A somewhat unique perspective.

[powerslave7]

Sorry to hijack guys but very interested that some of you are very keen on NA with short gears and 4.55 etc

I had thought of going this route before I learned of the FI options (havn't been in the nsx world that long- not as an owner anyway!)

What is the ultimate for responsive driving?

I had read that the OS 4.44 kit made motorway (freeway?!) driving much less relaxed.

what are your experiences with this?
Jamie

 

[nsxot1c]

great post thanks for sharing! I've been seriously contemplating selling the nsx for a 360... now, I am more unsure. :biggrin:

 

[SoCalDude]

Sorry to hijack guys but very interested that some of you are very keen on NA with short gears and 4.55 etc

I had thought of going this route before I learned of the FI options (havn't been in the nsx world that long- not as an owner anyway!)

What is the ultimate for responsive driving?

I had read that the OS 4.44 kit made motorway (freeway?!) driving much less relaxed.

what are your experiences with this?
Jamie

For me, the main drawback on the 4.55 is the revs on the freeway (around 3800 rpm at 80 mph) and the gas mileage decrease. If you don't mind these, then it's a definite option for you.

 

[ChopsJazz]

For me, the main drawback on the 4.55 is the revs on the freeway (around 3800 rpm at 80 mph) and the gas mileage decrease. If you don't mind these, then it's a definite option for you.

That's why I have the 4.23.

And the Short Gears.

 

[steveny]

The 360 is a better car, the NSX is a funner car. I hardly ever wore my seatbelt in the NSX, in my 360 I feel like I could really get hurt if I got stupid. I always wear my seatbelt in the 360. IMO it's like going from a 250 size bike that you can throw around to a 900 that throws you around.

 

[Ko-nsx]

I recently drove a Comptech supercharged NSX for about 10 miles. Now this is coming from someone who bought an NSX, Comptech'd it out to the max, put 100,000 miles on it, sold it, bought a Ferrari Modena 6-speed, put 40,000 miles on that (still have it), then jumped into this NSX to drive it to my house to do a super detail job on it as part of a deal on a used R/C helicopter purchase. So this is a playback from my minds eye of the experience:
(opens door, gets in)
Wow! This car is LOW. This seat is perfect. I am SO tucked in and everything around me is in such a perfect position that I feel like I am an integral piece of the car itself. Sitting in a 360 is like sitting in any other car.
Except for the seats whose high bolsters are so narrow that they hurt your shoulders.
(starts car)
Nice rumble.
(revs engine, scares a couple of people standing next to the car)
This thing revs quick! And is pretty loud at high RPM (aftermarket exhaust)
(takes off, slowly goes through a couple of gears)
Wow! This thing shifts like hot butter. Absolutely no fuss. It practically shifts itself. The 360 is very mechanical, very clunky, shifts great, but takes a lot of effort. I can feel it in my shoulder after a long, spirited drive.
(gets on the freeway, takes it up to redline in a couple of gears)
Great seat of the pants in the upper rpm range! More than my car.
My car has a huge "snap" when you hit the throttle (415 naturally aspirated HP with aftermarket exhaust) but pulls smoothly thereafter) but the supercharged NSX pulls so hard, it really is exhilarating. I can tell that the transmission is stock though, not near as much "pop" as the 4.55 + gears.
(changes lanes on an interchange [corner], almost drifts inadvertently into another lane)
Uh oh - major understeer! Need to be careful. Stock suspension.
(gets off the freeway, stomps brakes, locks up the wheels)
Uh oh! Forgot this thing has AP Racing brakes. Yeah, they work alright!
(makes a tight turn)
This is difficult! I can barely turn this wheel! Oh yeah, manual steering. Great road feel!
People staring at the car, just as much as the 360.
(looks down at the shifter)
No gate. What gear am I in?
(turns on stereo)
Yes. 10 times better than the stock 360 setup.
(looks at guages)
Much nicer IMO than the 360 guages.
(arrives at house)

If I had to do it all over again, knowing what I know now, and I couldn't afford a Ferrari, I'd have an NSX with the IEM, 4.55 or 4.23, gears, flywheel, exhaust, brakes, no supercharger and some major suspension upgrades (beam, swaybars, shocks). Essentially FSTRNU's car.
This is about as close as I think one could get to a stock 360.
Except for the $18,000.00 repair bills (trust me on this one).

i was wondering if the cars you drove or like were na1 or na2?

