Acura’s NSX is a veritable sports car with an attainable price tag. The attention to detail is Honda-forged, making it reliable and fast. Does it check the boxes on your used-car shopping list?
What does F1 race car driver Ayrton Senna, F-16 fighter jets, and VTEC have in common? The first iteration of the Honda NSX. While Honda is responsible for a lot of amazing things, the term “VTEC” is synonymous with the Japanese auto giant’s name, and Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control (VTEC) got its start in the Honda NSX in the early 1990s.
The interior of the Honda NSX was inspired by an F-16 fighter jet because engineer Shigeru Uehara and the team liked the 360-degree view of the jet’s cockpit. Finally, racer Senna was directly responsible for small adjustments with the first NSX that many believe took the car from good to great.
In the early years, the NSX used a mid-engine mounted 3.0L VTEC V6, which was bumped to a 3.2L for manual owners only from 1997 to 2005, while automatic transmission owners only had access to the same 3.0L V6 for the entire production of the first-generation NSX.
The 3.0L V6 produced 270 horsepower with 210 lb.-ft. of torque and the bumped-up 3.2L V6 reported 290 horses and 224 torques.
While these numbers aren’t overly aggressive on paper, the NSX was only weighed down by its 2,910-pound all-aluminum body. Also available, the Type-S, which weighed about 100 pounds less and came with cool BBS wheels and Recaro seats.
Sales for the NSX were best at the beginning of the generation but never broke the 2,000-unit mark in the U.S. The numbers dwindled throughout the years into single digits when the NSX was taken out of production in 2005.
The pricing for the NSX ranged from $58,000 to $120,000 depending on what year and which trim you purchased. This pricing today aligns fairly well with what the second-generation NSX is sold for today.
Revival of the Acura NSX
The revival of the NSX came via word from Acura in 2007 with a promise of the sports car’s return in 2010. The timeline was foiled by “poor economic conditions” to the chagrin of car lovers everywhere, and instead, the non-street legal HSV-010 GT was produced for the Japanese Super GT Championship. It’d be another six years before the announcement of the NSX would come to fruition.
The production model was revealed at the same auto show in 2015 with preparations to be sold for the 2016 model year. Nearly a decade later, the Acura NSX was for sale for the supercar shopper.
Loosely based on the Acura ASCC (Advanced Sports Car Concept), which called for a V10, the world waited with excitement to see the new incredible engine.
Acura NSX Engine’s Power & Performance
What appeared in the mid-engine Acura NSX was not a V10. In fact, it was considered a hybrid electric (HEV). Instead, the NSX came with a twin-turbo 3.5L V6 with two strategically placed electric motors. A V6? Seriously? Hybrid electric?
Before you turn your nose up at the powertrain, the combined horsepower of the Acura NSX is good for 573 horsepower and 476 lb.-ft. of torque. The space frame chassis is made up of light aluminum and ultra high strength steel weighing in at 3,878 pounds.
This arrangement comes together with a nine-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission putting power to the ground. The unique use of two electric motors separates the NSX from other HEV econoboxes rather than relating the NSX to them.
Honda-branded Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD) is employed to help the NSX fill the intrinsic throttle gap that any ICE engine encounters.
With one electric motor on the front axle and another in the rear, the NSX can push off the line with great torque while the turbos boost and the V6 catches up. This all comes together with the precision you expect from Honda to the tune of 2.7 seconds to go from zero to sixty and a top speed of 191 mph.
It’s possible that a V10 would have looked better on a press release, but the reality is that the NSX was aimed at the Ferrari 458––their competitor at the time.
Is the Acura NSX a Good Buy?
Should you buy one? The obvious answer is “yes” from the collective car enthusiast community, but it’s understandable to need a barometer for which car to buy––even at this level of purchase.
As far as recalls go, in 2019 the NHTSA dinged the NSX with a fuel pump failure that could cause the engine to stall and increase the risk of a crash. In 2018, in addition to the fuel pump issue, a crossover pipe could leak introducing a higher risk of fire.
For the 2017 model year, the potential of the fuel crossover pipe leak continued, and just shy of 800 units were affected by the loss of brake lights, making them a hazard on the road. The NHTSA didn’t crash rate this vehicle, which makes sense due to the cost of producing the car.
To buy a new Acura NSX the MSRP is going to start around $157,500 which puts it up with competitors like the Nissan GT-R, Porsche 911 Carrera S, Mercedes AMG GT R Coupe, Audi R8, BMW i8, and the Chevrolet Corvette.
Considering some of the competitors are higher priced and have dealer imposed price hikes, you’ll need to check in your area for what best fits your budget. With such heavy hitters in this price range, you’ll also need to be sure about your Honda fandom before you choose the NSX over the others.
Some gripes from Edmunds include a “cramped, hot cargo area, an infotainment system that’s clunky and outdated and paltry in-cabin storage.”
While you’re not going to expect gigantic spaces of storage in a sports car, the outdated infotainment system is probably something to consider. With most users, the Apple CarPlay abilities will be plenty, but there still may be struggles from the sluggish response.
If you’re the type of shopper that doesn’t mind finding your NSX second-hand, you’ll not find much better prices as NSXs retain their value well, but you might be able to score a higher mileage deal nearby or in a neighboring state. This will take away some choice of features, color, etc, which can defeat the purpose of buying and personalizing a sports car you love.
If that doesn’t bother you, the used route may be a smart choice. Additionally, the NSX gets about 21 mpg combined. For a car that has over 500 horsepower, and can do what the NSX can do, that’s respectable. So you won’t be breaking your bank account every time you stop for premium unleaded.
Pros & Cons of Owning an Acura NSX
The NSX is a great option for buyers in this price range. Based on the research, though, you’d have to pass up a lot of higher pedigree options to choose the Acura. For some, it’d be a difficult task to pass up owning a Porsche 911 for a fancy Honda instead. That’s not a mark against the NSX, but a good measurement of what company this car is keeping.
You only have one trim option for the NSX, so if you do buy one new, we recommend building it with Acura directly so it can be exactly what you want. If you’re trying to save a few thousand, you can search online for a used NSX that’s close to the spec you want.
You’ll want to keep in mind that new or used, there are some options that increase the price significantly, like carbon-ceramic brakes and carbon fiber packages. If those things don’t matter to you, there’s a chance you could save considerable amounts of money compared to a new purchase.
The choice is going to come down to pure preference, but we think you can’t beat the value you’re getting with the NSX. The price, performance, and mpg are some things that can’t be ignored. Finally, the reliability of the Honda/Acura name is not always shared with the other competitors.
With very few recalls and even fewer consumer complaints, the NSX may have an edge by simply being easier to own and maintain. Whatever you choose, don’t put it in a garage. Drive it, so we can all live vicariously through you.
Photos: Acura
