One of the many perks of owning an NSX is experiencing all the attention it attracts. Every time I go for a drive, there are more than a few turned heads and craned necks, not to mention the occasional thumbs up and shouts of "Nice car!", or something similar. Once, a guy driving a brand new Porsche even gave an admiring thumbs up while we were stopped at an intersection. And driving on the freeway, several cars often go out of their way to pull up alongside me for a while, gawking at the car.
This kind of attention has no doubt been experienced by every NSX owner because 1) the car is drop-dead gorgeous; and 2) it's a rare vehicle that is seldom seen on the road. From 1991-2005, only about 9,000 NSXs were sold in the US, and over the years many of those have unfortunately been wrecked or are sequestered away in collections. Compare that to say the Corvette, which in that same 15-year period sold 400,000 vehicles in the US, not to mention all the preceding and succeeding years it's been in production. In most places, you can throw a rock while wearing a blindfold and hit a Corvette, but you might have to wait a year or more to ever see an NSX on the road (blindfold off please).
But numbers don't tell the whole story, because of course, Ferraris, Lambos, and other exotics can be rare too. But cars like Ferraris have a long-standing and well-established legacy. Most people you encounter, even if they aren't into cars, recognize the Ferrari name and expect a flashy sports car.
Not so with the NSX. Most non-car enthusiasts I talk to (friends, family, co-workers, etc.) never heard of it. And when I mention it's an Acura or Honda, I can see confusion form on their faces as they try to figure out why I'm so enthusiastic about a car, that in their minds must be a four-door sedan. That's when I whip out my iPhone and flash some sexy NSX pictures at them, "See, THIS is what I'm talking about..." And nearly every time, the reaction is exactly the same: they stare at the pictures for a few seconds, confusion growing, and finally say, "I never knew Acura made a car like that."
It's a little frustrating, because these folks can't truly appreciate what makes our cars so special. But when you do encounter someone who's familiar with the NSX, it more than makes up for it. My house is in the hills on a twisty little two-lane road with no sidewalks, so there's not a lot of foot traffic in the neighborhood except for local residents walking dogs, jogging, or taking weekend strolls. But even with such few passersby, when the garage door is open and I'm fussing with the car, I've had people (okay, just guys only) stop and exclaim, "An NSX!", then stand there gazing from the street as if they've just seen a unicorn. They're thrilled when I invite them into the garage to get a closer look. Of course we talk at length about the car, but there are also stretches of silent admiration punctuated by low whispers of "Wow", "Beautiful", "Damn", etc.
And that's what it's like to own a unicorn.
This kind of attention has no doubt been experienced by every NSX owner because 1) the car is drop-dead gorgeous; and 2) it's a rare vehicle that is seldom seen on the road. From 1991-2005, only about 9,000 NSXs were sold in the US, and over the years many of those have unfortunately been wrecked or are sequestered away in collections. Compare that to say the Corvette, which in that same 15-year period sold 400,000 vehicles in the US, not to mention all the preceding and succeeding years it's been in production. In most places, you can throw a rock while wearing a blindfold and hit a Corvette, but you might have to wait a year or more to ever see an NSX on the road (blindfold off please).
But numbers don't tell the whole story, because of course, Ferraris, Lambos, and other exotics can be rare too. But cars like Ferraris have a long-standing and well-established legacy. Most people you encounter, even if they aren't into cars, recognize the Ferrari name and expect a flashy sports car.
Not so with the NSX. Most non-car enthusiasts I talk to (friends, family, co-workers, etc.) never heard of it. And when I mention it's an Acura or Honda, I can see confusion form on their faces as they try to figure out why I'm so enthusiastic about a car, that in their minds must be a four-door sedan. That's when I whip out my iPhone and flash some sexy NSX pictures at them, "See, THIS is what I'm talking about..." And nearly every time, the reaction is exactly the same: they stare at the pictures for a few seconds, confusion growing, and finally say, "I never knew Acura made a car like that."
It's a little frustrating, because these folks can't truly appreciate what makes our cars so special. But when you do encounter someone who's familiar with the NSX, it more than makes up for it. My house is in the hills on a twisty little two-lane road with no sidewalks, so there's not a lot of foot traffic in the neighborhood except for local residents walking dogs, jogging, or taking weekend strolls. But even with such few passersby, when the garage door is open and I'm fussing with the car, I've had people (okay, just guys only) stop and exclaim, "An NSX!", then stand there gazing from the street as if they've just seen a unicorn. They're thrilled when I invite them into the garage to get a closer look. Of course we talk at length about the car, but there are also stretches of silent admiration punctuated by low whispers of "Wow", "Beautiful", "Damn", etc.
And that's what it's like to own a unicorn.
