Excited? Honda’s premium brand is not saying much, but here is what we found out so far. Acura introduce this Acura Advanced Sports Car Concept (ASCC) at the 2007 Detroit Auto Show. If this concept car does go into production, we are still unsure if it’s going to be called a NSX. NSX stands for “New Sportscar Xperimental,” and this car fits just that.
Engine:
It is rumored that it will have a front mounted V10 with at least 500 horsepower. But it can also just have either a V8, a twin turbocharged V6, or even a high power hybrid system. But for now we really think it will have a 5.5L V10 with 550 horse power and 420 pound-feet. We know Honda is going for Green. But since its going out as an Acura brand… who knows. But the final product will have plans for CO2 emissions cap in European Union and much higher fuel economy standards here in the U.S.
Drive train:
Rumors have it that will have a new Honda-designed double clutch automated manual transmission with 8 speed-steering wheel shift paddles. Most likely it will be All-Wheel-Drive (SH-AWD) or might even come out with rear wheel drive.
Brakes:
The concept model shown had ceramic brake disc.
Exterior:
It has a similar shape of a Corvette but its bigger then a Corvette. It’s around the same size as a 2008 Jaguar XK. It has its traditional long hood. Also has a carbon fiber underbody and integrated rear diffusers. It also has an all glass roof on the concept model but we are not sure if it will have it on the production model. The headlights and tail lights has high-tech LED lighting. We will have to wait to see how the production model will look like as it will be different from the concept model.
Interior:
The cockpit will have lots of leather, aluminum, and/or carbon fiber. It’s going to have lots of luxury goodies such as multi-adjustable sports seat, rear view camera, and navigation system. This will be a 2+2 sports car.
Wheels:
The concept had 19 inch front and 20 inch rears wheels.
Price:
It should be around $100,000.00 to $130,000.00. This car is not going to be a high production car, so it’s going to be hard to get your hands on one. Plus there will be mark ups on this car as well.
Release Date:
We don’t know the release date as it’s not announced. We are not even sure if this concept will go into production. But what we been hearing from rumors and also there are pictures of this new concept being tested at the Nurburgring, Germany. For now we think it will either come out in 2010 or 2011.
Updates:
The new Acura Concept was caught at the Nurburgring in Germany before. The new V10 engine was put into a wider and longer S2000 rear wheel drive for testing. It was reported that it did 8:00 minutes in the ring. Takeo Fukui, CEO of Honda, is aiming to beat the new 2009 Nissan GT-R lap time of 7:29. He also wants to beat the new Toyota/Lexus LF-A. The recent pictures of the Acura at the Nurburgring were completed disguised but from the looks of it, lots of changes from the concept model presented at the 2007 Detroit Auto Show.
Martins Thoughts:
I’m very excited if this new Acura NSX will come into production in the near future. I’m happy to see Japan is putting themselves back on the map regarding sports cars and changing the maps of supercars. The new 2009 Nissan GT-R is just about here in the U.S. then there’s also the new Toyota/Lexus LF-A. The 3 big Japanese car makers is in competition against each other and staying on top of the game. As for the looks, we will have to wait to see how the final production will look like as it will look different from the concept. The concept does look good and has a very exotic appearance. As for the performance, we will also have to wait and see how it did at the Nurburgring. But I know for sure it will have amazing performance. Will the Acura NSX carry its name and heritage? Will it beat the 2009 Nissan GT-R and the Toyota/Lexus LF-A at the Nurburgring and be king of the ring? We will have to wait and find out. So stay tuned!
