Acura News Episode 1

I consider this a work in progress, but with the Destination RLX event just around the corner, I wanted to post this now, and improve on this in the next episode.

The Avengers Pre-Screening Presented by Acura of Honolulu

On April 3rd Acura of Honolulu hosted a pre-screening of the new Avengers movie at the Ward 16 theaters.  About 250 lucky Acura enthusiasts had an opportunity to view this exciting summer blockbuster a few days ahead of the national release date.  Acura is the Official Vehicle of  S.H.I.E.L.D in the new movie and several Acura's were seen briefly in the film, including a quick look at a convertable NSX prototype.  Several were actually blown up, unfortunately, none were ZDXs.

New NSX Concept Rendered

The new NSX isn't ready for the street yet, but you can see it in action in this great video by Acura.  The animations illustrate how the new Sport Hybrid SH-AWD system works to harvest energy and improve the handling and overall performance. 

The Acura HSC Concept Car

Acura is pretty tight-lipped when it comes to prototype and concept cars, and this holds true for the Honda Sports Concept (HSC). However, some details have been released. First off, Honda officials have admitted that this is a design study for the next generation NSX. Those that have seen the car at the Tokyo and Detroit auto shows confirm that this is a working car.

The frame is lightweight aluminum and the body is of carbon fiber and other composite parts. The car continues as a mid-engine design for balanced handling and minimal weight transfer under braking and acceleration.

The prototype is fitted with large, 245 front and 295 rear tires on 19 and 20 inch wheels. These are much larger than the current NSX and possibly too large for the actual production car, though they sure look great! The biggest mystery is in the drive train. Honda’s president is promising us over 300 hp for the new car and Formula 1 style paddle shifters.

Now for some speculation on my part. Could this car have Hybrid power to boost performance and efficiency? Could Honda engineers have solved the emissions problems with turbocharging? If so, would they dare to bring out a turbo engine after years of non-turbo vehicles? Watch this space for more details as we learn them.


The 2002 Acura NSX

The Acura NSX is returning for it’s 10th model year, this all-aluminum car is little changed from it’s introduction back in 1991. In 1995, Acura introduced an aluminum targa top which promptly became the best selling model. In 1997, the manual models were upgraded to a 6-speed and the engine was enlarged to improve horsepower from 270 Hp to 290. The result is one of the best sports cars available, regardless of price.

During a recent comparison test, Mario Andretti said, “...I’m not surprised that the NSX lap times were the second-fastest because it was the car I was most comfortable in.” High praise indeed. For 2002, this aluminum exotic gets new fixed headlights in place of the previous pop-up lights.