In March 2006, the Honda Motor Company celebrated an important milestone: the 20th anniversary of their luxury brand, Acura. Made to give Honda backers a luxurious make that they might be proud of, Acura has successfully expanded the firm’s reach far beyond more prosaic models like the Civic and the Accord. Today, Acura is a very different brand than the company that was birthed in 1986. We’ll take a glance at Acura’s past, their present line up, and what the subsequent twenty years may bring for this esteemed Japanese automaker.
Back in 1981, Honda saw a possibility opening up for itself that no one in Honda’s HQ wished to lose out on: building and selling luxury cars to Yankee clients. Mercedes and BMW were both gaining traction in the U.S. as American luxury brands Cadillac and Lincoln sputtered and lost share of the market. Honda was already receiving widespread consumer acceptance and critical acclaim for the three models it was then selling in the U.S, so the decision to market dearer and upscale vehicles was viewed as a robust possibility.
When Honda management decided to go with the upscale brand, they did this knowing that the cars would ultimately have to stand except for Honda in order the higher prices. Simply selling up market Hondas as Acuras would not work. Instead, each automobile was outfitted and retuned to compete directly against the premiere top end cars of that time.
The first two models to be sold as Acuras were the Legend, a V6 powered sedan and coupe, and the Integra, which was essentially a three door coupe based on a Honda Civic platform. Later, the NSX two seat roadster was brought out to fight Porsche and the Vigor sedan was introduced to fill the gap between the Integra and the Legend.
Over time, the assorted model names were dropped and replaced by vehicles with two or three letter designations. The Vigor became the TL, the Legend became the RL, and the Integra the RSX. Today, the MDX SUV, RSX sport compact, and TSX sedan, join the three other models to comprise this Acura line up. A slightly smaller SUV, the RDX, will be joining Acura’s line up later in 2006.
The future of Acura looks bright despite strong worldwide competition. Although Honda jumped into the market some years before Nissan rolled out it Infiniti division and Toyota its Lexus line, Acura has trailed its Japanese competitors for over a decade now. Some critics have said this misstep has hurt Acura, while others see it as a typical conservative Honda decision to expand the Honda brand instead.
Future changes for Acura are dodgy, but model changes will probably include the arrival of diesel powered vehicles and more hybrid offerings. Some auto critics have suggested that Honda has the capacity of outflanking BMW and Mercedes by manufacturing super luxury sedans and sports cars. Renowned Honda quality combined with EU styling, luxury, and engineering have fueled Acura’s success so far. An growth of this theme to even larger and/or sportier models could vault Acura forward.
Truly, Acura has helped reshape the first perception that many motorists had about the Japanese brands, by delivering cars that are high in luxury, tops in engineering, and strong in refinement. If the last 20 years have proved anything it is that enthusiasts can expect much more from Acura over the following twenty years. Kudos to the Honda Motor Company for developing a brand which has been so well received.
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