Honda introduced the Legend on its home market in 1985 and tested the car in the real world before crossing the pond and sell it in the U.S.

Available as a sedan and a coupe, it was the car that started the Acura brand, and it combined luxury, comfort, performance, and a reasonable price into one vehicle. The Japanese carmaker took its competitors by surprise and made it sell more than 55.000 units in the second year after it entered the U.S. More importantly, the coupe was available with a more powerful engine than the sedan.

It was wedged-styled and with rectangular headlights. The sculptured fenders left the impression of a wider track that helped the car being more planted to the road. It wasn’t more exhaustive, but thanks to its double-wishbone suspension, it really was better in cornering than most of the cars from its segment. Moreover, it featured frameless windows.

Inside, both versions provided more comfort and a good interior room. The rear seats provided adequate room for the four-door sedan and a decent amount for the coupe. Honda installed most of the interior features as standard. There were only two options for the car: exterior color and transmission.

Under the hood, the Japanese Legend featured a 2.0-liter V-6 engine fed by a variable turbocharger unit (VTG), which was way ahead of its times. The U.S. cousin featured a 2.5-liter V-6 for the sedan and a 2.7-liter for the coupe.