Although the standards for luxury have advanced many miles since its debut, the first-generation Legend set standards for Japanese-made cars of the era in terms of comfort, high quality materials, and features. The Legend was Acura’s first-ever model and was introduced in March of 1986. It got Honda’s very first V6 engine, a 2.5 liter, 151 horsepower SOHC powerplant with multi-port fuel injection, a major innovation in an era where even other luxury cars depended on a carburetor. The Legend rode smoothly on a four-wheel independent suspension with double wishbones in front and changed gears with either a fivee-speed manual transmission or four-speed automatic.
The L trim level added leather-trimmed seats, door panels, and steering wheel along with a powered 4-way driver’s seat and side mirror defoggers. In 1988, the engine grew to 2.7 liters and anti-lock brakes were added as an option on the Legend L. In addition, the top-level LS trim version got a 10-way power driver’s seat. The following year, the rear suspension was upgraded to double wishbones and all Legends got the driver’s side airbag as standard equipment. Walnut trim was added to the center console in 1990, and a full redesign came in 1991. The Legend was dropped after the 1995 model year and replaced by the 3.5 RL, but it cleared the road for Acura’s subsequent success.
Featured image by IFCAR via Wikimedia Commons | Cropped and scaled| Public Domain]
