Acura motorsports is on a roll – fresh off a near production NSX winning its North American racing debut at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in the Time Attack 2 class, Acura has released the first official images of the NSX GT3 racecar as it prepares to campaign in North America in 2017.
Acura NSX GT3 Racecar © Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
The twin-turbocharged Acura NSX GT3 was photographed with exposed, lightweight, carbon fiber bodywork at GingerMan Raceway in South Haven, MI as part of its continued development at circuits throughout the U.S. The vehicle is slated for homologation as an FIA GT3 class racecar this fall.
“Building on the very solid foundation of the production NSX, we’re making steady progress in our development and looking forward to campaigning the GT3 racecar next year,” said Art St. Cyr, president of Honda Performance Development.
Acura NSX GT3 Racecar © Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
The Acura NSX GT3 racecar features custom bodywork and aero components including a large deck wing spoiler, underbody diffuser and enlarged hood vents for efficient engine cooling. The NSX GT3 racecar is powered by a 3.5-liter, 75-degree, twin turbocharged DOHC V-6 engine using the same design specifications as the engine in the production 2017 Acura NSX, including the block, heads, valvetrain, crankshaft, pistons and dry sump lubrication system. The engine is paired with a 6-speed, sequential-shift racing gearbox, delivering power to the rear wheels.
Acura NSX GT3 Racecar © Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
The Acura NSX GT3 is produced by the Performance Manufacturing Center in Ohio, the exclusive manufacturing home for the new Acura NSX. Its twin turbocharged V-6 engine is also assembled in Ohio1. Initial development of the NSX GT3 racecar was conducted by the company’s Japan race engineering arm with testing on race circuits in Europe and Japan. Additional development, testing and final homologation to FIA GT3 global racing specifications is currently being undertaken by the company’s North American race engineering group, Honda Performance Development (HPD), in Santa Clarita, California.
Acura NSX GT3 Racecar © Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
The Acura NSX GT3 racecar will advance the rich legacy of Acura sports car racing campaigns and championships, including the 1991, 1992 and 1993 IMSA Camel Lights manufacturer and driver championships, and the 2009 American LeMans manufacturer, driver and team championships in both the LMP1 and LMP2 classes.
Acura NSX GT3 Racecar © Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
Acura currently campaigns a pair of TLX GT cars with Real Time Racing in the Pirelli World Challenge. On Sunday, June 26, Acura’s Ryan Eversley completed a sweep of the doubleheader race weekend at Road America in the TLX GT.
