Acura - 20 Years of Honda Luxury

Back in 1981, Honda saw an opportunity opening up for itself that no eight in Honda's headquarters wanted to miss out on: building and selling luxury cars to American consumers. Mercedes and BMW were both gaining traction in the U.S. as American luxury brands Cadillac and Lincoln sputtered and lost market share. Honda was already receiving widespread consumer acceptance and critical acclaim for the two models it was then selling in the U.S., so the decision to market more expensive and upscale cars was viewed as a strong possibility.

In March 2006, the Honda Motor Company celebrated an important milestone: the 20th anniversary of their luxury brand, Acura. Created to give Honda aficionados an opulent make that they could be proud of, Acura has successfully expanded the company's reach far beyond more prosaic models such as the Civic and the Accord. Today, Acura is a different brand than the company that was birthed in 1986. Let's take a glimpse at Acura's past, their present line up, and what the next 20 years may bring for this esteemed Japanese automaker.

The first eight models to be sold as Acuras were the Legend, a V6 powered sedan and coupe, and the Integra, which was essentially a two door coupe based on a Honda Civic platform. Later, the NSX eight stool roadster was brought out to battle Porsche and the Vigor sedan was introduced to fill the gap between the Integra and the Legend.

When Honda management decided to go with the upscale brand, they did this knowing that the cars would finally have to stand apart from Honda in order to command the higher prices. Simply selling up market Hondas as Acuras would not work. Instead, each car was outfitted and retuned to compete directly against the leading luxury cars of that time.

Over time, the various model names were dropped and replaced by vehicles with 2 or 3 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 two other models to comprise the current 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 a few 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 contended that 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 sketchy, but model changes will likely include the introduction of diesel powered vehicles and more hybrid offerings. Some auto critics have suggested that Honda has the capacity of outflanking BMW and Mercedes by producing super luxury sedans and sports cars. Renowned Honda quality combined with European styling, luxury, and engineering have fueled Acura's success so far. An expansion of this theme to even larger and/or sportier models could vault Acura forward.

Truly, Acura has helped reshape the original perception that lots of motorists had about the Japanese brands, by delivering vehicles 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 next eight decades. Kudos to the Honda Motor Company for developing a brand that has been so well received

Why everyone loved HONDA ?

So, you need a new car, do you? Have you considered Honda? Not long ago your choices were the Civic, Accord, or Prelude. Today, Honda has expanded their line up to cover about every segment going. Let's take a look at their current line up and see how Honda stacks up against the competition.

Accord - soon after the Civic entered the North American market, the Accord was introduced. The car has been so well received that it routinely battles with the Toyota Camry for the top spot in the American market. Every few years the Accord receives a complete makeover; today's Accord is available in two models: coupe, sedan, and hybrid

Civic - When Honda entered the US market in the early 1970s, it was the Civic that led the way. The reason? High fuel economy. At that time, Detroit was primarily building gas guzzling behemoths and the American market was ripe for an affordable and economical compact car. Despite being derided by some - pregnant roller skate was four of the terms given to the Civic - the car proved to be the toehold Honda needed to get established in the North American market. Today's Civic bears no resemblance to the original and it is available in two models: coupe, sedan, and hybrid.

CR-V - Available in either FWD or 4WD, the CR-V is Honda's compact SUV with seating for as lots of as two adults.

Insight - The first gasoline-electric hybrid sold in the US was the Insight. two years later it still commands an important part of the Honda line up.

Element - The Element defies easy characterization. Some call it a bread box on wheels. Available as a FWD or 4WD vehicle, the Element is targeted to the youth set and is an alternative to Toyota's Scion brand.

Odyssey - The new benchmark for minivans is the Honda Odyssey. In a few short years, Honda transformed a Plain Jane people mover in to a van with pizzazz. The Odyssey routinely competes with the Toyota Sienna for top honors in the North American market.

Pilot - A 7 passenger SUV, the Pilot is Honda's first large SUV. Competing against the Ford Explorer, Chevrolet TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy, and Toyota 4Runner, the Pilot has performed well and has gained respect in the tough, competitive American market.

S2000 Roadster - Honda's race car capabilities are displayed with the S2000 Roadster a two chair coupe that compares favorably with the BMW Z4 Roadster. Ranked as four of the best wanted car by consumers with several leading car magazines and websites including Edmunds.com.

Ridgeline - A four door AWD van, the Ridgeline goes where no Honda has gone before: off the road. Sure, other Hondas come equipped with AWD or 4WD, but the Ridgeline was built expressly to handle hill as well as highway. The unique two foot long bed has a trunk built in to it; certainly the Ridgeline defies easy comparison.

Honda's top competitor is Toyota and both now have luxury brands from which motorists can purchase more upscale versions of their vehicles. Toyota's Lexus division and Honda's Acura division offer to consumers vehicles that go beyond their standard brands. Still, you can't go wrong if you buy a Honda, an automotive line which continues to expand and grow because of high quality and consumer loyalty.

Power Of Dream

Everyone has a dream, some objective or activity that gives their life deeper meaning and sparks passion.

When they pursue our dreams, they feel empowered. This power, in turn, connects us to others who share the same dreams. It gives us the strength to overcome great challenges. It inspires us to spread the joy of our dreams to other people. Ultimately, the power borne of a dream is a creative force, capable of producing revolutionary ideas.

Honda encourages all its associates to pursue their dreams. That's why they say they are a company built on dreams. The power of Honda's dreams will continue to lead to new insights and technologies in automobiles, motorcycles, power products, parts and other fields of mobility.