The next NSX

[Pebb]

Source: AutoCar

Acura's superb new front-engined super-coupe concept, revelaed at the Detroit motor show on Sunday (7 January 2007) will definitely go into production. It is already being freely described by its creators as a replacement for the long-lived Honda NSX, despite the fact that it has a completely different mechanical format and lacks a proper production name (at present it's just called Advanced Sports Car Concept).

Confusingly for Europeans, it carries the badge of Acura, Honda's upmarket US brand, because it was conceived by American designers at Acura's Californian design studio. Honda is well aware that to succeed, the car will need solid support from US buyers.

The car's two designers, Patrick Lukasak and Bull Gex, spent a little less than a year on the project, which will now be developed further in Japan for showing as an advanced prototype in Tokyo next September, complete with a Japanese-designed interior. The car is 4.62m long, sits on a 2.74m wheelbase, is powered by a front mid-mounted V10 engine and has an advanced, electronically controlled four-wheel-drive system with a rearwards torque bias to aid handling adjustability. The wheels, milled from solid aluminium alloy billets, are 19-inch at the front and 20-inch behind.

Few other details are known: Honda people won't reveal the engine capacity (3.0 litres looks a strong possibility, given the obvious F1 connotations) or even whether the Acura ASCC is to be a two-plus-two or a pure two-seater. Quick inspection of the car's all-glass cabin - which doesn't have a finished interior – shows that either option is possible. All will be revealed in eight months' time.

 

[daan]

Honda people won't reveal the engine capacity (3.0 litres looks a strong possibility, given the obvious F1 connotations)

Has no one told Autocar that F1 use 2.4 litre engines now?

 

[Gen.]

That's a hella ugly car.

 

[Bram Turismo]

Any bigger pictures available? From what I see, the "new NSX" does not look that very nice...

 

[Max_DC]

I don't really like it so far....

 

[Dave A]

I'll reserve my judgment on it's looks for when I see better pictures. Other than that I like the idea of Honda prodcing a car like this.

 

[kikie]

I'll reserve my judgment on it's looks for when I see better pictures.

Me too.

 

[YSSMAN]

IMO, not a pretty concept, and IMO, won't make a pretty production car. Too bad for Honda, they did have something good going for the NSX at one point. But this? Well, lets just call it "stupid" for now...

 

[Jim Prower]

What the hell is going on in Japan? Toyota proposes a Hybrid Supra, and Honda makes a FR CAR as an NSX replacement?

Not to mention, they look almost exactly the same.

(They were both designed in California...Could that be it?)

 

[kikie]

What the hell is going on in Japan? Toyota proposes a Hybrid Supra, and Honda makes a FR CAR as an NSX replacement?

Not to mention, they look almost exactly the same.

But it's designed in the US by Americans....!!!!

Never mind, you've edited your message at the moment that I posted mine.

 

[Dave A]

IMO, not a pretty concept, and IMO, won't make a pretty production car. Too bad for Honda, they did have something good going for the NSX at one point. But this? Well, lets just call it "stupid" for now...

Yeah, it's not pretty. Honda should reconsider the HSC, that actually worked imo.

 

[kikie]

Thanks for the 2 photos. I must say that I like the design!! I wouldn't mind driving one of those.

 

[Poverty]

I think car manufacturers have started trying too hard...

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

From the rear it looks okay, except for that rear window. What happened there?

It looks like Honda and Toyota are trying to build sports tanks.

 

[Philly]

The front has nothing making it ugly. It just looks like something that would be spinning on a stand a couple years ago. The rear looks a little like they are trying to jump on board the American Ponycar trend. That rear window? Where the heck did that come from? What happened there? It is SO ugly.

I am pretty sure that window will fortunatly not make it onto the production car. Imagine trying to see out!

 

[McLaren]

It's a front mounted V10?

Ok, that's not a NSX, and I will never see it as the next NSX. The mid engine V6 is what gave it a very unique standard in Japan when most of its competitors were front engines.

I see new Acura sportscar, not NSX successor. Disgrace to the name.

 

[Tornado]

So Automobile was right. Sad. So sad. Anyways, lets call this something else, shall we? I'll go with ESX, because I like the sound of it. Am I the only one who thinks the rear end of this thing would look pure bad ass on a muscle car? Picture that on the Camaro Concept in place of the weakest area the Camaro had (the rear). I like it then.

 

[harrytuttle]

I think car manufacturers have started trying too hard...

...or not hard enough. So many car companies seem to have just given up on competent design, from technical, aesthetic, and logistical standpoints. Ford, VAG, and Chrysler are suffering from massive logistical mental retardation. Honda and Toyota have had both their technical and aesthetic neural pathways excised: FT-HS/Supra, Lexus anything, S2000 4-seater, this crudbucket....

