Friday 16th January 2015

Honda NSX-R: Time For Tea?

Remind yourself how much the new car has to live up to with a very special 'ring lap

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Truth be told, this video has been Time For Tea? contention for a while. It's that good. Now with the new Honda NSX finally out in the open, when better to celebrate the original?

Moreover, this isn't just any old NSX, it's an NSX-R. At the Nurburgring. Lapping in less than eight minutes. Most wouldn't bat an eyelid at that today but a 7:56 back in 2004 was a notable achievement, particularly when you look at the spec. It's just 5hp up on the Megane Trophy-R (picked as an entirely random example...) and the weight advantage is only 27kg in the Honda's favour. The Megane has another 40lb ft of torque and we all know how far tyre technology has come in a decade too. That 7:56 lap still stands up as a great one.

Especially when you watch it. This video has the benefit of a foot and tacho cam so it's a really immersive experience. And the NSX looks an absolute joy. A tight, precise shift, perfectly placed pedals and an engine that just begs to be revved. And a steering wheel that's just a steering wheel. Our man behind it certainly knows what he's doing too.

I've lost count of the amount of times I've actually watched this. For me the best section is the two minutes from 5:25 that covers the corner before the Karussell to just past Pflanzgarten. It's fast, committed and just plain brilliant.

But the whole thing is great really, particularly if you have a penchant for NSXs. Let's see what the new one can do.

Watch the video here.

 

 

[Sampaio]

In my opinion the NSX and specially the Type R is one of the best cars ever made, and would certainly be present on my dream garage.

[Sampaio]

Schermerhorn said:

The original NSX competed with the Ferrari 348, F355 and 360 Mondena and in NSX-R form was a credible rival to the F430. It was THAT good.

And it had 'only' 280 BHP.

It's a shame that when a new performance car shows up with anything less than 300bhp nowadays it's immediately considered slow and useless. The fastest car I've driven had the modest amount of 225bhp and it felt pretty good in terms of acceleration, could obviously cope with a little more, but I can only imagine that after a certain point (probably that 280-300bhp mark) things would get unnecessarily fast and dangerous, and I know I wouldn't be enjoying myself then.

Read any review of a car with more than 300bhp and it'll either be something like an RS6 - fast but too heavy and vague in feel; or a 911 GT3 / 458 Speciale - fast, agile, precise, but you can only exploit it on the track or a closed mountain road.

I guess the japanese weren't mad for setting that 280bhp limit in the 90's after all...

[Sampaio]

havoc said:

mp3manager said:

Only 1,000km!

http://www.goo-net-exchange.com/usedcars/HONDA/NSX...

Love the features list on that ad....Japlish at its best.

"Satisfactory engine" - made me think of the SniffPetrol ads from Knockers & Snatch...

Hyundai NSX R-Type. Rear-wheel engined. Mid-driven. Limited slip gearbox. 6-speed differential.

Optional extras: OEM alcantara sports suspension.