2006 Acura Mdx Touring on 2040-cars

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2023 Acura Integra revealed with Civic Si power at $30,000

It's been a couple of decades, but the storied Acura Integra nameplate is returning to the road as a 2023 model. The Civic-based Acura sedan borrows the sporty Si's 1.5-liter, turbocharged 4-cylinder and 6-speed manual transmission with its limited-slip differential, though the exact specs still remain up in the air.  The prototype was shown in a new color dubbed "Indy Yellow," which pays homage to the iconic Phoenix Yellow finish offered on the Integra Type R. It rides on 19-inch five-spoke wheels over Brembo brakes.  “The Integra is one of the most iconic models in Acura's history,” said Jon Ikeda, vice president and Acura brand officer. “This new Integra will continue to deliver on the original's unique aspirational yet attainable market position, with emotional performance and style, combined with the versatility and utility sought after by today's buyers.” While the powertrain may be borrowed from the Civic, it will likely be tuned slightly differently. It produces a nice, round 200 horsepower in the Si, and since Acura noted that it will be a "high-output" engine, we're expecting them to squeeze a little extra something out. Don't expect miracles, however; the Civic Type-R gets a 2.0-liter mill for a reason. Beyond that, Acura is being tight-lipped for now, but a product planner told Autoblog that the Integra won't share a single body panel with the Civic. It's a couple inches longer than the Civic sedan. He suggested that we'd see a performance model eventually, and maybe it would be Type S, but no hard confirmation. The planner also said that, as far as the trend toward retro design in models like the Toyota Supra or Nissan Z, Acura did not set out to design something retro. Instead, they wanted to make something that looked like what the Integra would have evolved into today, had it never been discontinued. The grille sports the new look we can expect to see across the Acura product lineup, slightly refined from the existing look, and frameless. Acura says the Integra will go into production in 2022 at its Marysville, Ohio, facility. 

Honda spinning off Acura as stand-alone division in bid to wake up brand

Every major automaker has a different way of relating between its various divisions and brands. At Volkswagen, for example, the individual brands seem to operate with a large degree of autonomy. Under the Renault-Nissan Alliance, the two units share a common chief executive, but little else. The relationship between Honda and its luxury division Acura has always been rather close, but that's all about to change.
American Honda Motor Company has always handled sales and marketing in the North American market for both the Honda and Acura divisions, but new reorganization plans call for the two units to be separated under their own direction. Leading the Acura division will be Michael Accavitti, who moves into the position from his role as Senior Vice President for Auto Operations at American Honda. The Honda division will meanwhile be taken over by the current head of Acura sales, Jeff Conrad.
Both will report to John Mendel, the current executive vice president of the Automobile Sales Division that is being rebranded as the American Honda Auto Division. Unlike rivals Lexus and Infiniti - two brands that Acura beat to the market - Honda barely markets its luxury brand outside of North America. Its overseas presence is felt only in China, though we've yet to receive word on how the reorganization might effect that market - or for that matter, any potential of expanding into others.

2013 Acura ILX 2.4

Going Mainstream Has Its Privileges
Acura's experiment with niche models has failed. Competing in the luxury car business by filling white space with product just didn't work for the Japanese automaker. In place of slow-selling models like its ZDX and quirky first-gen RDX, the mindset at Acura has recently switched to more conventional products with vastly improved volume potential. The redesigned 2013 RDX, for example, sold almost as many units in 2012 as it did in 2010 and 2011 combined, and the all-new 2013 ILX has sold more units each month - since going on sale in May - than Acura sold in ZDXs and RLs in all of last year.
While the redesigned RDX is a crucial product to compete with luxury compact crossovers, the ILX might be the most important new product for Acura, as a growing number of premium makes are starting to realize the importance of upscale entry-level compact cars. Ironically, this segment was a pivotal part of the brand's success in the 1980s and '90s thanks to the Integra, but Acura completely abandoned the genre when it killed off the RSX coupe in 2006. The addition of the ILX not only gives Acura a competitive small car again, it also drops the brand's entry price by almost $5,000.