12.) Reliability - once modified. NSX's don't respond real well to mods. Weak clutch/gearbox, and the engine is limited.
My .02
Regarding Mods I heard that the early cars (91-96) have Titanium rods or something like that were they became extreamly unrealiable when moded to over 400 hp. Is that right?
Regarding 7 (Lap Times) I think your right but it would be nice to have more proof on this. Anyone with real world experiance?
It would be nice to be armed with a little more info on the NSX so the next time this guy comes around I can defend my car better.
Thanks,
Dan
Forget about your boy, he's smoking crack. Stock NSX's dyno around 240 RWHP, give or take. A high compression ratio and small displacement is not a good recipe for mods/forced induction. But, toss some mega-bucks into the NSX and you may hit 380 RWHP. Then, you need to spend even more money swapping the clutch, strengthing or changing the gear box and other drive line components. All this doe and you STILL haven't reached the STOCK HP of a Gen II Viper (400 - 420 RWHP). And were not measuring torque, which isn't even close. Of course a Gen III and were up to 450 RWHP. With the same amount of money in mods and your at the 800 RWHP mark in a Viper with the stock clutch and tranny.
It's pretty much universally known among grassroots racers that a Viper turns much faster times than an NSX with equal drivers. It's really not even a contest/debate. How do you convince your buddy? Well, just go to NSXPRIME.com and ask the NSX owners. Honest owners will acknowledge that the Viper is a much faster car, but still prefer the NSX for other reasons. Nothing wrong with that..... The real argument is the NSX vs. Corvette (C5) (Not Z06). Many Corvette owners claim to beat up on these guys at the track, as there performance is very similar with the Vette having a slight HP/Torque advantage. Either way that would make for a more evenly matched race.
If he needs more proof Car & Driver did a handling test on cars over $30,000. Here is the performance link to that section of the article (Bottom of page). The Viper lapped Nelson Ledges Raceway nearly 5 seconds faster than the NSX (1.17 vs 1.22). THAT IS AN ETERNITY ON A SHORT TRACK!
http://mlounge.home.comcast.net/CD_article/pg9.html