- NSX GT3 to benefit from series of upgrades
- Improved bodywork to deliver higher top speed and better handling
- ‘Under the Skin’ enhancements include turbochargers and cooling system
- Customer teams to benefit from updates across global platforms
Acura Motorsports is pleased to announce that an enhanced Acura NSX GT3, designated the NSX GT3 Evo, will compete on racetracks throughout the world in 2019.
Based on the race-winning Acura NSX production model, the latest evolution of the multiple race-winning NSX GT3 features a number of important revisions aimed at delivering improved performance and reliability to customer racing teams around the globe.
“We are extremely pleased to present the specification of the 2019 NSX GT3 Evo today,” said Masashi Yamamoto, general manager, Honda Motorsports. “While the car has already won in some of the world’s most prestigious GT3 series, we believe in constantly improving our products and providing the best possible equipment and support for our customers.
“Through the NSX GT3 Customer Racing Program, an international collaboration between a number of Honda’s technical partners, we have been able to combine expertise on a global level to define a set of upgrades for the latest version of the NSX GT3 that will benefit every one of our customer teams worldwide.”
Revised bodywork, including a new front splitter, diffuser and rear bumper, will reduce drag to create higher top speeds, improve cooling and enhance both balance and driveability for an even wider range of amateur and professional drivers.
New turbochargers will improve throttle response, boost control, and fuel economy and will be retrofitted to all existing NSX GT3s in addition to the new NSX GT3 Evo. Newly built cars will also feature improved hardware and calibrations for the anti-lock braking system (ABS), and an upgraded Bosch display and data-logging unit to increase efficiency and enhance the driver experience. These improvements will also be available as Variant Supply (VF) to retrofit to existing NSX GT3s.
The effects of these updates, the result of constant analysis of information generated from within the global NSX GT3 Customer Racing Program over the last two years of testing and
racing, will be improved performance and reduced running costs, the result of a 25 percent increase in engine life and greater component durability.
The latest evolution of the Acura NSX GT3 retains the nucleus of what makes the NSX one of the most sought-after supercars for the road.
The 3.5-liter, twin-turbocharged V6 engines are built alongside their production-vehicle counterparts at the Anna Engine Plant in Ohio, USA, and use the same design specification, including the block, heads, valve train, crankshafts, pistons and dry-sump lubrication system.
Several racing modifications to the car, including a six-speed, sequential-shift racing gearbox, state-of-the-art chassis and aerodynamic package, and the very latest in FIA-standard safety systems, complete the ultimate mid-engined GT3 racer.
As with the current NSX GT3 racer, chassis originate at the Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, Ohio, USA. Final assembly is completed by JAS Motorsport in Milan, Italy. As part of the NSX GT3 Customer Racing Program, Mugen and Honda Performance Development (HPD) are responsible for technical and sales support in Japan and North America, respectively, while JAS Motorsport has responsibility for vehicle support in the rest of the world.
The NSX GT3 made its debut in late 2016 and has tackled some of the world’s iconic GT races, including the 24 Hours of Daytona and Spa; the 12 Hours of Sebring; Petit Le Mans and the FIA GT World Cup in Macau.
The car is a multiple race winner in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s GTD division and is one of the main contenders for the Drivers’, Teams’ and Manufacturers’ titles this year.
It is also a winner in the Pirelli World Challenge and a podium finisher in the Blancpain GT Series Asia. Examples have contested ADAC GT Masters in Germany, Super GT in Japan and selected events in the Intercontinental GT Challenge.
Acura NSX GT3 Technical Specifications
About Acura
Acura is a leading automotive luxury nameplate that delivers Precision Crafted Performance – a commitment to evocative styling, high performance and innovative engineering, all built on a foundation of quality and reliability. The Acura lineup features six distinctive models – the RLX premium luxury sedan, the TLX performance luxury sedan, the ILX sport sedan, the five-passenger RDX luxury crossover SUV, the seven-passenger Acura MDX, America’s all-time best-selling three-row luxury SUV, and the next-generation, electrified NSX supercar.
Five of the six models in the Acura lineup are made exclusively in central Ohio, using domestic and globally-sourced parts, including the ILX and TLX luxury sports sedans (Marysville Auto Plant), the RDX and MDX luxury SUVs (East Liberty Auto Plant) and the Acura NSX supercar, which is built to order at the Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, Ohio.
Additional media information including pricing, features specifications and high-resolution photography is available at AcuraNews.com. Consumer information is available at Acura.com. Follow Acura on social media at Acura.us/SocialChannels.
About Honda Performance Development
HPD was founded in 1993 to spearhead American Honda’s entry into Indy car racing. No other manufacturer has matched the company’s success in Indy cars, which includes 237 race victories, 16 drivers’ championships, seven competitive manufacturers’ championships and 12 Indianapolis 500 victories since 2004.
HPD, Acura and Honda have a history of success in endurance sports car racing, with more than 100 prototype victories since 1991, including either class or overall victories at the Rolex 24, 12 Hours of Sebring, 24 Hours of Le Mans and Petit Le Mans. Acura and HPD swept all prototype championships in the 2009 American Le Mans Series; and won the North American Endurance Championship manufacturers’ title in 2016. Prior to the founding of HPD in 1993, Acura won 25 races and three consecutive IMSA Camel Lights Championships from 1991-93.
HPD’s Acura and Honda engines have recorded 79 race wins at endurance sports car races around the world, with 71 of those victories coming in the HPD-developed line of sports prototype cars. In less than two years of North American GT3 competition, the Acura NSX GT3 has recorded five races wins and three poles. For more information about HPD and the company’s racing product lines, please visit http://hpd.honda.com.
About JAS Motorsport
JAS Motorsport was founded in 1995 in Milan, Italy and became an official Honda race team in 1998 and a technical partner three years later. Initially running Honda’s race-winning teams in the Super Touren Wagen Cup in Germany, the British Touring Car Championship and the European Super Touring Car Cup with legendary drivers like Tom Kristensen and Gabriele Tarquini,
JAS created the first Civic Type R for grass-roots circuit racing and rallying. JAS ran Honda Racing’s FIA World Touring Car Championship programme from 2012 to 2017 and claimed the Manufacturers’ World Championship title in 2013. Currently, it is responsible for the Honda Civic Type R TCR, which has already won sprint and endurance racing championships across the world in 2018, and for the assembly of the NSX GT3 as well as providing technical and sales support for the car’s customers in all territories except North America and Japan.
About Mugen
Founded in 1973 by Hirotoshi Honda, Mugen (meaning ‘without limit’) is an engine tuner and parts manufacturer that manufactures OEM components for Honda Motor Company. Since becoming involved in motorsport in 1986, Mugen-tuned engines have won more than 50 major motorsport titles including the International Formula 3000 Championship, Super GT Championship and major one-off races. Mugen power units have won four Formula 1 Grands Prix and triumphed at the past five Isle of Man TT races in the TT Zero class.
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