Yumcha

http://www.superherohype.com/news/ar...ld-tie-in-site

TSX69

Marvel Unveils S.H.I.E.L.D Viral Marketing Campaign

At the Chicago Comics and Entertainment Expo, Marvel has revealed their partnership with Acura for an upcoming Thor and Avengers viral marketing campaign beginning April 11th, 2011.

tmnhs81

Interesting.

krio

Great wheels...
This TL looks good...

TSX69

Acura Connected - An Acura Blog for Acura News, Information, Reviews and Rumors 2012 Acura S.H.I.E.L.D. TL

Acura is continuing its partnership with Marvel Studios with the recent unveiling of the 2012 Acura S.H.I.E.L.D. TL at this year’s MegaCon.

Acura has become the official vehicle of the “extra-government intelligence and security organization” called S.H.I.E.L.D.(Supreme Headquarters International Espionage Law-enforcement Division).

The car displayed at Megacon featured a sleek black 2012 Acura TL equipped with flashing lights, S.H.I.E.L.D. logos, and a “Roof-mounted Sound-Cannon a.k.a. The Hulk Buster”. Along with other standard features, the vehicle was priced out at $227,085.00(vehicle not actually for sale).

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phee

iTrader: (5)

That thing looks awesome.

imj0257

iTrader: (1)

Also, and I dunno if this has already been mentioned, but Chris Hemsworth recently bought a black Acura MDX as his daily driver. Think I saw it on tv..

biker

So, what are the $29K in options?

civicdrivr

iTrader: (9)

How come we dont get the Paladium powered 80,000 THOC 32 valve engine with titanium-forged block and nitrous?


Jerks

TSX69

Brand Tie-Ins for "Thor" & More

With the release of films featuring Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Thor and Captain America, all roads are leading to next summer's launch of "The Avengers" -- and Marvel Studios is keen to bring its promotional partners along for the ride, offering the opportunity for the brands to appear not just in "The Avengers" but other comicbook hero pics down the line.

A little more than a month before Paramount and Marvel unleash "Thor" on May 6, Acura, Dr. Pepper, 7-Eleven, Visa and Burger King are prepping to roll out TV, radio and online campaigns that tie in their brands with the god of thunder's 1st outing at the megaplex. Walmart is a major retail partner.

All but Acura and Visa had backed previous Marvel releases in some form ("Thor" will be 7-Eleven's 8th teaming with a Marvel superhero).

Honda's luxury brand had been looking for projects that could get Acura in front of more moviegoers through the branded entertainment arm of ad agency RP&, a division of RPA, and its exec Steve Rossmann, a former Gersh agent. When "Thor" offered an automaker the chance to serve as the official wheels of spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D, Acura was quick to lock down its 1st film partnership.

"Getting to be the official car of S.H.I.E.L.D sold it for us," said Susie Rossick, Acura's national advertising manager. "To have that role in the film and in future films was attractive to us."

S.H.I.E.L.D, the secret government org that recruits Marvel's superheroes as a crime-fighting force, made cameos in the 2 "Iron Man" pics and "The Incredible Hulk." The group will play a larger role in "Thor" and future films, guaranteeing any automaker appearances in multiple franchises for years to come.

Acura especially gravitated toward a pairing with S.H.I.E.L.D due to the org's image of being advanced and innovative, aspects with which the automaker likes to associate itself.

The design of Acura's own shield-like front fascia on its vehicles and corporate logo was a coincidence, but didn't hurt seal the deal.

Car partners are "someone you need to spend a little more time thinking about," said Bob Sabouni, senior VP of business development and promotions for Marvel, which had previously landed Audi to serve as Iron Man's preferred carmaker. "It's something that gets noticed. You have to have the right car."

As a result of its deal, Acura's lineup of recently redesigned sedans and SUVs gets roughly 2 minutes of screen time in the pic, a considerable amount of exposure when it comes to product placement.

In return, Acura will help Marvel and Par promote "Thor" through the launch of a micro website that recruits consumers to become S.H.I.E.L.D agents, play games and design their own agency vehicle. It's also buying TV spots, print ads and installing signage and offering customers early screenings at its dealerships.

Acura is also touring a series of events like Chicago fanboy fest C2E2, Florida's MegaCon and the New York Auto Show with recruitment booths that will feature a S.H.I.E.L.D agent car with weaponry like a sonic canon.

