Acura went on a full-blown offensive at the recent 2016 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, bringing not one, not two, but three models to the event. The appearance also served as the North American racing debut for the Japanese automaker.
Acura brought two of its 2017 NSX supercars to compete in the Time Attack 1 and Time Attack 2 classes, and also took what was called an, “NSX-inspired EV concept” to run in the Electric Modified class.
The NSX EV concept features the next step of the four-motor electric powertrain from a special Honda CR-Z that competed last year. Each axle boasts a pair of electric motors to give the Acura concept all-wheel drive and can shift resulting torque side-to-side to give the special NSX a boost in the corners.
The man who drove the NSX EV concept, Tetsuya Yamano, had experience with that type of feel, seeing as he was the one who drove the electric CR-Z model at the 2015 Pikes Peak race.
Acura’s other two NSXs that competed were closer to the models fans of the supercar can actually get their hands on. The model used in the Time Attack 2 class was essentially a stock model with added safety features. Meanwhile, the NSX Acura brought for the Time Attack 1 heat was pretty heavily modified and included a high-flow exhaust system and a lighter chassis.
The Japanese company can be pretty happy with its results at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. The NSX EV concept placed second in the Electric Modified class and had the third-best overall time for the 2016 race. Acura also got a win in the Time Attack 2 heat for production models in its NSX driven by Nick Robinson with a time of 10:28.820.