Acura NSX -- mixing mean with green -- to be U.S.-built
Honda to engineer, assemble new sports car in Ohio
Photo credit: ACURA
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DETROIT -- Japan's Ferrari-fighter is back and this time Honda Motor Co. plans to engineer and build the sports car in the United States.
Honda said today the all-new Acura NSX will go on sale in the United States within three years.
The automaker said the NSX will be built at a unique, advanced manufacturing operation in central Ohio, close to where Honda operates two assembly plants.
Honda said engineering and development of the NSX will take place at its research center in Raymond, Ohio.
Two decades ago, Honda surprised the auto world with the NSX, a sports car filled with then-futuristic features such as an all-aluminum body-in-white, titanium connecting rods and air conditioning that worked at 15 or 150 mph.
As smooth and refined as a Honda Accord around town, the Acura-branded NSX would scream to life when you stomped on the gas pedal.
Its handling was crisp and precise and the brakes sure. The NSX could sit in Los Angeles rush hour and not overheat. It made the Ferraris of the era seem clunky -- and all for the relative bargain price of $60,000.
But Acura left the NSX untouched for too long, and it faded away after more than a decade on the market.
Now the NSX is back, with a new round of high-tech features designed to wow customers who want green with their zoom.
Honda CEO Takanobu Ito said the NSX will reach dealerships within three years.
The NSX concept unveiled at the Detroit auto show has a midmounted V-6 direct-injection engine combined with a dual-clutch transmission with a built-in electric motor.
To increase traction, the NSX's two-motor electric-drive unit also has an adjustable torque control system that delivers positive torque to the outside front wheel and negative torque to the inside front wheel during cornering. Regenerative brakes will also deliver power to the hybrid drive system.
"The NSX will make the driver one with the car, to enhance dynamic driving abilities without getting in the way," Ito said in a release.
Similar to the original NSX, the NSX concept favors weight-saving technology over brute force torque for better performance.
Ito, who was a body engineer on the original NSX, said: "We will again express high performance through engineering efficiency."
Length: 170.5 in.
Width: 74.6 in.
Height: 45.7 in.
You can reach Mark Rechtin at mrechtin@crain.com. -- Follow Mark on 
