Automotive Reminder

"Wobbles the Mind" (wobblesthemind) 06/04/2016 at 18:32 • Filed to: Acura NSX

4

2

Back in 2008, that beast above was said to be a 550 hp, 5.0L V10 Acura NSX successor. It would have started deliveries around the same time as the future 553 hp, 4.8L V10 Lexus LFA (speculated in early 2011). The prototype above unofficially ran a 7:37 around the Nurburgring. Good at the time, especially when the LFA ended up doing a 7:38 upon arrival. We all also knew the Acura would undercut whatever the Lexus would be priced at. However there was a major issue that occurred...

It’s worth mentioning that the Nissan GT-R had turned in a lap time of 7:29 just two months before it went on sale in July 2008. That was a 480 hp, twin-turbo 3.8L V6 behemoth that had a starting price of $70,475. That’s right, a car that could beat down a Porsche 911 Turbo or Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 Roadster right out of the box, successor of the most fantasized about vehicle of that decade...and maybe this one, was going on sale in TWO MONTHS!

Let’s be real for a moment here. Most of us would have thrown out the car, because why make something that is going to be far slower and twice the price of a rival who’s legacy is slaying supercars? Then consider that in addition to that Nissan issue the car would need to compete with the hottest Audi ever made, the best versions of the 911, and the child of all the performance resources the Toyota brand has to offer?

It is only in hindsight that we believe Honda should have gone the Toyota route and finished the project they started. The Lexus LFA was released knowing it wouldn’t have a competitive edge in the market. It was released even though the US’s Great Recession (2007-2009) was expected to cause lasting deflationary period much like what Japan was still impacted by due to it’s own Lost Decade. When the largest car market in the world tanks and is expected to stay down you usually pull the reigns in on any costly endeavors that aren’t too far down the line.

So we can look at how Toyota handled the Lexus LFA and how Honda handled the NSX as two opposing responses to the same situation. The roles could easily have been reversed and we would still be fantasizing about some Japanese V10 sportscar being one of the greatest machines ever created even before the last “new” model was sold off.

Automakers, never stop making something exceptional. At the very least release enough so that buyers know that you are still capable of such feats. The automotive market changes quickly, and the customers change even faster. The only constant is that a great driver’s car is always a great driver’s car. Great brands sell cars but it’s great cars that sell a brand.

Viggen > Wobbles the Mind 06/04/2016 at 19:28

0

What could have been an awesome car. At least it saw action in Super GT.

dsgolson > Wobbles the Mind 06/04/2016 at 23:49

0

I really wish that this had gone into production.