In order to pull off the concept of turning each of its films into a chapter of an overall universe, Marvel said it needed to broker deals with brands that were "like-minded" and could be "dedicated to a plan" that embodies the characters and messaging of the films in programs "that is smart for both of us."

Sabouni said Acura has "bought into the concept and is having a lot of fun with it."

Separately, Dr. Pepper is buying TV, radio, online ads and setting up in-store displays to promote the 6 character cans it is producing for "Thor." It's targeting males with its core Dr. Pepper product and females with its diet and cherry varieties.

Burger King will have toy-filled kids meals worldwide, backed by TV and online ads. Visa Signature cardholders get exclusive movie ticket offers at Fandango.com, a move that Par and Marvel hope will help sell more tickets to the pic but also puts the film in banks, where studios can't normally market.

Meanwhile, 7-Eleven will offer up 10 different cups and other exclusive merchandise, as well as a Slurpee smartphone app at its stores, and a 3-minute behind-the-scenes video on the making of the movie, produced by Marvel. It's buying radio and online ads to tubthump the products to its core Slurpee buyer that tends to be male and under 24.

"Action-hero fans index high with Slurpee-lovers," said 7-Eleven VP and chief marketing officer Rita Bargerhuff.

Naturally, Marvel is creating exclusive digital comicbooks for its partners to distribute individually or providing some with exclusive footage.

"It's always important to give your partners a little corner of the movie," Marvel's Sabouni said. "We've learned how to do that over the years."

Doing so helps giving the bad news that a partner's products will be destroyed on film a little easier. In scenes, a 7-Eleven store and Acura's vehicles are obliterated by the villainous Destroyer.

"They definitely have allowed us to play a little bit more," Sabouni said.

Acura approved the destruction "because there wasn't anything wrong with the car," Rossick said. "They weren't the reason things were blowing up."

Given the amount of marketing coin Par is spending to promote "Thor," the pic doesn't necessarily need to generate more awareness with ticket buyers. But the ad efforts that promo partners are launching will help consumers learn about elements of the "Thor" characters and S.H.I.E.L.D org that they may not be familiar with.

Dr. Pepper's ads will stress Thor's strength, speed and ability to fly, for example.

"We provide activities that allow fans to engage in ways that are meaningful and fun, thus building more anticipation for the movie's release," 7-Eleven's Bargerhuff said.

Ads from partners start Friday and run through July 6.

Contact Marc Graser at marc.graser@variety.com

phee

iTrader: (5)

this should be interesting. i wonder if acura will have an NSX prototype in the film.

Moog-Type-S

the window sticker says 32 valve.......Acura finally got a V*...in the fantasy world.

JAB00

I wish the MMC TL is what it would have looked like in 09. Even though the 09-11 were a better car than the 3G, the polarizing shield set it back. Infiniti took its place. Maybe with the continued strong sales of the MDX, respectable TSX and new TL Acura will start to be viewed as a serious player to the Germans outside of Lexus and now Infiniti.

TSX69

Thor Doesn't Drive. However ...

The comedian Jimmy Durante used to say, in mock exasperation, “Everybody’s trying to get into the act!” When it comes to marketers’ involvement in promoting summer movies, that certainly seems true.

A case in point is the Acura line of luxury cars sold by the American Honda Motor Company. For the 1st time, Acura is teaming up with a major studio film for a promotional sponsorship.

The film is “Thor,” due in theaters on May 6 from Marvel Studios, part of Marvel Entertainment, and Paramount Pictures, part of Viacom. The film brings to the screen the long-time Marvel Comics character Thor, who is played by Chris Hemsworth.

How does a premium-priced car fit into a summer popcorn movie? Well, the rationale is that Acura is the “official vehicle” of S.H.I.E.L.D., the worldwide peace-keeping organization in the Marvel Comics universe.

S.H.I.E.L.D. stands for Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement Logistics Division. In “Thor,” S.H.I.E.L.D. agents drive Acura models like the MDX, RL, TL and ZDX.

(Hmmmmm. Those model names sound like they would make nifty names for superheroes: “Look, up in the sky! It’s the amazing MDX!”)

“We knew that in the Marvel universe S.H.I.E.L.D. is a very high-tech, advanced organization, which is exactly what Acura embodies,” Susie Rossick, brand manager for Acura national advertising, wrote in an e-mail.

Besides, “Thor doesn’t drive,” Ms. Rossick noted, so “the opportunity to be the official vehicle” of the peace-keepers “was very appealing.”

