What makes NSX an Exotic?

Welcome to the forum...you sound like you've been here for years. :wink: :tongue:

Is that a good thing? :)

What can I say? I like to debate and converse over things like this. :)

I'm just a fan of all performance cars in general. A while back, I started my forum for anyone that was just an auto enthusiast in general, regardless of what make/model car(s) he/she drives. It doesn't matter if it's a Kia or a Lambo. I can find something positive about any car. That doesn't mean I like every car on the road, but you know what I mean.

I also just got sick of that whole "I'm better than you" mentality that is so prevelent on automotive forums. Since there's only really one NSX here, I guess it probably doesn't happen, but it certainly happens on F-Body or Mustang forums, especially to the V6 owners. I'm just not down with that. A car enthusiast is a car enthusiast to me.

Anyway, anybody that wants to talk all makes/models of cars is free to join. We'll be glad to have you. Everybody's real cool, and we're a real tight community. We cover anything from tech, car shows, off-topic discussion, etc. It's just a real nice atmosphere. The link's in my sig for those of you that are interested.
 
Is that a good thing? :)

What can I say? I like to debate and converse over things like this. :)

I'm just a fan of all performance cars in general. A while back, I started my forum for anyone that was just an auto enthusiast in general, regardless of what make/model car(s) he/she drives. It doesn't matter if it's a Kia or a Lambo. I can find something positive about any car. That doesn't mean I like every car on the road, but you know what I mean.

I also just got sick of that whole "I'm better than you" mentality that is so prevelent on automotive forums. Since there's only really one NSX here, I guess it probably doesn't happen, but it certainly happens on F-Body or Mustang forums, especially to the V6 owners. I'm just not down with that. A car enthusiast is a car enthusiast to me.

Anyway, anybody that wants to talk all makes/models of cars is free to join. We'll be glad to have you. Everybody's real cool, and we're a real tight community. We cover anything from tech, car shows, off-topic discussion, etc. It's just a real nice atmosphere. The link's in my sig for those of you that are interested.

It definitely sounds like a great compliment to me. Welcome once again.
 
I

I also just got sick of that whole "I'm better than you" mentality that is so prevelent on automotive forums. Since there's only really one NSX here, I guess it probably doesn't happen, but it certainly happens on F-Body or Mustang forums, especially to the V6 owners. I'm just not down with that. A car enthusiast is a car enthusiast to me.
.

+1

I am going to go over and check out your board...

Wait a sec... You're not here trying to promote your website are you? :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin:

Philip
 
+1

I am going to go over and check out your board...

Wait a sec... You're not here trying to promote your website are you? :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin:

Philip

Actually, not at all. I'm simply extending an invite. I'm not Nick. :)

I came over to this forum because of a link I saw on two seperate forums about this "Nick debacle." Everyone else was listing the forum that they were "representing," so I figure I'd do the same. Then, I just saw some interesting topics elsewhere, and decided to add my $0.02. :) So, here I am. :)

I guess that it could be construed that anyone that mentioned the website they were "representing" is sort of the same as promoting, but when I think of promoting, I think of going around on all the forums, or starting threads with a blatant attempt at "recruiting" people.

My forum is open to all makes/models of cars. A lot of people really aren't interested in talking about cars that they don't own. Camaro guys don't join Mustang forums, and NSX guys don't join Civic forums. It's just one of those things. Let's use me as an example. I don't own an NSX, and it's not on my "Top 5 List" of my next car to own, but it doesn't mean I don't like them. They're just not my big thing, but, I do respect them, and I do admire their capabilities. On most sites, I would get attacked and accused of being a "troll" just because I don't own a particular make of car and belong to the forum. I alleviated that by designing a forum where everyone is equal, and everyone can feel welcome.

As for "promoting," the site has been around since 3/27/07, and there are around 50 members. Clearly, if I was "promoting," I've been doing a pretty horrible job. :)
 
What makes NSX an Exotic?

