STOCK VS. MODIFIED

[jungd]

I KNOW THIS IS AN AGE OLD TOPIC BUT I KNOW A LOT OF CAR BUFFS LIKE LEAVING THEIR CARS IN STOCK FORM. THE NSX IS A HEADTURNER FROM THE GET GO. HOWEVER, WHEN I LOWERED MY CAR WITH EIBACH SPRINGS AND PUT ON O.Z. 18/17 WHEELS
AND ALSO THE THE DUAL TIPS MUFFLERS FROM R.M. RACING THE CAR TRANSFORMED INTO WHAT THE NSX
SHOULD LOOK LIKE FROM THE FACTORY. THE GAP IN THE WHEEL WELLS IN STOCK FORM LOOK AS IF ITS A 4X4. EVENTHOUGH I KEPT ALL MY STOCK PARTS, THEY WILL NEVER GO BACK ONTO MY NSX.

 

[G-man]

Jungd,
I am glad you are happy with your modifications. I am sure the car looks very nice. I have a 2000 NSX-T and think that for the moment at least, I will leave it stock. While this is an age old debate as you suggested, I happen to think that in the case of the NSX, there was a no-compromise / take-no-prisoners attitude at the time the car was designed, and I think that from a functional standpoint, it is hard to second guess the Honda Engineers.

While I also happen to think that 18" wheels look nicer, the reality is that they add to the weight and substancially. It isn't even that the wheels are all that heavy, it is there is more weight further out from center and thus it take more horse power to turn then down the road.

As far as the air spaces around the tires, this helps speed air flow away from the brakes and keep them that much cooler. When you start crowding the wheel wells, you start reducing the air flow space within the envelope of the car that can be used to hold a larger volume of air to cool the brakes better. While you might not experince this on the street, you may on the track where the brakes can already heat up pretty good under heavy use.

The quad tip exhaust certainly gets my vote in the looks department, but I believe Honda chose the dual tips because they offered better overall control to balance exhaust gasses out. Usually the true quad tips are for V8s where you get 1 tip per 2 cylinders and it makes for good flow. With only 2 banks of 3 cylinders, the best compromise was to use 1 tip per bank.


------------------
Gordon G. Miller, III
Y2K NSX #51 Yellow/Black

 

[dollenz]

I second what G-Man stated above. Over the years I've modified my share of cars, the last one was my 90s 300ZX on which I installed Eibach springs, Koni shocks and a set of nice wheels. My experience has been:

1. looks? yes, it probably does look nicer/cooler
2. performance? no discernible difference for everyday driving
3. ride? horrendous when compared to factory settings
4. worth it? definitely not

My '99 will stay stock for sure!

Now, when you take a stock sedan and modify it, you can make a huge difference in looks, performance and handling. When you modify the NSX, you are messing with something that came as close to perfect from the factory - just my opinion, of course!

 

[dollenz]

I second what G-Man stated above. Over the years I've modified my share of cars, the last one was my 90s 300ZX on which I installed Eibach springs, Koni shocks and a set of nice wheels. My experience has been:

1. looks? yes, it probably does look nicer/cooler
2. performance? no discernible difference for everyday driving
3. ride? horrendous when compared to factory settings
4. worth it? definitely not

My '99 will stay stock for sure!

Now, when you take a stock sedan and modify it, you can make a huge difference in looks, performance and handling. When you modify the NSX, you are messing with something that came as close to perfect from the factory - just my opinion, of course!

 

[johndoh]

Just remember that HONDA spent tons of money just on Research & Development on the NSX. They made the NSX how it is currently because this is what was the best.

 

[Lud]

Any time you build a sports car for the road you have to make compromises. Do you want to compromise some comfort for performance? Do you want to compromise some rough-road handling for better smooth-road handling? Do you want to add a little weight and cost but get the benefit of a dry-sump oil system (which the NSX should have in my opinion but does not)? Do you want to have a trunk or spare tire? You get the idea.

And possibly most importantly: Do you want to make the car safer for the average driver or get the ultimate performance for the advanced driver? Where are the lawsuits likely to come from? The result of answering this question is a car that understeers from the factory and come with TCS and ABS which are always "on" by default, among other things.

Just my opinion...

 

[Jonathan.M]

I only want to modify the parts of the NSX that were not up to speed at the beginning.
1. Early models: clutch
2. Bose Sterio
3. Less wearing tire alignment settings.

Otherwise the car is nearly perfect

 

[akira3d]

If I do choose to modify my '00 NSX-T, it probably won't be for awhile. I love the car's stock performance and handling...which is already well beyond my needs as a daily driver.

Of course, I have no plans to bring this car to the track either, so I'm not in any hurry to shave seconds off my 0-60 or quarter mile times.

