2017 Acura NSX<\/a> \u2014 is hitting dealer lots. I say sequel loosely, because the two generations of NSX share a badge and almost nothing else. The 2001 BMW M3 and 2016 BMW M2 I reviewed recently may be 15 years apart, but their shared DNA is instantly familiar: inline-6 engines, taut 3,500-pound chassis, aggressive kidney grilles.<\/p>\nThe two NSX are supercars for different times.<\/p>\n
The first generation, born in 1989 in Japan, was the first aluminum supercar made \u2014 and for much less than luxurious brands like Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche. Jump forward a quarter century and NSX II once again does supercar on the cheap \u2014 but this time it\u2019s Made in America (Marysville, Ohio) in the e-Age with a hybrid powertrain.<\/p>\n
True to its Clarion Builds mission, the \u201cCaelum Blu\u201d \u201991 NSX \u2014 rebuilt from the ground up by Autowave in California \u2014 is significantly updated. Lower, wider, with 18-inch-front\/19-rear wheels and front spoiler and rear wing off the track-tuned, 1992 NSX-R, it looks hungrier, more modern even with its oh-so-20th century pop-up headlamps.<\/p>\n
Inside, I sit in a cocoon of luxury, cradled by leather seats and surrounded by Clarion\u2019s five-speaker, all-digital audio system. Coming soon to a galaxy near you.<\/p>\n
But turn the key and roll out of Clarion\u2019s Farmington Hills garage, and I\u2019m transformed back to the early \u201990s when Macaulay Culkin was adorable, Joe Montana dominated the NFL, and the Clintons were sleazing American politics. Well, some things never change.<\/p>\n
This car feels more like my ol\u2019 1979 BMW M1 supercar than the 21st century NSX cyborg. No head room. No power steering, No squared-off steering wheel. Clarion head unit aside, the NSX\u2019s console is pedestrian compared to the \u201917 car\u2019s sci-fi layout. No sport-mode dial. No Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. Only a slanted, multi-media display that is blinded by sunlight.<\/p>\n
Clarion yanked the tired, 230,000-mile (!), 207-horse 3.0-liter V6 and stuffed in the 3.2-liter V6 found in 2004 NSX models. Add supercharger and output is now a beefy 344-horsepower. But the engine\u2019s character is still that of the high-revving, normal aspirated engine of old. Row the classic NSX\u2019s tight manual box (kids, ask grandpa to explain a manual shifter to you), and the car accelerates to a glorious 8-grand crescendo.<\/p>\n
Floor the new NSX and instant torque flattens your face. Zero-to-60 for the oldster: 4.8 seconds. For the new, second-gen hybrid NSX? Three-point-oh.<\/p>\n
The new, \u201cjewel-eyed\u201d car is better in every measure, including its road-hugging, torque-vectoring all-wheel-drive system. How spoiled I felt in the new NSX with its grip-fitted, electronic steering compared to the old car\u2019s heavy, hydraulic steering. NSX II\u2019s style is cleaner and more sculpted, though the new car does pay homage to its forebear with horizontal rear lights and a view into the mid-mounted engine.<\/p>\n
The \u201991 car is more cab-forward in its design \u2014 illustrative of an era of cab-forward Chrysler LH cars and Formula One racers of the day \u2014 yet with Clarion\u2019s subtle visual tweaks (and barking exhaust courtesy of AEM Induction Systems) it turned heads wherever I went in Metro Detroit.<\/p>\n
I parked next to a new, Porsche Panamera GTS in Bloomfield Hills. German sports sedan meets Japanese sports coupe. A nice pair in the garage.<\/p>\n
A new, hybrid 2017 NSX doesn\u2019t come cheap. It may be well south of the $900,000 you\u2019ll shell out for a hybrid Porsche 918, but \u2014 at $160,000 base \u2014 it is a $60,000 dearer than the (inflation-adjusted) cost of a \u201991 NSX today. Of course, the Clarion Builds version should go for well north of that at Barrett-Jackson.<\/p>\n
But isn\u2019t digital Jagger at 8,000 rpm worth the premium?<\/p>\n
1991 Clarion Builds Acura NSX<\/strong><\/p>\nSpecifications<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\nVehicle type:<\/strong> Mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, two-passenger sports car<\/strong><\/p>\nPrice:<\/strong> TBD at auction<\/strong><\/p>\nPower plant:<\/strong> 3.2-liter supercharged V-6<\/strong><\/p>\nPower:<\/strong> 344 horsepower, 247 pound-feet torque<\/strong><\/p>\nTransmission:<\/strong> Six-speed manual<\/strong><\/p>\nPerformance:<\/strong> 0-60 mph, 4.8 seconds (Clarion)<\/strong><\/p>\nWeight: 3,200<\/strong> pounds<\/strong><\/p>\nFuel economy:<\/strong> NA<\/strong><\/p>\nReport card<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\nHighs:<\/strong> Wicked, updated styling; one-of-a-kind<\/strong><\/p>\nLows:<\/strong> Sure you don\u2019t want the new, superquick 2017 NSX?<\/strong><\/p>\nOverall:<\/strong>\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Want to melt your ear drums? Rolling onto I-696\u2019s Orchard Lake on-ramp, I put the Stones\u2019 \u201cSympathy for the Devil\u201d on full volume. Then I unleash the supercharged Acura NSX\u2019s 340 supercharged horses. With Jagger screaming and the twin pipes roaring, I enter the freeway with the throttle wide open at 8000 RPM. Eat your […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19022"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19022"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19022\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19023,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19022\/revisions\/19023"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19022"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19022"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19022"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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