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Acura NSX: The real every day supercar

Jeff Glucker December 19, 2017 Acura Reviews, Featured, Reviews, Road Test Reviews, Video Reviews 4 Comments

We’ve been waiting quite some time for a new Acura NSX. It’s arrived, and the early reviews were mixed. Those reviews missed something, because this thing is damn good.

Through a combination of batteries, motors, and a twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 engine, the NSX producers over 570 horsepower and more than 470 pound-feet of torque. That gas-burning engine sends its power to the rear wheels. Up front, a pair of motors distribute power in the nose. There’s a third power unit that sits between the engine and a nine-speed dual-clutch gearbox, attaches to the crankshaft directly, and supplies a bit more torque out back.

When everything is working together, you have a super machine that behaves like a mid-engined sports car and is actually working like a million-dollar hyper car. Yet it’s still quite comfortable inside. The seats are excellent, the sound system is sharp, and the suspension is smooth when the Drive Mode is set to Quiet or Sport.

This is the real-deal daily drivable super car.

[Disclaimer: Acura tossed us the keys to the NSX and included a tank of fuel. We went through a few more tanks… it was hard to stop driving this one.]

Fred

Just like the previous NSX was.
Alff

My neighbor has an early first-gen in pristine condition. His daily is a slightly wrinkled older 2WD Toyota pickup. The NSX may get driven 300 miles per year. Given how driveable they supposedly are, I don’t understand how he can exhibit such self denial.
outback_ute

An article a few months back said 2 had been sold in Australia, at AUD$420k it is not hard to see why, although much more expensive cars have done better, eg there are more than 2 LaFerraris here.
wunno sev

the press’ opinion of this car, and of the Civic Type R, are basically the same: enthusiasts were wary because something on the spec sheet didn’t match the one of which they have fond memories, much hand-wringing and pooh-poohing, “Ford has something more interesting!”….car comes out, everyone loses their minds over how good it is to drive.

Honda is proving what we should all know: the spec sheet, the basic bones of a car, it’s all important, but it’s execution that makes or breaks greatness. Honda’s design ethos has moved away from the simple, lightweight stuff we loved in the ’90s; there’s no denying it, and it does make me a little sad. but Honda’s engineers have proven with two performance cars in a row that they can make something all the enthusiasts just know they’re gonna hate – turbos! batteries! what happened to purity! – and build them so well that nobody who drives one can come away not grinning ear-to-ear.

i miss that ’90s Honda, and i’m not 100% convinced it needs to be gone, but look: BMW didn’t have a turbo M3 in the ’90s. Porsche didn’t have a hybrid supercar. we shouldn’t be comparing this NSX to its past self, we should be comparing it to its present rivals and seeing if it does today what that car did then. the NSX delivers an under-3 second 0-60 time for $100k cheaper than the 488 GTB, which can’t break into the 2s.

of course, the numbers don’t tell the whole story – and i will probably never drive any NSX, so what do i know – but look: 25 years ago, plenty of automotive journalists considered the NSX a little boring compared to its rivals. today, we all love the F355, but i know which one i’d rather have parked in my garage. the NSX of today doesn’t follow the same formula as the NSX of the early ’90s, but it achieves the same end. 25 years from now, i’ll be kicking myself for not buying one when a decent one was twenty grand.