Wednesday 14th January 2015

NSX worth the wait? PH Blog

After all the build-up why was the NSX overshadowed by Ford's GT at Detroit?

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There was a cruel moment on the first press day at the Detroit show. Just as the production NSX was being unveiled on the Acura stand, the Ford GT was being moved onto the Ford stand nearby. And a fair percentage of the watching hacks’ heads moved with it – turning from the brand new, and long awaited, sports car sitting on stage in front of them, to the previously unannounced one that was passing in the distance.

Like a GTA fictionalised sports car?

Of course, home team advantage and all that. And this year’s Detroit show is definitely going to be remembered as the place we first saw the GT. But I also found myself wondering if it was a moment that demonstrated the awkward truth that the NSX really doesn’t seem as exciting as it should be.

That was true of the original concept three years ago. And now the finished article is equally lacking in sports car venom. The side profile is okay – a bit Audi R8ish – but from front or rear it’s very generic. And, yes, slightly dull. It looks like one of those half recognisable almost cars from a Grand Theft Auto game.

The GT was the complete opposite. The biggest problem at Detroit was actually getting a chance to see it through the throng. During both press days it seemed to be permanently surrounded by a crowd of admirers, some of who were even senior execs from rival carmakers. I know the GT is a very different car to the NSX; it will be pricier and aimed at more senior competition for starters. But don’t forget that both of these cars have been created for the same reason, to demonstrate new technologies and reflect some glory onto their respective ranges. The Ford screams that with the bravado you’d expect. The NSX – on first impressions – is mumbling.

NSX should have been the big story...

This is all making me sound very shallow, isn’t it? The proof for both cars will be in the way they drive. And there’s no doubting that the NSX’s exotic spec sheet reads like the engineering team have spent the last three years doing at least one impossible thing before breakfast every day. One way of looking at it is, as a commentator on our original show story put it, basically a Porsche 918 Spyder for not much more than a tenth of the money.

Yet there’s an equal amount of be said in favour of Ford’s simpler approach. The GT has to demonstrate the power and the flexibility of the Ecoboost V6, but beyond that nothing has been allowed to compromise performance. Hence a car that’s wide, slippery and is going to have huge aero. And one that will be going to Le Mans.

I’d love Honda to prove me wrong but the new NSX seems a bit too Zen to go racing. I certainly wouldn’t bet against it being better to drive than it is to look at – despite being developed in the States under the Acura brand, Honda remains an engineering-led company. So fingers crossed – but sports cars should have a bit of swagger as well.

Mike Duff

[vz-r_dave]

I love the look, the proportions are almost perfect. If you take the original NSX for example, that was quite reserved when you lined it up with the Ferrari's and Lambo's of the time. So not much has changed in that regard. I agree that the GT is on another planet but for me this is by no means underwhelming. Look forward to seeing it on track as I am sure it will be fantastic. I guess we await the R version, challenger to the big dogs

Edited by vz-r_dave on Wednesday 14th January 13:35

[Dave Hedgehog]

its an utter design mess, so fussy, random bits, bumps and lumps shoved all over the front end

made worse by the fact the original cars design was so clean and pure

Edited by Dave Hedgehog on Wednesday 14th January 13:34

[k-ink]

Not exactly exciting and sexy is it. More like a corporate extension to other saloons on the way...

[cayman-black]

I would be looking at that Ford as well, its stunning! NSX hmm does nothing for me.

[vz-r_dave]

k-ink said:

Not exactly exciting and sexy is it. More like a corporate extension to other saloons on the way...

My word, a manufacturer uses the same design philosophy across it's current range..... shock horror. Audi R8.....

[poobah]

Whilst I think they've missed a trick visually with the NSX, I think I might be the only person on the planet right now that thinks the new Ford GT looks like it was designed by committee. It looks like people locked in seperate rooms designed the front, middle and rear.

Referencing the post about the smooth lines of the original NSX, the Ford designers have also missed the mark when you compare the new GT to the previous model and the GT40. Certainly no design classic!