 

[MvM]

This is difficult! I can barely turn this wheel! Oh yeah, manual steering. Great road feel!

Everytime I am reading this, I cannot help myself smiling :smile:


I HAVE NEVER DRIVEN A CAR WHICH DID NOT HAVE MANUAL STEERING.

Have You ?? :biggrin:

 

[Alleykat]

If you do not mind me asking, what repair bill was $18,000 for your 360? I have been kicking around the idea of getting either an F355 or a 360 Modena and have resigned myself to more repair money, but a real world idea from someone who drives their car (like you do) would be a huge help. Thanks!

+1

I want a Modena or a Gallardo in about 6 years when im 30.I would go ask on the F Chat or a Lambo forum but I dont wanna be called a noob dreaming of owning an exotic. :redface:

 

[NetViper]

I think the unique perspective would have been slightly different if you were driving a stock NSX vs a boosted one. "the supercharged NSX pulls so hard, it really is exhilarating" That is not the case without a blower.

That being said, the NSX is still an awesome car. Personally I have no interest in short gear and 4.55. I hated it on the 95 I had. I would rather have a 6-speed any day. Cruising on the interstate with sg/4.55 is horrible.

 

[NetViper]

I hardly ever wore my seatbelt in the NSX,

Glad you don't have that car anymore. Not wearing a seatbelt is dangerous.

 

[Cozmo]

That's why I have the 4.23.

And the Short Gears.

I think our cars might be twins and not know it.

 

[ChopsJazz]

Interesting...

 

[EuroBoutique]

That's why I have the 4.23.

And the Short Gears.

You must not drive on the highway too much? Do you like that setup?

I had a differential with the short gears on my other silverstone s2000 and HATED it! Sure you get some better acceleration but the noise and high revs on the highway made me sick of driving the car. Eventually I got rid of that s2000 but I would never install gears just to gain some acceleration on the nsx.

 

[ChopsJazz]

You must not drive on the highway too much? Do you like that setup?

I had a differential with the short gears on my other silverstone s2000 and HATED it! Sure you get some better acceleration but the noise and high revs on the highway made me sick of driving the car. Eventually I got rid of that s2000 but I would never install gears just to gain some acceleration on the nsx.

I honestly haven't got the slightest idea what you're talking about. The NSX is not the S2000. You must never have driven a short gear/4.23 set-up on an NSX. There is absolutely no noise from the R&P and cruising at highway speeds is not too different from a six-speed in high gear: 80 mph = 3000 rpm.

If you are ever in town I invite you to take my car out for a spin.

 

[EuroBoutique]

I honestly haven't got the slightest idea what you're talking about. The NSX is not the S2000. You must never have driven a short gear/4.23 set-up on an NSX. There is absolutely no noise from the R&P and cruising at highway speeds is not too different from a six-speed in high gear: 80 mph = 3000 rpm.

If you are ever in town I invite you to take my car out for a spin.

Ken, you are 100% right, I have never driven a NSX with gears I did not say the s2000 is comparable to the NSX either....both are different cars but one is not any better than the other.

Gearing is simple math - shorter gear means higher RPM at the same speed which normally equals more noise.

stock gearing cruising in 6th I'm at 3500 rpm

short gears, same speed in 6th Im' at 4500 rpm

I don't see how it's any different in the NSX in that respect?

 

[DrVolkl]

I had short gears and the rear end on my '91 and it was fast....

I put a CT supercharger on it and it was really fast....

I swapped my supercharger onto my 2003 6spd and it was fastest.

Does that help? lol

I think the short gears/rear end on the 3.0 5spd cars is a great way to wake them up. Makes them more fun to drive as well... I don't think there's any more noise in there. The RPMS on the highway are a bit higher, but it's not that bad at all.

