Kennan is a Cars and Bids treasure. If my boss walked into work and started the day by pleasantly saying, "Hi Everybody" and ended with, "Goodbye" my days would have been so much better. Oh and totally buy an NSX, you'll never regret the purchase!
As scary as that snap ring issue can be, I’ve read in multiple comments on another online car auction site (to remain nameless, but I think you can guess the acronym) that the snap ring failure was limited to a really small window of production (i.e., small range of VINs) in the grand scheme of things
Accurate. The snap ring issue (which is really a machining tolerance defect in one of the transmission case sections) only applies to a specific range of '91 and '92 cars but is only trackable by the trans case serial number, not the VIN. There used to be some "common wisdom" that if a car hadn't had an issue 30 years on, then it's safe, however that's not correct. The preventative fix isn't cheap (~$3k) but that is cheap relative to replacing the gearbox as many of the internals that would be ruined in the case of a failure are VERY hard to get these days. Source: I have a '92 and the snap ring failed at 265,000 miles. An edge case for sure, but illustrates the point.
Always loved this car! The main reason aluminum body panels are so expensive to produce is because you have to use special dies to stamp the body panels. You cannot use steel dies.
Finally! The old and "proper" NSX! This has been my favorite Gran Turismo car forever (followed closely by the Vector M12, and i'm only talking about Gran Turismo 1&2). Great to have this as a Kennan video as well, feels like it's a more unique introduction than seeing him re-review cars that Doug has already done. It looks great in black as well, i usually have mine in dark colors as well, i saw a red one once in the 90s, was great to see.
I agree with everything you said, I think they look best in black, pearl and bright white, and red. For me, it was Forza Horizon 3, drifting it down a mountain on a "bucket list" timed run at night! I worked with a man who saw the NSX before it was put into production at the 1989 Toronto international auto Show. The second gens were also great in my senior year of high school.
@@bobhill3941 The one i raced most was a '93 in a "Estoril Turquoise Pearl" color with black wheels with the red circles in them, haha. I had another one Formula Red with the same wheels, and Kaiser Silver Metallic and Monte Carlo Blue Pearl. But yeah, i did like the pearl and bright white as well, and the orange/yellow/red colors. Honestly, it looks good in any color. Especially with the black roof, love two-tones.
@@Games_and_Music That's really cool, thanks for the story. The NSX I drove in the bucket list on FH3 was an NSX-R in bright white, it was an 05! In FM7, I also drove a matte black '17 along with a black Golf R with green accents. My two favourite races were around a huge track in Dubai in a GT2 RS and on the Nurburgring Nordschleife (North loop)
@@bobhill3941 I have to admit though, i am not a huge fan of the newer models, which is why i called this version the "proper" one. I'm a sucker for pop up lights, and i think it just looks leaner and meaner. Same thing for the Diablo, the first versions look best, but when they lost the pop ups, i kinda lost the connection to it, although the GTR still looks pretty cool. I haven't played many new games since 2012, so i am way behind on everything, so i am not familiar with the specific races that you mentioned. Was kinda funny though, when i was looking for the official color names i opened my emulator and saw that i had paused GT2 during a Laguna Seca endurance race with the white Mobil NSX, which also looks awesome, with the canards and stuff. So i had to Google the colors instead and got distracted. In the meantime, Kennan (presumably) had responded about loving a white NSX.
My favorite part of your review was that you added the VTEC part. ❤ I enjoyed learning that VTEC was added later. Thus another revision had to be made before it was finalized. I am glad the CEO at the time demanded VTEC. It made that V6 sound amazing. There’s no other engine that produces such a good induction noise. 😊🎉😊
That's the perfect NSX configuration. I love the NSX but only with the popup headlights. And getting one with the more powerful engine and the 6-speed engine is just PERFECT.
