Acura Legend
| Acura Legend | |
|---|---|
sedan | |
| Chronology | |
| Successor | Acura RL Acura CL (Coupe) |
The Acura Legend is a
The opportunity for Japanese manufacturers to export more expensive models had arisen with the 1980s voluntary export restraints, negotiated by the Japanese government and U.S. trade representatives, restricting mainstream car sales.[1] The initial success of the Legend and Honda's Acura division in competing against established European and American luxury manufacturers would lead to Toyota and Nissan creating the Lexus and Infiniti brands, respectively, to compete in the luxury car market.
First generation (1986)
| First generation | |
|---|---|
V6 | |
| Transmission | 4-Speed Automatic 5-Speed Manual |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | Sedan: 108.7 in (2,761 mm) Coupe: 106.5 in (2,705 mm) |
| Length | 1985-88 Sedan: 189.4 in (4,811 mm) Coupe: 188 in (4,775.2 mm) 1989-1990 Sedan: 190.6 in (4,841 mm) |
| Width | 1989-1990 Sedan: 68.9 in (1,750 mm) 1986-88 Sedan: 68.3 in (1,735 mm) Coupe: 68.7 in (1,745 mm) |
| Height | Sedan: 54.7 in (1,389 mm) Coupe: 53.9 in (1,369 mm) |
Honda introduced the model in
The Legend was the first production Honda vehicle to offer a
Rover also wanted to return to the American market when they had reportedly sold only 1,500 cars in 1971, and a brief return in 1980, selling 800 Rover SD1s by offering the Sterling.[4]
The Legend won Car and Driver's Ten Best three years in a row and Motor Trend's Import Car of the Year for 1987. Manual-equipped models could accelerate from 0-60 mph (97 km/h) in under 8 seconds and reach a top speed of 135 mph (217 km/h). Sedan models had a drag coefficient of 0.32, while coupes were only 0.30.
When the Legend was introduced, Honda's newly established luxury car division just for the Legend was called Acura, using the advertising slogan "Precision Crafted Performance", and the Legend was offered with one factory installed option, the choice of transmission used, and one trim level. In the 1986 sales brochure, the Legend's full name used was "Legend Touring Sedan". The vehicle was virtually identical in luxury content to the Japanese market V6Zi, but was identical in size and the longer overall length of the top level V6Xi to comply with United States crash standards, using the larger 2.5 V6 engine. The
The North American Legend was not offered with some of the items offered in Japan, such as automatic, one-touch climate control, and 100% wool cloth interior in brown. Blue interior was shared with Japan and North America, but brown was not offered in North America, and "sand gray" was offered instead. Exterior colors were matched to only one interior color choice and leather was not offered. Due to the success Honda had with the Legend, it served as an inspiration for the Subaru Legacy with which it shares many visual resemblances and dimensions both inside and out.
In late 1988 for the 1989 model year, the sedan received some minor tweaks, upgrading to the one-piece front headlamps already in use in Japan since the 1985 introduction, a revised front bumper, trunk lid, tail light cluster, and an upgraded double-wishbone rear suspension, with a new alloy wheel appearance. By that time all Legends came equipped with a Honda-designed 4-wheel anti-lock brake system. A driver's side airbag was now standard on all Legends.
For the 1990 model year, all Legends came with body-colored side mirrors. Legend coupes had a revised body-colored front grille, new red & clear tail lights, and improved front seats. LS model coupes also received a trunk-mounted lip spoiler. All LS models featured burlwood interior trim. Production of the first-generation models ended in 1990 as a second-generation version became available for the 1991 model year. At least by the 1990 model year, the fuel filler door on the sedan had been moved rearward about 15 cm (5.9 in).
