Funny you should say that. About 2 weeks ago I was at a local mechanics shop picking up a car (this guys shop only has Ferraris and Lamborghinis usually), and I had to leave my NSX parked out from while I took the other car home. Well, the shop owner / mechanic comes out and the moment he sees my NSX he says, 'That is the best sports car ever made,' and makes a motion towards the NSX. It made me feel really good inside considering he is European by birth, and only works on European exotics, yet thinks that my NSX is the best sports car ever made. I just had to say thank you, and left with a smile on my face.

 

i would def say an nsx is an exotic car.. mid engine and very rare.. if y'all guys think its under power.. throw in a supercharge or a turbo.. i bet it'll spank a shit load of real exotic cars. btw it inspired the mclaren .. and just wait till the new nsx comes out with their 550hp v10

 

NSX's stock are deceptively quick, especially 02+. Various magazine road tests show stock 02+ NSX's running 0-60 MPH in 4.5-5.0 secs with 1/4 mile times ranging from 12.4 to low 13s. That is amazing considering that a stock 02 NSX only has 290 HP.

HP does not in any way equate to exotic. Many exotic cars have even less HP than an NSX.

Amazing performance alone does not define an exotic car.

Exotic definition:
1) introduced from another country : not native to the place where found
2) of, relating to, or characteristic of an earlier or more primitive time
3) strikingly, excitingly, or mysteriously different or unusual
4) of or relating to striptease

Definitely #3! Perhaps even #1... or even #4



This link best sums it up: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_NSX

"In 1984 Honda commissioned Pininfarina to design the HP-X (Honda Pininfarina Xperimental),[1] which had a mid-mounted 2.0 L V6 configuration.

The production NSX was designed by a team led by Chief Designer Ken Okuyama and Executive Chief Engineer Shigeru Uehara, who was also in charge of the S2000 project. Its first public appearances as the NS-X were at the Chicago Auto Show in February 1989, and at the Tokyo Motor Show in October 1989.[2]

Japanese Formula One driver Satoru Nakajima was involved with the NSX's development, performing many duties related to chassis tuning. Brazilian Formula One driver Ayrton Senna and American Bobby Rahal also participated in the car's development.[3] Senna was given a NSX by Honda, although details of this car and its fate are unclear.[citation needed]

Honda's breakthrough engineering in the NSX was a major contributor to the design of the McLaren F1 as mentioned in an interview with McLaren designer Gordon Murray. [4] "The moment I drove the NSX, all the benchmark cars--Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini--I had been using as references in the development of my car vanished from my mind. Of course the car we would create, the McLaren F1, needed to be faster than the NSX, but the NSX's ride quality and handling would become our new design target." The NSX was also the world's first all-aluminum and aluminum monocoque chassis production car, and was also marketed as the "Everyday Supercar" thanks in part to its ease of use, quality and reliability, traits that were unheard of in the supercar segment at the time.

Upon its release in 1990, the NSX was a design ahead of its time, at only 1170 mm (46.1 in) in height only 141.3 mm (6 in) taller than the legendary Ford GT40. The car showcased Honda's racing technology, exemplified by the NSX's ultra-rigid, ultra-light aluminium monocoque chassis, aluminium suspension, titanium connecting rods, forged pistons and high-revving capabilities — the redline was at a lofty 8,000 rpm.

Today it is still known by many as the most reliable exotic car with many examples exceeding 100,000 miles without any reliability issues.


Just because its not from Italy, Germany or Britain doesn't mean it can not be exotic.......

The NSX is Japans only exotic production car.....

If it wasnt for Honda's stupidity then the Mclaren F1 would have been powered by a Honda Motor."

 

damn.. that's some good shit(info.) haha.. i couldn't have explained it any better.

 

It's rare to see one of those on the road, i think they're exotic, honda can be exotic too.. why not?!

 

do y'all guys think dodge vipers or chevy corvettes exotic?

 

i think a viper is exotic, not a corvette.

 

how about aston martin or jaguars? are they exotic?

 

i'd say, any aston martin is exotic, but not all jaguars.
The nsx has looks, performance, pricey and you rarely see one of these on the street, i've seen 2 in the last 3 years, that's what i can remember.. that's exotic enought...

 

Whethere other cars or exotic or not, lets try to keep this on the NSX topic, please.

 

I think its just another rice rocket

 

^^ I guess u put down the same answer I was shootin' for....

 

Yep I consider it as an exotic.

 

exotic.

 

I like to call it my supercar, but yes, it's exotic.

 

I have only seen 2 or 3. NSX is half exotic half hyper car. Type R is dream on wheels

 

yes because it turns me on... lol too bad its retired and they replacing it with some ugly nsx.