Nice review, Kennan! I like your detailed explanation of the NSX development, which I followed closely at that time. Input from Ayrton Senna just added to the NSX legend. A great contender as you consider an F355 replacement. I sought out and bought a ‘91 Black NSX in the mid-90s, and it was my weekend and track car for 7 years. Early cars had manual steering, which provided excellent feel but an even slower ratio than the reviewed car. Best memories include the forward visibility, the induction howl, the balanced handling, and the precise shifter. I miss it so much that I just got its spiritual successor, a Porsche Cayman GTS 4.0. Those great memories are being relived now!
Correction on the snap ring, it was rectified WAY before the 6sp. It was rectified by late 92 and there's a "snap ring range" of transmissions that were affected. I believe Honda/Acura issued a TSB to address those that were in the range.
That's my dream car, aways wanted a red on black '97. Throw a supercharger on for more power and call it a day! Also check out the Lotus Evora, friend of mine had one and said it's what a modern NSX would have been.
Yeah, it looks pretty neat. I would've loved it if it was a little wider and flatter. Kinda like my favorite concept that never made it to production: Alfa Romeo Carabo.
@Games_and_Music I completely understand, I think the original is leaner and meaner too, and yes, those pop up headlights look really cool, I was just never a fan because I was told when they break, it's heard to fix and expensive. That's interesting, the game I mostly played in 2012 was LA Noire, I got it for my birthday along with a new Xbox 360. That's really cool, going back and looking at your old paint jobs.
I think your coverage of the snap ring issue would lead someone to believe they need to get a 6-speed if they want to avoid the snap ring issue, but that's not correct. You said "But that was was rectified for the 6-speed manual", but it was actually rectified for the 5-speed. None of the 5-speed NSX's from 1993-1996 had snap ring failure issues. Only 1991-1992. For 1991-1992, there were 4017 5-speed NSX's made and 2436 of those had transmissions that fell into the possible snap ring failure range. The serial number on the transmission is easy to see/photograph so it's not hard to check online whether it falls into that range before buying.
And it has pop up headlights and Acura reliability. Would be at the top of my short list if I was shopping for an exotic. Even with my two lesser Acuras I was always impressed with their balance of comfort and handling (1996 2.2 CL and 2002 TL Type S)
Excellent review, Kennan! I can’t wait to watch your next one. I love all the technical details you bring to the table. I’m disappointed you didn’t say “surprise surprise” though lol! You should definitely get that NSX… or perhaps a manual F430 spider. You know you’re a Ferrari guy deep down!
@@carsandbids Oh no, well if that’s the case I would think a stick 997 911 Turbo or 718 Spyder would be better alternatives. But you can’t beat the reliability and usability of the NSX. Good luck Kennan!
Keenan is the American James May (capitan slow). I enjoy his take on the driving experience. His analysis is concise and well thought out. Something we all can enjoy appreciate.
Max power is at 6900 rpm though. Not much point in an 300 redline except for a bit of breathing room allowing you to not have to upshift momentarily before the next turn.
Which/whose NSX are you reviewing and driving? The one on Cars & Bids right now is a 2003 with 32,500 miles and looks better than the one you're reviewing.
981 Spyder if you want the open roof, 981 GT4 if you want a coupe, the NSX is awesome, I'll always love them but finding glass, radios and other parts is increasingly more difficult each year. If you do buy the NSX buy a 6spd 97+ since its got a bunch of improvements.
Nearly bought a 91' manual with 80k miles for $37k in 2019. I backed out because the military was sending me to Korea for a year. Then covid happened, and the car market surged. Now the dream is dead. I kick my ass every day for making that decision.
my brother in law bought a '91 for 35k in 2016. He sold it in 2019 and he was so distraught at the rise in values since then - still talks about it every time I see him.
Kennan, head and shoulders above the thunder thigh plus size girl. More mature. More depth of knowledge. Doesn’t have an ear-bleeding, piercing shriek.
Kennan is a Cars and Bids treasure. If my boss walked into work and started the day by pleasantly saying, "Hi Everybody" and ended with, "Goodbye" my days would have been so much better. Oh and totally buy an NSX, you'll never regret the purchase!
Peer Pressure Kenzoil....you see this?
Tbh at the beginning I was like "oh this is a two person video, I hope it's just Doug"
Now It's like "Oh Kennan's new video better watch it now"🎉
Facts and figures baby!
