Gone and Largely Forgotten
If your birth year starts with 20 and not 19, there’s an actual chance you’ve never seen this particular Acura model in the metal. For starters, it was discontinued over 30 years ago, and fewer than 40,000 of these were sold in the U.S in the span of just three model years. With so few finding homes in the first place, there aren’t many survivors left out there.
Now, those more of, er, our age would probably know what we’re talking about. That would be the Acura Vigor, Honda‘s attempt to expand its luxury portfolio in America. As you might have figured, it was far from successful, and in some parts, one of the more unusual cars that Honda and Acura ever made.
Honda
A More Vigorous Accord
Before it was offered in America, the Vigor was primarily a Japanese-market Honda model. It actually took a while before it was sold stateside in 1992, as the name was already being used as far back as 1981. It actually took two prior generations before the Vigor started getting Acura badges, and even then, it took a couple more years for the third-generation Vigor to be fully Americanized.
From the start, the Vigor was positioned to be a sportier and more upmarket version of the Honda Accord. It has plusher interiors and more powerful engine options, although the first two were nearly indistinguishable from the regular Accord. So, for the third generation, Honda decided to go bold. Really bold.
The third-generation Vigor would share no body panels with the Accord, have a more bespoke interior, and even its own engine. And that’s the part where things got a little weird by Honda standards.
Honda
The Specs
Honda really wanted to differentiate the Vigor from other midsize offerings by giving it a five-cylinder engine. Dubbed the G20, it wasn’t just Honda’s first straight-five; it was Japan’s first engine of its kind, too. It was a groundbreaking design in Japanese automotive history, and the folks from Tochigi were quite proud of it.
It was available in either 2.0-liter or 2.5-liter guises, with outputs ranging from 158 hp to 176 hp. It was plenty powerful for its era, especially when one compares it to the Audi inline-five from the late-’80s. And here’s another thing that made the Vigor interesting/unusual: the engine layout was longitudinal instead of transverse, the latter being typical in front-wheel drive vehicles. In essence, this was Japan’s take on the Audi 90, right down to the longitudinally-mounted inline-five engine.
The reason for the unorthodox configuration? It’s not because the Vigor was available with all-wheel drive. Instead, it was for compliance with Japanese automobile tax classifications. Mounting the inline-five sideways would make the car wider, ergo, breaking out of a more favorable tax bracket. The car’s body would be slimmer if the engine were mounted lengthwise instead.
Acura
Good Enough to be an Acura
Over in America, Acura was doing well, but the brand knew it couldn’t rely solely on the Integra and Legend for its long-term future. What was missing was a car that slotted right in the middle of the two. Honda didn’t have an answer to the Infiniti G20, which was a rebadged and lux’ed up Nissan Primera, and the Lexus ES250, a Toyota Camry Prominent hardtop with an L on the grille.
Given that its rivals rummaged through their mother company’s respective JDM catalogs, one could say that Acura probably did the same. The third-gen Vigor was introduced in its home market in 1989, and that model was chosen to be Acura’s entry in the competitive junior midsize sedan market.
Now, Acura didn’t just pluck the Vigor from Japanese assembly lines, slap on an A badge, and call it a day. The Acura Vigor was longer due to 5-mile bumpers, and wider compared to the Honda version, as America isn’t constrained by vehicle width taxes. With those changes applied, the Acura Vigor debuted in America in late 1991 for the 1992 model year. It also coincided with the launch of the facelifted Honda Vigor back in Japan.
Acura
And The Response Was…
…Lukewarm, at least in terms of sales. The car itself was good, but it was marred by a couple of issues. For starters, its size didn’t match its interior room. Contemporary road testers noted the tight back seats and that space efficiency was compromised due to the engine layout.
A Car and Driver comparison test from September 1991 also mentioned that the Vigor wasn’t exactly invigorating to drive. Competent, yes, but not exactly thrilling. Other road tests from the same era did mention a “Germanic” feel to the chassis, but not much mention of fun. Of course, there were high praises about its gearbox, build quality, and excellent ergonomics.
Overall, still a solid car, but why did it flop? Cramped interior aside, there was the price. In 1993, the Vigor carried a base price of $24,265 that topped up to $27,500. For not much more cash, one could get an Acura Legend instead. At the same time, there was too much of a price gap between it and the Integra, and a well-equipped Accord still undercut an entry-level Vigor. Oh, and the Honda was more spacious, too. It also didn’t help that the second-generation Lexus ES came out the same year as the Vigor. By 1994, it was clear that consumers were steering clear of Acura’s middle child, and it was axed by the end of the year.
Acura
The Vigor Walked so the TL Could Fly
The Vigor was subsequently replaced by the TL and still carried many of the same characteristics of the car it succeeded. It still had an inline-five engine mounted lengthways, and it was still a JDM-derived model. However, the TL rectified all the shortcomings of the Vigor, and when a V6 engine became an option, the middle child, Acura, soon started making an impression.
Subsequent generations of the TL would grow from strength to strength. The second-gen TL was a hit among critics and customers, while the third-gen received near-universal acclaim. As for the fourth-gen, it still has its fans, but Honda fans would like to point out the third one being peak TL, especially the Type S.
These days, Acura no longer has a midsize luxury sedan in its stable. The TLX was canned at the end of 2025 with no replacement in sight. Still, without the Vigor, we wouldn’t have some of the best midsize sedans Acura ever made, like the first-generation TSX and the aforementioned TL Type S. It was fun while it lasted, and we’re glad Acura learned a lot from the Vigor’s failure.
Honda