It's as if they're taking all the ideas everyone comes up with, pasting them to a giant dartboard, and playing lawn darts with it. Whatever gets perforated together gets put into motion. I really think that's how decisions are being made. When the obvious answer (Ford with the Focus, Honda with this monstrosity) is practically kicking them in the face and they still refuse to act properly, there's only so many possible conclusions you can draw from that.

 

[JCE]

Wow, Honda just can't do anything right can they? Not more than 5 minutes ago I praised the new Accord Coupe...and now I see this POS? The whole POINT to the NSX was light, mid engined, RWD, high output V6. Handled great, wasn't slow, and looked fantastic. Now it just looks like a 15 yearold with 3D Studio Max and Photoshop designed it. Yuck...just yuck.

My approval rating: 10% -- and it gets that 10% for probably being very reliable.

 

[YSSMAN]

It is just such a mish-mash of odd angles, poor ideas, and unjustified changes to the legend of the NSX. I'm sure that Honda would be smart enough to consider the HSC concept as the true successor, maybe this as some kind of follow-up to God knows what, the Integra? Maybe those guys in Japan are drinking from the same tainted bottle of Sake.

...Simply put, these "ideas" just plain suck. With the Japanese faltering, it leaves the Americans and the Europeans to pick up the slack, and may turn out to be a good time for the "Big 2.5" to "catch up," and the Germans to return to some of their dominance on the big-car market.

 

[JohnBM01]

Sad news to see this NSX replacement go from mid-engine to front-engine. This is only a concept, and you know how I am with concepts. I don't blast the overall design like that's what we're going to see come release (granted it will be released in its current state). It's the same reason why most people dislike trailers at E3 and concepts at most car shows. The thing most people have is that if it can't be played or touched by onlookers, then it's not worth a damn thing. Now back to this car.

This design has more of a Corvette look and feel to it (at least to me). YSSMAN provided great pictures in Post #8. I think this car looks like either a Corvette or a 1993 Mazda RX-7 up front by design. The diamond-edge design up front looks aggressive for a sports car like this. After all, you need to have some aggressive style for a sports car. Otherwise, it will just be vanilla to most auto enthusiasts. I could imagine the final model having a wide enclosing for the headlights like on the Ford GT or the Aston Martin DB9. Now for the rear. I likely wouldn't fret too much about the rear. I'd move this stuff outward so that the light cluster doesn't look completely ugly. I actually see this car looking very good from the back. I also envision this as maybe being a GT race car if someone was lovingly willing to make a works model for its retail version. Wheels on concept cars can be pretty horrid at times. They look pretty good on this machine.

Out of 100% approval for this concept design, I give this about 80% approval. I don't think it's all that bad. Only thing that could kill it for me is if it has more vents than the TVR Sagaris and has the ugliness to scare children from miles away with its looks.

 

[Max_DC]

I still don't like the new concept, but as many said, let's wait for a final design, I don't think that they'll release it like this...

 

[kikie]

The more I look at the photos, the more I like the design. The rear windows does look odd though.

 

[a6m5]

Are we having some kind of reading comprehension problems? In some Toyota sports concept thread, some were flipping out, demanding that Toyota stop the teasing with the next Supra, when Toyota never said anything about Supra. Now some of you are crying that this car is not the new NSX. This car will replace the NSX, as in it will take the place as the flagship sports car. This car is not the next NSX. I do also wish that the NSX replacement was the new NSX, however.

As for the car, I like it a lot. I commented that I was really impressed by the Lexus LF-A, but I like the front of this car even better. 👍 The back looks like it's going to be a project, but this model being the early concept, Honda has plenty of time to work it out.

 

[JohnBM01]

It's like I say (and a6m5 is right)... the thing with concept cars is to imagine it was a retail model. Hardly ever do a concept car and its retail version look almost exactly alike. I think the last machine to very closely resemble its concept version (or at least look conceptual) was the Isuzu Vehicross. Just imagine how the car would look if you were to see it at a car dealer someday in the future. Just think about how it would look as a retail or "final" car. THEN make your comments/complaints. You dig? So go easy on this thing for now.

 

[Dave A]

TVR's dont change much from concept to production.

 

[Jim Prower]

TVR's dont change much from concept to production.

TVRs are also limited-production automobiles that are handbuilt form scratch.

 

[Dave A]

So, that has very little to do with the ability for a car company to make a concept that doesn't need much change to become a production reality.

 

[Mt. Lynx]

What are the Japanese carmanufacturers up to? Both this and the LF-A concept has way too much designcues from the RX8, and that is not too much of a looker to start with.
I like the GT-R far more, simply because that is actaully more of a natural evolution of what it will replace.

 

[F1GTR]

It's a front mounted V10?

Ok, that's not a NSX, and I will never see it as the next NSX. The mid engine V6 is what gave it a very unique standard in Japan when most of its competitors were front engines.

I see new Acura sportscar, not NSX successor. Disgrace to the name.

Completely agree with you. An FR NSX?! The creators need their heads checked.