The most exotic, expensive, and sophisticated Japanese car ever made when it was introduced, the NSX is a monument to the philosophy that made Honda such an exceptional company. Soichiro Honda did not attend university and was turned down by Toyota for this reason so he set out on his own, initially producing piston rings, and later on, motorcycles. Honda went on become the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles and then turned his attention to cars. The first car they produced was the S360 prototype, which debuted in 1962 and would enter production in 1963 as the S500, which was further developed as the S600 and S800. All were powered by twin cam inline-4s that revved as high as 9,500 RPM, taking obvious inspiration from Honda’s motorcycles. The following year (two years after displaying their first car), the company fielded a Formula 1 team!
Over the decades, the company trailblazed consistently, introducing an engine that could meet strict new American emissions standards without any emissions equipment (CVCC) in 1972, and the first Japanese premium brand for the US market, Acura, in 1986. During this period, Honda also enjoyed a period of dominance supplying engines in Formula 1, powering Constructor’s Championship winning cars every year from 1986 to 1991 in either Williams or McLaren entries.
It was within this context that Honda began development of the NSX in 1984 as a way to showcase the engineering brainpower that built the period’s winningest F1 engines. It had been decades since Honda had built a dedicated sports car, which meant that the NSX could be developed as a clean sheet design, owing little, technically or aesthetically, to any recent Honda products. Given that it wasn’t replacing any existing model or responding specifically to any competitive threat, it could be developed painstakingly, which it was over a six year period. The goal was to develop something completely new which combined usability, performance, and driver enjoyment to an extent that no previous sports car had.
The car was at its core to be a driver’s car. Thus, the engine was not only placed admidships, but obsessive attention was given to weight distribution and minimizing polar moment of inertia. The fuel tank was placed immediately behind the cabin so that consuming fuel would not change the car’s weight distribution. The highest parts of the engine (valve covers and intake) were made of magnesium to save weight and lower the car’s center of gravity. The chassis was made of aluminum and optimized by a Cray supercomputer, weighing 40% less than a steel monocoque of equivalent strength.
The engine was a 3.0 liter 24-valve quad cam V6 that spun to 8,000 RPM, made 90 horsepower per liter, and incorporated VTEC (the first Honda product offered in the US to do so), a now iconic technology which adjusts cam timing and lift at high engine speeds to improve breathing and thus performance without sacrificing low end torque or flexibility. And all this was offered with 7,500 mile service intervals in an engine that could literally be serviced at a Honda dealership. The story of the NSX brims with other testaments to the engineering dedication it contains, in a way that characterizes precious few other sports cars such as the McLaren F1 and Lexus LFA.
This particular NSX is a two-owner example which has covered just 8,100 miles from new. It was sold new by Hinshaw’s Acura of Fife (Tacoma) in Washington state on the 18th of February 1993. Its original owner retained the car until its current owner bought it on the 12th of May 2016, at which point it had covered 4,684 miles. In the current owner’s care, the car has been serviced exclusively by Acura of Seattle by their dedicated factory-trained NSX technician who has been working on these cars since they were new and is widely regarded to be one of the foremost NSX technicians in the United States.
The car has been displayed twice at LeMay, America’s Car Museum in Tacoma Washington, in 2017-2018 as part of their Exotics exhibit and again from 2024-2025 as part of the Shinka: A Japanese Automobile Exhibit. Immediately after the conclusion of the latter exhibition in March 2025, the car was taken directly to Acura of Seattle for a comprehensive service which included changing all the fluids, a new battery, replacing the left and right door amplifiers, and repairing the brake light out warning lamp, a well-known NSX issue.
Another well-known NSX issue is the snap ring failure in manual transmissions, and this car received a 50% goodwill/warranty replacement of the transmission with a new unit from Acura in August 2018 at 5,023 miles. The original transmission was working properly when it was removed and can be included with the car if the new owner desires. Other noteworthy work at that time included a timing belt service. A new set of Continental tires was fitted in 2020 at 5,732 miles.
The car is both cosmetically and mechanically exceptional, reflecting the immense pride of ownership of both its owners. A binder of invoices is included with the car showing the attentive care it has received. Also worth noting is that this is one of 344 3.0 liter manual Grand Prix White NSXs built. The color was not offered in 1991 and is among the most desirable colors for the model. Included with the car are service records, owner’s manual pack, license plate frames, front plate bracket, period Acura car cleaning kit, three keys (one titanium, two plastic) and keychain from the original selling dealer.
