 am

  Fun to drive, plenty of pep, real eye turner, Voice command somewhat bla, do better not using it, nav map somewaht time dated. 2nd one Ive owned & will probally do it again!