1991 Acura Legend Sedan Test Drive
As hard as it is to believe, some Honda product planners back in the mid-’80s just weren’t sure the public would accept a new line of more expensive luxury automobiles wearing the Honda emblem. The line of reasoning ran thus: Buyers expect small size, high quality and a low price from Honda, so a larger, higher-quality, high-priced car simply wouldn’t fit the image. Right or wrong, Honda chose to market its first upscale offerings through a new channel, called Acura, beginning in the 1987 model year. Although this created the challenge of establishing an identity for an all-new brand, it also gave Honda The opportunity to handpick the Acura dealer body, which has resulted in exceptional dealer service. Whether because of or in spite of its Honda heritage, the Acura division was a rousing success from the start, and remains so to this day even though it was slightly upstaged by the Toyota Lexus and Nissan Infiniti divisions.
Initially, two Acura models were offered: the compact Integra and the large Legend. The Legend was the largest model of the Acura group. Even thought it competed with the Lexus and Infiniti, or they it! It offered a 3-box four door sedan and coupe, based on the same platform, but different wheelbase. It was powered by a 3.2L V6 with a 5-speed manual or 4speed automatic.Too bad that so much development work and high technology are somewhat spoiled by the lack of power and performance even though the mechanical end is perfectly well developed. To manufacture is one thing and to capture the car owners imagination another.
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“Too bad that so much development work and high technology are somewhat spoiled by the lack of power and performance…”
0-60 in 7.5 seconds with the 4-speed automatic was very competitive in 1991. Toward the end of the test video, they compare it with the Lexus LS400. Even though the Lexus has a V8 with a 50hp advantage, the Legend is still quicker!
and RWD vs FWD. I prefer RWD, but in this case the LEx had almost zero character. I am in love with this the second gen Legend. Classic yet stylish, and not only stylish, but handsome, even timeless. My buddy who actually helped build this site has a 92 Coupe! Just so you know! hehe
1986 not 1987. Even 1985 in Japan, etc. Be sure to do your research first!
thank you for the correction!
I’ve always loved the Acura Legend, especially the 2nd generation model. Very nice looking and a cool car to drive and I still want one because I love the Honda/Acuras from the 90’s. Most Legend owners tend to keep there cars for a long period of time and put a lot of miles on because of the great Honda/Acura reliability they were known for in the early to mid 90’s. Just ask Tyson Hugie from Arizona who was honored by Acura of North America recently for putting 500K on his 94 Legend. The video is on YouTube under the Acura page.