“Thor” was among several films that Acura and the branded entertainment division of rp&, its agency of record, had been considering for potential product integration, she said.

Just as the film will promote the car, the car will promote the film, in a television commercial by rp&, which is part of the RPA agency in Santa Monica, Calif.

The commercial, for the 2012 Acura TL, begins with a look inside a car as an announcer extols its “spacious cabin” and other virtues.

But the announcer’s spiel is interrupted by noise, and viewers see and hear some kind of commotion happening outside the car.

As a giant monster robot suddenly appears, wreaking havoc, the announcer shifts from describing the Acura to inform viewers, “And it’s the official vehicle of the movie ‘Thor.’”

At that point, excerpts from the film start to run, followed by word that it opens in theaters on May 6.

Acura is also promoting “Thor” with a microsite, or special Web site, joinshield.com. Visitors are prompted to enter the microsite as a “new recruit” or a “returning agent.”

There is an Acura TL tricked out with S.H.I.E.L.D. trappings that is appearing at events like auto shows in New York and San Francisco. There are also S.H.I.E.L.D. “recruitment booths” at events like comic-book conventions.

“Marvel has been supportive of us creating a ‘sub-storyline’ about the S.H.I.E.L.D. organization that doesn’t necessarily exist in the movie,” Ms. Rossick said.

The effort also has a presence in social media like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter as well as in Marvel assets like marvel.com.

Moog-Type-S

Why would a "lux" car company like Acura associate it's advertising with a comic book film?!?!

....and out of all the films.....Thor?....the least known character around.

I've seen this commercial....horrible....pretty much as bad as the Acura commercial where the athletes undress and then "dress-up" in black-tie attire....and then the tag-line "it works for cars too"........

Acura marketing = bizzare

TSX69

The Acura x Thor S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Desk by Dror

Acura and Studio Dror have collaborated to design a limited-edition desk inspired by the luxury automaker's role in "Thor," the new Marvel film starring Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins.

S.H.I.E.L.D., the intelligence and security organization of Marvel Universe featured in the film's storyline, has its agents behind the wheels of Acura TL, MDX, ZDX and RL models throughout the film. With the storyline in mind, Dror interpreted an agent's work environment into a stylized and functional desk appropriate for this venerated universe.

"It was fun to project myself as a S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent and to shift the approach when designing this desk for Acura, as if I was going to be user 001," Dror said. "It's a stimulating part of the design process."

Excited by Acura's attention to detail and precise manufacturing, the design of the desk combines elegance, sharpness, secrecy, advanced technology and efficiency - all elements Dror identified as akin to the spirit of his work and that of Acura.

Features of the Acura x "Thor" S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Desk
- Graphite and light wood base that supports a 200"x70" desktop
- Finishing inspired by the Acura TL's chassis
- Secret drawers and compartments
- Concealed Bose speakers
- Discreet iPhone/iPad docking station

VQPower37

i like the thor acura commercial

TSX69

Acura's Bargain Birth
On a shoestring budget and a leap of faith, trailblazing Acura introduced Japanese luxury to the U.S. 25 years ago

The idea seemed almost ludicrous to Tom Elliott back in 1982, but there it was in black and white on Honda Motor Co.'s strategic product plan.

Elliott's bosses in Japan had decided to sell a car priced at more than $20,000 in the United States, taking the Japanese brand dramatically upscale. And Elliott, Honda's U.S. sales boss, had less than 4 years to prepare.

Even though Honda had been selling vehicles in America since 1959 -- 1st motorcycles, then the tiny S600 hatchback -- it had been barely a decade since moving into mainstream cars with the subcompact Civic. And its 1982 Accord, which is smaller than the Civic is today, was only in its 2nd generation, with an 86-hp engine. Its starting price was $7,399, or about $16,500 in today's money.

While Honda was manufacturing motorcycles in Ohio, it hadn't yet started production of cars in the United States.

But executives in Japan were dead serious about offering a mid-sized luxury sedan, including a V-6 version by 1986 -- not to mention a supercar arriving in 1988 that would be filled with Formula 1 racing technology.

In 1982, Elliott sat down with American Honda President Yoshihide Munekuni and sales boss Cliff Schmillen to draw up a plan that was as audacious as the cars they planned to sell. It was tentatively called Channel 2, and it would be the 1st new automotive brand on American shores in more than 2 decades.

