Acura Claims It Is The Number One Luxury Brand For Millennials - What Does THAT Say About This Generation Of Buyers?

Acura has managed to attract the bigger percentage of buyers aged 18-34 among luxury brands in the US, something that fits in perfectly with its 30th anniversary.

The ILX has been enjoying the top selling spot for the past four years, and the first place among millennials has been secured with the RDX and MDX with the RDX being the number one model in its segment in this important buyer group.

Honda's luxury brand is also launching a new marketing campaign titled “30 Years Young” that, in its own words, is showcasing its youthful spirit. The main spot takes viewers on a journey through Acura’s history blended with their current lineup, including of course the new 2017 Acura NSX hybrid supercar.
 

TheSteve - 4/28/2016 2:43:01 PM

-4 Boost

I don't perceive Acura as a luxury brand. I don't think there are many people who see it as an equal to Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Lexus, or even the distant runner, Infiniti. That's not to say they're bad cars; they're just not in the same league as "the big boys."

Once we see that, the the whole "luxury for millennials" angle is moot.

MDarringer - 4/30/2016 7:52:35 AM

-6 Boost

People get that Acura is Honda's Mercury. Either Honda is stupid or they are as arrogantly stubborn as VW for not seeing what they need to do to have Acura be taken seriously.

bw5011 - 4/28/2016 3:03:31 PM

-3 Boost

Acura made good vehicles from 2004-2008, after that.... WOW... The introduced the beak and it was all she wrote. Even after owning 4 Acura's, 1 Integra GSR and 3 third generation TL's, I would never say they are premium. They are good cars, but after I started buying German, I never looked back. I put them in the same class with Lexus, Buick and Infiniti with Lexus being the leader. I don't think Lexus is a premium car either.

TomM - 4/28/2016 3:26:41 PM

-5 Boost

I agree about both Lexus and Acura -and would add Infiniti to the mix as well.
Basically Acura's big start was a 6 cylinder Accord they called the Legend - while a good car - certainly not a "Luxury car" and like Lexus - who biggest sellers are not really Luxury cars either - they are second tier premiums - along with Volvo, Buick, and others.

This is a case of - WHO did the survey - HOW was it worded - and What Brands were included? I simply do not believe such claims - because I know that surveys can be worded to produce the desired result.

llaroo - 4/28/2016 3:23:52 PM

-2 Boost

disillusion. Nothing says premium about them. Style, interior design and quality all pretty typical.

countguy - 4/28/2016 4:37:06 PM

-5 Boost

Well that is good for them, but I don't consider Acura to be luxury or performance. Infiniti is really the only japanese brand that can rival the germans.

TomM - 4/28/2016 5:20:17 PM

0 Boost

yews = as long as you consider the Germans to be VW and OPEL. Otherwise - and even including VW and OPEL - Infinity has a very limited lineup of vehicles that is no match for the true German Premium Brands.

skytop - 4/28/2016 4:57:23 PM

-3 Boost

And Hillary says, I AM NOT A LIAR, I AM NOT A MURDERER, I DID NOT DELETE VALUABLE TOP SECRET EMAILS.

ACURA is laugh. They have little credibility.

MDarringer - 4/28/2016 7:33:49 PM

-6 Boost

Acura can say they poop gold, but that does not make it so.

Acura incentivizes the living hell out of the ILX to the point it can easily be has for higher-end Civic prices. And so on.

If we're talking sedans, millennials with money love the CLA, C Class, 2 Series, 3 Series, and A3 a lot. The A3 does especially well with that demographic.

The Lexus NX trends VERY WELL with millennials as does the GLA. Again, Audi does will with the Q3.

If we're talking crossovers, the numbers speak for themselves. Acura isn't in the running.

kayakcar - 4/28/2016 9:50:18 PM

-1 Boost

Fantasy. The Acura brand will continue to decline. Where is the passion in their products? The design of the current MDX is a tragedy. The ILX looks like a Civic derivative. It might be better to fold it back into the parent company.

MrEE - 4/28/2016 10:00:17 PM

-1 Boost

Rather than disbelief or confoundment expressed by many here, I would say this cohort recognizes high value luxury and are rejecting the notion of brand status symbols.

Dr550 - 4/29/2016 2:18:42 AM

-1 Boost

Aside from the grille, rims, and metal ice cube tray headlights, the ILX screams Honda Civic.

Truthy - 4/29/2016 10:30:20 AM

0 Boost

What "segment" does the ILX compete in? It does not compete with the top 4 (BMW, MB, Audi, Cad ATS) as the price point is about half. It is also well below the CLA, 2 series, A3 etc. Like Mark Twain said, "There are 3 types of lies; lies, damn lies and statistics."

MDarringer - 4/30/2016 7:59:37 AM

-7 Boost

And you clearly know nothing about market statistics.

Marketing research shows that car buyers (1) cross shop based on price rather than brand or type of vehicle and (2) that buyers are NOT loyal to brands.

The ILX competes against the CLA (base), A3 (base), Jetta GLI, Buick Verano, and the ATS (base) among others in that price band, but the reason it does not sell is that it is too obviously a Civic. Audi does a better job of hiding the Golf under the A3.

Cars like the Fusion and Optima are stylish and well appointed for the same price as the ugly and smaller ILX. The ILX simply isn't a product anyone wants without tons on money on the hood.