[zerovira]

I think the only that the new NSX can do to save itself from disappointing a huge legion of fans is wiping the floor with the GTR.

If its really "porsche 918 tech at 10% the price" it should do something like 7:10 at the ring while costing around 100k. That would be the only excuse.

For me, I don't really care about nurburgring times or whatever, and I don't like it. A pity because the original is really sexy. I saw one years ago in a car show and I found it surprisingly little, in a good sense.

[scubadude]

Dave Hedgehog said:

made worse by the fact the original cars design was so clean and pure

Agreed, although the original was (to my knowledge) never hailed as a truly beautiful car at the time I'm struggling to think of much that has come out since that is a more pure and undiluted sports car.

I saw a red one like this at a track day last year- being used in anger, wonderful sound, quick and if you've not seen one in real life- surprisingly low. Frankly this new one looks like some Hyundia cross over compared to that Ford GT thing, which looks like a total beast.

[mikearwas]

At 60-70k I would be interested. At 100k you have to really want one and would be overlooking some brilliant conventionally powered exotica.

[MarshPhantom]

The last one was hardly a big hit, despite the links with Senna. Can't see this doing too well.

[vz-r_dave]

MarshPhantom said:

The last one was hardly a big hit, despite the links with Senna. Can't see this doing too well.

Why?

[tomjol]

Seemed inevitable to me that the NSX would be considered a let-down by some. We first saw the bones of the car three years ago, and the hype has died down. Throw in a (shock?) new GT, and we end up here.

[toon10]

The original more pure design really worked well. The new one looks like an Aston at the rear and an R8 everywhere else. I wasn't a massive fan of the looks of the R8 when it first came out let alone now.

[Blu3R]

vz-r_dave said:

My word, a manufacturer uses the same design philosophy across it's current range..... shock horror. Audi R8.....

Isn't that the point? The Ford GT looks like nothing else on the earth and has made jaws drop, this hasn't.

I get the feeling this NSX will be like history repeating itself - they won't sell many over here despite it being an amazing drive because it looks like it does. I'm hugely disappointed.

[Lost soul]

k-ink said:

Not exactly exciting and sexy is it. More like a corporate extension to other saloons on the way...

Compare the original to the mainstream Hondas in the showrooms at the time

[RichwiththeS2000]

Too much tech in the NSX. 10 years down the line (when I might be able to afford one), the batteries will all be shot, the convoluted electric motors and accompanying transmission will be a mess of broken sensors and failing parts. The jagged polygon lines of the body will age terribly, too.

The GT is simple, to the point, and much better looking IMO!

Making a note to come back in 2025 to see if I was right ;-)

[iwantcheese5]

I still think that they should have developed the styling from the HSV-010 SuperGT car, that had the makings of a far more sleek looking car. It also had a beautiful sounding engine in the racecar.

[ultrastapler]

It's certainly not a beautiful car, though I remember the original was not lauded for it's looks when released as others have mentioned. Maybe in Takata green and white...

That new Ford GT looks ghastly though, especially when compared to the GT40/GT shape

[vanschpunk]

Im a massive Ford fan and absolutely love the GT. The NSX is a stunner too and im not a Honda fan by all means.

But the NSX was purely overshadowed, because Ford released its halo model on the same day as the NSX, but in Fords own back yard. It would have been a flip sided release, if it had been the Tokyo Motor Show, instead of the Detroit Motor Show.

And that red Honda Accord posted up there ^^ is a stunner too.

[British Beef]

ultrastapler said:

It's certainly not a beautiful car, though I remember the original was not lauded for it's looks when released as others have mentioned. Maybe in Takata green and white...

That new Ford GT looks ghastly though, especially when compared to the GT40/GT shape

I think that Ford GT is stunning and the most ground breaking design in a long while, certainly more interesting than the mainstream supercars from Mclaren, Ferrari, Porsche and even Lamborgini IMO.

The fact it comes with no Hybrid BS is an extra bonus as far as I am concerned!