The only mods I'd make, if any at all, would be purely cosmetic and not until something happens to the stock part (like that black bottom scraper thingee or the wheels).




------------------
--akira3D ('00 NSX-T red/black #113)
"Reality is better than the dream..."

 

[AndrewB93]

I'm not sure about perfect, but close to it from the factory. If it was perfect then the factory would not have made a Zinardi edition that everyone raved about and said it was as close to a Champ car as it gets, or the NSX TypeR or TypeS for the Japanese market. Modifications have to be well chosen and compliment each other for the car to be more enjoyable. It has to be more a matter of function over looks ( but looks still matter). If you get ridiculous and slap on a set of 19" wheels that add a hundred or more pounds to your car then thats just plain stupid if your a performance driver. But if you put on some nice lightweight forged wheels some simple suspension mods like the factory does to its Special Editions and a lightweight exhaust system then it compliments the car even more to be the best sports car in the world that it is.

 

[jungd]

THANX ANDREWB93, I LIKE YOUR REASONING OF HOW THE FACTORY TRIES TO IMPROVE THE CAR ALMOST EACH YEAR SO THAT ELIMINATES THE THEORY THE NSX IS PERFECT. IN THE LOOKS DEPT. ITS TOUGH TO IMPROVE, SO ALL I'M SAYING IS MAKE SMALL CHANGES TO IMPROVE LOOKS OR PERFORMANCE. THE
15 INCH FRONT MAGS ARE JUST TOO SMALL THAT WHY I DECIDED TO GO WITH LARGER RIMS. I GUESS THATS WHY HONDA ALSO CHANGED THEM TO BIGGER RIMS IN 94. ONCE AGAIN, I'M IN FAVOR OF MODIFICATION, BUT I AM SURPRISED HOW MANY NSX OWNERS IN THIS FORUM PREFER STOCK.

 

[ChopsJazz]

Since this thread has been at the top of the page so much I guess I'll add my $.02.
What none of us seems to remember is that a car, ANY car, is a rolling collection of compromises from its roof right down to its wheels. When Honda decided to build our little gem it didn't pull out all the stops. To the contrary, it asked how far they could advance the state of exotic car building in a streetable, affordable ($65K?), and comfortable car.
If you take ANY component of this car you can find a way to make it lighter or more exotic. But at what cost and to what advantage? In the case of the NSX they resolved these conflicts on the side of performance and comfort.
Take the air conditioning, for example. You want a race car? Get rid of the air! The suspension. Slam the car, increase the shock and spring rates, add thicker sway bars. Leather interior? Carpets? Sound deadening? Electric wndows and seats? A TRUNK? Get real!
Honda even let the bean counters get in the way and added a steel (yes STEEL) rear bumper beam.
But look at what we all get in return. The most drivable, beautiful, race-able exotic in the world! I absolutely love my car. I give her a loving stroke every time I pass her by in the garage. Hell, I'd keep it in the HOUSE if I could figure out how to do it.
But mine is also slightly modified too. As I've mentioned in other threads, I have the short gears, a 4.23 R&P, headers, exhaust, sway bars, etc. My goal is to get better track times and not mess up the engineering balance that Honda achieved with my baby.
I've probably gone on too long here, but I just wanted to say, the car exists as a STREET car that'll kick ass and be comfortable. Now go on out and tune it to suit your individual needs. I know I am.

 

[James Cruz]

Jungd,
I think what you did to your car is just perfect. The NSX is a great car and an engineering masterpiece, but there is ALWAYS room for improvement IMHO.

Yesterday, I just installed a set of H&R springs (hands are still hurting) and the minimal change in ride height makes the car look like it should be sitting on the Pole at the Miami Grand Prix! The 4X4 gap in the fender is gone and the car looks amazing!!!! The ride is slightly stiffer, but after 15 minutes of driving it felt normal again to me.

This was my biggest grief with the car from the day I purchased it! What a difference an inch can make!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My 2 Cents

 

[nsxtasy]

Originally posted by jungd:
THANX ANDREWB93, I LIKE YOUR REASONING OF HOW THE FACTORY TRIES TO IMPROVE THE

Is the CAPS LOCK key on your keyboard stuck?

 

[jungd]

THANX JAMES CRUZ, I STILL CAN'T BELEIVE HOW LOWERING THE NSX BY 1 TO 1 1/2 INCHES CAN MAKE THE CAR LOOK SO GOOD. IT LOOKS FAST JUST PARKED. WHEN LOWERED YOU NOTICE THE FLARE OF THE FENDERS MORE AND THE BEAUTY OF THE REFLECTION IT GIVES INSTEAD OF THE DULL AND DIRTY WHEEL WELLS WITH THE CAR SITTING UP. CONGRATS ON LOWERING YOUR CAR.