- Joined
- 2 May 2005
- Messages
- 249
*warning - long NSX love letter below with no real objective/questions/etc.. just wanted to share. skip this thread if your time is valuable. you have been warned.*
I just got back from one of *those* drives - you know, the kind of drive that just reaffirms the fact that the NSX is *the* car for you. I believe they call it a "peak experience" - one of those moments that stay with you forever.
A bit of background - I bought this '91 NSX with 35k miles on it last November 2013, and the previous owner wasn't all that great to her. The PPI showed a perfect motor though, good body, but it did have some minor flaws - some chips in paint, a leaking master/slave cylinder, some corrosion on the rear 3 ignition coils, a/c needing recharge, slow windows. Thankfully, the TB/WP was done recently, and I did some research from the carfax, called around some dealers local to the area the car was registered in, and found the dealer the car was serviced at. Called the dealer and gave them the VIN, and the service history showed that it recently also had a valve adjustment, new plugs, new coolant hoses all installed on top of the TB/WP. Great!
So I pulled the trigger on the car, brought it home, and took the wife out on a nice long drive to dinner. 3 hours later on our return drive, we found ourselves stranded on the side of the highway (680S for the locals) - the throttle cable had snapped! Gas pedal went straight to the floor. Towed her home with my "peace of mind" completely destroyed. Once monday rolled around, I called Don @ Hilltop auto, and towed the car over to get the throttle cable fixed, along with the a/c recharge, new ignition coils, new master/slave cylinder, new window regulators + retainers on both sides, etc.
$3600 and 2.5 weeks later, she was back on the road, but there was another issue - the clutch shudders violently during the last 20% or so of engagement, enough to shake the steering wheel. Makes me wonder if the leaking master/slave cylinders contaminated the clutch disc surfaces. Ordered a new SoS sport 275 clutch+flywheel on 12/18/13, and it still hasn't arrived - it's backordered until 1/13/14!! ARGH! On top of that, the car, ONCE, did a weird thing hesitating at about 3-3.5k rpms for a second, then clicking in and surging forward like it should. It has never done that again since, though.
So, as you can figure - since I bought the car I've only been able to drive it 8-10 times. I didn't "trust" the car quite yet either, so it spends all its time parked in the garage on a battery tender. At the back of my mind during this entire ordeal, I had been wondering if I had made a huge mistake with the NSX. It was nothing like the vettes, 911s, and even lotuses or S2000s I've had in my past - where I could just get in, not worry, and drive+enjoy. On one hand, I told myself that it was a 23 year old car after all, and some of this was just to be expected. On the other hand, I had wondered if I got a lemon and this would be a common occurrence during my NSX ownership.
Today was different. I woke up feeling bold and dangerous, and decided to take the car out to work, after not having driven it for weeks. She did just fine. Started instantly, and purred along with the sweet baritone symphony behind my head the entire way - even through stop and go rush hour traffic. Aside from the shuddering clutch in 1/2/3rd gear (which I have kind of learned to drive around), everything was perfect. I have not been able to get the hesitation to happen again (drove it about 6-7 times after it first happened and it hasn't come back yet) - wondering if it was just from the car sitting so long (1+ month) without being driven.
Anyways, one thing I realize - is that EVERY single time I drive the NSX, I get a little more hooked. I fall a little bit more in love. I don't know what it is - at low speeds around town, the NSX feels like a firm, low, accord. It just gets out of my way and disappears from between me and the road. But unlike an accord, it fits my body like a glove. I *love* the low cowl and visibility - when I drove the evora again after some time in the NSX, I felt claustrophobic and hated it (good thing it's mostly my wife's daily driver). I figured this is what horses feel like walking around with those side blinders on.
I'm also realizing that as I get to know the car better, I am falling in love with the manual steering. I've driven the NSX <10 times now, but even then I don't even notice the low speed efforts anymore. But I *love* how the weight of the wheel changes with load - it really feels alive. I love the way it squirms in my hand over uneven roads. I love the way it starts to get heavier as I feed the car throttle through a turn. It makes me look forward to the next turn or sweeper coming up so I can turn the car. Why aren't all cars like this?? The steering wheel on this car is "alive" in the most literal sense - it reacts accordingly to load and talks to you. Other wheels (most, but not all of course) feel dead - same effort required to turn the wheel regardless of whether it's going straight, taking a long sweeper, or doing a low speed u-turn.
When I'm *not* driving the car, I just gaze at the body and design and fall in love all over again. There is nothing like this car out there today, aesthetically nor feel/function wise. I stare at photos of this car on my phone when I'm at home/work, and sometimes I go down to the garage just to look at it and sit in it.
I have had a *LOT* of sports cars. I can't believe this 23 year old honda excites me so profoundly in ways none of the others could. And despite the maintenance/repairs/downtime, I would pick this car over any of my other cars, 7 days out of the week. I guess today is the day I just fell head over heels for the car after realizing what an enigma I had.
A lot of people say the NSX has no soul. They are wrong. This car has the most intangible, unquantifiable character about it that just makes me want to explore it more. I can't get enough of it. I can't figure it out. It's one of a kind. And it's one of those things you won't realize until you spend some time living with the car. The more you put in, the more you get back. Before I had purchased the NSX, I noticed owners consistently praising the driving position, and visibility of the road in front and around you from the driver's seat. I didn't understand this at first. I'd stare at photos of the interior and go "it looks nice, but I don't see why it's so great visibility wise." Even the first/second time I drove this car, I didn't notice it - probably was too busy/excited learning the car to notice. But the more I drive this car, the more I realize what they mean - when I get into any other car now, I feel like I am in a victorian bathtub!! High cowls and beltlines, tiny windshields, huge pillars - I had no idea these things made such a profound difference in driving experience. In the NSX I feel like I am in a glass bubble travelling down the road - in other cars I feel like I am inside a bathtub or tank driving down the road, surrounded by hunks of metal on all sides, and looking at the road through the small portholes of the vehicle.
Sorry for the long ramble. I just feel like a giddy little schoolboy falling in love again for the first time, I just had to share. I can't wait until the SoS clutch is installed, I want to drive the shit out of this car!! This car is like a drug - first hit was free, and now I'll do/pay anything to get that hit again. The NSX - the new crystal meth, except you get to keep your teeth. If any of you reading this (and made it this far, congrats), and are thinking about buying an NSX - DO IT. DO IT DO IT DO IT. There are faster cars for cheaper, yes. But none are like the NSX, trust me on that. Nothing even comes close.
Things that make being alive worth it:
1) own a big dog
2) fall in love*
3) own an NSX*
* can be combined, but don't tell my wife
TL;DR - Despite car's spotty beginning I love this car more than any other car I've ever owned, and I can't even describe why. It is just on another level, and no other car I've ever owned comes close.
I just got back from one of *those* drives - you know, the kind of drive that just reaffirms the fact that the NSX is *the* car for you. I believe they call it a "peak experience" - one of those moments that stay with you forever.
A bit of background - I bought this '91 NSX with 35k miles on it last November 2013, and the previous owner wasn't all that great to her. The PPI showed a perfect motor though, good body, but it did have some minor flaws - some chips in paint, a leaking master/slave cylinder, some corrosion on the rear 3 ignition coils, a/c needing recharge, slow windows. Thankfully, the TB/WP was done recently, and I did some research from the carfax, called around some dealers local to the area the car was registered in, and found the dealer the car was serviced at. Called the dealer and gave them the VIN, and the service history showed that it recently also had a valve adjustment, new plugs, new coolant hoses all installed on top of the TB/WP. Great!
So I pulled the trigger on the car, brought it home, and took the wife out on a nice long drive to dinner. 3 hours later on our return drive, we found ourselves stranded on the side of the highway (680S for the locals) - the throttle cable had snapped! Gas pedal went straight to the floor. Towed her home with my "peace of mind" completely destroyed. Once monday rolled around, I called Don @ Hilltop auto, and towed the car over to get the throttle cable fixed, along with the a/c recharge, new ignition coils, new master/slave cylinder, new window regulators + retainers on both sides, etc.
$3600 and 2.5 weeks later, she was back on the road, but there was another issue - the clutch shudders violently during the last 20% or so of engagement, enough to shake the steering wheel. Makes me wonder if the leaking master/slave cylinders contaminated the clutch disc surfaces. Ordered a new SoS sport 275 clutch+flywheel on 12/18/13, and it still hasn't arrived - it's backordered until 1/13/14!! ARGH! On top of that, the car, ONCE, did a weird thing hesitating at about 3-3.5k rpms for a second, then clicking in and surging forward like it should. It has never done that again since, though.
So, as you can figure - since I bought the car I've only been able to drive it 8-10 times. I didn't "trust" the car quite yet either, so it spends all its time parked in the garage on a battery tender. At the back of my mind during this entire ordeal, I had been wondering if I had made a huge mistake with the NSX. It was nothing like the vettes, 911s, and even lotuses or S2000s I've had in my past - where I could just get in, not worry, and drive+enjoy. On one hand, I told myself that it was a 23 year old car after all, and some of this was just to be expected. On the other hand, I had wondered if I got a lemon and this would be a common occurrence during my NSX ownership.
