Acura from America

Acura is Honda's luxury division, built for the American market and never sold officially in Europe. That is exactly why it travels well: Japanese reliability with premium equipment, at a price the German alternatives do not reach. What sits behind the reputation is worth checking against the VIN before bidding rather than after delivery.

The usual mistake is "it is a Honda underneath, parts are everywhere". That is half true. The engine, suspension and brakes really do share a great deal with the CR-V, Accord and Legend. Everything on the outside is unique: wings, bumpers, grilles, radiators, glass and the expensive factory Jewel Eye LED headlamps exist in neither the local classifieds nor the breakers' yards. A car whose impact was poorly described or missed by the photographs means body parts by container from the States, or a hunt through Polish and Lithuanian sellers.

Under the bonnet is what the European emissions rules killed off here. The 3.5-litre J35 V6 is naturally aspirated, runs a timing belt and shuts down cylinders at a steady cruise -- durable, long-lived, and it takes an LPG conversion perfectly, which is the main reason these are imported at all. It is also the commonest engine in what we hold.

SH-AWD is the other reason. It sends torque not just front to rear but between the left and right rear wheels through a corner -- one of the cleverest drivetrains ever built. But not every Acura has it: base RDX, ILX and TLX cars out of the southern states are routinely front-wheel drive only. Check the lot, not the badge.

The gearbox depends on the year and the difference is large. The ZF nine-speed (2015-2020) is operated by buttons rather than a lever and carries the same software and mechanical temper that troubles early Jeep Cherokees -- expensive specific fluid, changed every 60,000 km. From 2020-2021 Honda fits its own ten-speed: faster, tougher under load, and with no recorded factory weakness. Most of what we hold is from the earlier period, so the year is worth reading before the price.