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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  Great Fun, Great Value - 2001 Acura CL
  By bseidman - October 8 - 2:00 am

  I looked for a new car for over 6 months before I finally bought my CL Type S and not a day goes by that I regret my decision. If you look up in price the CL still delivers more than the BMWs and Lexus IS300, and its worth the extra thousand or two over the Maxima or others like it. Even the little things are great, and Acuras Navigation System is the best Ive seen. This is a high quality, classy car for those who dont want to look like the type of person that drives a BMW...

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  TL Type-S - 2003 Acura TL
  By Huntwind - October 8 - 2:00 am

  Excellent performance sedan car for the price range

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  One year and still giddy! - 2006 Acura TL
  By Scott - October 6 - 3:52 pm

  I have now had this car for exactly one year and can honestly say I am as excited to drive this car today as I was a year ago. Be advised that I am a very picky person but cannot think of any complaints about this car. It is a comfortable ride, very quiet. It is also very quick and loves to corner fast (as do I). Last, it has a very organized interior layout that is intuitive and exceeds my needs. I just went with my girlfriend as she test drove an 02 BMW 3330xi ($30K). I realize its a beemer, but truthfully, my TL is just as nice, just as sporty and cheaper. She even is wondering why she doesnt get a TL instead and save some $. Great car, no regrets.

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  Solid SUV - 2009 Acura MDX
  By Will - October 6 - 7:36 am

  We bought our first MDX in Dec 08. 5400 miles later, my wife was T-Boned on the drivers side at a major intersection. The front/side airbags deployed and there was some $20K in damage. I must say I was impressed to the way the vehicle took the direct hit, thus protecting my wife from any serious injury. The other vehicle was totaled. Based on the location, and speed of the vehicle that hit our MDX, this little thing really took it well. We got it fixed and bought another one. They may be pricey, but they sure are safe and dependable.

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  Amazing automobile - 2009 Acura TL
  By ryan&diana - October 5 - 9:18 pm

  Perfection describes the new tl sh-awd! My wife recently traded in her fully loaded Acadia for a loaded tl. I also owned a Lexus is in the past. We test drove everything out- Lexus, audis, BMWs, infinitis, then we drove this gem. The tl has an amazing technology package -ipod connection, cd, hdd hard drive, and XM. It even holds pictures uploaded via the usb port. The navi is crystal clear and gigantic -I love to see the live weather. This car is comfortable and a blast to drive. I drove it across the country and enjoyed every minute. The leather is so soft! The 300+ horses blows m3s out of the water and I can still get 25 plus mpgs. Test drive one and you will see.

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  Awesome Car - 2009 Acura TL
  By ericcc - October 5 - 10:42 am

  I drove a G37x, A4, and 3 series. This car was by far the most technologically advanced car and had the best price. We are thrilled with it. Drives like a dream and the tech package makes the car extremely entertaining. The sound system is incredible. I dont think I have ever heard music sound as good. Very smooth ride, yet feels sporty when you want to push it hard.

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  Quarter of a million and counting - 1991 Acura Legend
  By Gobyknows - October 5 - 2:50 am

  My Legend sat for 2 years before I bought it for $1800. Its previous owner had stopped loving it. A victim of being a divorce asset. With 164k already on the odometer, the 2 year side lining did its damage. However after some detailed cleaning of engine components, and a complete tuneup, it has been the best running, most reliable car I have EVER owned. Mine came with 16 inch Vigor wheels along with new, tall profile touring radials that deliver a superior ride. I like it that small performance tweaks make significant differences with this car. I rolled 250K while cruising at just under 100mph. No amount of money could buy my Legend. It is my Legendary Street Machine.

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  A great car!!! - 2003 Acura TL
  By chet67 - October 4 - 2:00 am

  This is my second Acura, my first was an Integra and I loved it. So when it was time to buy a new car I went back to Acura dealer. This car is almost perfect. It has style, is quiet and fun to drive. My only negative is the back seat, it is hard to strap in a booster seat for an older child. The seatbelt locks are hard to locate when locking them in. Maybe it would be better if they were located on the outside rather then the center.

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  A great car, I love it !! - 2016 Acura RDX
  By L Wang - October 2 - 10:13 pm

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  MDX - 2002 Acura MDX
  By Mark Morrison - October 2 - 10:00 am

  Absolutely excellent in every manner possible.