"We didn't think the Honda reputation for economical, low-priced, reliable family cars would spread wide enough to cover expensive sporty cars," Elliott recalls.

Born from nothing

Acura's brain trust gathered in 1986 to celebrate the new brand. From left: Takao Kajiwara, engine specialist; Toshio Kato, dynamic performance specialist; Sadao Makiguchi, designer; Koji Sappa, project leader for the Legend; Tom Elliott, American Honda executive vice president; and Masahiro Ohashi, handling expert.

In an era before PowerPoint, Elliott and assistant Tom Umeno carried a stack of 11x17 charts on a plane to Japan and presented the idea for a luxury channel to Honda's top r&d executives.

"It was designed to be an intercept brand, to capture owners of Japanese products before they moved up to BMW and Mercedes," Elliott said.

Acura never reached the prestige or sales levels achieved by Lexus, Mercedes-Benz and BMW, which have battled for luxury-brand leadership in recent years. Acura peaked at 209,610 units in 2005, but then went into a 4-year slide before rebounding 26% last year to 133,606.

Lexus, which arrived in 1990, left Acura in the dust as Toyota poured far more resources into its luxury-brand project. But Acura was the trailblazer.

Elliott said the idea of new brand was not a difficult sell to Honda's leaders in Japan.

Now all American Honda needed to do was create a brand from nothing, persuade dealers to take on the franchise and plan the marketing launch. Then there was the matter of convincing Americans that Japanese cars -- still mocked by Detroit as discarded beer cans -- could be luxury vehicles.

Jeff Conrad, who today is Acura's top executive, was a young Honda employee in those days, watching from a distance as Honda gave birth to a brand.

"It was a risky proposition, no doubt," Conrad said.

Honda was a famously lean organization, so the decision to staff a luxury brand meant hiring from within. Ed Taylor was Honda's national distribution manager. Working Honda's typically long hours, he often walked by the conference room late at night where Elliott sat toiling away on Channel 2.

Taylor had occasionally helped Elliott by "schlepping stuff around" to the nearby graphics company, so he had a vague idea of what was going on. As he left Los Angeles for Tokyo on a 2-month training stint in early 1984, Taylor was informed he would be in charge of a new division when he returned.

"Not everybody was all for this project," said Taylor, who was named assistant vice president for the task. "I was told, 'There's the hill. You gotta charge it.'"

Kurt Antonius, Honda's chief spokesman since the early 1980s, recalls his introduction to the new brand.

"Cliff pulls me into his office, and says, 'Hey, we're launching a 2nd channel, with a car with a V-6 for $20,000," Antonius said. "You have to do the press launch, the PR and media strategy.' There were 2 of us in the whole PR department. I just about died on the spot."

No big splash

It was an era before the Japanese embraced splashy auto show displays. Honda announced the decision in a sober press release in February 1984.

"There was no big announcement at an auto show," Antonius said. "We didn't even have a brand name yet."

1 of the 1st steps was to hire an advertising agency other than Honda's longtime agency, Rubin Postaer. RPA wasn't even allowed to compete for the account. Elliott jokes that Ketchum Advertising won the account in part because it catered Mexican food to the meetings.

"They got us in a soft spot," Elliott said. "But they also got that we wanted people to understand that this was a new brand from a well respected manufacturer."

The name came from NameLab's Ira Bachrach, whom Elliott described as "a nutty linguistics professor, with an office on a houseboat in the San Francisco marina." NameLab proposed a derivative of the Latin word "Accuratus," which means, "careful, accurate, exact."

Acura didn't have a logo until 3 years after its launch. Initially it was a set of widely stretched mechanical calipers, with a cross-beam that made the logo look more like an "H" than an "A," in tribute to Honda.

But when Munekuni showed the logo to Soichiro Honda, the company founder said the calipers should be closer together.

"Mr. Honda had no problem with the brand having a different name," Elliott said. "Actually, Mr. Honda regretted putting his name on his car. We took the Honda name off all Honda products in the U.S. at about the same time as Acura launched. We talked about not putting the Acura name on the car, but it was a new brand, so we had to have it."

Getting dealers on board

Honda still had to convince dealers that the 2nd channel was a worthwhile enterprise.

"There was a concern that once we came with the new line, Honda dealers would say, 'Hey, that's a Honda, ship them to me,'" Taylor said. "So we had to place our emphasis on separation and identity of the brand."

