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Honda spinning off Acura as stand-alone division in bid to wake up brand

Every major automaker has a different way of relating between its various divisions and brands. At Volkswagen, for example, the individual brands seem to operate with a large degree of autonomy. Under the Renault-Nissan Alliance, the two units share a common chief executive, but little else. The relationship between Honda and its luxury division Acura has always been rather close, but that's all about to change.
American Honda Motor Company has always handled sales and marketing in the North American market for both the Honda and Acura divisions, but new reorganization plans call for the two units to be separated under their own direction. Leading the Acura division will be Michael Accavitti, who moves into the position from his role as Senior Vice President for Auto Operations at American Honda. The Honda division will meanwhile be taken over by the current head of Acura sales, Jeff Conrad.
Both will report to John Mendel, the current executive vice president of the Automobile Sales Division that is being rebranded as the American Honda Auto Division. Unlike rivals Lexus and Infiniti - two brands that Acura beat to the market - Honda barely markets its luxury brand outside of North America. Its overseas presence is felt only in China, though we've yet to receive word on how the reorganization might effect that market - or for that matter, any potential of expanding into others.

Acura NSX #001 sells for $1.2 million

When the new Acura NSX hits showrooms in the Spring, it will cost at least $156,000 in "base" spec, or as much as $205k fully loaded. But at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale Saturday, one notable buyer paid a record $1.2 million for the privilege of ordering the very first one. That works out to a good six or seven times the list price, but fortunately it's all going to a good cause. The winning bid for the very first production example of the new Acura NSX was placed by none other than Rick Hendrick, a man best known for his NASCAR team but also for other projects like the modified Jeeps his company is pitching to the US Army. His $1.2 million will allow him to order the first one off the line, to his specifications. Proceeds are earmarked towards the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation and Camp Southern Ground in Georgia, which focuses on at-risk kids, children of military families, and those with neurobehavioral disorders. Hendrick's winning bid marks the highest price that Barrett-Jackson has ever recorded for a VIN 001 vehicle. And make no mistake about it: it has handled a lot of them. This weekend alone also saw the first new Chevy COPO Camaro raise $300,000 for United Way, and Jay Leno's 2006 Ford F-150 Harley-Davidson edition (also the first of its kind) bring in $200k for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Related Video: FIRST 2017 ACURA NSX SCORES RECORD AUCTION PRICE OF $1.2 MILLION AT BARRETT-JACKSON - Final hammer price of $1.2 million sets record auction price for a designated VIN 001 vehicle - All proceeds go to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation and Camp Southern Ground Jan 29, 2016 - SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- At the auctioneer's final call, the next-generation 2017 Acura NSX supercar tonight smashed the record for a vehicle auction at Barrett-Jackson for the highest-selling designated vehicle identification number (VIN) 001 with the final hammer price set at $1.2 million. Winning bidder Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports and founder of Hendrick Automotive Group, has earned the right to custom order the first production model of Acura's highly anticipated NSX, which comes to market this spring. All proceeds of the auction will go to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, based in North Carolina, and Camp Southern Ground in Georgia, the passion project of Grammy® Award-winning music artist Zac Brown.

Heritage-inspired Long Beach Blue joins the Acura NSX's color palette for 2021

Acura announced it's expanding the NSX's color palette with a heritage-inspired hue named Long Beach Blue for the 2021 model year. The color was inaugurated during the 2002 model year by the first-generation NSX. Shake the thoughts of the Pacific Ocean and its sandy beaches out of your head; the color is named after the Grand Prix of Long Beach, which Acura sponsors, not after a surfing spot. It joins other motorsport-themed colors, including Indy Yellow and Thermal Orange, and is a reformulated version of the first Long Beach Blue released some 18 years ago. It looks a little bit lighter than the color that inspired it, though it's just as eye-catching. It doesn't sound as if Acura is making any major mechanical modifications to the NSX for 2021. Power still comes from a gasoline-electric hybrid drivetrain that consists of a twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6, a nine-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, and three electric motors. The system's total output checks in 573 horsepower and 476 pound-feet of torque, and the NSX reaches 60 mph from a stop in three seconds flat.  Acura will begin delivering the 2021 NSX in early 2021, and pricing starts at $159,145 once a mandatory $1,995 destination charge enters the equation. 130R White, Curva Red, and Berlina Black are the only colors included in the aforementioned price. Enthusiasts who want Long Beach Blue will need to pony up and extra $1,000 for it. Colorful past Acura offered the original Long Beach Blue from 2002 to 2005. It replaced Monaco Blue Pearl, which was offered in 2000 and in 2001, but buyers shunned it. Only 88 cars were ordered in Long Beach Blue, according to the company's archives department, so it's one of the rarest first-gen NSX colors. Time will tell if it's more popular in the 2020s, or if it will be remembered as one of the rarest second-gen NSX colors, too.