The simple fact that in any parking lot my grandmother could tell it was not like any other car in the parking lot.
 
i saw more nsxs in the 3 months that i lived in tochigi than i ever saw in my life. i guess it's a matter of where you are. :wink:
Synthesis,

No kidding you are talking about Tochigi, NSX are made there, not to mention NSX fiesta activities. Where you live in the State also play a major factor. Tochigi doesn't represent rest of Japan.

I am not trying to argue with you. Your statement is a bit misleading in my true honest opinion. It doesn't represent the fact as whole. I felt unjust. Someone who never visited Japan and read your comment and can be mislead to believe that they are everywhere which is indeed not a fact.

I took a Japanese friend to SCA NSX meet a few month ago. Many nsx owners also meet him. His comment at the meet were, "that is more NSX than he ever saw in 22 years of his life living in Japan'. He were just jumping up and down, checking out the NSXes and taking pics. He did showed these pics to his Japnese exchange student friends as well. They were all shocked. Sometimes we really do get carry away and forget how lucky we are to be driving one of the most important car in Japanese automotive history.

His facebook contain pics from the meet.

n574312789_457359_374.jpg

n574312789_457361_998.jpg

n574312789_457360_690.jpg

n574312789_457362_1318.jpg


Even in Southern California the NSX capatal of the world. I can go 1 week straight without seeing a single one or I can spot 3~4 on the road in one day depending on luck.
 
You cannot take a non-exotic car, modify it a bit for better performance and looks, limit the special addition production and then call it an exotic. So stop using the special plated Camaros, Corvette, etc, as examples of limited productions not being an exotic. That is a not a good example to discredit limited producation as being a factor. A ZR1 is still a corvette, but modified. That is why it is a not an exotic. When you see it, you will still know it's a corvette and it well be called a corvette. Corvettes have never been exotic because the base model was relatively cheap, the design is not sophisticated and so many people own them, atleast in the US. A SRT-4 is still a Neon, a STi is still a WRX and a EVO is still a Lancer.

Counting every trim and model of NSXs sold out there, and then counting every trim and model of a 2006 Corvette sold, you can cleary see that the NSX is much harder to find. Obviously, in some areas, they are more concentrated for certain cars, but lets look at it on a gross total. Then you sit in both and drive in both, you can clearly realize which one has more design put into it. Of course, if you only want power, than the corvette is where you need to be, but it's unsophisticated power that many average 30-40 year old men could purchase and drive around with a few years into a tele-marketing salary.

You can then make the claim of not enough power or performance, but we all know the balanced performance the NSX can deliver with EXCEPTIONAL reliability. You can't DD many other exotics out there like you can with the NSX. An example of the NSX-R holding it own with many other exotic cars with twice the hp is more than enough to testify the balance in performance and research and design put into it. The NSX-R is not even that much different than the base NSX; some weight saving sacrificing luxuries, aero kit and a ridiculously heavy price tag. So you can't even make an attempt to say an NSX-R is exotic whereas the NSX is not, esp when both are hard to come by.

The definition of EXOTIC can be subjective, but it essentially comes down to a rare and high performance car with unique attributes(such as materials/engine layout/etc.)The high price compensates for all of the engineering and design. The price also makes the car hard to obtain therefore the price maintains it's rare attribute since not many people can afford it. The Fiero is mid-engine and rare, but they were never priced at an exotic price. They are rare because they failed to sell so well. One can say the same for Supra or MR-2 Turbo. They were made to compete in there own market, but they failed to sell more than their competitors, part of the reason why Toyota completely abandoned the sports car market. The NSX was made to compete with Ferrari and Porsche at the time of its release and it did one hell of a great job, except in the sales department. Nonetheless, they had 15 years of production, which is more to say than for the other Japanes sport cars of the 90s in the US. I'm not complaining on the small number of sales, in fact I appreciate it as it makes it even more exotic.

So the key is PRICE and MARKET(Sports car, SUV, coupe, Sedan, etc). That's all you need to know for value, just like HP and WEIGHT is all you need to know for performance.
 
