Road & Track has named the Acura NSX its 2017 Performance Car of the Year, choosing the American-made supercar from a field of nine finalists.
DETROIT -- Road & Track has named the new Acura NSX its 2017 Performance Car of the Year, choosing the American-made supercar from a field of nine finalists.
The enthusiast magazine said it overwhelmingly chose the Acura NSX largely for its unique driving experience.
The new, second-generation NSX has a 3.5L, twin-turbo V-6 that produces more than 550 horsepower. That's mated to a 9-speed, dual-clutch transmission.
"For the first time in a hybrid automobile of any price or capability, technology has been placed firmly in the service of emotional involvement rather than in place of it," the magazine said. "Everything about the car--from the way in which the brake-by-wire pedal lengthens its travel when the brakes are hot to the manner in which the mid-mounted V-6 permits itself a bit of the ol' barbaric yawp when it's winding out in fourth gear--is intended to enhance the driver's involvement."
The Lotus Evora 400 and the Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport finished in second and third place, respectively. Rounding out the nine finalists were the Audi R8 V10 Plus, BMW M4 GTS, Jaguar F-Type SVR, Mercedes-AMG C63 S, Nissan GT-R Nismo and Porsche 911 Turbo S.
Road & Track tests candidates for Performance Car of the Year over four days, two of which are spent on back roads in Kentucky and Tennessee, and two that include track time at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Ky.
Vehicles must be new or significantly revised for this year, and be a traditionally shaped car, to be eligible for the annual award. The 2016 Mustang Shelby GT350R won last year.
The development of the next-gen NSX has been led by an American R&D team in Raymond, Ohio, and the car is being built at Honda's Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, Ohio. Design was led by the Acura's studio in in Torrance, Calif.
The original Acura NSX was built at the Takanezawa Plant in Japan from 1990 until production moved to the Suzuka Plant in early 2004, where it was produced until 2005. It debuted with a 3.0-liter V-6 engine, which was later upgraded to a 3.2L in 1997.
The 2017 Acura NSX has a starting retail price of $156,000.