INCOMPREHINSIBLE! ...this 0-60 debate
First of all. You don't know me. Why? Because nobody looks a the "new owner" board that my message was so appropriately moved to when I first posted to this board.
Okay, I've had my '95 NSX for about 3 weeks... Most of the first two it was in the shop getting new belts/hoses/tires(Michelin Pilot Sports)/AC fixed/top end cleaning/valve adjustment/ABS High Pressure Hose/starter...
So, it's basically like new now. With the shop work and the cost of the car, it came out to around $50k.
Anyway, my dad owns, or has owned, most of the cars in the 0-60 category we're looking at in this thread, and I've driven them all several times. We even have a few cars that'll leave an NSX in the dust, but one of them is worth over $225k dollars(2002 Ferrari 360 Spider) and a '99 Viper RT/10 with a custom Henessey Headers/Cats/Exhaust system and an outrageous rear end ratio that put the car at over a $90k investment since it was purchased new.
I didn't know how to drive the NSX when I got the car, but I chose it over a custom ordered '04 M3, a Z06, an '01 Carrera 2 (Aero Kit), the new '04 S4, and any other car on the market that falls in that category. Why? The answer is simple, it drives like a $225k Ferrari. The BMW is a great sports sedan (okay, so it's a coupe), but it has handling issues and reliability issues. The Z06 (though we've got one at home) is just to "greasy New Jersey Italian" looking for me to drive as a daily driver, though I had great experience driving one at a Track Day at Texas World Speedway. A Porsche Carrera 2 is like the worlds ultimate test of driver skill combined with completely ridiculous handling (though we've got a C2 Cab at home). We had a Lancer Evolution for about 3 weeks before we were too embarrassed to park it in our driveway and my Dad's teeth started cracking from the vibration. It's a great rally car though and fun as hell. We sold our '03 Cobra with Lightning Pulleys and a Basani cat-back exhaust system pretty quickly too. Have you ever had the displeasure of driving a Mustang Cobra? The driving experience is somewhat like going to Red Lobster for "good" seafood or The Sizzler for a "good" steak. As soon as you sit in the car, you wish you were somewhere else. The transmission sucks, the ergonomics suck, the handling sucks on a level far far below the M3 that it is too often compared to, the seats are like Alcantra covered bar-stools, and the dash looks like dried silly-putty, but it was quick in a straight line (So is the Viper, but that's still in the garage after almost 5-years of ownership).
So, I've gotten a chance to learn how to make the NSX go fast in a straight line.
1. Turn off the A/C
2. Turn off the traction control
3. launch above 4k RPM
4. Ignore the 8k redline, when that needle sweeps past 7.5k, shift it, and floor it.
I've found out through much experience, that when you buy a fast car, 1/10ths just don't count. You've just got to learn the car. They're all about as fast as each other. In the long run, it's a question of taste. If you can't afford (who really can) a 360 as a daily driver, the NSX is by and large, the most tasteful choice I can think of for a sports car driver.
Once you apply this simple and very exhilarating lesson in the accelerative force of the Acura NSX, you'll agree with Ferris Bueler and myself as you say, "It is so choice. If you have the means, I highly suggest picking one up."
So, now what about our NSX's late 80's chic interior. Well, sitting in a Murcielago, I'm reminded very much of the NSX interior with the wrap around leather. How hard is it really to to put in a nice Carbon Fiber covered center console, an NSX Type R shift boot, a nice knob, an Alcantra Covered momo/sparco steering wheel with cruise and horn buttons and a nice LCD screen stereo. Just looking around at Science of Speed and Dali Racing, it's not that tough. In fact, after these upgrades, say about $4k, I'm still undercutting the price of that M3 i was going to order!
I can't help but mention how good the aftermarket is for our NSX's as well. The prices are very reasonable compared to P-cars and M3's, that's for sure. You CAN'T supercharge the current M3 reliably, and the only engine-mods I know of for that car include shipping it to Cali and paying from 25-45 grand for displacement changes from AC Schnitzer or Racing Dynamics. Compare that to the ~$5k Basch Boost superchargers. We actually have several supercharging systems available! It pays to have a car that's considered "premium rice" as I saw posted earlier in this thread. I have a little experience here because I traded a Z3 2.5i with over 10k in performance mods for my NSX. Trust me, I didn't get more than 20 hp, a pretty exterior, and a stiffer chassis for the outlay of funds on that car. BTW, I got that Z3 dynoed at Cybernation motorsports in Ft. Lauderdale long before I saw the NSX that caught my eye on the showroom floor of Momentum Porsche in Houston.
Nice to meet you all.
Matt W
[email protected]
Boca Raton, FL/Houston(Katy), TX
:my new webpage will be availabe at the end of the month
:so you can check out the cars,
:my Z06 track-day video,
:and my photos of the 12 Hours of
:Sebring that I've taken the last few years.
:
http://www.cse.fau.edu/~mwolkenb/