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Acura NSX GT3 swings through New York en route to the track

Supercars are developed for the road, but sometimes the prospect of putting them on the track proves just too tempting to pass up. McLaren found out just that with the legendary F1, and now its racing partner Honda is doing the same with the new Acura NSX GT3 you see here. Unveiled here at the 2016 New York Auto Show, the NSX GT3 is based closely on the road-going version, but with several key differences. For starters, it ditches the trick hybrid all-wheel-drive system, not unlike the Type R we're expecting to follow. It keeps the 3.5-liter V6, but purely in twin-turbo guise (with no electrical boost in sight), driving the rear wheels through a six-speed sequential gearbox instead of the nine-speed dual-clutch transmission. The aluminum space frame carries over, but comes draped in extensively modified bodywork with more extreme aero to keep it cool and glued to the track. Since it's been designed to FIA GT3 regulations (and not the more advanced GTE), we shouldn't expect to see it competing at Le Mans against the new Ford GT (among others). But it will be in prime position to take on championships like the Pirelli World Challenge, Blancpain Endurance Series, and even the lower GT300 class of Japan's own Super GT series. Wherever it competes, though, it positively looks the business even sitting still, and we're looking forward to seeing it run. Acura Unveils NSX GT3 Racecar in New York Mar 23, 2016 - NEW YORK, NY - Twin turbocharged NSX supercar to campaign in North American competition starting 2017 - NSX slated to undergo homologation this fall as an FIA GT3 class racecar - Racecar body to be built by the Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, Ohio, the exclusive manufacturing home to the all-new Acura NSX supercar; engine to be produced in Anna, Ohio Acura took the wraps off a NSX GT3 racecar today at the 2016 New York International Auto Show, announcing its intention to campaign the twin-turbocharged NSX supercar in North America starting in 2017. The NSX is currently undergoing testing and slated for homologation as an FIA GT3 class racecar this fall. The unveiled Acura NSX GT3 racecar featured custom bodywork and aero components including a large deck wing spoiler, underbody diffuser and enlarged hood vents for efficient engine cooling.

Go inside the Acura NSX's stunning Ohio factory

If you're going to build a world-class supercar, you need to build a world-class factory. And that's what Honda did with the Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, Ohio. We took a tour of the PMC recently for an up-close look at how the new NSX comes to life and documented it in the video above. The PMC was designed for the sole purpose of building the new supercar. Located just up the road from the R&D center where Honda developed the NSX, the factory sits at the heart of Honda's Ohio campus. Walking the factory floor, you can tell the Acura NSX is the pride of the entire Honda Motor Company, and as we saw on our first drive, it's a car worthy of serious lust. So it's no small thing that the Japanese company builds the entire car in America. The factory won't be open to the public, but if you're one of the people with an NSX on order, you'll be able to take a tour yourself later this year. We hope you enjoy the video tour. Related Video: Green Acura Coupe Hybrid Videos Original Video

2019 Acura ILX first drive | New looks, same lackluster performance

Acura knows what it takes to make a fun, compact car that enthusiasts desire. It did so for three decades with the Integra, which eventually morphed into the still fun RSX. Then the ILX came around for the 2013 model year, and the world collectively yawned. It's actually still yawning, and the 2019 redesign isn't doing a whole lot to change that. One might expect more wholesale changes from a car entering its seventh year on the market, but we're still staring down the barrel of the same 201 horsepower 2.4-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder and trick dual-clutch automatic transmission (which also features a torque converter for low-speed smoothness) from before. These pieces aren't necessarily the problem though. It's enjoyable to thrash the engine out to 7,000 rpm, and the dual-clutch snaps off surprisingly quick shifts when using the paddles in manual mode. It's a bit of a throwback to before all of Honda's performance engines switched to turbocharging for power. It pulls harder the more you wring it out, and begs to be paired with a slick-shifting six-speed manual like it was in the ninth-gen Civic Si. Sadly, everything else outside the powertrain (still) just misses the mark. The greatest part of Acura's old performance compacts was how they made you feel when you were driving them. There was an intimate connection between the driver and road at all times that is sorely lacking from the ILX. Turn in feel is soft and doesn't offer satisfying quick changes of direction. The old chassis feels its age in controlling body movements too. It all culminates in making the ILX feel like a larger car than it actually is. That's not to say the ILX handles poorly, though; it simply does so without any eagerness or feel — just like it has from the beginning. This is unfortunate because the ILX looks better than it ever has. Acura re-did the whole front nose from the A-pillar forward, and it attacked the rear fascia too. We got to check out and drive A-Spec trimmed cars, which add even more aggression to the styling but no performance upgrades. Sure there's three-too-many fake air vents, but the car finally grew some teeth compared to the ultra-bland looks from before. Props for not following the terrible industry trend of totally unreasonably-sized fake exhaust outlets too. The interior isn't as exciting.