I'm not here to criticize but I just don't really know because in Thailand, I think they stopped importing NSX since 1995 or something. I have heard that NSXes weren't sold by a lot because they were so expensive. I guess my question is "Is that the reason why NSX is limited in production?"
If they could sell more, they would have made them more?

I believe NSX is an exotic too.
 
You cannot take a non-exotic car, modify it a bit for better performance and looks, limit the special addition production and then call it an exotic. So stop using the special plated Camaros, Corvette, etc, as examples of limited productions not being an exotic. That is a not a good example to discredit limited producation as being a factor. A ZR1 is still a corvette, but modified. That is why it is a not an exotic. When you see it, you will still know it's a corvette and it well be called a corvette. Corvettes have never been exotic because the base model was relatively cheap, the design is not sophisticated and so many people own them, atleast in the US. A SRT-4 is still a Neon, a STi is still a WRX and a EVO is still a Lancer.

Counting every trim and model of NSXs sold out there, and then counting every trim and model of a 2006 Corvette sold, you can cleary see that the NSX is much harder to find. Obviously, in some areas, they are more concentrated for certain cars, but lets look at it on a gross total. Then you sit in both and drive in both, you can clearly realize which one has more design put into it. Of course, if you only want power, than the corvette is where you need to be, but it's unsophisticated power that many average 30-40 year old men could purchase and drive around with a few years into a tele-marketing salary.

You can then make the claim of not enough power or performance, but we all know the balanced performance the NSX can deliver with EXCEPTIONAL reliability. You can't DD many other exotics out there like you can with the NSX. An example of the NSX-R holding it own with many other exotic cars with twice the hp is more than enough to testify the balance in performance and research and design put into it. The NSX-R is not even that much different than the base NSX; some weight saving sacrificing luxuries, aero kit and a ridiculously heavy price tag. So you can't even make an attempt to say an NSX-R is exotic whereas the NSX is not, esp when both are hard to come by.

The definition of EXOTIC can be subjective, but it essentially comes down to a rare and high performance car with unique attributes(such as materials/engine layout/etc.)The high price compensates for all of the engineering and design. The price also makes the car hard to obtain therefore the price maintains it's rare attribute since not many people can afford it. The Fiero is mid-engine and rare, but they were never priced at an exotic price. They are rare because they failed to sell so well. One can say the same for Supra or MR-2 Turbo. They were made to compete in there own market, but they failed to sell more than their competitors, part of the reason why Toyota completely abandoned the sports car market. The NSX was made to compete with Ferrari and Porsche at the time of its release and it did one hell of a great job, except in the sales department. Nonetheless, they had 15 years of production, which is more to say than for the other Japanes sport cars of the 90s in the US. I'm not complaining on the small number of sales, in fact I appreciate it as it makes it even more exotic.

So the key is PRICE and MARKET(Sports car, SUV, coupe, Sedan, etc). That's all you need to know for value, just like HP and WEIGHT is all you need to know for performance.


Yet GM keeps making great advances on the ZR1 innards but insists on putting them in a "cheap" shell. If you ask me GM should have a model above the vet where all the technology trickles down from and that model should be in the exotic category. I bet they would sell more vets too.

edit. I wonder if the next vet will have the quality interior that the 2008 Malibu has. GM may be a day late and a dollar short but I have seen decent effort on their part recently. Well there is the problem, I have seen the effort recently and they started the effort a long time ago I bet.
 
You cannot take a non-exotic car, modify it a bit for better performance and looks, limit the special addition production and then call it an exotic. So stop using the special plated Camaros, Corvette, etc, as examples of limited productions not being an exotic. That is a not a good example to discredit limited producation as being a factor. A ZR1 is still a corvette, but modified. That is why it is a not an exotic. When you see it, you will still know it's a corvette and it well be called a corvette. Corvettes have never been exotic because the base model was relatively cheap, the design is not sophisticated and so many people own them, atleast in the US. A SRT-4 is still a Neon, a STi is still a WRX and a EVO is still a Lancer.

