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2019 Honda S2000 roadster rumors swell

Our friends over at Car and Driver have been speculating about a possible S2000 roadster from an unnamed insider source. While there's not much to go on, it certainly squares with a steady drumbeat of sporty car innuendo surrounding the company. Let's briefly connect the dots and see if a Honda S2000 might be on the way by 2018, as the rumor says. The little roadster pictured above? Definitely not what a new S2000 would look like. That's the S660, which is sold in Japan and shares some components with the N-Box and N-One microcars. As we told you last year, after some hints that it would come to the US, Honda's brass decided it was too small. That was disappointing, but probably the right call. On the other hand, Honda finally brought out the 2017 Acura NSX, which may have its flaws but still represents a unique platform that the company spent a great deal of yen building ( in Ohio, by the way). It's that bit that the rumor hinges on: Honda's willingness to develop unique platforms for its sporty models. It'd need that for an S2000 revival, because there's certainly no Honda model that could donate its underpinnings at this moment. Honda execs have been clear that the company is under pressure from dealers over the lack of verve in the company's lineup. American Honda Executive Vice President John Mendel told Automotive News last year that dealers "want anything in the sports car world. They're going, 'Gimme a sports car.' They want a retractable hardtop; they want a high-horsepower $20,000-sports car. Because that's the nature of what they do." Honda is allegedly going to utilize some sunk cost by employing the new Civic Type R's engine in this roadster. That 2.0-liter turbocharged four makes 306 hp in the Civic, and would make slightly less than that in the S2000, according to the rumor. At this stage, these rumors are mostly wishful thinking fanned by the flames of dealer pressure for sporty models. We hope Car and Driver's insider has it right, because the S2000 was a phenomenal car that deserves a follow-up – and Honda deserves more fun cars in its American showrooms. Related Video: Featured Gallery Honda S660: Honda Meeting 2015 View 15 Photos News Source: Car and Driver Rumormill Acura Honda Convertible Performance roadster honda s660 rumors

2019 Acura RDX crossover gets turbocharged power, A-Spec version

NEW YORK — Calling the RDX that Acura showed at this year's Detroit Auto Show a "concept" was stretching that term to the limits of credulity. The production version of the 2019 RDX is here, and this turbocharged crossover with available AWD looks darn near identical. While it offers all-wheel drive like its Lexus NX and Audi Q3 competitors, Acura's next-generation SH-AWD should be a serious selling point. Let's cover that "Super Handling All-Wheel Drive" system for a moment. It takes power from the 2.0-liter, 272 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque engine and routes it up to 70 percent rearward, and there's real torque vectoring (rather than brake-based faux vectoring) to shift 100 percent of that rear axle power to either wheel. The broad strokes are similar to the outgoing model's system, but there's much more available rear power bias — in the 2016 model, up to 40 percent could be sent to the rear. And that was up from 25 percent for pre-2016 models. The takeaway is that the RDX should handle a lot better on both dry and slippery pavement, and feel a bit sportier doing it. A new engine may help as well. The outgoing 3.5-liter V6 is replaced by a turbocharged four-cylinder, almost certainly related to the unit in the Accord and Civic Type R, and tuned somewhere in between those cars (252 and 306 horsepower, respectively). We expect the new engine to be lighter than the old V6, and less weight off the front end should improve steering feel and handling. For those keeping track, the new engine is down 7 horsepower but up 28 pound-feet in torque, and thanks to turbocharging the torque band starts down low and is relatively flat, so more oomph from a stop and on through the rev range. The six-speed automatic is gone, replaced by a 10-speed automatic. Most of its competitors use six- or eight-speed units, so that'll be a marketing focus. As you'd expect, the individual ratios are closer-spaced but the total ratio spread is, according to Acura, 62 percent wider than the outgoing automatic. There are steering-wheel-mounted paddles if you'd like to shift yourself. Since the styling is very much a lightly retouched Prototype RDX from the Detroit show, it's nice to be able to give a sense of the new car's proportions with hard numbers. First of all, it's riding on a 2.6-inch longer wheelbase. Overall length is 187 inches, up from 184.4, and width is unspecified.

How the Autoblog staff would configure the 2017 Acura NSX

The configurator for the 2017 Acura NSX is now online, and it finally lets people spec this long-delayed supercar. Technically prices start at $157,800 (after $1,800 for destination), but you can't actually get one like that yet. The iron brake rotors aren't available until late 2016, which means the carbon-ceramic rotors with black calipers are the least expensive choice at $9,900. The cost ticks up to $10,600 if you want calipers in silver or red. The build process inspired so much conversation among the Autoblog staff that we decided to share our choices with you and explain why we picked them. Let us know what you think in the comments. MICHAEL AUSTIN - $198,950: Mine's expensive, but I figure another 15 percent or so is irrelevant when the car already costs so much. I love the blue - it's alluring without being too flashy. Saddle leather is a must for me; it's definitely the best interior color. I skipped the carbon-fiber exterior sport package, just because I like the cleaner look of the standard body. Otherwise, carbon-fiber overkill: roof, rear spoiler, interior trim, and engine cover. If I had to cut costs I could sacrifice the $10,600 carbon ceramic brakes, which are probably unnecessary – but I'd have to wait until later this year. My only question is: where are the optional Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires I loved during our First Drive? CHRIS BRUCE - $180,700: I tried not to go too wild when speccing mine, but some upgrades seemed necessary. The standard black leather was too dark, so I opted for the Saddle and Alcantara, which added $1,500 to the price. I also picked with the matching black Alcantara headliner for $1,300 and the upgraded audio system for $2,800. For the outside, I loved the Nord Gray Paint, which has a little green in it, and I splurged for the $6,000 carbon fiber roof. To finish things off, I went with the silver calipers on the carbon-ceramic brakes for $10,600. STEVEN EWING - $172,700: I'm not the extravagant type. I don't want flashy colors, red calipers, or unnecessary carbon fiber crap on the outside. Give me something that flies under the radar, with the only the options I need. Plus, the NSX hardly feels like a $200,000 supercar to me. ALEX KIERSTEIN - $176,500: Japanese cars tend to look best in classic white, so I went with that for the exterior. I like a dark interior, but I also love Alcantara – so that goes on the headliner. The carbon-fiber roof is a bit of an extravagance, but this is all fantasy, right?