tell me about NA1 and NA2 intangibles

Not to hijack the thread, but I have a CT header and exhaust which made a huge seat-of-the-pants power difference to my then unmodified '91.

Later I added sway bars and had the short gears and 4.23 R&P installed. The gears totally transformed the driving experience of the car. This is the gear set that should have come to the US from the factory.

Next I started playing with the suspension and I have finally settled on the NSX-R set-up. It is superb.
 
Hey All, it took me only 2 months to find the 'right' one for me. I was expecting to wait a long time to get the right NSX and fortune was on my side to find her in Portland two months later.
Big thanks to the advice and feedback i received on this thread. It clarified what i truly wanted in this beautiful automobile. When you first start looking at the NSX, you know you like the style and looks but as you dig a little deeper, it can get pretty mind-boggling for a novice such as myself.
After contacting the prime member and working out details over the last month or more I finally picked it up last Monday and drove her back to Vancouver, BC from Portland.
Words can't describe the feeling you get from driving a car you only imagined for such a long time. The looks from other drivers as you pass-by does nothing but boost the confidence that you know you made the right choice. I passed a few corvettes, a Nissan GTR and a porsche boxster along the way and couldn't help feeling that i had a rarity on my hands. The numbers kept coming into my head - "only +8000 in US, only +700 in Canada?". Had a Honda civic drive by and roar its motor before blasting away. The girl in the passenger seat gave me the thumbs-up and i let it go, staying at 70mph.
I decided to stop at Acura of Lynnwood and met Charles there who promptly got me in for an oil change and fluid check. I had read a little about the dealership and decided to stop there before heading back into Canada. Thanks for showing me how to close the back window properly and the 'step-by-step' procedure on how to take off the T-top!
I had to stay over on US side because i didn't make the 3:30 pm cutoff for importing vehicles into Canada.
Next day, i drove into Vancouver after much compliments from the US border patrol officers and had a smooth and seamless import. I did get stumped on one question they asked me though. "why this, and not a corvette? he asked. I was taken aback with the question and blurted out how i wanted this Asian supercar. :confused:
Getting her imported to Canada was probably the smoothest thing that happened through the whole process. Now it's time to get the inspections done and conform to Canadian standards. I did have a kerfuffle with CAA insurance regarding the 14 days coverage through my policy on a newly acquired vehicle. They didn't want to provide collision or comprehensive on her, just liability. I had to get a letter from Insurance bureau of Canada to refute this. Something to note for Canadian importers.
Driving in Vancouver was absolutely beautiful. Wonderful roadways and plenty of high-end cars around. Felt good to drive a rare exotic around amongst the plenty of porsches, nissan z's, and audi r-8's. I met up with Huck-jai who had just bought his white 98 NSX from the US East coast last month. That's a pretty nice looking NSX Huck-Jai, and thanks for all the help and advice!
I put it on a carrier on Wednesday and shipped it back to Calgary while i flew home. I'm anxiously awaiting the call today or Monday to receive her.
So here are the details-
97 Red/tan NSX 6spd with 21,600 miles. I'm the 3rd owner of this original Portland car. Excellent condition throughout with tb/wp and valve adjustment done at 16K miles in 2004.
some future things to do include:
- new tires
- new hoses
- t/b in 2011
- trunk struts need to be repaired - anybody know of a good guy to repair these struts?
Car is all stock with the addition of an alpine cd stack and Giovanna rims. This i might change in the future and maybe get something a little more subdue.
....then again, i sure do like the TaiTec exhaust.....:biggrin:
 

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Congrats! As for the trunk struts just replace them. They aren't that expensive. Just make sure you buy new ball studs. They are only a few bucks and will save you lots of frustration.
 
Red/tan is a great combo - the only one for me if I ever went "red". I know you will enjoy this car! Have fun and be safe. Welcome to a wonderful new world.

I am constantly amazed how fast the car is just stock except I do have comptech headers and that makes a difference. When you get the car up in Vteck range it just blasts and sounds like a race car!!!! Took mine out the other nite and let it rip several times. I really don't know how folks use a super charger on the street? That road disappears mighty fast even in mine - and waaaay too fast with an SC - imho. So to those that wonder if they might think the car underpowered - live with it a while - let it go a few times and get back to us. :wink:

I just love this car! Guess everyone does here!
 
I really don't know how folks use a super charger on the street? That road disappears mighty fast even in mine - and waaaay too fast with an SC - imho. So to those that wonder if they might think the car underpowered - live with it a while - let it go a few times and get back to us. :wink:

How long have you had your car? It only took me about 6 months of owning it to wish I had way more power. I do agree about not being able to use it on the street very often. I don't think I even hit 1psi of boost on my way to work this morning. That isn't normal though.
 
How long have you had your car? It only took me about 6 months of owning it to wish I had way more power. I do agree about not being able to use it on the street very often. I don't think I even hit 1psi of boost on my way to work this morning. That isn't normal though.

