What Does $1.2 Million Buy You?

Mark Stevenson
by Mark Stevenson

Vast amounts of witless cash arrived at Scottsdale this week. To wit: the first serial production Acura NSX — or, at least, the right to order it — sold for $1.2 million at Barrett-Jackson on Friday.

For that $1.2 million (plus somewhere between $156,000 and $205,700 for the car itself), winning bidder Rick Hendrick (yes, that Rick Hendrick) will be the first “normal” person to enjoy such model-specific features as automatically reversing cat bolts, tires that don’t grip (if so equipped) and a painstaking 12+ month wait to 60 mph.

At least Acura and Mr. Hendrick will get the warm-and-fuzzies. All that crazy auction money will go to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation and Camp Southern Ground in Georgia, and not Honda’s Formula 1 engine development program.

To say that the fancy Honda has experienced a rocky birth would be an understatement; that it’s been fraught with innumerable setbacks would be kind.

First announced in 2007, Acura pledged to bring the new supercar to market by 2010 with a front-mounted V-10 — before summarily killing off the program in 2008. Later, in 2011, Acura announced it had restarted the program, the fruit of which arrived at the 2012 North American International Auto Show. In 2014, that fruit was charred thanks to a switch to a mid-engined, hybrid V-6 layout that created a more heated exchange than a Trump rally

Now we’re some nine years post official announcement of the second-generation NSX and just days away from the first group of journalists being able to flog Acura’s latest and greatest for all its worth. Yet it will still be another year before the first NSXs begin to show up in private driveways … if anyone still cares by then to buy one.

Mark Stevenson
Mark Stevenson

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  • Qfrog Qfrog on Jan 31, 2016

    Times have changed, 4000 is the new 3000.

  • Ronnie Schreiber Ronnie Schreiber on Jan 31, 2016

    Just to be pedantic, the V10 RWD concept that Acura debuted in 2007 was called the Advanced Sports Car Concept, not the NSX, though Honda intimated it was an NSX successor. I know that because I'm looking at the press kit. Since Jack was so successful with his Texas Edition badge giveaway, I'll give one lucky reader a 2007 Acura Advanced Sports Car Concept press kit. It's not that elaborate, just a CD, but it comes with a nice heavyweight Acura branded pen that takes a Parker style refill cartridge. If you're interested, send me an email telling me why I should pick you to rokem(at)netzero(dot)net. The most entertaining request will win.

    • 28-Cars-Later 28-Cars-Later on Jan 31, 2016

      I suggest getting some more mileage out of this and making it a post. I for one would like to see what the Honda fanbois come up with trying to win.

  • Loser Loser on Jan 31, 2016

    How appropriate, "Convict" Rick and Honda have a sweet history together.

    • Fvfvsix Fvfvsix on Feb 01, 2016

      Haha... sad but true. Think about this, though - he was pardoned by Bill Clinton in 2000 - what does that say about society?

  • Zoom Zoom on Jan 31, 2016

    A 2016 Focus RS was also sold to charity for $550k.

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