Being someone who truly appreciates F1 Racing… you were the perfect person to review this icon. Thanks for the video.
Thanks
I think this is one of the best looking cars of all time.
😮 Dream car of mine! Love these. VTEC V6 engine is fantastic and they're fair stylish cars too
When Kellen stopped imitating Doug this channel became great! I love this car.
We love it too!
As scary as that snap ring issue can be, I’ve read in multiple comments on another online car auction site (to remain nameless, but I think you can guess the acronym) that the snap ring failure was limited to a really small window of production (i.e., small range of VINs) in the grand scheme of things
Accurate. The snap ring issue (which is really a machining tolerance defect in one of the transmission case sections) only applies to a specific range of '91 and '92 cars but is only trackable by the trans case serial number, not the VIN. There used to be some "common wisdom" that if a car hadn't had an issue 30 years on, then it's safe, however that's not correct. The preventative fix isn't cheap (~$3k) but that is cheap relative to replacing the gearbox as many of the internals that would be ruined in the case of a failure are VERY hard to get these days. Source: I have a '92 and the snap ring failed at 265,000 miles. An edge case for sure, but illustrates the point.
Always loved this car! The main reason aluminum body panels are so expensive to produce is because you have to use special dies to stamp the body panels. You cannot use steel dies.
Finally! The old and "proper" NSX!
This has been my favorite Gran Turismo car forever (followed closely by the Vector M12, and i'm only talking about Gran Turismo 1&2).
Great to have this as a Kennan video as well, feels like it's a more unique introduction than seeing him re-review cars that Doug has already done.
It looks great in black as well, i usually have mine in dark colors as well, i saw a red one once in the 90s, was great to see.
I agree with everything you said, I think they look best in black, pearl and bright white, and red. For me, it was Forza Horizon 3, drifting it down a mountain on a "bucket list" timed run at night!
I worked with a man who saw the NSX before it was put into production at the 1989 Toronto international auto Show.
The second gens were also great in my senior year of high school.
love a white nsx
@@bobhill3941 The one i raced most was a '93 in a "Estoril Turquoise Pearl" color with black wheels with the red circles in them, haha.
I had another one Formula Red with the same wheels, and Kaiser Silver Metallic and Monte Carlo Blue Pearl.
But yeah, i did like the pearl and bright white as well, and the orange/yellow/red colors.
Honestly, it looks good in any color.
Especially with the black roof, love two-tones.
@@Games_and_Music That's really cool, thanks for the story. The NSX I drove in the bucket list on FH3 was an NSX-R in bright white, it was an 05! In FM7, I also drove a matte black '17 along with a black Golf R with green accents.
My two favourite races were around a huge track in Dubai in a GT2 RS and on the Nurburgring Nordschleife (North loop)
@@bobhill3941 I have to admit though, i am not a huge fan of the newer models, which is why i called this version the "proper" one.
I'm a sucker for pop up lights, and i think it just looks leaner and meaner.
Same thing for the Diablo, the first versions look best, but when they lost the pop ups, i kinda lost the connection to it, although the GTR still looks pretty cool.
I haven't played many new games since 2012, so i am way behind on everything, so i am not familiar with the specific races that you mentioned.
Was kinda funny though, when i was looking for the official color names i opened my emulator and saw that i had paused GT2 during a Laguna Seca endurance race with the white Mobil NSX, which also looks awesome, with the canards and stuff.
So i had to Google the colors instead and got distracted.
In the meantime, Kennan (presumably) had responded about loving a white NSX.
I like the way cars from 95 through
2010 drive . Cars today are to synthetic 😊
My favorite part of your review was that you added the VTEC part. ❤
I enjoyed learning that VTEC was added later. Thus another revision had to be made before it was finalized. I am glad the CEO at the time demanded VTEC. It made that V6 sound amazing. There’s no other engine that produces such a good induction noise. 😊🎉😊
We have a list to debate you on with induction noises. :)
@@carsandbids Let’s debate on. I will add the McLaren F1 to my pool. 😉 😆
That's an ace up the sleeve!