 

[Chromatose]

If you do not mind me asking, what repair bill was $18,000 for your 360? I have been kicking around the idea of getting either an F355 or a 360 Modena and have resigned myself to more repair money, but a real world idea from someone who drives their car (like you do) would be a huge help. Thanks!

Well first of all let me say that the $18K repair bill was a total aberration. It was a heat exchanger failure. My mechanic said that he has only seen this happen one other time, and it was on another 360 with over 100K miles on it.
A large tube runs under the intake manifold with coolant (radiator) running through it. A smaller, coiled tube is inside it with transmission oil running through that. The tube broke internally. The result is 90 weight gear oil in the radiator and engine, and Prestone in the gearbox, and it all has the consistency of river mud. It took $4,000.00 (24 hours of labor) just to get the drivetrain clean enough to start the actual repairs (flushing the engine out 4 times, flushing the transmission out 3 times, etc.). All of the engine hoses needed to be replaced, the transmission seals needed to be replaced. I had over 40,000 miles on the clutch (not bad for a Ferrari) so I figured what a better time to replace it than when the transmission was out and apart (same for the differential clutch packs). A split A/C hose was found (which explains why I had to recharge the system every year), I swapped out the Challenge Stradale engine mounts (too stiff) for the OEM mounts, and had a beefier transmission mount custom fabricated. I drive the car very hard.
Besides this one thing the car has been about as trouble free as my Acura. 15,000 mile service (all fluids change) is around 600 bucks. I've had a couple of little things go wrong (door latch cable broken) but was able to fix myself for under $100. Now if you get a 360 paddle car (F1), NOW you're headed for trouble. That F1 system is plagued with troubles (not to mention the F1 cars eat clutches for lunch). In general, I think that even spoiled NSX owners (maintenance-wise) would be pleased with the total upkeep costs of a 360.

 

[RYU]

Well first of all let me say that the $18K repair bill was a total aberration. It was a heat exchanger failure. My mechanic said that he has only seen this happen one other time, and it was on another 360 with over 100K miles on it.
A large tube runs under the intake manifold with coolant (radiator) running through it. A smaller, coiled tube is inside it with transmission oil running through that. The tube broke internally. The result is 90 weight gear oil in the radiator and engine, and Prestone in the gearbox, and it all has the consistency of river mud. It took $4,000.00 (24 hours of labor) just to get the drivetrain clean enough to start the actual repairs (flushing the engine out 4 times, flushing the transmission out 3 times, etc.). All of the engine hoses needed to be replaced, the transmission seals needed to be replaced. I had over 40,000 miles on the clutch (not bad for a Ferrari) so I figured what a better time to replace it than when the transmission was out and apart (same for the differential clutch packs). A split A/C hose was found (which explains why I had to recharge the system every year), I swapped out the Challenge Stradale engine mounts (too stiff) for the OEM mounts, and had a beefier transmission mount custom fabricated. I drive the car very hard.
Besides this one thing the car has been about as trouble free as my Acura. 15,000 mile service (all fluids change) is around 600 bucks. I've had a couple of little things go wrong (door latch cable broken) but was able to fix myself for under $100. Now if you get a 360 paddle car (F1), NOW you're headed for trouble. That F1 system is plagued with troubles (not to mention the F1 cars eat clutches for lunch). In general, I think that even spoiled NSX owners (maintenance-wise) would be pleased with the total upkeep costs of a 360.

Holy moly batman . That's a pretty spectacular failure. I'm sorry you had to be part of the small percentage that this happens to.

One thing I must say... I could imagine Ferrari choosing functionality vs. longevity/ease_of_maintenance in their design. I think that's the difference when you compare the NSX vs. the F-Car. It's as if one comes from the left and one comes from the right when 90% of the population wants something in the middle. But who am I to say since i've never owned a Ferrari.

 

[drtruong]

I had short gears and the rear end on my '91 and it was fast....

I put a CT supercharger on it and it was really fast....

I swapped my supercharger onto my 2003 6spd and it was fastest.

Does that help? lol

I think the short gears/rear end on the 3.0 5spd cars is a great way to wake them up. Makes them more fun to drive as well... I don't think there's any more noise in there. The RPMS on the highway are a bit higher, but it's not that bad at all.

