New Project NSX - Community Advice

[Red07SS]

Looking for advice from the community for a possible NSX build next year.

When I was in high school I fell in love with the look and build of the Generation 1 NSX. Since then I've never found a car that speaks to me in the same way, I think its the best ever Honda sports car.

I've been out of the loop with regards to import tuning for at least 15 years now, and I know things have changed, I just don't know how much. Any help or advice from this community would be highly appreciated. Thank you in advance

Particulars (plan);

I'm interested in picking up a salvage NSX out of the U.S. with no more then 120K Miles, possibly more if the body is good and replace the engine.

Body: Clean build, new paint with no wraps or major body mods with exception to a lip kit and CF hood. Headlight upgrade, an JDM touches.

Engine: Typical mods such as exhaust, Intake, and Engine management. I would love to install a blower kit, but nothing too advanced.

Suspension/Chassis: I want this thing on rails, so a nice upgrade in this category. Stay bars, strut tower bars (if required), Struts and springs, and of course some bad ass looking wheels.

I'm sure more things will come up, but this is the basic plan going into this project, still need the car itself.

I live in Canada, but live close to the N.D. border, so getting parts and the vehicle hopefully shouldn't be to much of a hassle. I'm trying to decide on either an NSX build or an EVO8, at the end of the day to comes down to price and availability of parts.

Again, I'm looking for advice, experiences, or any input this community can offer. Thank you very much, I hope for this to be a successful project.

 

[Honcho]

Welcome to Prime! There are several large-scale NSX build projects going on right now, some involving a full re-paint. I would read all of these and take lots of notes- there is a TON of useful information.
Some examples:

NSX_n00b
Ryu
Tyler
Honcho (me)
John
bogle

I think its the best ever Honda sports car.

We agree with you.

One thing to consider is that any NSX project is going to be several orders of magnitude more expensive than a Evo. The parts are rarer and more expensive generally. Many must be ordered from Japan, as the US parts system no longer stocks them and Acura will not order it. Keep that in mind- there may be long wait times, even from Japan. I had to wait 4 months for my NSX-R final drive ring gear, for example.

As someone with some direct experience in this sort of thing, here are some of my thoughts. Others will chime in too, I'm sure.

Particulars (plan);

I'm interested in picking up a salvage NSX out of the U.S. with no more then 120K Miles, possibly more if the body is good and replace the engine.
Not sure this is a good starting point. I would rather have a straight body with a bad engine. It is much less expensive to replace or repair the engine on a NSX than it is the body.
The main danger with a salvage car is that the severity of the crash is often understated and the repairs are overstated (usually with some BS dollar fluffer, i.e., "over $25,000 in repairs at the shop that only works on Ferraris) to generate a sale. If you do choose to buy one, spend the $500 to have the frame measured by a competent body shop using the factory body repair manual. It will tell you very quickly whether the car is worth buying. A compromised structure on the NSX is a serious issue- your life is not worth it.

Body: Clean build, new paint with no wraps or major body mods with exception to a lip kit and CF hood. Headlight upgrade, an JDM touches.

If you are going to tear down the car for paint, budget about $2,000 for all the stuff that you will either break, or stuff that you discover is broken during disassembly. It's an old car. The only CF hood that really fits properly is the Procar. Save yourself the headache and just buy it instead of trying the cheaper versions first that never fit right.

Engine: Typical mods such as exhaust, Intake, and Engine management. I would love to install a blower kit, but nothing too advanced.

Great plan. The NSX is best with a minimal of engine mods and in its natural NA state.
The problem with the superchargers is they all heat soak- heat management is an issue on this car and will lead you down a path of thousands of dollars trying to solve it. Believe me, with a well sorted and tuned NA engine, the NSX experience is amazing. If you want a stoplight racer, than the SC is ok, but any kind of real performance driving will lead to frustration.

Suspension/Chassis: I want this thing on rails, so a nice upgrade in this category. Stay bars, strut tower bars (if required), Struts and springs, and of course some bad ass looking wheels.

The NSX is an extremely rigid car by design- much more so than the import cars you are used to, so a lot of the bracing that is normal on those cars isn't needed with the NSX. The JRZ or KW suspensions will deliver the feel you are looking for. You may want to consider replacing the rubber suspension bushings, as they will almost certainly be shot and contribute to vague handling feeling. A word of caution- the big rims ruin this car. The handling feels so heavy and slow with them. The 16/17 or 17/17 packages restore the light feel. Many owners "compromise" between looks and performance with a 17/18 setup.

I'm sure more things will come up, but this is the basic plan going into this project, still need the car itself.

I live in Canada, but live close to the N.D. border, so getting parts and the vehicle hopefully shouldn't be to much of a hassle. I'm trying to decide on either an NSX build or an EVO8, at the end of the day to comes down to price and availability of parts.

Again, I'm looking for advice, experiences, or any input this community can offer. Thank you very much, I hope for this to be a successful project.

Just as a data point, my full chassis-up restoration is up to about $75,000 total cost at this point.

 

[Bram]

I would take Honcho advise and make sure you fully understand the resources needed to restore an NSX.

In Canada, Used NSX parts are very difficult to find locally..ie within Canada, more are available in the US, however, you must take into consideration the exchange and duties.

Last piece of advise: The "Cheapest NSX to buy would be the most expensive NSX to own" my Quote to everyone that is looking at Salvage/Cheap or Fix-up NSX's.

Bram

 

[Old Guy]

"I'm interested in picking up a salvage NSX out of the U.S. with no more then 120K Miles, possibly more if the body is good and replace the engine."

Does 'out of the US' mean 'from the US'. If so. that may be a challenge for two reasons. First off, I don't know that there is an abundance of salvage NSXs to pick from. You might be waiting a long time. Because of the nature of the body construction I expect that the remaining undamaged pieces of a salvage NSX from a collision get sectioned off for use in rebuilding other NSXs. The second problem is that if you do manage to find an intact NSX that has been declared as salvage in the US, you may be in for a world of hurt trying to get a US salvage title vehicle registered in Canada. It has been 10 years since I went investigated the RIV (Registrar of Imported Vehicles) process and things may have changed; but. I seem to recall that salvage titles and kit cars were sort of a 'no go' in the RIV process. Check into the RIV process and your Provincial department of motor vehicle requirements before trying to import a salvage title car with the intent to register it.

Honcho alluded to this; but, a significantly bent NSX is a problem. Remember that the body is all aluminum and requires skills a little bit beyond that of the guy who just purchased a new TIG welder and is ready to go. Bram mentioned parts prices. Auto parts originating in the US are generally duty free; but, subject to GST and PST even if they are used. That said, I have found that the best / lowest cost source for new NSX parts is from Japan. I use Amayama

Honda NSX Parts - Honda Car & Auto Spare Parts - Genuine Online Car Parts Catalogue - Amayama

Troll through their parts catalog to find out just how expensive NSX parts can be. US dealer prices will be higher than Amayama and Canadian dealer prices will be higher than US dealer prices. Aftermarket parts support for the NSX was always weak and appears to be showing signs of imminent cardiac arrest. Rock Auto still lists the NSX on its website; but, a lot of the parts listings have disappeared and those that remain often show currently out of stock.

Go into this informed. The flip side of Bram's recommendation is that the cheapest NSX to own is typically the most expensive one that you can afford.

 

[VANSXTC]

I would take Honcho advise and make sure you fully understand the resources needed to restore an NSX.

In Canada, Used NSX parts are very difficult to find locally..ie within Canada, more are available in the US, however, you must take into consideration the exchange and duties.

Last piece of advise: The "Cheapest NSX to buy would be the most expensive NSX to own" my Quote to everyone that is looking at Salvage/Cheap or Fix-up NSX's.

Bram

I like your quote about cheapest NSX....I like to go with "The most expensive NSX you can buy is a cheap NSX"

 

[VANSXTC]

Honcho, Old Guy, and Bram pretty much said everything that needs to be said. There are decades of NSX Ownership among those guys and with my 21 years of ownership, the only thing I can think to add is make sure you have a bead on a body shop that understands the NSX...even really good shops don't work NSXs very often. So you roll up with an all-aluminum car with rear fenders (not quarter panels...quarter panels are welded on, fenders are bolted on) can throw the shop for a loop. I would also find a Factory Service Manual, Factory Electrical Troubleshooting Guide, and a Factory Body Repair Manual to have on hand and be ready to provide to your body shop to help them work on the car...odds of them having the Acura/Honda manuals from 15-30 years ago "on the shelf" are pretty slim...

 

[DannySX]

Sounds like a fun and challenging project for you! We're looking at an NSX as well.