BUY IT Kennan!
I was not convinced by the first vidéos with Kennan and Doug, but I have to say Kennan, alone, is now one of my favourite UA-camrs so far. Keep going!
That's the perfect NSX configuration. I love the NSX but only with the popup headlights. And getting one with the more powerful engine and the 6-speed engine is just PERFECT.
This will always be one of my unobtainable JDM carr. So great
Nice review, Kennan! I like your detailed explanation of the NSX development, which I followed closely at that time. Input from Ayrton Senna just added to the NSX legend. A great contender as you consider an F355 replacement.
I sought out and bought a ‘91 Black NSX in the mid-90s, and it was my weekend and track car for 7 years. Early cars had manual steering, which provided excellent feel but an even slower ratio than the reviewed car. Best memories include the forward visibility, the induction howl, the balanced handling, and the precise shifter.
I miss it so much that I just got its spiritual successor, a Porsche Cayman GTS 4.0. Those great memories are being relived now!
nice replacement!
I like this new guy’s reviews because he starts with some history about the car which I find interesting.
We're riding with ya.
True car enthusiasts always love the nsx, but unfortunately that’s also why the prices on them are damn near unobtainable at this point.
They moved past the deal phase and are at collectible now.
So I just learned that the Honda City Turbo exists...
That one is new to me.
One of my friends just pick up one with only 32,000 miles on it. It is such a nice car.
Good job…Love my 95 Midnight Pearl…
6:14 I'll tell ya this NSX definitely achieved the stiffness i was looking for 😏
😂
hey now!
Great explanation as always 👍
Glad you think so!
Great review, Kennan, but it needs more smooth jazz.
Noted!
Correction on the snap ring, it was rectified WAY before the 6sp. It was rectified by late 92 and there's a "snap ring range" of transmissions that were affected. I believe Honda/Acura issued a TSB to address those that were in the range.
Another fantastic review, Kennan. Keep em coming!
Excellent info, thank you
I regret not buying one 20 years ago.
Same, 7 year old me was so dumb for that
In 2016 had a choice to buy an NSX for $28k or go travel. I didn't chose the nsx 😢
same here
@@TomchyCanadian OOF! I hope it was a great vacation.
@TheRealCatofwell, I did. 9 months of travelling.
That's my dream car, aways wanted a red on black '97. Throw a supercharger on for more power and call it a day! Also check out the Lotus Evora, friend of mine had one and said it's what a modern NSX would have been.
It's on our list!
“Induction noise” is the “chocolate notes with a raisiny finish” of engine snob talk
...that Pininfarina prototype 🥹🥹🥹
Yeah, it looks pretty neat.
I would've loved it if it was a little wider and flatter.
Kinda like my favorite concept that never made it to production: Alfa Romeo Carabo.
@Games_and_Music I completely understand, I think the original is leaner and meaner too, and yes, those pop up headlights look really cool, I was just never a fan because I was told when they break, it's heard to fix and expensive.
That's interesting, the game I mostly played in 2012 was LA Noire, I got it for my birthday along with a new Xbox 360.
That's really cool, going back and looking at your old paint jobs.
If I ever won the lottery, this is the car I would treat myself to.
I think your coverage of the snap ring issue would lead someone to believe they need to get a 6-speed if they want to avoid the snap ring issue, but that's not correct.
You said "But that was was rectified for the 6-speed manual", but it was actually rectified for the 5-speed. None of the 5-speed NSX's from 1993-1996 had snap ring failure issues. Only 1991-1992.
For 1991-1992, there were 4017 5-speed NSX's made and 2436 of those had transmissions that fell into the possible snap ring failure range. The serial number on the transmission is easy to see/photograph so it's not hard to check online whether it falls into that range before buying.
tell us you've owned an NSX without telling us 💪
And it has pop up headlights and Acura reliability. Would be at the top of my short list if I was shopping for an exotic. Even with my two lesser Acuras I was always impressed with their balance of comfort and handling (1996 2.2 CL and 2002 TL Type S)
Peak Honda!
