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1997 Acura Integra Type R sells for $82,000 on Bring a Trailer

Acura Integra Type R prices are getting ridiculous. The car is absolutely superb, but the latest one to sell on Bring a Trailer went for a cool $82,000. You could likely pick up two old Acura NSXs in average condition for a similar price as the single Integra Type R. But hey, nobody ever said the value of cars made sense. Why did this particular Type R reach unrivaled heights then? A few factors are obvious. It’s a one-owner, 6,000-mile, completely original 1997 ITR (what the cool kids call the Integra Type R for short). WeÂ’re still rather flabbergasted and slightly upset the original buyer only managed 6,000 miles over the approximately 22 years of ownership, but the new owner could fix that quickly. Then again, this could be a purely speculative buy, aiding heavily in the final gavel price. Wait a few months to a year, and the value of this unmolested Type R could increase another $10,000, or more if you donÂ’t add miles. It was only a year ago to date that we wrote in near-shock about a Type R with even fewer miles (1,200) going for $63,800 at Barrett-Jackson. This car blows that previous record straight out of the water. As of now, thereÂ’s no end in sight to the increasing prices of these now-slightly-old hot Hondas. Another clean Acura Integra Type R is listed on Bring a Trailer right now, and the bid is already up to $34,567 with four days left. That car has 19,000 miles on it, and is reportedly being offered by the carÂ’s second owner, who bought it two years ago. A Honda CRX Si recently went for $33,600 on the same website. The NSXÂ’s value jump hit hard a few years ago, but now its successors are following in its footsteps again. Will there come a day when an Integra Type R hits the six-digit mark? At this rate it doesnÂ’t look far away. If you want a whole lot of what the Type R offers, without the eye-watering markup, take a long, hard look at the Integra GS-R. That trim is a great step up in performance over a base Integra, and a few easy mods gets it close to the Type R from a performance standpoint. You wonÂ’t have the cache and bragging rights that come with the R, but you also wonÂ’t be afraid to put miles on it for fear of entirely ruining the carÂ’s value. Happy Honda hunting.

Watch an Acura NSX prototype lap the track at Mid-Ohio

As promised, Acura trotted its NSX prototype out to the mass of waiting fans ahead of today's Honda Indy 200 IndyCar race at Mid-Ohio. The hybrid supercar took to the track for a fast lap, and Acura was kind enough to attach a score of cameras to the car in order to share the event with the rest of the world.
The blue-wrapped NSX looks pretty darn good on a race track, if we do say so ourselves, and its V6 engine, coupled with its three electric motors and lithium-ion battery pack, sounds awfully sweet at full song. The automaker is promising to release its new NSX in 2015, which is still quite a ways away, so we don't expect this exhibition lap to be the last time we see a prototype in action ahead of a production debut.
Want to see the video? Of course you do. Scroll down to see the NSX take to the track like a fish takes to water.

Ford, Toyota clean up in Best Car For The Money Awards

The U.S. News Best Cars for the Money Awards picks winners by looking at the average transaction price, five-year total cost of ownership, the regard a car has from the automotive press, reliability figures from J.D. Power and Associates and safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The result, according to the magazine, is "the best combination of critical acclaim and long-term value."
Ford nabbed six of the 21 categories that received awards this year, the Focus, Fusion, Fusion Hybrid, Taurus, Escape and Edge getting trophies. Toyota and its Lexus and Scion sub-brands took another five, the Tacoma and Tundra owning the two categories given to pickup trucks. The other ten awards were split between Honda with three, Buick with two, and one each for Subaru, BMW, Hyundai, Chevrolet and Mazda.
Follow the link to see all the winners and read about why they were chosen.