Counting every trim and model of NSXs sold out there, and then counting every trim and model of a 2006 Corvette sold, you can cleary see that the NSX is much harder to find. Obviously, in some areas, they are more concentrated for certain cars, but lets look at it on a gross total. Then you sit in both and drive in both, you can clearly realize which one has more design put into it. Of course, if you only want power, than the corvette is where you need to be, but it's unsophisticated power that many average 30-40 year old men could purchase and drive around with a few years into a tele-marketing salary.

You can then make the claim of not enough power or performance, but we all know the balanced performance the NSX can deliver with EXCEPTIONAL reliability. You can't DD many other exotics out there like you can with the NSX. An example of the NSX-R holding it own with many other exotic cars with twice the hp is more than enough to testify the balance in performance and research and design put into it. The NSX-R is not even that much different than the base NSX; some weight saving sacrificing luxuries, aero kit and a ridiculously heavy price tag. So you can't even make an attempt to say an NSX-R is exotic whereas the NSX is not, esp when both are hard to come by.

The definition of EXOTIC can be subjective, but it essentially comes down to a rare and high performance car with unique attributes(such as materials/engine layout/etc.)The high price compensates for all of the engineering and design. The price also makes the car hard to obtain therefore the price maintains it's rare attribute since not many people can afford it. The Fiero is mid-engine and rare, but they were never priced at an exotic price. They are rare because they failed to sell so well. One can say the same for Supra or MR-2 Turbo. They were made to compete in there own market, but they failed to sell more than their competitors, part of the reason why Toyota completely abandoned the sports car market. The NSX was made to compete with Ferrari and Porsche at the time of its release and it did one hell of a great job, except in the sales department. Nonetheless, they had 15 years of production, which is more to say than for the other Japanes sport cars of the 90s in the US. I'm not complaining on the small number of sales, in fact I appreciate it as it makes it even more exotic.

So the key is PRICE and MARKET(Sports car, SUV, coupe, Sedan, etc). That's all you need to know for value, just like HP and WEIGHT is all you need to know for performance.

Apparently, there wasn't much of a market. The NSX was clearly priced way too high for what the public must've thought that it offered. It offered Corvette performance at twice the price.

Here is a quote from your above post: "So stop using the special plated Camaros, Corvette, etc, as examples of limited productions not being an exotic. That is a not a good example to discredit limited producation as being a factor." Since you don't seem to think this is a good example, what is?

If you want to debate the NSX being designed to compete with Ferraris, and that's its reason for being exotic, it could just as easily be debated that the ZR1 is also being designed to compete with Ferraris. We're right back to square one. The definition of "exotic" is sure to be a debate that's not ever going to be solved, and a matter of continuing to run round and round in circles.

You spoke of the materials being used as being "exotic." In essence, then "exotic" is nothing more than a definition of rarity.
 
Synthesis,

No kidding you are talking about Tochigi, NSX are made there, not to mention NSX fiesta activities. Where you live in the State also play a major factor. Tochigi doesn't represent rest of Japan.

I am not trying to argue with you. Your statement is a bit misleading in my true honest opinion. It doesn't represent the fact as whole. I felt unjust. Someone who never visited Japan and read your comment and can be mislead to believe that they are everywhere which is indeed not a fact.

I took a Japanese friend to SCA NSX meet a few month ago. Many nsx owners also meet him. His comment at the meet were, "that is more NSX than he ever saw in 22 years of his life living in Japan'. He were just jumping up and down, checking out the NSXes and taking pics. He did showed these pics to his Japnese exchange student friends as well. They were all shocked. Sometimes we really do get carry away and forget how lucky we are to be driving one of the most important car in Japanese automotive history.

His facebook contain pics from the meet.