 

If you forgot red text, thats fine. Otherwise STFU and GTFO

 

call me a money whore, but the title of exotic should be based on the price paid for the car and the owners maintanence. its a honda, so its absolutely controversial, hence the thread.

the car is long and gone, so the question at hand is: WAS it an exotic when released? VS, when you see one on the streets NOW, would you consider it an exotic?


if the original owner paid 80k for the car i would give him the nod on it being an exotic.

if some shlep rolled up to a used honda car lot and dumped 20k on a used NSX, i would not give him the satisfaction by saying, "yes, its an exotic"

maybe i am quick to disagree with the exotic factor of a low priced vehicle. e.g. if someone picked up a run down porsche for dirt cheap, i would shrug my shoulders and say, yeah, its NOT REALLY an exotic, its actually a peice of crap status symbol.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_NSX

Honda's breakthrough engineering in the NSX was a major contributor to the design of the McLaren F1 as mentioned in an interview with McLaren F1 designer Gordon Murray (translated from original Japanese into English).[4] "The moment I drove the NSX, all the benchmark cars—Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini—I had been using as references in the development of my car vanished from my mind. Of course the car we would create, the McLaren F1, needed to be faster than the NSX, but the NSX's ride quality and handling would become our new design target." The NSX was also the world's first all-aluminum and aluminum monocoque chassis production car, and was also marketed as the "Everyday Supercar" thanks in part to its ease of use, quality and reliability. Murray himself remained an NSX owner for 7 years.

Upon its release in 1990, the NSX was a design concept well ahead of its time. At only 1,170 mm (46 in) in height (only 141.3 mm (5.56 in) taller than the legendary Ford GT40), the car showcased Honda's cutting edge racing pedigree and technology at a time when the company were literally making history while totally dominating Formula One motor racing. The Japanese car maker's race track innovations and competitive history were further exemplified on the road by the NSX's ultra-rigid, ultra-light all aluminum monocoque chassis, all aluminum suspension, boasting the world's first production car with titanium connecting rods, with forged pistons and ultra high-revving capabilities — the redline was at a lofty 8,000 rpm - all traits usually associated with track and race engineered motor cars.

Aside from its unique 23-step paint process, including an aircraft type chromate coating designed for chemically protecting the aluminum bodywork and a waterborne paint for the base coat to achieve a clearer, more vivid top color and a smoother surface finish, today the NSX is still considered by owners of the marque as one of the most reliable exotic cars ever manufactured with many examples exceeding 100,000 miles (160,000 km) without serious notable reliability issues or having suffered manufacturer recalls.

 

So by your criteria, any poorly made and high priced car is exotic? Wow. So since the NSX had a high price tag when it was new (one of your criteria), it still cannot be an exotic because someone was actually awake in the quality control department at Honda and made it reliable? That may be one of the most mind boggling things I have read in a long time.

 

-mid engine
-aluminum body
-rare
-hand built

Yes, it's an exotic!

 

exotic = YES
supercar = not anymore

 

Absolutly its an exotic,, it was called the Ferrari Fighter in Japan,, thats why they built it,, to keep up with the Ferrari Junk,, since they only made 8,000 in the USA, I would say yes its an exotic,, whats not an exotic is corvetes, BMW, Mercedes,Lexus,Volvo, all junk,,
and you never see them on the road, tehy are kept quitly in the owners garages!

 

:d

 

definitely

 

Often called a japanese Ferrari or mistaken for that or other exotics, The NSX is truely an exotic itself. Dispite the lack of ponys ( if you want to call a car that is stock doing mid 13's slow ) it is wonderful around corners. When it came out in its first year it was faster than the Ferrari 355 and beat the corvette ZR1. ( the ZR1 was faster the next year ) Not bad for a blushing new 6 cyl ! I my mind a car is not "exotic" unless it is hand built, that itself eliminates 95% of the cars in production. When Honda brought this car to market it didn't rave about the speed of the car, others did that. Honda was showing the world what could be done in handling. ( The car does hang on to a curve ) I would love to DeBadge my car, change the exhast and have one of these gurus Drive my car hard, Then tell me what they think.
Just my 2 cents.

 

Yes.

 

nopes

 

yes i do~!

 

Exotic.

If you want to say semi-exotic, then okay -- the NSX is like a really hot mixed-race Asian girl.

 

that is hilarious. i do believe it is an exotic.

 

For sure Motor Trend named it the greatest sports car ever built or something like that even the photos posted here make you appreciate the beauty, Acura should have never killed it even if they offered long model year cycles it would keep customers in the showrooms as they warmed up to the new designs.

 

I consider my 91 a vintage supercar, but not an exotic.

Nate in DC

 

Rare...yes
Exotic...no

 

Definitely yes!!!

 

So how many people on this thread actually have one?? Just curious.

 

I don't have one, but IMO its not an exotic car. A fantastic game-changing car, but not an exotic. And no, not all exotics were/are game changers either.

Don't get me wrong, again an NSX is an awesome car.... but if you went up to some stranger and said "I have an exotic car" they most likely will guess a higher-end Ferrari, Lamborghini or Porsche. That's kinda how I think too... along the lines of Koenigsegg, Bugatti, Pagani, etc.

 

because even the 09 TL has more horsepower.

Rare = Yes
Exotic = Hell to the No

just like the following cars are NOT Exotic:
Toyota Supra
Mazda RX7
Honda S2000
Subaru WRS STi & Evo MR
300ZX TT
--
The Nissan GT-R is NOT Exotic. Its fast but not exotic.

 

Well since someone already bumped this year old thread I suppose I'll contribute lol.

I think if we are talking about comparing the NSX to the cars in its day, I would consider it an exotic. But I can't say today that I consider it as such. I would say more semi-exotic lol. In its introduction in the late 80's, the Jaguar XJS V12's were considered exotics...now they're just a collector car...and that's if you're a Jag fan.

Still though, whenever I see an NSX on the road, I stare and think of what could have been. Which begs the question, if Acura were to make a new NSX, would I consider it an exotic? I want to say yes, but Acura is not an "exotic brand." A lot would depend on the execution and how it was marketed.