Honda unleashes its 191mph 4-engined Porsche-mincing monster on the supercar playground
Honda's reluctant to share performance figures but I can tell you it fires from 0-62 in a Ferrari 488-matching 3 seconds flat
YOU can go anywhere or do anything with Honda. You can cut the grass with a robot mower. Tear across the sea by speedboat. Fly a HondaJet. Play footie with Asimo.Take granny shopping in her Jazz. Let rip on the Africa Twin. Even ride home from the pub on the UniCub. (See bottom of page if you're unsure what these are.)
Honda has got it covered. But now the world’s biggest engine maker — and one of the biggest innovators — has topped itself.
It has just brought its A-game to the supercar playground with the new NSX. And the tech is mind-blowing.
This 191mph rocketship is hooked up to THREE electric motors — one on each front wheel and one that acts like a supercharger for the 3.5-litre twin turbo V6 nestled behind you. So it’s 581hp and all-wheel-drive. And delicious.
Select Track mode, stick your left peg on the brake, right peg on the loud pedal, hold for two seconds, step off the brake . . . and whooooosh!
Honda is reluctant to share official performance figures but I can tell you it fires from 0-62mph in three seconds flat — matching the Ferrari 488 and mincing a Porsche 911 Turbo.
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Select Track mode, stick your left peg on the brake, right peg on the loud pedal, hold for two seconds, step off the brake . . . and whooooosh!
Nasa, we have lift-off. No tyre shredding, just thrust. The initial launch is well over 1G.
Throw the NSX at a bend and those e-motors work their magic. They continuously supply different levels of torque to the front left and right wheels for hero cornering and even crazier exit speeds.
It sounds epic too, with no interruption of power charging up the nine-speed gearbox. Not even a little blip.
But here’s the rub. The NSX can also be as saintly as a BMW i8. Put it in Quiet mode and it will glide along up to 50mph for two miles on pure electric.
That’ll please the neighbours when you’re up early for a little “run out”. So, lastly, the price. How much is it?
It starts at 138,000 English Pounds but you’ll easily add another £20,000 ticking the box for ceramic racing brakes and opting for a high-carbon diet.
Small beer for some NSX addicts. One hundred Brits put down £5,000 deposits before the spec or prices had even been announced and now there’s a TWO-YEAR wait.
It sounds like a decent investment too.
A Honda dealer in Cornwall has just bought an original NSX for £70,000 — the same price he sold it for in 1990. That’s cheap, sexy motoring.
VERDICT: Clever, understated, less willy-waving than a Ferrari, but just as nose-bleed fast.
HONDA NSX KEY STATS
Price: £137,950
Power: 3.5-litre twin turbo V6 with three electric motors
Output: 581hp
Torque: 646Nm
0-62mph: 3 secs
Top speed: 191mph
Economy: 28mpg
CO2: 228g/km
Six top Honda toys
HONDA has more toys than Argos. Here are some of my favourites:
HONDAJET
Price: £3.6million
Top speed: 483mph
7-seat business jet climbs 3,990ft a minute
AFRICA TWIN
Price: £10,499
Power: 998cc
Bulletproof and built for adventure
UNICUB
Price: £5,000
Top speed: 4mph
Mobility scooter glides along on 30 mini-wheels
ASIMO
Price: £1million
Top speed: 5.6mph
Humanoid robot can run, dance, hop, climb stairs and play football
SPEEDBOAT ENGINES
Price: £11,550 for BF115
Output: 115hp
Honda makes 14 marine engines from 2.3hp to 250hp
ROBOT MOWER
Price: £2,299
Run time: 70 mins
The Miimo 510 cuts lawns all by itself