Elliott took Honda's dealer council to Japan in 1984 to look at the 1986 Honda and Acura model lineups. The idea was to demonstrate the separation of the 2 product lines. The dealers were so enthusiastic about the Acura cars that when Honda announced that only 50 dealers would initially get to sell the Acura line, there was a frenzy.

"In a place like Dallas, we were going to put in 1 or 2 dealers, but a dozen Honda dealers wanted to be one of them," Elliott said.

But even after the dealer body was selected, it was a race to the finish line. The launch date was March 27, 1986, and it was set in stone.

The original lineup consisted of the mid-sized Legend sedan and the Integra 3-door and 5-door compact. The Legend coupe followed in the spring of 1987.

"My overriding memory was that I was told: 'The cars are coming, the dealerships better be open,'" Taylor said. "We designed a book that told the dealers the step-by-step of how to build a dealership, including plans that they could take straight to a city building department to get permits. We made it by the skin of our teeth."

Buyers were ready

Meanwhile, Acura research showed that buyers of luxury cars were tired of European brands acting as though they were doing customers a favor by selling them a car. Honda created customer service guidelines for dealers to follow, from the sales floor to the service drive.

"It was out of respect for Honda that we took the plunge," said Art Wright, a charter Acura dealer from Lehigh Valley, Pa., who still holds the franchise. "They were going into a good niche, and the margins were going to be good."

Conrad said the dealers were so grateful to be selected that they implemented the programs without blinking. It worked: Acura would win industry researcher J.D. Power's customer service title its 1st 4 years in business.

It was the 1st time Power's customer service award was handed out, and there was no trophy. So to congratulate Acura, Ketchum designed a trophy with a stylized set of calipers. J.D. Power liked it so much that it adopted the trophy. Today, when Lexus, Mercedes or Porsche wins a Power survey, they are handed a trophy that is basically a version of the Acura logo.

Despite Honda's bold plan, few outside the organization showed much confidence in the strategy. On NBC's "Today" show, Jane Pauley interviewed Schmillen alongside openly contemptuous Volvo U.S. boss Bjorn Ahlstrom.

"Bjorn was an example of what not to do," Antonius said. "He was slouching in his chair, wearing white pants and white bucks. He spent 4 and a half minutes saying over and over that there was no way we could do it, that Honda made nice, small fuel-efficient cars, but no way could we build a V-6 luxury car."

How much luxury?

Journalists check out the Integra at the 1st Acura press event in Palm Springs, Calif., in 1986.

Compared with today's lavish brand campaigns, Honda's launch of Acura was cheap, with just 2 weeks of teaser commercials before Acura went live.

"Frankly we didn't have time to stop and think about it," Taylor said. "We were working jillion-hour days, six days a week, with a very modest budget."

And even though Honda had been selling cars for a couple decades, Acura would represent the automaker's 1st ride-and-drive press event.

"I had to test the airbags in the Legend coupe for the media -- twice," Antonius said of the spartan affair in Palm Springs. "I had bruises for weeks. But the press reaction was very important. It was the 1st outside reaction that we were on to something."

Not that everything went smoothly at launch. Honda executives were unsure how luxurious Americans wanted their 1st upscale Japanese car to be. The 1st Legend's mix had a large percentage of cloth seats and manual transmissions.

"There was a lot of concern about price," Elliott said. "It was going to be a lot more expensive than any other Japanese car, and we wondered that would be acceptable. We quickly found out that people didn't want a stripped, price-leader model."

The 1986 Legend started at $19,543, including shipping, but that was with a manual transmission and cloth seats. That was more than twice the price of Honda's Accord. Still, from the opening weekend, Acura showrooms were crowded.

"People were ready for it," Wright said. "They wanted to move up a little bit, but didn't want the pricing jump of the Germans, Cadillac and Lincoln." At the time, BMW's 5-series offerings were straddling $30,000, depending on the model, and Mercedes' mid-range E-class models were pushing $40,000.

Said Wright: "The customers took the leap of faith, too. People were enamored of the idea of being involved in something that was new. We just took off. Every month the reality got greater."

Wright says rival dealers were "torn" in their feelings.

"Half of them knew we were never going to make it, and that we'd lose a lot of money in the deal," Wright said. "The other half were hoping we wouldn't make it."

Formula 1 meets the road

Acura took the wraps off its Ferrari-like mid-engine NSX at the February 1989 Chicago auto show.

The budget might have been lean, but Honda didn't scrimp on the engineering. The V-6 in the Legend won rave reviews for its smoothness and power. But that was just the beginning.

