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The second-generation Honda NSX recently came to a conclusion when the Type S variant came to the end of its production, closing the curtain on the hybrid mid-engined supercar after seven years since its debut in 2015.
Officially, the Japanese manufacturer does not plan to bring back the flagship sports car, however officials offer some company background, stating that a supercar successor would be the perfect basis for highlighting the brand’s shift from internal combustion to battery-electric drive, Nikkei Asia reported.
Honda plans to roll out 30 new EV models by 2030, with a target annual production volume of two million units. While the successor to the NSX hasn’t been officially named to be in that plan, the e:architecture would form the basis for both mainstream Honda and upmarket models such as for the Acura brand, which is where the NSX would fit in, according to Acura vice president Jon Ikeda.
That model, should it be confirmed, would offer a clear indication of what the new battery-electric platform is technically capable of, and while electric powertrains deliver maximum torque from a standstill, a future Honda EV supercar “won’t just be about straight lines,” Ikeda told Nikkei Asia.
Instead, an EV supercar flagship would be to demonstrate its handling and other technological prowess, the report wrote. According to Ikeda and another Honda insider, the real matter of interest is the timing of the future product debuts.
While Acura will have its first long-range battery EV in production prefaced by the Prologue in 2024 (a model from Honda’s strategic partnership with General Motors and thus using GM’s modular EV platform), it could be another two years after that before the the e:architecture will be ready, and that would be a perfect time to debut the pure-EV NSX successor.
The final decision whether or not to bring back the NSX, albeit as a fully electric model, will likely be up to Honda chief executive Toshihiro Mibe, said Ikeda, however the CEO’s support for EVs seems to be a solid sign that a new flagship sports car in that vein will follow, according to the Nikkei Asia report. Should Mibe give this the green light, development could formally begin within one or two years.
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