New Honda NSX The long-awaited successor to the original Honda NSX sports car. Its gestation has been long and tortuous, with frequent redesigns and cancellations, but the car finally seems to be on the home stretch. We saw the NSX concept at several motor shows throughout 2013, but Honda confirms that its 2013 Frankfurt appearance will be its last before a proper production car is revealed. Weve not heard much throughout 2014, making a mooted mid-2015 debut look optimistic, but 2015 could finally see the production car revealed. The latest incarnation of the road-going Honda NSX concept car also made its debut at the Mid-Ohio Raceway ahead of an Indycar race at the circuit. The latest concept previews the return of the NSX via a tech-heavy four-wheel-drive hybrid supercar, tackling the Nissan GT-R and Porsche 911 GT3, as well as the new BMW i8. Engine A V6, mid-engined layout remains, but this time as part of a hybrid drivetrain. The engine, along with main electric motor will primarily drive the rear wheels, via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, with a couple of supplementary motors powering the front axle. Honda dubs the torque vectoring system SH-AWD, short for Super Handling All Wheel Drive. A combined power output of over 400bhp is anticipated, and could be as high as 500bhp - significantly greater than that of its closest modern equivalent, the BMW i8. In reality, Honda is said to be targeting the Ferrari 458 Italia in terms of performance. Design and engineering 2015s NSX will be very different from its predecessor, but maintains central Honda tenets of efficiency and high-quality engineering. Assuming the production model doesn’t grow significantly, the NSX will have a relatively small footprint, which will be smaller than the McLaren 12C and Ferrari 458 - and is a strict two-seater. Honda hasn’t yet released a weight figure, but its thought that the focus on hybrid technology means it probably won’t be the delicate lightweight sportscar that the original was. Global development of the car is being performed by Hondas Ohio R&D team, led by Ted Klaus, while the company has previously confirmed the new NSX will be built in a new Performance Manufacturing Centre in Ohio. The fact that the NSX primarily a US project means it is badged as an Acura, although the European and Japanese models will wear the Honda name. Although the bulk of the development work is being done in the USA, the all-important design and engineering work on the engine and electric drivetrain is well underway in Hondas Japanese home. Due to the recent F1 engine deal between Honda and McLaren, there is also the possibility of input from the British manufacturer for a future Type-R model. The new £46m (70m dollars) advanced production facility has been built in close proximity to Honda’s main Ohio plant, although much like the first NSX’s super high-tech Japanese factory (Takanezawa), is entirely self-contained. The company will pick 100 employees from current operations in Ohio to build the NSX. We first got a peek inside the NSX at the 2013 Detroit motor show, and its mix of leather, carbon and what looks like Alcantara appears beautifully crafted. With shades of the Lexus LFA’s wondrous cabin, it looks simplistic, and the driver-focussed layout makes a Nissan GT-R look uncouthly cluttered. On sale? Honda opened the order books for the NSX in the UK in early 2014, ahead of a planned Summer 2015 launch, and although UK prices are still to be announced, they are expected to start at around £100,000 – securely in Audi R8 or Porsche 911 territory. Amazingly, pre-orders have already been filled, despite no customer having yet seen the finished article, let alone driven it. evo comment Considering the concept car has been doing the rounds for what seems like an eternity, there’s still a fair amount we don’t know about the new NSX. What we do know, however – three electric motors, a twin-turbo V6 engine and a target weight of 1400kg – might just make this one of the most exciting cars of the next few years. It may be taking a slightly different approach, but considering how spectacular the original was, we wouldn’t put it past Honda to knock this one out of the park.
Posted on: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 05:16:20 +0000
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