Honda has no plans to build an NSX Type R

Honda has no plans to develop an Honda NSX Type R, and it’s a real shame now that the brand has revealed it will launch two versions of the Honda Civic Type R.

Sorry, Honda fans. It seems there will be no hardcore variant of the NSX supercar. Ever since the new Honda NSX debuted in 2016, we have been wondering whether it would get a track-ready variant with a Type R badge. Around that time, we heard the company had plans for as many as five different variants of the car, which gave us hope. The introduction of the new Honda Civic Type R in the US market in 2017 was another positive sign, but this new report suggests an NSX Type R is not happening.

Some sources recently spoke with Honda technical consultant Ko Yamamoto and Civic Type R project leader Hideki Kakinuma, and received some interesting news about the possibility of an NSX Type R. Neither of them went into detail, but they confirmed that there are currently no plans to build one. They also pointed out that the original NSX Type R was exclusive to Japan, and that even if a new version were in the works, it is unlikely to reach the US market (despite being built in Ohio). A Honda spokesperson declined to comment.

Honda NSX Type R, will we see it in Europe?

Yamamoto and Kakinuma have noted that the Type R badge, along with the red “H” badge associated with the tuning, is only for vehicles with “a racing connection”. Since the NSX currently competes in several championships around the world, we think it qualifies. But the two Honda employees also told various sources that the Type R badge is “only for vehicles badged Honda”, despite the existence of the early-2000s Honda Integra Type R. So that disqualifies the NSX, in the Americas at least.

Now, the model has just turned 30 years old; Honda began production of its NSX. Described at the time as a supercar, it was the first vehicle of its kind the company had attempted, but it has a place in history as one of the greatest of its era.

It was so good that Honda was able to keep it on sale for 15 years with only relatively minor updates. Finding one second-hand for less than €30,000 can be difficult, while a truly spectacular example could be worth a small fortune.

At an early stage, Honda decided the car would be mid-engined and built around an aluminium body. Aluminium was a far less common material for chassis than it is now, but Honda knew it was necessary to give the NSX a combination of low weight and high structural rigidity.

The engine, originally a 3.0-litre, was a V6 with Honda’s VTEC technology, which featured an intake cam profile that was more aggressive at high revs. The V6’s design was shared with an extremely successful F1 unit, although by the time the NSX went on sale, the racing team had switched to a V10.