Acura Peeks Into the Future
Although Honda’s Acura beat Lexus and Infiniti to market by several years, they were soon eclipsed in the race to take on the big European luxury brands. Lexus and Infiniti offered rear-wheel-drive and sophisticated V8s, while Acura’s flagship was a longitudinal front-wheel-drive (sorry, no all-wheel-drive) V6. And, while Acura’s first NSX set the standard for a truly usable supercar, its successor failed to capture lightning in a bottle a second time.
The current portfolio is limited to essentially fancier and faster Hondas, but dealers have been promised both updates to current products and new entries to broaden market coverage. Acura's also trademarked several new nameplates and trims to support this.
Eight-seater (LDX?): Here in America, we like everything super-sized, which explains why Audi’s new Q9 has joined the Mercedes GLS and BMW X7 in the large luxury SUV segment--and Volvo has hinted they are looking at this segment, too (XC100?). Honda is working on super-sized Pilot, and so Acura will get its own variant. It’s likely to show up near the end of the decade.
Off-roader (TDX?): Dealers have said Honda’s recently upgraded (and capable) Passport will form the basis for this new two-row Acura entry. With BMW, Infiniti Audi, and Lincoln all exploring opportunities for more offroad-capable SUVs, Acura clearly wants a piece of the action, with a planned 2028 launch.
RDX: We’ve seen both a prototype (this past May), and in August a concept debuted that is supposed to hint at Acura’s new design language and lighting signature. Although this model was initially expected next year, Acura now says this arrives after the offroader, which means 2028.
MDX: The current model is five years old--which used to be the average life cycle for Honda--so a next-generation model is likely about two or three years out.
The good news is that new hybrid and driver assistance technology will accompany these new models. The bad news is that the two most affordable Acura models--the Civic-based Integra and HR-V-based ADX--are likely to continue in their current forms for another six years, per reports that surfaced this past spring. In addition, Acura apparently has abandoned any EV plans, despite new models coming from other Tier 2 luxury brands.
What does this mean for Acura’s future? New products to attract new customers are always good news, especially if they build on existing market trends. The new hybrid technology will also be welcome as this part of the market continues to grow. But increased competition from not only established luxury brands but increasingly sophisticated mainstream brands will be a significant challenge. A sales goal of 200,000 units by 2030 (vs 133,000 last year) is an aggressive target.
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