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Honda gives look at planned Acura sports car

By? Dan Gearino

The Columbus Dispatch Wednesday January 16, 2013 5:24 AM

Paul Sancya | Associated Press

A concept version of the Acura NSX is on view at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

DETROIT ? An Ohio-made supercar is closer to reality after the first look at the Acura NSX?s interior, and an update on the exterior.

Honda revealed the latest version of the sports car to the media at the North American International Auto Show yesterday, about two years ahead of when the model is to go on sale.

?As you can see, this is a real head-turner ? in some cases, a whole-body-turner,? said Mike Accavitti, Acura?s vice president of national marketing.

The automaker is not saying where in Ohio the vehicle will be produced, only that it will have its own assembly line. When asked for more details, John Mendel, Honda?s top sales executive in North America, said the line probably will be ?not far from our existing base now.?

That means the site probably will be in central or western Ohio, an area that has four Honda factories. An announcement is likely within a few months, a spokesman said.

Acura, which is Honda?s luxury brand, sold the NSX from 1990 to 2005. The model came with a sticker price of about $90,000.

?There?s a lot of passion around the NSX, really based on the original one,? said Jeremy Anwyl, CEO of Edmunds.com, a website for auto buyers.

He sees the new version as an opportunity for Acura to clarify its identity.

?One of the difficulties for Acura is being distinctive and standing out in this crowded marketplace,? he said. ?In the luxury market especially, you need to really stand for something. Customers have to be buying into the personal and brand image.?

James Riswick, a writer for Anwyl?s website, described this gradual rollout of the NSX as akin to a ?striptease.?

Last year at the show, Honda showed a very early version of the NSX?s exterior, a shell with no interior. This year, the car is much closer to what will go into production, although this is not the production version.

The NSX rides ?low, wide and sleek,? said Jon Ikeda, Acura?s chief designer.

Regarding the car?s interior, the company says the design is a ?human support cockpit.? Ikeda said it is a ?real expression of man-machine synergy.?

The decision to build this next-generation NSX in Ohio is a sign that Honda?s research and development office in the state has grown to the point that it can handle an assignment that is both complex and high-profile, the company has said.

Also yesterday, Honda showed a preliminary version of the redesigned Acura MDX, a sport-utility vehicle that will be made only in Alabama for sale in North America and for export. The production version will go on sale this year.

The Acura brand sold 156,216 vehicles in the United States last year, an increase of 27 percent from the prior year. That was well behind sales by luxury leaders such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota?s Lexus. The best-selling Acura was the MDX, with 50,854 units, followed by the Marysville-made TL, with 33,572 units.

Although Acura?s Accavitti did not characterize Acura as a segment leader, he did say it is the fastest-growing luxury brand, and he pointed to the new and updated vehicles as reasons to expect growth to continue.

The North American International Auto Show will be open to the public from Saturday through Jan. 27 at the Cobo Center in Detroit. Information is available at www.naias.com.

dgearino@dispatch.com

@dispatchenergy

Source: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2013/01/16/honda-gives-look-at-planned-acura-sports-car.html

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