The NSX really needs no introduction. It made headlines as the Ferrari challenger when it was released in the early 1990’s, and a legitimate challenger it was. Coded as “HP-X” for “Honda Pininfarina eXperimental”, the NSX project was first introduced in Honda during the 1980’s, when Honda was providing racing engines to the McLaren F1 racing team that was running away with the championship year after year with their two legendary drivers Aryton Senna and Alain Prost. Honda decided that they should make use of the racing technology they had at the time and produce a supercar for road use.
It was made clear right at the very start that the HP-X project was intended to produce a car that was going to be faster, but also more useable and easier to maintain, than a Ferrari. When the project commenced, Ferrari was still producing the 328 GTB. However, by the time the HP-X project’s long research and development journey was completed, the 328 GTB was already replaced by the Ferrari 328 TB. That was not a problem though, as the NSX proved indeed to be both faster and more useable than the Ferrari, together with Honda-grade reliability and maintenance.
Equipped with a 3.0 V6 naturally aspirated V-Tec engine with 280HP, the NSX may not look like a competitive supercar on paper even for the early 90’s, but it is what’s underneath that matters. The chassis and body panels were made in aluminium, something even Ferrari did not do until 1999 with the 360 Modena. The engine uses high-tech materials like titanium connecting rods for the V-Tec. The chassis was also pedantically tuned – including involvement by the great Aryton Senna. The result was a 1,370kg supercar with a high revving and punchy engine. The chassis is so good that Gordon Murray openly admitted he used the NSX’s chassis as reference for his design of the McLaren F1 road car.
To me, the only thing lacking from the car is good looks. I think it has a very soulless and boring design. Part of it is due to Honda’s insistence that it had to be a user-friendly car, which explains the long boxy rear boot for golf clubs. Other than the looks, which is subjective, the NSX is undoubtedly a very important car – certainly in the JDM space, but also in the global automotive stage.
The NSX we have today is an Acura, which simply means it was an export version and not a Japanese domestic version (Honda uses the brand Acura for export markets as it is considered to be more prestigious, just like the Toyota and Lexus relationship). This NSX is known to be the cleanest and neatest NSX in Hong Kong because it has won multiple awards from the Classic Car Club of Hong Kong’s annual Chater Road Show Concours. Last year, it won the “Best of Show” award which is normally reserved for classics like the Ferrari 288GTO or Lamborghini Miura – a Japanese modern classic winner is certainly an incredible feat.
To keep a car so clean and original requires a lot of effort and sacrifice. The car has had a full dealer service record for most of its life, it has always been driven scarcely, and obviously never in the rain. OCD-behavior by the owner include never wearing jeans to drive it in order to avoid scratching the interior leather, avoiding highways in order to avoid stone chips and, this is my favorite, avoiding driving at night so that he does not have to turn on the headlights which means preventing the clear lenses from turning yellow.
The car has an automatic gearbox so performance inevitably lacks a bit compared to a manual. The fact that the car is driven so little also means the engine is not in its top form (a common price to pay for low-mileage time capsule cars) – it only has around 40,000KM (approx. 25,000 miles) in 26 years. However, you recognize that the NSX means business the minute you sit in it. The engine sound from its V6 engine is a lot more potent than its JDM contemporaries, the chassis and suspension set up feels serious and firm, although it is not uncomfortable. Its size is sensible (unlike cars of today), making it a sophisticated and efficient car to throw around mountain roads.
All in all, I am very grateful to finally be able to try out the legendary NSX after hearing about it for so many years. Thank you to the owner for trusting me with his pride and joy and, as usual, thank you to the team for making this film.
Alex (http://www.taipanmedia.com)
Dave (Email: david@lemonadeandgiggles.com)
Adhiraj Rathore (IG: @supercarsofhongkong)
Ewan (IG: @_windee_)
Alex C. (IG: @nofishshark)
See our video review here: