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Honda trademarks ZSX, could be for baby NSX

While there have been many rumors dating back to 2008 about a mid-engined sports car from Honda, last year's report was provided the most detail about what seemed to be a scaled-down version of the NSX hybrid supercar. Honda may have added some fuel to the rumor-fire by recently filing a trademark application for "ZSX," reports Australia's Performance Drive. The trademark application was sent to the European Union Intellectual Property Office late last month and is obviously close to the NSX nomenclature. The Australian outlet also reports that an unnamed source within Honda claims the ZSX, whatever it may be, could be revealed as early as next year. The anonymous employee also claims that the ZSX will be offered as a coupe and a hard-top convertible variant, with both being powered by the automaker's 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine from the Honda Civic Type R. Just like the NSX, the ZSX is rumored to get electric motors on the front and rear axles. Previous reports match the unnamed source's claims, as the ZSX was expected to be a replacement for the Honda S2000 that ended production in 2009. It now sounds like it'll be more of a mini-NSX, with rumors pointing towards one electric motor powering the rear wheels, while two motors would be on the front axle. Patents from last year, which are pictured above, match the rumors of a mid-engined sports car. The ZSX trademark is for Europe only as of right now, while the automaker's previous patents and trademarks included the US, as well. Only time will tell if "ZSX" really stands for a sports car, or if Honda actually goes through with its plans. Remember, Nissan ditched similar plans for a small rear-wheel-drive sports car recently. Related Video: Featured Gallery Honda ZSX Patent News Source: EUIPO, Performance DriveImage Credit: autovisie Green Acura Honda Coupe Hybrid Performance trademark rumor honda nsx

The original Acura NSX: Development history and driving the icon

The original NSX, introduced in production form in 1990 by Honda and to the United States market under the Acura brand in 1991, is now officially 25 plus years old. Generations of car enthusiasts grew to love the original NSX over the 15 years it was in production and beyond, but as an fan and owner, I think it's important to fully realize just how monumental a shift the introduction of the NSX was in the art of making cars. So, retold 25 years later, this is the abridged story of the NSX, Honda's supercar. The Idea The NSX was an extremely risky project for Honda, a company that in the late 1980's was nowhere near the corporate juggernaut that it is today. Honda's eponymous founder, Soichiro Honda, was still involved in decision-making at the company during this time under the role of "Supreme Advisor," and it is debatable whether the NSX project in its infancy would have gone forward at all had he not still been pushing the company towards the spirit of technical achievement it had been known for in the prior decades. Mr. Honda was still so involved during this period, in fact, that when the first batch of 300 production NSXs were made with a version of the Acura badge he didn't like, he ordered all of the cars stopped at port in the USA, the new badges applied, and the offending incorrect badges sent back to Japan to be systematically destroyed. This was clearly a man who paid attention to the details, but I digress. Honda as a company devoted $140 million dollars to the NSX project ($250 million in today's money), half of which would go to developing the car, and the remainder of which would go to building a new state-of-the-art factory to assemble it. Honda's own goals for the NSX were actually exactly as most media stories portray the car today: to build a bona-fide exotic supercar, but one without the ergonomic and reliability penalties associated with that type of car. They didn't want to sacrifice the needs of the driver to the supposed demands of performance, demands that they felt didn't have to be there in making a truly top-level performance machine. The R&D team wanted a car that could hang with heavyweight exotics in a straight line, play with smaller and more lightweight sports cars in the curves, and cruise in serenity on the freeway. Essentially, they wanted it all, and the brief was to have a car that could do everything without compromise.

Honda renews trademark for Acura CDX compact crossover

Honda recently renewed its U.S. trademark for the name "CDX," which the Japanese carmaker first applied for in 2015. Back then, observers expected the name to apply to an Acura version of the Honda HR-V, and they were right — but no one expected the CDX would go on sale only in China, in 2016. For the past two years, the U.S. auto media has speculated on whether the CDX will ever make it here. "(We) have our R&D guys looking into the possibility," group VP of Acura U.S. Jon Ikeda told Wards Auto last April about the CDX. However, he went on to note that it's not as simple as just shipping it over due to regulation differences between China and the United States. The trademark application doesn't mean a green light, but it shows Honda's at least leaving the door open to the prospect. The Chinese-market CDX is a Honda HR-V after a wardrobe change. The only engine option is the 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder from the Civic, CR-V, and Accord, with 179 horsepower and 177 pound-feet (our HR-V uses a 1.8-liter four-cylinder with 141 hp and 127 lb-ft). The only transmission offered is an eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox. Drivetrains can be had in front- or all-wheel drive. We wonder how much longer Honda can sit on the sidelines. The CDX doubled Acura's sales in China in one year. Acura sells more crossovers than sedans in the United States, and in the past two years that the CDX has been on sale in China, the compact crossover segment here has got more crowded and more popular. The Cadillac XT4 is imminent, and we could see the new Lexus UX compact crossover at the Geneva Motor Show. Really, an American-market Acura CDX can't come soon enough. Related Video: News Source: Bozi Tatarevic via Autoevolution Auto News Government/Legal Rumormill Acura Honda Crossover Luxury honda hr-v