Despite Honda's "We make it simple" ethos, a 3rd car arrived in the lineup that would change how the world perceived Japanese cars much more than the Legend.

When the NSX supercar debuted at the 1989 Chicago Auto Show, the reaction was unanimous: "For a Japanese car, it was way ahead of its time," Elliott said.

Toyota had the Supra, Nissan had the 280ZX, and Mazda had the RX-7. But the NSX came from another galaxy.

"It was Honda's way of taking Formula 1 experience and showing what technology could be achieved in a road car you could drive every day. It was the first car I drove 170 miles an hour," Elliott said.

The NSX's lightweight all-aluminum body construction was revolutionary. Overseeing its creation was Takanobu Ito, the NSX "body man," who would go on to become Honda Motor's present-day president.

Just as impressive were the NSX's titanium connecting rods slotted into a 3.0-liter engine, which was the 1st naturally aspirated engine to develop 100 hp per liter of displacement. "It was the best thing to happen to Ferrari," Antonius said. "The NSX had an easy clutch, and was dependable. It was a huge wake-up call. The price was $61,000 but it was selling for $80,000."

Smart luxury

The 1986 Acura pricing guide: Would Americans pay this much for a Japanese car?

Once Acura was launched with a complete field organization, it still kept its lean structure. Acura had been on the market for 3 years in 1989, while Toyota was still in the launch phase for its rival Lexus brand. Yet Lexus already had more employees.

"We didn't have a blank check to do it," Taylor said.

Maybe it was Lexus' depth of resources. Maybe it was Toyota's decision to go to the top of the luxury ladder, unlike Acura's more modest aspirations. But Acura quickly found itself passed by its Japanese rival.

As Acura lost its customer-service crown to Lexus' no-expense-spared effort, its product vision wandered with the Vigor sedan that debuted in the early 1990s. Then the Japanese bubble burst, a global recession hit, the dollar swooned against the yen. Honda Motor, it seemed, was paying less attention to its America-only luxury brand.

As Acura struggled in the 1990s, it made the controversial decision to dump its product nameplates for alphanumerics -- a decision still questioned by Acura fanatics and business scholars.

"The public recognition of model names was higher than that of Acura itself, and we didn't want that. We wanted Acura's perception to be higher," Elliott said. Besides, all the Europeans did it, as did Lexus and Infiniti.

"I don't think alphanumerics have hurt us. I'm not sure how much it's helped, but it hasn't hurt," Elliott said. "It seems to befuddle the press sometimes. But it reinforces Acura."

As luxury brands moved further upward, Acura eventually decided to emulate its competitors by developing a V-8 engine and rear-wheel-drive platform. But on the eve of project sign-off in 2008, the Lehman Brothers collapse trigged the implosion of the global financial markets. Ito, the Honda president, killed the programs, as well as a rebirth of his own NSX.

In a new era of luxury thinking, and with a premium on fuel efficiency, Acura may be well placed with its "smart luxury" positioning, smaller engines and front-wheel drive.

"The world changed a few years ago," Conrad said. "Are we remorseful we don't have something else, something more? No. We're producing for what the customer wants today."

Legend2TL

Brings back memories, my wife and I basically met when I was helping her shop for her 1986 Integra LS 5 door. I convinced her to get a 5MT and taught her to drive a manual, she had never driven one before.

biker

^ That same 5MT can be found in today's cars.

That an E class in the mid 80s was a $40K car (well over $80K in today's money) just shows what competition can do.

Moog-Type-S

Then Lexus came and ate Acura's lunch.

Wooty Woo

Found this to be a very good read, check it out...
Source: Automotive News

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...305029991/1117

jwong77

Good article, it seems the above quote still holds true today.

Yumcha

@ NSX...

Moog-Type-S

Acura owners appear to be leaving in droves for their German counterparts these days.....at least as far as AZ goes.

Edward'TLS

Excellent article and straight to the point.

At least Acura had finally figured out that it needs V8 and RWD for the brand to go upmarket, and for it's vehicles to rival those from the established true-luxury auto makers.

It's such a pity that the global financial meltdown had ruined everything for Acura's attempt to fight in the true-luxury arena.

Moog-Type-S

Thread title should be changed to: Acura from Bargain Birth to vehicles that look like after-birth.

