2003 Acura 3.2 Tl on 2040-cars

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The new Acura Integra was never meant to be a retro car

The new Acura Integra Prototype was never supposed to be a retro or nostalgic design process. It would be easy to assume it was, as Acura’s messaging leading up to the big reveal leaned heavily on the Integra nameplate's heritage. From the model name embossed in the bumpers, to videos of shifting the older modelÂ’s manual transmissions, Acura yanked fairly hard on our heartstrings. And then the cover came off last week, and while there are very subtle cues hinting at old Integras here and there, the new car doesnÂ’t look much like the old ones at all. Unlike designers of the new retro-tastic Nissan Z and Ford Bronco, Acura decided to create something altogether new and different. “So, admittedly, when we started planning this car, it was never to create a retro Integra,” Acura product planner, Jonathan Rivers, told Autoblog. “We actually looked at it from the viewpoint of say, if the Integra had never left the lineup, how would it have evolved? How would it have changed over the years? We think this is the result of that.” There was never going to be a two-door coupe model, because as Rivers points out to us, coupes just don't sell these days. However, sportbacks are popular — just look at the sheer number of them coming from Germany these days — and it suits the customers Acura is trying to capture with the Integra. “The target customer is a millennial with an active lifestyle, so they need space for their gear but they also want to have a great car to hit the canyon roads with every now and then,” Rivers says. “Once again, over the generations, the Integra is just that.” For any naysayers throwing their hands up about the Integra seemingly being a fancy Civic, we possess two points of refutation. One, thatÂ’s exactly what the Integra has always been. It was literally badged and sold as a Honda in many other countries, and its bones have always been Civic-based. ThatÂ’s the IntegraÂ’s history, and while Acura doesnÂ’t officially come out and say so, itÂ’s most certainly the same today. On the design front, maybe you think the photos make it look a little too close to the new 11th-gen Civic Hatchback? Well, pictures on the internet donÂ’t always tell the full story of a car design. “None of the sheetmetal is shared with either the four-door or the five-door Civic,” Rivers explains.

MotorWeek remembers retro icons, Supra and NSX

It's easy to poke a joke here and there about John Davis, the long-time host of MotorWeek. His voice is so monotonous that, from time to time, if you closed your eyes, you may think it's generated via a computer. But you have to give him and the rest of the show a lot of credit. The program has been on the air for decades, giving people direct, straight-down-the middle automotive reviews.
MotorWeek's massive back catalog of reviews are slowly making their way onto YouTube, and they provide a fascinating chance to look back on how performance cars rank against their contemporaries from back in the day. Two recent additions include the show's old looks at the 1986 Toyota Supra, the dawn of the third-generation model, and the now-iconic 1991 Acura NSX.
Both reviews are interesting in their own way. These days you hear nary a negative word about the original NSX, but MotorWeek isn't afraid to point out a few flaws. And the Supra really shows the progress of suspension tuning in the intervening decades because it has some serious body roll in the corners. Scroll down to check out both videos and get a blast from the automotive past.

Acura announces NSX GT3 Evo22 race car will live on

The Acura NSX may be winding down production in 2022, but it still has some life left on the track. Today, Acura announced that it will introduce a new version of its NSX GT3 race car. It features a slew of improvements that should make the platform more competitive. Called the NSX GT3 Evo22, it builds upon the existing NSX GT3 a car that has won multiple championships in IMSA, SRO and Japan's SuperGT. The Evo22 gets improved intercoolers for the 3.5-liter twin-turbo shared with the road car, allowing it to perform consistently in a wider range of conditions and locations. Underneath, the suspension earns some tweaks in revised spring rates and geometry adjustments. To improve the car for endurance racing, the Evo22 reduces pit time with larger fluid tanks, while a revised wheel system allows for quicker tire changes. An FIA-mandated rain light illuminates the rear. Acura will also offer several air conditioning and headlight options. As with the outgoing NSX GT3, the Evo22 eschews the road car's hybrid and all-wheel-drive systems. Instead, it employs an XTRAC semi-automatic six-speed sequential transmission to send power to the rear wheels. Both the race and road car, however, share the same specs for the engine block, heads, valvetrain, crankshaft, pistons, and dry-sump lubrication system. The motors and chassis are both built at Acura's Performance Manufacturing Center in Ohio, while final assembly for the GT3 takes place in Milan, Italy. While European GT3s are supported from Italy, Honda Performance Division in Southern California will support North American teams. The NSX GT3 is the defending IMSA GTD and SRO GT Manufacturers’ Champion, and has achieved 25 IMSA and SRO class wins since its North American introduction in 2017. Interestingly, Acura says the the NSX GT3 is homologated globally through 2024. So, while new road cars won't be produced after next year, you'll still see them representing the "A" calipers at the track beyond that.