NSX - My 1 Year Anniversary - Pics & Review - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

bodypainter · 03-29-2006, 02:58 PM

Hard to believe, it was 1 year ago today that I made my "I got it!!!!! post after picking it up earlier that day. If anyone cares, here's what a year living with an NSX as your daily driver is like.

First off, I put 14,000 miles on this car in 12 months, so I really know the car. At 11 years old and 70,000 miles, the car doesn't squeak or rattle, it's never squirrely across bumpy road and it doesn't leak anywhere. Also, it's quite a comfy car to drive once you get used to the low, laid back seating position. The seats are outstanding, both comfortable and supportive. I drove to Maine and back, a 3600 mile round trip, and never got tired of the seat. There is sometimes some wind noise around the drivers window and the drivers electric window rolls up slowly but otherwise the car has been perfect.

Some people might argue that for $89,000 new, this car damn well should not squeak or rattle etc and they're right. What impresses me is that it's still tight a decade + later with no special care or repair along the way. From what I know of other NSX owners, my experience is not unusual.

They always look so good in the pictures.

Fact is, my car has plenty of blems in the paint. Rock chips on the front clip, a few little scratches on the roof & trunk, and so on. It looks good, but it's no garage queen. Pretty much all the metal in the car is aluminum, so it'll never rust. The downside of that is that if I ever have the car repainted and done right, it'll cost me more because it's aluminum. Likewise, any crash damage would be much more expensive. Owning this car and driving it everywhere you go means I frequently park it like this.

Yup, out at the end of the parking lot all by my lonesome, the better to avoid door dings. Oh well, it's good exercise.

This car is small. Really small. The trunk is good for grocery bags or some golf clubs, but it's very shallow. There is zero storage space up front or in the passenger compartment. If you have your owners manual in the glove box, the glove box is full. You can slide a jacket and a map behind the seats but that's about it. The roof line is very very low...

I feel at least as invisible in this car as I used to feel on my motorcycle. It's kind of freaky.

The roof comes off and stores over the engine (under the big back glass). When I was shopping for an NSX, I really wanted the targa roof and indeed, that's what I got. In hindsight, I shouldn't have cared that much about the roof. As a convertible, the NSX is a mixed bag. At highway + speeds, it's a turbulent ride and when I'm in cruise control pleasure drive mode, it's distracting. Around town, the open top is nice and I think the NSX looks great with the top off.

Which brings me to performance. The NSX ships with a 270hp V6. Pretty underpowered by today's standards. While I certainly wouldn't mind more power, I haven't found myself needing more power. We have participated in a couple group rally type drives, the last one covering 120 miles, where I drove the shit out of this car and it did great. I've hit the redline on the tach over and over and the car loves it. It's not a drag racer, but it is a road munching cornering monster. I make sure it's got good tires and I let it rip!

There's also a nice feeling of community that I've found with the car. There were only 9,000 NSX's imported to the US in 15 years of production but there is a large and active user community. Last summer I got together with a bunch up in Tampa and we went for a little spin.

So, I'm not a professional race driver but I know what I like. If a 500 hp Viper is a hammer, my NSX is a scalpel. It is so easy to drive it hard when you want to that it's just delightful. It's fairly efficient, too. I average about 20 mpg in mixed driving and on that long road trip to Maine, I averaged 28 mpg. Premium gas required though.

That's about all I've got to say about it for now. I'm add to it if there's more. Thanks for reading this far!

Tech · 03-30-2006, 12:55 AM

one year and i'm still jealous

Cycler · 03-30-2006, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tech

one year and i'm still jealous

Yup me too, might look up and see if there are in yellow ones floating around in Oklahoma for sale.

03-29-2006, 02:58 PM	#1 (permalink)
bodypainter Psycho Location: Sarasota	NSX - My 1 Year Anniversary - Pics & Review Hard to believe, it was 1 year ago today that I made my "I got it!!!!! post after picking it up earlier that day. If anyone cares, here's what a year living with an NSX as your daily driver is like. First off, I put 14,000 miles on this car in 12 months, so I really know the car. At 11 years old and 70,000 miles, the car doesn't squeak or rattle, it's never squirrely across bumpy road and it doesn't leak anywhere. Also, it's quite a comfy car to drive once you get used to the low, laid back seating position. The seats are outstanding, both comfortable and supportive. I drove to Maine and back, a 3600 mile round trip, and never got tired of the seat. There is sometimes some wind noise around the drivers window and the drivers electric window rolls up slowly but otherwise the car has been perfect. Some people might argue that for $89,000 new, this car damn well should not squeak or rattle etc and they're right. What impresses me is that it's still tight a decade + later with no special care or repair along the way. From what I know of other NSX owners, my experience is not unusual. They always look so good in the pictures. Fact is, my car has plenty of blems in the paint. Rock chips on the front clip, a few little scratches on the roof & trunk, and so on. It looks good, but it's no garage queen. Pretty much all the metal in the car is aluminum, so it'll never rust. The downside of that is that if I ever have the car repainted and done right, it'll cost me more because it's aluminum. Likewise, any crash damage would be much more expensive. Owning this car and driving it everywhere you go means I frequently park it like this. Yup, out at the end of the parking lot all by my lonesome, the better to avoid door dings. Oh well, it's good exercise. This car is small. Really small. The trunk is good for grocery bags or some golf clubs, but it's very shallow. There is zero storage space up front or in the passenger compartment. If you have your owners manual in the glove box, the glove box is full. You can slide a jacket and a map behind the seats but that's about it. The roof line is very very low... I feel at least as invisible in this car as I used to feel on my motorcycle. It's kind of freaky. The roof comes off and stores over the engine (under the big back glass). When I was shopping for an NSX, I really wanted the targa roof and indeed, that's what I got. In hindsight, I shouldn't have cared that much about the roof. As a convertible, the NSX is a mixed bag. At highway + speeds, it's a turbulent ride and when I'm in cruise control pleasure drive mode, it's distracting. Around town, the open top is nice and I think the NSX looks great with the top off. Which brings me to performance. The NSX ships with a 270hp V6. Pretty underpowered by today's standards. While I certainly wouldn't mind more power, I haven't found myself needing more power. We have participated in a couple group rally type drives, the last one covering 120 miles, where I drove the shit out of this car and it did great. I've hit the redline on the tach over and over and the car loves it. It's not a drag racer, but it is a road munching cornering monster. I make sure it's got good tires and I let it rip! There's also a nice feeling of community that I've found with the car. There were only 9,000 NSX's imported to the US in 15 years of production but there is a large and active user community. Last summer I got together with a bunch up in Tampa and we went for a little spin. So, I'm not a professional race driver but I know what I like. If a 500 hp Viper is a hammer, my NSX is a scalpel. It is so easy to drive it hard when you want to that it's just delightful. It's fairly efficient, too. I average about 20 mpg in mixed driving and on that long road trip to Maine, I averaged 28 mpg. Premium gas required though. That's about all I've got to say about it for now. I'm add to it if there's more. Thanks for reading this far! Last edited by bodypainter; 03-29-2006 at 03:24 PM..

03-30-2006, 12:55 AM	#2 (permalink)
Tech Addict Location: Baltimore MD	one year and i'm still jealous __________________ -Tim- ~I swear sometimes i feel like i'm married to a child. ~You better watch who you're calling a child, Lois, cause if i'm a child than you know what that makes you? a pedophile. and i'll be damned if i'm going to stand here and be lectured by a pervert.