Honda has confirmed that a spiritual successor to the NSX is definitely on the way.
We originally reported that a proper Honda sports car was back on the cards back in November last year, but it is only now that Honda's president and CEO, Takanubo Ito, has officially confirmed that the new car is coming.
Speaking to Autocar magazine, Ito (who helped to develop the original NSX) said: "I really enjoyed that experience, and learned much, so it is my wish that Honda engineers have the experience of developing a sports car like the NSX in future. Within Honda, our engineers are already looking at developing such a car."
The most recent plan for a successor to the NSX was canned back in 2008, a victim of various international economic crises, and was intended to have a front-engined V10 powerplant, but Ito-san reckons that conventional sports cars need to fit in with the modern, environmentally conscious world.
"You can't depend on a high power output to call a car sporty anymore," he told Autocar. "The original NSX was about high power but also good driving performance, and today power-to-weight is what we have to focus on. The NSX was known for its aluminium body, so when we develop our new sports car we don't want to copy Ferrari for power, but to also chase efficiency as well."
The big question is whether the 'new NSX' will be a worthy successor to the original, which enjoys a well-earned place in the pantheon of PH Heroes. Only time, of course, will tell.