2002 Acura 3.2tl Type-s Sedan 4-door on 2040-cars

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The all-women Acura NSX team previews a way forward for racing

DAYTONA, Fla. — There is a team at the 24 Hours of Daytona that's just like any other team, with experienced drivers who rightly earned their spot in the top endurance racing series in America. They are prepared to run a full season in a competitive car, and they even set the fastest time in their class at the pre-season Roar Before the 24 test. The only difference between this team and any other is that its drivers happen to be women. We went to Daytona to talk to them about their journey to the race. The No. 57 Heinricher Racing with Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo team features a roster of talented, experienced drivers: Katherine Legge, Simona de Silvestro, Bia Figueiredo and Christina Nielsen. While there have been four other all-women lineups at Daytona before, the No. 57 team is the first to be considered truly competitive. Team founder Jackie Heinricher, a biotech CEO who has raced in Ferrari Challenge, Global Rallycross Lites and Lamborghini Super Trofeo, was coached by Legge. Two years ago, she had the idea to run a car full of women – and not just a token effort, but rather a car full of drivers who could win. "The car does not know your gender, and I feel as if this sort of professional effort legitimizes that in a way that's particularly important and inspirational outside of racing," Heinricher told Autoblog. Heinricher had seen Legge struggle to get the right funding for rides before, so she didn't want to limit this team to whoever could pay. So, she first lined up the funding, thanks largely to support from primary sponsor Caterpillar. It took awhile, though, as many companies simply told her that they were out of racing sponsorships entirely. "I think perseverance might be the most underrated human quality," Heinricher said. "I just didn't give up." After funding was in place, she found a competitive partner in the Meyer Shank Racing crew, whose owner Michael Shank has run a pair of factory-backed Acura NSX GT3s in IMSA's GTD class since 2017. The GT3 shares an engine and turbo with the road-going NSX but ditches the hybrid system, making it about 670 pounds lighter. The No. 57 car is an EVO variant, which Legge helped develop, and it features improved aerodynamics to better suit it to the mix of pro and amateur drivers who take shifts racing in the GTD class. Legge had been on Shank's NSX team for the past two years as well, so Heinricher reached out to her for help assembling women who truly had the ability to win.

Junkyard Gem: 1996 Acura 3.5 RL, Rocky Mountain Rambler 500 Edition

Honda had a good sales run with the Acura Legend, the first of the luxury-marque spinoffs from well-known Japanese carmakers to appear on our shores, but times change and the RL replaced the Legend as Acura's flagship starting in the 1996 model year. Here's one of those first-year RLs, found in a Denver boneyard covered in decorations from the Rocky Mountain Rambler 500 road rally. The Rocky Mountain Rambler 500 involves a lot of punitive off-road driving, so cars that have no business on the dirt seem to get coolness points. That makes Honda's most expensive vehicle of 24 years ago a fine choice of ride. I can't determine how well this car did, but the drivers looked optimistic during the inspections last month. Since the ignition key is still in the switch, I'm assuming it wasn't running so well after the rally and the team decided to bid farewell to their Acura in the lowest-hassle way possible: sell it to the nearest U-Pull-&-Pay. The team appears to have gone for a Pirates of the Caribbean theme with their big land yacht. The evil-looking wheel covers looked sharp. However, the Lord Humungus-grade roof spikes really make this car stand out, both on the rally and, now, in the junkyard. It seemed very clean, with the original owner's manual still in the glovebox. The MSRP on this car came to $41,000 in 1996, which amounts to about $69,000 in 2020 dollars. A new Lexus LS 400 cost $52,900 that year, though the $45,700 Lexus GS 300 was more likely to have battled for the money of potential 3.5 RL buyers. The 1996 Infiniti Q45 went for $53,520, while the J30 cost $39,920. The 1996 BMW 530i had a $42,750 price tag, but your Mitsubishi dealer had $25,525 Diamantes that year. Built on the idea that luxury doesn't have to be boring. Take that, Lexus!

2023 Acura Integra Review: Can it possibly fill an icon's shoes?

Pros: Civic Si performance with greater refinement; sweet manual transmission; thrifty fuel economy; versatile hatchback Cons: Underwhelming base equipment; cramped rear headroom; some cheap interior bits in back; a CVT, really? For those of a certain age and/or certain automotive fandom, the 2023 Acura Integra represents the return of an icon. Yes, the Integra is back, and as it was in the very beginning, it’s a four-door hatchback that can be both an enthusiastsÂ’ darling or just a well-made, well-equipped compact car for those who want something a little more premium than a Honda Civic. And that last comparison is key, because the Acura Integra is basically a Honda Civic thatÂ’s been thoroughly worked over with a totally different body, stiffer structure and different(ish) interior. Admittedly, the Civic is a great place to start, as itÂ’s a terrific little sedan/hatchback that arguably outpaces its competition and does a pretty good job of being a well-made, well-equipped compact car itself. There really wasnÂ’t that much for Acura to do to rework the cabin for luxury duty, though itÂ’s certainly best realized with the optional Technology package and there are some areas (like the back seat) where the luxury touches could have been further applied. From a mechanical perspective, the Integra specifically builds off the Civic Si. It has the same 200-horsepower turbocharged engine and front-wheel drive, but with a saucier exhaust and CVT as standard. A six-speed manual is available, but only on the range-topping A-Spec with Technology package. The A-SpecÂ’s adaptive dampers also do a better job of both road-holding and ride comfort. Honestly, thereÂ’s nothing wrong at all with seeing the Integra as a more refined Civic Si. As it was in the past, the new Integra is both a luxury-adjacent sedan and a sport compact car. That means it can be a ritzier alternative to the Civics of the world, a more budget-conscious alternative to the Audi A3s, or Acura/HondaÂ’s answer to the Volkswagen GTI and GLI. No matter what you compare it to, though, we think the new Integra is a winner. Welcome back, old friend.   Interior & Technology   |   Passenger & Cargo Space   |   Performance & Fuel Economy What it's like to drive   |   Pricing & Trim Levels   |   Crash Ratings & Safety Features What's new for 2023? The Integra is an all-new model. It technically replaces the ILX, however, which was similarly a Civic-based compact Acura.