Honda NSX sprints in from $420k
BY TIM NICHOLSON | 1st Aug 2016
The Japanese car-maker promises that the NSX will be packed with features and super exclusive, but the pricing puts it in true Euro supercar territory and exceeds the price of a number of perceived rivals.
Lamborghini’s all-paw Huracan LP610-4 is $8000 more than the NSX at $428,000, but the Honda is dearer than the just launched $389,900 Audi R8 V10 plus, the Bentley Continental GT V8 from $402,600 and the Porsche 911 Carrera Turbo at $384,900.
It is positioned well above the likes of the Mercedes-AMG GT ($294,610) and the other wildly styled hybrid sportscar – BMW’s i8 ($299,000) – but is well off the circa-$700,000 pricetag of Lexus’ strictly limited LFA supercar that was offered here in 2012.
The most expensive version of the NSX was priced at $256,500 plus costs in its final year on sale in Australia, 2004.
Honda Australia director Stephen Collins said the NSX – which already has a two-year waiting list in North America – will appeal to well-heeled buyers that demand a level of exclusivity from their supercars.
“It will be exclusive so those customers who value such exclusivity will really appreciate the Honda NSX,” he said. “It will be the must-have supercar in Australia among those owners who appreciate finely crafted automobiles.” Mr Collins described the NSX as the first hybrid supercar to be offered in Australia and highlighted the performance capability of its latest offering.
“As a hybrid technological tour-de-force, the all-wheel drive Honda NSX challenges perceptions about what constitutes a supercar, just as the original did,” he said. “With an extraordinary breadth of ability, the Honda NSX offers scintillating track performance, along with unsurpassed everyday usability.” Mr Collins said the NSX showcases the technological capabilities of Honda and will help boost the brand even further following positive critical and consumer response to recent models including the Civic and HR-V.
“We’ve seen the renewed positive interest in Honda from the Australian public with the arrival of the HR-V and just-launched Civic.
“The arrival of the Honda NSX is an important signal to our Australian customers that Honda is truly a technology and engineering company that can deliver not only efficient, well-packaged small cars, people-movers and SUVs, but also a high-performance hybrid supercar.” As previously reported, Honda is holding some pre-orders for the hybrid hero, but it is unclear how many.
The NSX will be offered with three solid exterior colours, including Curva Red, Berlina Black and 103R White, with three metallic hues on offer – Source Silver metallic, Casino White Pearl and Nord Gray Metallic – for an additional $1500.
Two premium colours, including the hero colour Valencia Red Pearl as well as Nouvelle Blue Pearl, are a $10,000 option.
Proving that Honda has packed the NSX with loads of goodies, Honda has included the carbon-fibre exterior and interior packages as standard for Australian-spec cars.
The exterior pack features a carbon-fibre roof, engine cover, rear decklid spoiler, rear diffuser, front under-spoiler and side skirts, as well as carbon-ceramic brake rotors, exclusive interwoven aluminium-alloy wheels and a dark chrome exhaust finisher.
The interior package includes a carbon-fibre meter visor, upper steering wheel rim and steering wheel spokes, as well as brushed aluminium pedals.
Also part of the high-end cabin is an Alcantara headliner, semi-aniline leather and Alcantara power seats.
Standard gear includes LED headlights, tail-lights and daytime running lights, a 7.0-inch colour touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with Bluetooth, an 8.0-inch TFT gauge cluster, heated and electric sports leather seats, height and reach adjustable steering wheel and a premium nine-speaker Audio system.
It also comes equipped with dusk-sensing auto headlights, flush mounted auto pop-out door handles, heated exterior mirrors, keyless entry and start, electric park brake, cruise control, dual detachable cupholder, dual-zone automatic climate control, leather-trimmed instrument and door panels and automatic dimming rearview mirror.
Up front the NSX gets 19-inch wheels on 245/35ZR19 tyres while the rears are 20 inches with 305/30ZR20 tyres. A tyre repair kit is standard.
Safety wise the NSX is offered with a multi-angle rearview camera, front and rear parking sensors, a tyre pressure monitoring system, hill start assist, brake assist and a suite of airbags including knee and side curtain airbags.
The NSX is powered by a “bespoke” twin-turbocharged 3.5-litre mid-mounted turbo V6 engine producing 373kW at 6500-7000rpm and 550Nm at 2000-6000rpm paired with three electric motors – two on the front axle producing 27kW each and the Direct Drive Motor at the rear delivering 35kW – for a combined total of 427kW/646Nm.
The motor placement makes the NSX an all-wheel-drive supercar matched with a nine-speed dual-clutch transmission and an official combined fuel economy figure rated at 9.7 litres per 100km. Honda is yet to reveal the 0-100km/h time.
Also standard is Honda’s Integrated Dynamics System (IDS) that integrates brakes, steering, throttle, stability assist, dampers and the Sport Hybrid SH-AWD control systems into selectable modes.
The models include Quiet for driving on electric power only, Sport, Sport+ and Track.
As reported, just five Honda dealers across Australia have been selected to handled sales and service of the tech-laden supercar, including Yarra Honda in Melbourne, Scotts Honda in Artarmon, Sydney, Austral Honda in Newstead, Brisbane, Nordic Honda in Glen Osmond, Adelaide and Burswood Honda in Perth.