Massive greenhouse on that car so yes, the visibility is quite amazing
I can see clearly now.....
On Mercer Island (and its abundant wealth) that sweet ride qualifies as a Honda Civic
If only honda made the prelude a rwd competitor to the silvia 😢
Exactly!
Excellent review, Kennan! I can’t wait to watch your next one. I love all the technical details you bring to the table. I’m disappointed you didn’t say “surprise surprise” though lol! You should definitely get that NSX… or perhaps a manual F430 spider. You know you’re a Ferrari guy deep down!
He drove a Porsche on track, he might never come back.
@@carsandbids Oh no, well if that’s the case I would think a stick 997 911 Turbo or 718 Spyder would be better alternatives. But you can’t beat the reliability and usability of the NSX. Good luck Kennan!
Kennan car update; still talking Porsche.
@@carsandbids thanks for the update! I hope there is a reveal video of whatever he decides to get!
my dream car
The only JDM that actually looks great
Cool.
👍
Doug's the type of guy to make 4 videos about the NSX and hire a guy to make a 5th
DO ITTTTTTTTT
Keenan is the American James May (capitan slow). I enjoy his take on the driving experience. His analysis is concise and well thought out. Something we all can enjoy appreciate.
A rude awakening and wake up call for Ferrari who's been so complacent and boy did the wake up with a vengeance.
Max power is at 6900 rpm though. Not much point in an 300 redline except for a bit of breathing room allowing you to not have to upshift momentarily before the next turn.
Even though max power is at 6900 rpm, it'll still be faster if you rev it out instead of shifting.
Can you guys please stop talking about how great the NSX is? The prices keep going up 😭
They are great though!
It was so good and well-engineered, and built, it was dubbed boring. Yeah. Boring.
Tudor Black Bay GMT on the wrist
Who cares?
Yess king of off
Isn't the steering rack manual, hence the slow ratio?
All automatic models had power steering, but the stick-shift models had the manual rack from 1991-1994. From 1995 on, all got the power rack.
Hate to say it, can’t stand this guy.
Which/whose NSX are you reviewing and driving? The one on Cars & Bids right now is a 2003 with 32,500 miles and looks better than the one you're reviewing.
This is one that didn't end up being listed, the owner decided to keep it.
NSX motor is called a C30. AKA C series. Later NSX were called C32s
981 Spyder if you want the open roof, 981 GT4 if you want a coupe, the NSX is awesome, I'll always love them but finding glass, radios and other parts is increasingly more difficult each year. If you do buy the NSX buy a 6spd 97+ since its got a bunch of improvements.
I'd argue to buy a 91-94 because the stick-shift models had manual steering. 95+ got power steering for all models.
Not the nur-en-burg-ring, the nur-burg-ring.
I like Kennan even more now that I know he's a fan of the NSX. That said the post-facelift NA2 is where its at.
Nearly bought a 91' manual with 80k miles for $37k in 2019. I backed out because the military was sending me to Korea for a year.
Then covid happened, and the car market surged. Now the dream is dead. I kick my ass every day for making that decision.
my brother in law bought a '91 for 35k in 2016. He sold it in 2019 and he was so distraught at the rise in values since then - still talks about it every time I see him.
If I got cab money this would be my first car purchase.
Not the next doug... :P
Go away Kennan.
Redline is 8k, not 8300
Fuel cut-off isn't until 8300, though, so it can do it
Disagree. The visibility is not rediculous. The visibility regulators have forced on us, to our detriment, is rediculous.
The pedestrian safety rule for hoods from 550 to 599 is ridiculous, it had such great lines.
@@carsandbids599 still has great lines tho even if a little chubby
Is Suzuki Cappuccino is on your shopping list ? 😅
Powder coat the rims flat/ hyper silver get rid of the chrome
Kennan, head and shoulders above the thunder thigh plus size girl. More mature. More depth of knowledge. Doesn’t have an ear-bleeding, piercing shriek.
I actually enjoy Alanis. She's fun and provides a different perspective to the conversation.
Alanis is terrific. I enjoy her videos as much as Kennan’s.