Sixers12

I am new to the Acura family. I was just thinking about whenever I think about Mercedes, Audi, Lexus, BMW, Infiniti, I think about high quality cars, expensive, reliable, sex appeal, etc.

When I think of Acura I've always thought of extremely reliable cars.


Does Acura compete with these luxury brands? It seems like their always the bottom brand, where do they rank to you ?


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justnspace

iTrader: (1)

no. they are a mediocre brand, at best with the Koreans coming up QUICKLY.
hell, even Ford has better offerings than Honda.

as of late, their quality has declined, proven by Honda's CEO Takanobu Ito stepping down in Feb. of 2015 due to quality control issues.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

check out what Kia is doing:



waaaaaaaaay better than whatever Honda is offering

Sixers12

I just think Honda is so comfortable with their same designs, but that doesn't mean their cars aren't top quality.....maybe they're just boring, seems like everyone on the road has 1

as for Acura, maybe they're just not offering enough cars to attract a wider crowd

and Kia seems to be doing well, and for the prices I guess you can't complain. But it's still a Kia

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

but it says something when the quality and car designs of Kia are better than Honda.

after all, it's just a honda.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

when the CEO steps down after bad QC problems, it probably does mean that their cars arent top notch any more.

Honda, I'm looking at you

Nurseman74

After owning a Mercedes and BMW and driving my uncles Lexus LS, I feel Acura is also now up to par with these brands. Luxury wise I think Mercedes and BMWs tops it off if you want status visible to the people. Acura also shows status but the mindset of people now days because of the media in music videos etc, Mercedes and BMW is still viewed as the best luxury cars available to most of the general public. However Acura is right in the middle it has Enough luxury to satisfy me and it has enough performance to make it fun to drive. It also has more features for the money then other luxury brands. My $57K BMW 3 Series M sport 335i didn't have the backup camera or touch screen. It had a killer turbo motor with 300 hp and 300 torque, but I had problems with brakes screeching like there's no tomorrow after 2,000 miles. I took it to the dealer and they said it's probably because of that stop and restart technology at a complete stop. My new 2012 Mercedes C250 had its turbo break down twice and needed complete replacement by the dealer! I was without my car for 3-4 weeks on both occasions. Moreover my Acura ILX has more space inside of its cars compared to other luxury brand cars. For me I think Accra is the perfect fit and I plan to keep my 2016 Acura ILX. My friend who has a Lexus IS was surprised of how much features I got and how much room there was in the ILX in both front and rear seats. He was telling me I should've gotten the v6 TLX to have the most horsepower or a Lexus IS 350. But I didn't want those cars because the TLX was too big and the Lexus too expensive. I had 2 compliments yesterday when I was walking into the on base restaurant. These guys walked up to me in the food line just to tell me "hey man, nice car! I saw you pulling up in that acura". Compliments of course make people confident and smile. I'd say if you want value and luxury evened out, acura is the right choice. Nothing's really wrong with having a Mercedes or BMW, it's just not for me anymore.

Sixers12

I agree I feel like Lexus is just way too overpriced, and you have to pay an extra 10k for all the same features you get in an Acura.....I too was comparing the 2 along with the Audi and I chose the 16 ILX

I just don't understand how consumer reports can downplay the Acura, you're getting everything, from quality to features in an excellent package, along with the best LED lights

kovy023

I got this car on Wednesday (4/29/15) and let me just say the 2016 ILX is so different than the 2015 ILX. I love the new look, the new engine which is the SI 2.4 engine and also the acceleration is now a lot faster than the 2015 which was 0-60 in over 9 seconds. I got the Prem. Aspect edition in black and it is one sharp car. Still only got 80 miles on it. #MYNEWBABY

PICA

Acura makes me think, really nice Honda and I'm good with that. I really enjoy my car and it makes me think, Luxury Rice.

07Acuradude

When I think of Acura, I think of a luxury car company that gives tremendous value compared to other brands but is very underappreciated by the general public as far as brand perception goes.

I've owned 3 Acura's and have loved everyone of them. The treatment I get by my local service department on the rare occasion I take them in for anything is top notch.

Colin

Mercedes, BMW and Lexus are able to sell "less" car for more money. Acura and to lesser degree Infiniti, are forced to pay the "value" card by talking about how they offer more content for less money. Untilacura I can turn that corner (debatable whether they really want to or not) , they will have to be content with their current station in life

k24ilx

2016 doesn't have an Si motor the 2015 ilx 2.4 does . Acura offers a great package at a fair price, my base tsx would have the same featurures that would only be optional extras on bmw Audi or merc. i prefer getting value from a brand over paying 10k for the badge on the front.
Although if money weren't an issue I wouldn't mind spending any amount of money on a bmw they are beautiful cars and they drive very very well.

Sixers12

the 16 ILX has the same engine the TLX 2.4 has, along with the 8 speed dct

it's basically a mini TLX, probably faster since it's way lighter

usdmJON

This thread is just troll bait for the 3g owners. gtfo with this crap

WheelMcCoy

Guys, the OP asked about perceptions of Acura vs luxury brands, not Honda vs Kia, Ford, and the rest.