I have heard a lot of SC and its prices, but could you tell me how much more HP that SC will give you?

 

[rasir_x]

Chromatose,

I'm in your situation you had 4-5yrs ago. I have a heavily modified NSX and I'm in a delima. I p.m.d you about purchasing a 360 after selling my NSX (still debating).....So are you saying that i might as well keep what i have for now? Feel free to respond on this thread or P.M. me. As for maintance on my NSX i either do it myself or my friend who owns a local shop which has done major service on NSX's including timming belt, clutch replacement, valve adjustments, ect...is a very competent mechanic (as my local acura mechanics are not). I'm currently finding many 360F1 for sale but not much luck with the manuals. That F1 tranny scares me as I've seen all the issues with it. I found a 360F1 for 67k with 26k miles but I'm debating on the F1. I think with a 360 manual, clutch replacement shouldn't be difficult from my mechanic the F1 I've heard is 5-8k

S.C. dyno'ed 360-365 whp

 

[DrVolkl]

I have heard a lot of SC and its prices, but could you tell me how much more HP that SC will give you?

About 100hp with stock computer. A stock NA2 dynoes about 270 to the wheels... with the SC it's ~370.

Stock NA1 does about 240 to the wheels stock.. with SC about 340.

Those are rough #'s... don't anyone get too damn excited.


The SC is what the NSX should have always came with. You now have a 400hp car that weighs 3000lbs. It's magic.

 

[NSXDreamer2]

About 100hp with stock computer. A stock NA2 dynoes about 270 to the wheels... with the SC it's ~370.

Stock NA1 does about 240 to the wheels stock.. with SC about 340.

Those are rough #'s... don't anyone get too damn excited.


The SC is what the NSX should have always came with. You now have a 400hp car that weighs 3000lbs. It's magic.

dude, for some reason I'm imagining myself what if I have that 100hp and what kind of lap times I could get myself into... Wait, I had been in nsxnut's and besides the extra "kick" I'm not sure if that makes the car any more fun.. (but I'm guessing 1.5-2 seconds gain at PR.) namely a few areas I have my car WOT and waiting the rpm picking up.

Why did I need my car faster again?

 

[NetViper]

dude, for some reason I'm imagining myself what if I have that 100hp and what kind of lap times I could get myself into... Wait, I had been in nsxnut's and besides the extra "kick" I'm not sure if that makes the car any more fun.. (but I'm guessing 1.5-2 seconds gain at PR.) namely a few areas I have my car WOT and waiting the rpm picking up.

Why did I need my car faster again?

I think my BBSC car was a lot more fun on the street, and certainly a lot more fun on the track pulling out of corners. Having been in the old CTSC around the track, it didn't seem that much faster than a stock car, but it is still way more fun on the street. I haven't been in an autorotor car, but i am sure it is great.

 

[ChopsJazz]

There is absolutely no noise from the R&P and cruising at highway speeds is not too different from a six-speed in high gear: 80 mph = 3000 rpm.

I must correct myself. Having just driven the car for the first time in a LONG time, I realized that my cruising rpm are different than what I stated above.

5th gear 70 mph = 3000 rpm
5th gear 80 mph = 3500 rpm

Again, that is with the shorties (5th gear is unaffected) and the 4.23 R&P.

 

[RYU]

Since we're talking about gearing... I recently did some canyon carving locally and I found that the longer stock gears required me to do virtually no shifting between 2nd and 3rd. For aggressive driving I stayed in 2nd at roughly around 4k-7.5k rpm. For just brisk driving the range was perfect on 3rd at around 3.5k-6k. I don't remember ever wanting the desire to shift 2-3, 3-2 a lot. It was a pleasant surprise. It was just the other way in my S2k. I remember wanting to shift between gears more often which was also somewhat mitigated by the 9k redline :biggrin:. Since I enjoy that stretch of road so much I'm not sure if upgraded to shorter gears would be beneficial for someone like me.

I don't know.. perhaps the variance in RPM might be marginal between short of stock gears...

$.02.