From the exterior, there are only superficial similarities between the Legend and its Rover 800/Sterling cousin. Both cars share the 2.5L and 2.7L Honda engine with 160 hp (119 kW) and a 4-speed automatic transmission. The core structure and chassis design is also common to both cars, however the Rover version has its own exterior panelwork, interior and electrical systems. The Rover was also offered with a 2.0L in-line 4-cylinder engines, however the Legend was only available with V6 power regardless of market. In Japan only, Honda installed a turbocharger with variable geometry in the Legend with the smaller 2.0 L V6, called the "Wing Turbo" for model year 1989.
Second generation (1991)
| Second generation | |
|---|---|
V6 | |
| Transmission | 4-Speed Automatic 5-Speed Manual 6-Speed Manual (Type-II) |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | Coupe: 111.4 in (2,830 mm) Sedan: 114.6 in (2,911 mm) |
| Length | Sedan: 194.9 in (4,950 mm) Coupe: 192.5 in (4,890 mm) |
| Width | 71.3 in (1,811 mm) |
| Height | 1990-92 Coupe: 53.5 in (1,359 mm) Sedan: 55.1 in (1,400 mm) 1993-95 Coupe: 53.7 in (1,364 mm) |
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Second generation units became available October 24, 1990, now using a 200 hp (149 kW) SOHC (C32A) engine mated to either a standard 6-speed manual or an optional 4-speed automatic. The second generation Legend was a larger, more streamlined-looking car (drag coefficients were actually higher at 0.34 for sedans and 0.32 for coupes). The design was referred to as a "fuselage" shape, and had rear-wheel drive proportions which were possible thanks to the use of a longitudinally mounted engine; unusual for front-wheel-drive automobiles.[8]
The Legend offered a host of features seen on luxury cars of today including dual front driver & passenger airbags (standard on 1991 Legend LS, 1992 L and LS trims), speed-sensitive steering, hands-free telephone, automatic climate control, heated leather seats, heated mirrors, four-wheel
Japan and New Zealand coupe/sedan models came factory with one-piece headlamps and built-in foglights. In Europe the Legend was fitted with all glass headlamps as well as built-in foglights, also a flush decklid spoiler option was available from factory (1991-1993 coupes only), similar to the USDM KA3/KA4 Legend first generation coupe/sedan option . (1994-1995 coupe) rear decklids were excluded from Europe's factory flush spoiler option, as they offered a slightly enhanced curvature of decklid in the later production years.
Japan, New Zealand & Europe coupe/sedan models also came fitted with a one of a kind Honda alpha touring grille. North American models did not, however they did receive a factory option set of lower bumper guard foglights making all legend model interchangeable options endless.
Appearance of the sedan was adopted from the first generation Legend coupe and Honda also wanted to visually align the appearance of both the Legend coupe and sedan to the
For 1991 and 1992 the Legend sedan was available in 'base', 'L', and 'LS' trims; the coupe remained available in L and LS through its entire run. The higher-end LS cars added automatic climate control, a power four-way passenger seat, burled walnut interior trim, and body colored side moldings. Honda made significant upgrades for 1993, making a 230 hp (172 kW) Type II North America version of the SOHC C32A1 engine standard on all coupes, along with the option of a 6-speed manual transmission (for 1993-1995 coupes 1994-1995 sedan).[8] The LS version of the sedan lost the option for a manual transmission and was only available with an automatic transmission from then on. 1993 also saw the addition of dual airbags as standard equipment in all trims, the deletion of the black molding on the entry level cars, and a new wheel design with fewer spokes on the sedans (16-spoke vs. 20-spoke). To reach the higher output, the Type II engine has bigger intake valves, a higher lift camshaft, and an exhaust with freer flow.[8]
For the 1994–95 model years, all Legends received new front bumper and trunk lid designs, a new front grille (L & LS Sedans only), and a power tilt-telescoping steering column; the word "Legend" was now spelled out in individual letters on the back. The base sedan was dropped, while a new GS sedan became the new top-line variant, sporting the 230 hp (172 kW) Type II engine, upgraded brakes from the coupe, sport suspension from the coupe, a body-colored version of the 1991 to 1993 grille, the same standard 6-speed manual transmission found on the coupes as well as the special 16-inch 5-spoke LS Coupe wheels (better known as GS Wheels). This was the only 6-speed sedan offered.[8]
Added for 1995 was the limited-production 'SE' sedan, which was essentially a Legend 'L' with a two-tone paint scheme, pre-1993 15-inch 7-spoke 'LS' coupe wheels, "Special Edition" floor mats, and an automatic transmission.
