Acura still waiting for NSX's halo effect

LOS ANGELES -- Acura's new NSX is the brand's long-awaited halo car. So now that the wait is over, where's the halo?

Honda's luxury division has been working to inject more performance identity into its lineup. And it has long hoped that having a 573-hp all-wheel-drive hybrid supercar might help put an exclamation point on the rest of the brand's performance chops and, in turn, sell more vehicles.

That hasn't happened yet. Sales for the year are down 9.3 percent through September, thanks largely to a tepid take rate for its sedans (down 17 percent).

Despite this poor showing, Acura is encouraged by its online data that show one in four visitors to the NSX's Web page goes on to view other Acura models, a number Acura says is well above average.

"That's definitely something we hope to translate into sales later down the line," Jon Ikeda, Acura's general manager, told Automotive News. "As soon as possible is our dream point."

Acura is already using the NSX to bolster the image of its other models. Several spots in a slick new TV ad campaign for the freshened 2017 MDX feature a cameo by the NSX.

But linking a mainstream model to its halo car could be trickier for Acura than most other brands.

The problem is the massive price gulf between the NSX and anything else in Acura's lineup. The NSX starts at just under $158,000 and can easily pass $200,000 when loaded with options. The next model down is the RLX, which starts at around $55,000.

"A halo car is most effective when it's at least somewhat relative to the rest of the lineup," Ed Kim, vice president for industry analysis at AutoPacific, told Automotive News. "A person in the market for a $200,000 supercar isn't the person who will be tempted into buying a $40,000 TLX."

Nearly every other automaker peddling a headline-grabbing sports car has something else pricey or relevant to offer those customers, meaning something else in the brand to tempt a buyer who decides to forgo the supercar. Even Nissan's GT-R has the 370Z sports car below it. 

That incongruity also holds true for the guts of the NSX. Its calling card is an awd hybrid drivetrain, which, as Acura is quick to point out, shares powertrain components with the RLX hybrid and the new MDX hybrid. 

But those models appeal to an older, more conservative buyer, not the sort to be wowed by a link to the NSX. While the current ILX and TLX have no such powertrain connections to the NSX, that could change in 2017 when an updated TLX and a redesigned ILX are expected to debut. 

Despite these challenges, Ikeda is confident he and his people have the right strategy in place to bolster the brand's renewed performance focus over time. 

He said, "You don't go and invest that kind of money in a supercar if you weren't thinking long term."