Had it about a year, not quite. My road runs out fast naturally aspirated so I don't see needing the added power of an SC and I don't need the tickets that would likely come with it on the street. I enjoy mine just like it is. The only thing I keep thinking about are the JDM gears and R&P change. That'll give me all the speed I need although I kind of like the long gearing - I can stay in second a long time. You see the curvey roads here in Atlanta are very similar in many ways to mountain roads without the severe elevation change. So driving around the North side of Atlanta one can easily find a nice set of twisties for entertainment unlike other big cities in America, I believe. I'd like to try or ride in a car with shorter gears - maybe a good drive in an NA2 would tell me what I need to know about shorties. That's really the big improvement in the NA2 - since I have comptech headers.
 
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My car came with short gears and after a while I realized it wasn't really that much faster than my TL. I've never driven any other NSX so I imagine the regular gears would feel pretty bad in comparison.

If you're happy with the power it has then you're lucky. :wink: That'll save you lots of cash hehe
 
alright guys, when you talk about "power" on the road, at what kind of rpm are you hitting before you shift gears here? I'm thinking i'm a little too conservative when i drive as I'm shifting mostly at 3000rpm and consider myself pushing it at 4000 rpm. I suppose i'm not really experiencing the full potential of the NSX yet. I'm still shifting with the PT Cruiser muscle memory!:tongue:
 
alright guys, when you talk about "power" on the road, at what kind of rpm are you hitting before you shift gears here? I'm thinking i'm a little too conservative when i drive as I'm shifting mostly at 3000rpm and consider myself pushing it at 4000 rpm. I suppose i'm not really experiencing the full potential of the NSX yet. I'm still shifting with the PT Cruiser muscle memory!:tongue:

Shift points I believe depend on if the car is tuned. My car is a 1996 stocker. I shift between 3,500-4,000 rpm (closer to 4,000 during normal driving. I think 3,000 rpm is a tad low, but you may save on gas mileage!! The cars red line is 8,000 rpm's so shifting in the 4,000 - 5,0000 rpm range I see as no big deal. I'm sure others on this site will give you feedback, maybe beat you up at a 3,000 rpm shift point.

p.s. Gas usage for my car means nothing, after all I'm using 100 octane in my Grand National.
 
When I'm just cruising around - 3k to 3500 is fine. I hardly get out of second or third just driving around town. Now when I'm doing a "spirited" run - that's a totally different thing - then I'm doing 5k in second and buzzing it up and down in the revs - when you kick it and take it up to 6 then 7k and over you get the Vtech experience and the car sounds like a race car - if you've never experienced that then you are missing the whole point of owning one of these cars! I must do that every day when I drive. There's a spot on my way home where the traffic starts to break - I love to be in second when the road opens up and I can let it rip a little - it is truly an experience that any NSX lover and driver wants to have as many times as you can. I'm not just blasting every shift - no, I'm too conservative and safe for that - but I pick my times and ripping around in the car is what it's all about.

Take it out and "let the big dog eat" as they say and you will understand what I'm talking about. Otherwise - there is nothing wrong with easy cruising - but you should be able to get it up more than 3k - geez - this is a sports car that really demands to be reved and it likes it - doesn't it guys? :biggrin::wink:
 
Happy Belated Birthday Tim. (From another post)
Like i said, i have muscle memory from driving my PT Cruiser around town. Shift at 3000 rpm or she'll blow!:tongue: Left me with a natural tendency to want to shift when i see 3000.
I will push my baby to 4-5 next time on the open road and see what happens. I have to go slow and take some time to own her before i will approach the 7K range. Take it easy with the new baby, you know.
You know whats funny though, i haven't driven her since i got it back home other than to get the inspection done for insurance. It snowed here this week and been cold and rainy weather on and off the past week.
Right now, it's a museum piece in my garage....not that there's anything wrong with that!
thanks for the continued advice guys, hopefully i'll be able to add my 2 cents in soon too.
 
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in retrospect if not many people would chose a 95 or 96 if they could buy a like condition at like price 1997. at that point the 1997 na2 would offer all the advantages with no disadvantages compared to 1995 /96.

QUOTE]

I used up a lot of frequent flyer miles driving a half dozen NSXs before buying. To be honest I couldn't tell that much difference between the NA1 or NA2s (stock) without having a stopwatch. They were all great cars and ran strong. In the end the NA1 car I ended up going back and buying actually felt more powerful than all but one of the NA2s I drove. The coupe does feel more solid, but with the top on a Targa its not that noticeable.

When buying a USED car ,especially an exotic sports car, you don't want a potential pandoras box of problems so I'd strongly recommend you focus on any NSX, regardless of model/year looking for the one that has been loved and appreciated with a complete service history reflecting the knowledge and maturity of the previous owners treatment of the car. You'll never regret it.
 
I had to have purple, so I was stuck buying 95-96. Ostensibly the slowest years (heavier because of the targa but still 3.0L engine). It feels plenty fast to me as long as I rev it up nice and high where the torque is, and since I put CompTech headers and exhaust in it I am feeling the power come on even a little bit earlier.

I think with I/H/E and possibly RDX injectors + tune any NA1 (even a "heavy" 95-96) can catch up to a stock NA2.
 
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