NSX (Concept)
Alongside the flagship, a new "super sports car" shares the role as the range topper for Acura. Acura didn't officially call it the NSX during their presentation, but everybody we spoke with following the presentation said it was indeed the NSX successor. I took that as good news. UPDATE: In their press release released this morning, Acura is calling it the "NSX Concept". Some text below is updated to reflect that.
Acura showed us the actual NSX Concept which will be revealed in Detroit next month. Unfortunately there was no photography allowed, but I can tell you that this will be one of the biggest reveals for Acura in recent history. Basically this is the car that was spied on the "Avengers" set late in the Summer, but it's clearly been further developed and it's also in hard-top form. Finished in a sliver paint, the concept is absolutely stunning, and carries on the NSX tradition of a mid-engine, rear-wheel drive layout. The design is muscular, futuristic, and sharp, and vaguely similar to the Audi R8.
Compared to the "Avengers" car, the front end on this concept actually has working LED headlights - there are 5 "squircle" projectors embedded within each headlight housing. The rear bumper is also virtually identical to the "Avengers" car but with a real roof and backlight and more "production-looking" taillights, the overall visage is considerably different. Like the "flagship", the exhaust finishers are integrated into the bumper. A really cool (but not necessarily original) styling element is the "flying buttress" C-pillars. The C-pillars feature a "pass-through" which appears to be designed to channel air smoothly around the cockpit and over the rear of the vehicle. It's like an elongated version of the flying buttress seen on the Ferrari 599 - the NSX has a much faster angle on the backlight, which naturally lengthens the C-pillar. The gap between the C-pillar and the glass is fairly narrow, however. For the record, this concept wore Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires in 255/35ZR19 size up front, and 275/30ZR20s in the rear.
Acura wouldn't tell us anything about the engine or powertrain, but off the record they were quick to tell us that the announced Electric SH-AWD system with 3.5L DI V6 was clearly not potent enough for this car. It should be noted that THAT powertrain, with its 7-speed dual clutch gearbox and 3 electric motors, develops a peak output in the neighborhood of 400hp. Obviously with the MR layout, Honda has to engineer a very specific setup for this car, and we're assuming it will essentially be a reversed layout compared to the FF-oriented design which was revealed previously.
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