In the second part of Jethro Bovingdon’s Drive Tribe test of the Acura NSX, the auto journalist heads to an airstrip to pit the new Acura NSX—branded as Honda NSX in the U.K.—Nissan GT-R, and Porsche Turbo against each other in a timed race to 150 mph.
On paper, all three cars share commonalities: they’re all all-wheel drive, have 500-something horsepower turbocharged six-cylinder engines, and have dual-clutch transmissions. Historically, the Nissan GT-R and Porsche Turbo have butted heads, what with their instrumented sub-three second 0-60 times, but the German contender has remained mostly victorious over its Japanese counterpart. (Tuned GT-Rs are another story, however.)
Now, though, with the introduction of the Acura NSX—Acura’s hybrid supercar that makes a combined 573 hp from its three electric motors and twin-turbocharged V6—both the Porsche and Nissan are on notice. There’s a new contender within the market of daily-drivable supercars.
But despite looking relatively similar on paper, it’s engine placement and weight that ultimately decide the winner of this timed race. Without giving away spoilers, just acknowledge that the brand of the winner of this race was just ranked #1 by J.D. Power in dependability, proving it won’t be dethroned anytime soon.
