Phoenix car fan amasses sizable collection of old and newer Acura vehicles
PHOENIX - As the Barrett-Jackson car auction returns to Scottsdale for their annual event, we spoke with a Phoenix man who has built an impressive collection to learn more about why he is so passionate about a particular brand of cars.
Collector loves Acura cars
Meet Tyson Hugie.
Big picture view:
Hugie has owned 55 cars since he turned 16, and all but four of them have been made by Honda or Acura.
When one walks into Hugie's garage at his Central Phoenix home, it's a bit like venturing into a 1990's automotive time capsule.
"You can really walk in this space and feel almost like you’re taking a step back in time to the 1990s of an Acura dealership," Hugie said.
Hugie is a self-proclaimed 'Acura addict,' and he even has a tattoo to prove it. Currently, he has a collection of 12 Acura models, ranging from the 1990s to the 2000s. His collection includes:
- A 1992 Acura Integra GSR that was driven, signed, and appraised by Jay Leno.
- A 2013 Acura ILX six-speed manual. Hugie said it was "a free car for being part of the Acura promotional efforts."
- A 2019 Acura TLX PMC Edition, which Hugie said was "the actual car shown at the New York Auto Show in 2019."
Dig deeper:
Of all the cars in the collection, however, one car stands out in Hugie's eyes.
"If I had to sell every other car except for one, it would have to be the '94 Legend Coupe," said Hugie. "I’ve had this car since I was 21 years old, and I’ve literally driven 500,000 miles, and it’s now at [595,000 miles]. So I got to say for reliability, it’s the number one choice."
In fact, Acura even hosted an event for Hugie when his car hit that 500,000-mile milestone in November 2011. The event was complete with a red carpet arrival for Hugie and his mother Tia, who was along for the ride.
Hugie's Acura love started early

The Acura that Tyson Hugie's mother once drove
As it turns out, it was Hugie's mother who started his love for Acura,
"That was about, what, 25, 30 years ago," Tia said.
The backstory:
In 1996, Hugie's mother bought a used Acura Integra. It was a car cool enough to spark interest in Hugie that has now spanned more than two decades.
"As an impressionable kind of teenager, it stuck with me. For one reason or another, I kind of gravitated toward the brand, and developing a sort of affinity for the different models within the lineup," Hugie said. "I had a goal in my mind of some specific ones that I wanted to own, and so, fast-forward to 28 years of driving now, and I've scratched off my bucket list a good number of Acuras that I always wanted to have."
In His Words:
Hugie has a message for anyone who might be longing to own a piece of automotive history: it doesn't have to break the bank, and it doesn't have to be something everyone understands.
"As much as I love the cars themselves, the automotive hobby for me is about the people, and this networking that you can do," Hugie said. "A lot of people would probably walk in here, look at these cars and say 'what's so special about a 25, 30-year-old Acura?' and I can't answer that for them. I can only answer that for me."