My feelings about Acura has changed over time. When Acura first appeared in 1986(?), I think of leadership, precision, fun-to-drive, a cut above. Current day Acura makes me think nice, reliable, premium but affordable.

I also find Acura Service a notch or two above your everyday brands -- Toyota, Honda, Mazda -- having experienced them all. Can't speak for the big luxury brands though, but I know second hand that BMW Service is very nice, and the owner visited them so often, she got to know them on a first name basis.

MisterZDX

Acura...Underrated

hddnav

Acura = middle class, value, Honda, reliability, 2nd best

panamera125

I don't really see why Acura doesn't compete with Audi, MB, BMW, etc. If Acura makes comparable vehicles, which Acura does, then they compete. End of story.

Okay, you're not buying Acura for the badge alone. But if you are really only buying a car for its badge and not for the experience of owning a nice car, why not just slap an MB badge on the Fit?

Colin

I think some of this has to do with "internet vocabulary" where "compete" means to "win". According to Webster, compete means to:
Clearly Acura is in a rivalry with MB, BMW etc for sales and clearly with ~150K units sold per year they win some from the competing brands. This ties into my earlier comment, by playing the value card, Acura "competes" in their way with the brands mentioned. Nothing wrong with the strategy, especially if you can carve out ~150K units without the cost of a single unique chassis.

kurtatx

Have you seen the Kia equivalent of a Honda fit? It's horse manure. Not the quality of a Honda.

And design wise, this EDM Civic is pretty slick.



And the USDM concept looks fantastic.

kurtatx

The perception is Acura is too close to Honda to not compare it to Ford. No one would actually compare Kia to Acura, however.

Colin

^^ When Ford dumped the Mercury brand, they put a lot of product that might have gone into that brand into the main Ford lineup. This allowed them to have a lot of content in the cars making comparisons to Acura plausible.

atsx1313

not Bmw or Mercedes... but get job done with premium value...

hopefully, acura will market more luxury and sell more luxury car lineup...

need more models for appealing to people

AZuser

I'd compare the Kia K900 to the Acura RLX.

For their first attempt at a luxury sedan, they didn't do too bad. And like with Acura's strategy, they're giving you a lot of stuff for a low price.

aomechmarine

When I think of Acura - it really depends on some other stuff -

If we are talking about older Integras and RSX I immediately think of fun sporty cars. That are highly stolen where I live, which makes not want to own one at all. It also makes me think of some awesome builds and tuned cars, but it also brings to mind ratchet, hoodrat stuff and ricers...

If you ask about TSX, I think awesome Accord reliability and size/comfort with more luxury touches, tons of tuning potential, sporty sedan.

TL - Apsec sporty kits, bigger sporty sedan, looks great. Well taken care of, holds its own to this day with present day cars, looks wise. Later gens, it looks a bit more elegant, but also a lot bigger.

Acura Legends, - name is your destiny.

NSX - fucking modern day classic. BADASS

TLX - great car

RLX - here's where shit goes wrong for me. Personally, I think depending on your needs/ wants, modern day Acura "competes"/compares to other brands pretty well. BUT some individual models do NOT. For the price of an RLX I could be sitting in what I consider to be much sportier /classier car like a Mercedes C class in a nice sport package. RWD for the win. Even if I went used certified preowned. I'd rather go Mercedes or Lexus IS250, or others in those brands. AWD, even. I just think those cars are a lot nicer then RLX. Also a lot sportier, with a ton of aftermarket support. That would really depend on if you even care about tuning the car at all.

Also Acura has some nice SUV's but I'm not too into those types of cars so I don't think much of anything.


* Person who mentioned KDM - the truth is they have definitely stepped their game up. truth.

OP if you're simply asking if Acura is a nice car brand, generally nicer then BASIC everyday Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Ford, most everyday cars..... Simple answer - YES. But not amazingly nicer either.

acurazy99

I see Acura at the lower end of the luxury segment.
If you haven't noticed yet, Acura's customer service is not on-par with other luxury companies.

When you visit Lexus or BMW, they treat you like a king/queen, when you visit Acura they treat you like they would at any Honda dealership.
Just not the same level of customer service for sure, and this totally contributes to brand perception.

Drei

iTrader: (2)

I think of Acura as the smart and reliable luxury brand, with great value

TacoBello

I see Acura as an automobile manufacturer. Anything beyond that I'm totally confused on.

Yumcha

When I think of Acura, I think of a mid-tier brand...in competition with Lincoln and Buick...they do offer some decent cars at an affordable price-point.

To me, what they are NOT is an upper-tier luxury brand that is fit to compete with Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, Audi, BMW, and Lexus.

Coming from a former Honda fanboi, this is tough to swallow because at one point, I did think of Acura has a benchmark (i.e. 3.5RL, Vigor, Legend, NSX)...

Yumcha

And well, perception of a brand is important...How does one say, perceive Rolex as a brand? Apple? Samsung? Porsche? Ferrari? LEGO?

Yumcha

Most people do NOT perceive Acura to be an upper-luxury or elite/enthusiast's brand. If there are those who do, well, call me surprised...

Rip Flair

Luxury for the middle class. Honda product so you mine as well say reliable.

CoquiTSX

Last I heard that vehicle is going nowhere, no plan to build it.