Even in Southern California the NSX capatal of the world. I can go 1 week straight without seeing a single one or I can spot 3~4 on the road in one day depending on luck.


yeah, i agree. (definitely not trying to argue)
i kind of have the opposite experience of most people - living in an area where you barely ever see any (ie, not socal), then being in an area of japan where there are naturally a bunch :wink:
i should probably also point out that i was in utsunomiya, 10 miles from work, so ofc you'll see more nsxs in that area than the rest of japan.
i did, however, see one in tokyo. :cool:
 
I found the definition http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exotic_Car
The term is used for most centrally located engine and high output. The design and price for its era. Thanks for the help

For the real answer you have to think in terms of the era when this term was coined.Everyones opinion is valid if you try to define it nowadays.Wiki tried to emote that fact in directing the term exotic to supercar.That just muddies the waters.I believe that as originaly intended exotic refers to midengine,low production sports cars,simple as that.
 
some just are and some just aren't..... most people know which ones are and aren't (whether they want to admit it or not).... come up with your own reasoning :tongue:
 
What makes a car an Exotic. Is it limited production, mid engine, weight to horsepower, or just a consumer label?. My wife asked me and I didn't have an answer.
THanks

just look at it.

also after 17 years it still a SMOKING FOX... :tongue: try that with your.... um..... loved ones:biggrin:
 
I've always wondered the same thing. Seems like the definition of exotic is not solid. I would explain to your wife, it's an exotic supercar because that's what all the major car magazines classify it as. :biggrin:

Also, would it be safe to say, an exotic car is one in which famous rich people like Micheal Jordan, Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford, Jack Nicholson, etc, etc, etc buy new and never drive? Does any other car classification fall in there?
 
:smile: also a definition is, you gota work hard and PLAN to own it in 10 years.

ie: F50, ENZO... etc.
 
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Apparently, there wasn't much of a market. The NSX was clearly priced way too high for what the public must've thought that it offered. It offered Corvette performance at twice the price.

If you want to debate the NSX being designed to compete with Ferraris, and that's its reason for being exotic, it could just as easily be debated that the ZR1 is also being designed to compete with Ferraris. We're right back to square one. The definition of "exotic" is sure to be a debate that's not ever going to be solved, and a matter of continuing to run round and round in circles.

You spoke of the materials being used as being "exotic." In essence, then "exotic" is nothing more than a definition of rarity.

No I don't classify the NSX an exotic because it was designed to compete with Ferrari. It just so happens that the only exotics that are better known and sell decently are Ferrari, Porsche and Lamborghini. Therefore it has to compete with them. If you read my post again, the NSX is an exotic because of form(shape, material and style), performance(engineering), rarity(how hard it is to get which leads to the ultimate factor->), price. An exotic is the synthesis of engineering and design. A normal car is usually over engineered for efficiency but not enough design put into it, i.e. a Toyota Camry.

People say form follows function, well for an exotic, the whole package is form=function. Form(design) is just as important as function(engineering) for an exotic. There is no base model that is priced low so that many of the public can own it, and then the higher end model is listed as exotic. It does not work that way, otherwise any fool can mod his civic to world class performance and call it an exotic. It is about prestige, priced to be own by people with enough sophistication and passion (or rich bastards who think they have taste). This is why Nissan is trying to elevate and seperate the GTR from the Skylines. Did they suceed? Perhaps, but the form of the GTR is still not quite on par with it's engineering.

People always make the excuse of the corvette, Cobra, SVT, GT500, insert name in the _______ factory supped up car with a decent price tag an exotic. They argue, "well, I only payed half or 1/4 of the price you payed for your exotic, but I perform nearly the same" Well, that's great and all, but we are buying automobiles people, not a cheap thrill. Are you going to choose the pretty hooker who many men have experienced and your night will be short-lived or the high class beautiful woman in the elegant black dress? Yea, the sophisticated woman, may be harder to get, but she's may very well be worth it. I mean it all about personal preference and lifestyle, but which one would you choose if you could get both? Well, with that said, the corvette is the auto industry's whore, along with the mustang and 350Z. The 335i, G35 or G37 would be a whore in a nice dress. Don't get me wrong, sometimes you need to solicate the services of a hooker if you have the extra dough laying around to BURN. And sometimes you invested too much into the damn ho, that you gotta keep her.

