Acura CL Model Overview

Offered between 1997 and 2003, the Acura CL replaced the Legend coupe, just as the Acura RL replaced the Legend sedan. Acura's parent company, Honda, hoped that the differentiation of the model lines would help sales; both the Acura CL and Acura RL were positioned as midsize luxury cars, but the CL's styling and engineering definitely had a stronger emphasis on performance.

The Acura CL was offered in a range of trims that emphasized, to differing degrees, the brand's sports performance and luxury focus. Although Acura chose not to follow the CL with another luxury coupe, some of the sports performance focus was carried over into the compact RSX, which was discontinued in 2006.