The
Successor
The Legend was a very successful vehicle to launch Acura as a separate division, and combined with sales of the Integra this resulted in Acura outselling[citation needed] longtime luxury marques BMW and Mercedes-Benz as well as Toyota's new luxury division Lexus. Nonetheless Honda executives felt that the Legend nameplate was overshadowing the Acura marque in the United States, plus other luxury marques like Mercedes-Benz and BMW used alphanumeric designations, hence the third-generation Legend sedan would be badged as the RL for North America. The replacement for the Legend sedan was sold as the Acura RL for two generations and then the Acura RLX in North America, although Honda continued to sell it as the Legend in most other areas of the world. However the RL and RLX never achieved the sales success that the original Legend managed; by the early 2000s Acura sales would be dominated by the Acura MDX crossover 3-row SUV and the Acura TL front-wheel drive sedan while the RL contributed little, by contrast the Legend made up 40% of the marque's sales volume during Acura's early years. It can be said that the renaming of the Legend to the RL, as well as Honda's refusal to adopt a front-engine rear-wheel drive layout which typify the more expensive luxury cars, had hurt sales of the RL and other Acura passenger cars.[10]
Sales
| Calendar year | Total US sales[11] |
|---|---|
| 1986 | 25,062 |
| 1987 | 54,713 |
| 1988 | 70,770 |
| 1989 | 64,638 |
| 1990 | 53,666 |
| 1991 | 65,689 |
| 1992 | 49,926 |
| 1993 | 38,866 |
| 1994 | 35,709 |
| 1995 | 18,259 |
| 1996 | 629 |
| 1997 | 4 |
See also
References
- ^ Dawson 2004, pp. xix, 28
- ^ "Honda Global | the Airbag System / 1987". Archived from the original on 2022-10-24. Retrieved 2022-10-24.
- ^ "1987 Acura Legend Coupe ALB/ SRS". 12 June 1986. Archived from the original on 24 October 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
- ^ Adams, Keith. "Honda saves the day". Archived from the original on 2011-10-03. Retrieved 2010-11-20.
- ^ "Driver's Side Air Bag Standard on All 1989 Acura Legend Coupe and Sedan Models". 15 November 1988. Archived from the original on 24 October 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
- ^ "1989 Acura Legend Specifications - Acura Automobiles - Honda News". Archived from the original on 2015-03-28.
- ^ "US Patent USD327239S". Archived from the original on 2016-10-11. Retrieved 2016-09-21.
- ^ ISSN 1555-6867.
- ^ "Honda-Daewoo Partnership Partnership Details". New York Times. October 29, 1992. Archived from the original on 2011-06-04. Retrieved 2007-05-22.
- ^ "Acura: The Honda That Didn't". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2020-07-25. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
- ^ "Honda Newsroom" (PDF). Honda Newsroom. Archived from the original on 5 September 2015. Retrieved 2023-05-13.
Sources
Information added to the first generation Legend was compiled from a 1986 Japanese language Honda Legend brochure, a Japanese market Honda Legend Press Information brochure dated October 22, 1985, and a North American Acura Legend sales brochure dated 1986 by American Honda Motor Company.
- Dawson, Chester (2004). Lexus: The Relentless Pursuit. Hoboken, NJ: Jon Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0-470-82110-8.
External links
- The Acura Legend/RL community A site dedicated to the Legend enthusiast without corporate interference.
- AcuraLegendWiki A Wiki devoted to the Acura Legend and RL. Contains online service manuals, FAQs, DIYs, etc.
- Acura Legend G1/G2 Service Manual Online service manuals for the Legend G1 (1986–1990) and the G2 (1991–1995).