Back to my point, the auto industry has new models every month, but how often is it revolutionary(fresh, unique)? We have been going fast since the 60s, the only thing that is changing is the efficiency and styling. You get what you payed for. For the performance of an Enzo at 1/8 the price, you get a poorly(cheap) designed car, with state of the art engineering. Don't get it twisted here either, I still believe that for the money you are paying for the Enzo or other high end exotics, they could still step up their design.

The NSX revolutionized the exotic market, whether you want to believe it or not. It wasn't the NSX that did it alone either. It was the whole fleet of the 90s Japanese super sport cars (300ZX, RX7, and Supra) that introduced a new design era. This pushed other companies to try and catch up at the end of the 90s. Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini and American cars like the corvette and mustang were butt ugly coming into the 90s and they were unreliable as shit compared to their counterparts.

Chevy could make a higher model than the corvette. Then they could call an exotic. Perhaps that is what they plan on doing with the rumored MR corvette; just don't call it a vette. Otherwise, let's stick to calling it a modern day muscle car.

I left out the favorite Mid engine rule since it seems that the FR platforms may be the true vision of performance. With a midplanted front engine layout, you get the better weight distribution and ease of maintainence. Of course, most people prefer Mid-engines more for there aesthethically pleasing long tail rather than the long nose look. The LFA seems to defy this though with it's front engine design?
 
What makes the NSX Exotic?

Are you kidding? The NSX is plainly NOT an exotic car at all.

I passed 6 of them on my way into work this morning.

What makes the NSX so special? My Honda Accord was also built by hand in an exclusive factory. It also has titanium connecting rods, and a ground breaking naturally aspirated induction system. Mario Andretti once said the 99 Accord EX V6 coupe is one of the finest roadgoing sportscars he had ever driven.
But enough about my Accord, did I mention that my girlfriends Dodge Stratus has an aluminum monocoque, and that Bobby Rahal, and Aryton Senna were involved in it's road testing, and suspension tuning?

Let's face it fellas. The NSX is just run of the mill when you compare it to all the other cars out there on the road. :wink:

Here is a better question- what makes the NSX NOT an exotic.

It's not from Italy?
It doesn't break down?
It doesn't have a V8, V10, V12, or W16?

For those who argue that the NSX is not an exotic car- I challenge you to drive one- if you can find one. I know this site makes it seem like NSXs are everywhere- but in reality they are pretty rare.

When was the last time you saw one up close?

Philip
 
Wow, I am impressed with the different opinions about exotic. I have concluded and told my wife that she drives an exotic. For those of you that have debated the corvette as possibly exotic. I drive one. It is a 1967 427 stingray, 4sp, 4brrl, 390 horse, 100% original, bought by my mother in 1967 for $5267.43. I took ownership after they lost the ability to drive it safely. This car is what I have concluded as unique by the above definitions. I see more mid 60's corvettes than NSX's. Maybe a better word for the muscle car is a classic.
Thanks
Fowler
 
What makes the NSX Exotic?

What makes the NSX so special? My Honda Accord was also built by hand in an exclusive factory. It also has titanium connecting rods, and a ground breaking naturally aspirated induction system. Mario Andretti once said the 99 Accord EX V6 coupe is one of the finest roadgoing sportscars he had ever driven.
But enough about my Accord, did I mention that my girlfriends Dodge Stratus has an aluminum monocoque, and that Bobby Rahal, and Aryton Senna were involved in it's road testing, and suspension tuning?


Philip

No quarrel about your position re: NSX as exotic. But I'm not aware of any handbuilt Accords nor Accords with titanium connecting rods.

And which Stratus has an aluminum "monocoque?"
 
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