It was 1990 when the Japanese automaker brought the fabled NSX sports car to life, both under its own brand and as an Acura in the United States. Part of the JDM-style popular car culture, the 30-year old two-seat, mid-engine model has gone through just two generation cycles... and still managed to leave a long-lasting impression on the world in the meantime.
Originally developed from the HP-X (Honda Pininfarina eXperimental) project, the NSX was conceived by the Japanese carmaker as a response to European V8-powered supercars of the time (with particular aim at Ferrari’s work).
It aimed to exceed the rivals in performance, but still commit to the known philosophy of delivering outstanding reliability and affordable pricing (for the segment, at least).
Praised by fans and automotive experts, the Honda / Acura NSX had very advanced aerodynamics, the world’s first series-produced all-aluminum bodywork, as well as an important contribution from Ayrton Senna during the late development stages.
No wonder its first generation – on sale between 1990 and 2005 – made such a strong impression on the high-performance car aficionados of the time. Thus, the company soon revealed plans to introduce a successor – although those were repeatedly thwarted until the Japanese maker finally managed to bring to life the second generation.
This time around the NSX letters had a different meaning – changed from the original’s “New, Sportscar, eXperimental” to “New Sports eXperience” along with the production location.
The modern reincarnation gave up its usual home in Japan for Honda’s American assembly facility and Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, Ohio. It was also a significant technical departure – featuring all-wheel drive and a mid-engine hybrid powertrain.
The NSX now has a special 30th anniversary section on Honda’s Japanese website, and has announced that it will celebrate with 30 instances of unique, dedicated content – from videos (one is embedded below) or the history of both generations, to messages from customers and official thoughts on the “inheritance of technologies that Honda has put into the NSX.”
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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