KillerG

well from reading car talk randomly thats what it looks like

I understand why older Acura owners would head straight for the bmw dealerships though. The current lineup leaves alot to be desired in terms of sportiness

jwong77

Also, in my case, it was a matter of being able to comfortably afford a BMW, now. Whereas when I purchased my CL, the BMW would have been a stretch, and the CL was well within my level of affordability. In fact, at the time, I didn't even bother test driving a BMW, because I knew I wouldn't pay that price.

KillerG

i hear you. I am young and poor. Hoping to move up from the Acura brand for my next vehicle

I do love my Acura though, oh so much, and i will have fond memories, but I wanna push the limits of affordability one day haha

Costco

My mom is pushing away from Acura as well. A lot of it has to do with the prestige factor and she fully admits it. I've showed her pics of interiors of various luxury cars, even Hyundai and Kia interiors while covering any brand emblems but she still gravitates towards Audi/BMW/MB and lately, even Porsche.

I personally really like the 2012 TL SH-AWD but $40k is going to be a real stretch convincing my mom.



I want to read the article but I think it's just going to depress me. Maybe later...

TSX69

JAB00

It's about time Acura gets serious about marketing. Oh, not to be a debbie-downer but the movie looks terrible.

vybzkartel

+1

TSX69

Adventures in Co-Branding:
Meet the Richard Chai X Acura X "Thor" Driving Glove

Clothing designer Richard Chai is expanding into accessories, and the first piece is a limited-edition men's driving glove inspired by -- wait for it -- the partnership between carmaker Acura and the movie "Thor."

In hindsight, any sort of product placement with the movie about a Norse god turned superhero seems like a good idea -- it's topped the box office for the last 2 weekends and raked in an estimated $119.3 million in ticket sales, and Acura's commercials touting that tie-in have been in endless rotation on television for weeks.

Although Chai's handiwork doesn't actually appear in the film, the black leather and charcoal-suede patterning of the gloves are supposed to evoke the interior detailing of the fleet of Acuras driven by the black-suited S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Lest you forget the connection, the Acura logo is embossed on each glove's closing snap.)

Though it seems like an odd bit of co-branding (try to imagine that Venn diagram: Acura drivers who are "Thor" fans -- and fashion-forward enough to appreciate a $225 driving glove), where the gloves are to be available for purchase starting in June is certainly appropriate.

It's a store called Odin New York.

And we don't need to hammer that connection home, do we?

charliemike

I'll give Acura credit for finally doing a movie tie-in.

However, it was not very good simply because Acura doesn't have anything worth lusting over.

Moog-Type-S

That, and not to mention the destroyer wrecked all their vehicles

phee

iTrader: (5)

the dealer up the street from me has a black TL with the aspec package and wheels. that thing is sexy

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Tony Stark Trades his Audi for an Acura

Next summer, when The Avengers opens to packed multiplexes, playboy billionaire Tony Stark will be rolling in a trick new ride. After driving an Audi R8 in the two Iron Man features, Stark apparently switches to a never-before-seen Acura sports car (in keeping with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s use of all Acura vehicles, as seen in this summer's Thor and Captain America films).

The new ride appears in a series of on-set photos published at SuperHeroHype.com (borrowed from WENN.com) showing Robert Downey, Jr. standing next to it as Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Tom Hiddleston (Loki) look on. Another shot, posted at WorstPreviews.com (we've posted a cropped version here), shows the mystery Acura convertible by itself, parked on the set in New York's Central Park.

Note to the spoiler-averse: the WorstPreviews.com report explicitly details the scenes that were filmed, and they're reportedly for the the conclusion of the movie. So, you've been warned.

We also have a note in to Acura to see if they'll give up any other information. We'll update the post accordingly if and when we know more.

UPDATE: Acura spokesman Gary Robinson has gotten back to us. Follow the jump to see what he had to say.

In an email to Autoblog, Acura's Gary Robinson said the following:

"As you may know, Acura has been in the Marvel Comics Universe films as the official car of their fictional law enforcement agency called S.H.I.E.L.D. That relationship continues for The Avengers.

The open-top sports car that was photographed yesterday is a one-off, fictional car that was made just for the movie and will not be produced.

That said, as you may also know, our CEO has said publicly that we are studying the development of a new sportscar, but we can't say any more about it at this time."

Mr. Robinson also said that he's unable to tell us any specifics about the use of the car in the film beyond what's suggested in the photos, and that Acura itself won't know the full extent of the car's appearance in The Avengers until the film's release next spring.

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