Today was different. I woke up feeling bold and dangerous, and decided to take the car out to work, after not having driven it for weeks. She did just fine. Started instantly, and purred along with the sweet baritone symphony behind my head the entire way - even through stop and go rush hour traffic. Aside from the shuddering clutch in 1/2/3rd gear (which I have kind of learned to drive around), everything was perfect. I have not been able to get the hesitation to happen again (drove it about 6-7 times after it first happened and it hasn't come back yet) - wondering if it was just from the car sitting so long (1+ month) without being driven.
Anyways, one thing I realize - is that EVERY single time I drive the NSX, I get a little more hooked. I fall a little bit more in love. I don't know what it is - at low speeds around town, the NSX feels like a firm, low, accord. It just gets out of my way and disappears from between me and the road. But unlike an accord, it fits my body like a glove. I *love* the low cowl and visibility - when I drove the evora again after some time in the NSX, I felt claustrophobic and hated it (good thing it's mostly my wife's daily driver). I figured this is what horses feel like walking around with those side blinders on.
I'm also realizing that as I get to know the car better, I am falling in love with the manual steering. I've driven the NSX <10 times now, but even then I don't even notice the low speed efforts anymore. But I *love* how the weight of the wheel changes with load - it really feels alive. I love the way it squirms in my hand over uneven roads. I love the way it starts to get heavier as I feed the car throttle through a turn. It makes me look forward to the next turn or sweeper coming up so I can turn the car. Why aren't all cars like this?? The steering wheel on this car is "alive" in the most literal sense - it reacts accordingly to load and talks to you. Other wheels (most, but not all of course) feel dead - same effort required to turn the wheel regardless of whether it's going straight, taking a long sweeper, or doing a low speed u-turn.
When I'm *not* driving the car, I just gaze at the body and design and fall in love all over again. There is nothing like this car out there today, aesthetically nor feel/function wise. I stare at photos of this car on my phone when I'm at home/work, and sometimes I go down to the garage just to look at it and sit in it.
I have had a *LOT* of sports cars. I can't believe this 23 year old honda excites me so profoundly in ways none of the others could. And despite the maintenance/repairs/downtime, I would pick this car over any of my other cars, 7 days out of the week. I guess today is the day I just fell head over heels for the car after realizing what an enigma I had.
A lot of people say the NSX has no soul. They are wrong. This car has the most intangible, unquantifiable character about it that just makes me want to explore it more. I can't get enough of it. I can't figure it out. It's one of a kind. And it's one of those things you won't realize until you spend some time living with the car. The more you put in, the more you get back. Before I had purchased the NSX, I noticed owners consistently praising the driving position, and visibility of the road in front and around you from the driver's seat. I didn't understand this at first. I'd stare at photos of the interior and go "it looks nice, but I don't see why it's so great visibility wise." Even the first/second time I drove this car, I didn't notice it - probably was too busy/excited learning the car to notice. But the more I drive this car, the more I realize what they mean - when I get into any other car now, I feel like I am in a victorian bathtub!! High cowls and beltlines, tiny windshields, huge pillars - I had no idea these things made such a profound difference in driving experience. In the NSX I feel like I am in a glass bubble travelling down the road - in other cars I feel like I am inside a bathtub or tank driving down the road, surrounded by hunks of metal on all sides, and looking at the road through the small portholes of the vehicle.
Sorry for the long ramble. I just feel like a giddy little schoolboy falling in love again for the first time, I just had to share. I can't wait until the SoS clutch is installed, I want to drive the shit out of this car!! This car is like a drug - first hit was free, and now I'll do/pay anything to get that hit again. The NSX - the new crystal meth, except you get to keep your teeth. If any of you reading this (and made it this far, congrats), and are thinking about buying an NSX - DO IT. DO IT DO IT DO IT. There are faster cars for cheaper, yes. But none are like the NSX, trust me on that. Nothing even comes close.
Things that make being alive worth it:
1) own a big dog
2) fall in love*
3) own an NSX*
* can be combined, but don't tell my wife
TL;DR - Despite car's spotty beginning I love this car more than any other car I've ever owned, and I can't even describe why. It is just on another level, and no other car I've ever owned comes close.
yep, when the new clutch goes in, I'm going to ask the shop to also check out the fuel/ignition system and O2 sensors in case the hesitation I had once is indicative of an issue. After that, some paint touchups for the minor chips on the rear, and then I'm going to ride her daily and enjoy her for a long time 
