Now'sthetimeto pounceonthismid-enginedmarvel
1990-2005
CLEVER
B
MONEY
Whyyouwantone
Ifyou’relookingfora mid-engined
sportscarwithsomeserious
credibilitythen,inthispricerange,
you’veseveraloptions–rangingfrom
leggyFerrari355sthroughto more
under-the-radaralternativessuchas
the VenturiAtlantique.
These,however,oftenhave
significantrunningcostsassociated
withtheirsimilarlysignificant
purchaseprices.Questionmarksover
reliabilityandusabilitymayfurther
wardyouoffsuchoptions.
Fortunately,Honda’sfabledNSXcan
bea farmorecivil,durableand
potentiallylesscostlywayintothe
mid-enginedmarket.
It’salsonothardto findone;NSX
productionranforyearsanda totalof
18 ,625weremade–whereas,say,only
8215 Ferrari348swerebuilt.This
doestainttheircollectability
somewhatbutNSXshavea strong
followingand,followingthelaunchof
the secondgeneration,interestmay
continueto grow.
TrackdownanNSX-Rif youwant
the ultimate,as only 483 of the
uprated1230kgcoupesweresold.
Whattheexpertssay
‘It’sgotto comehasn’tit?It’sgotto
happen–they’rejusttoocheapand
they’retoogood,’saysLamport.‘I
knowsomeonewho’sgotone,andhe’s
done20,000milesinit.It’sgorgeous
andI saidto him,"You’vegotto sell
methatwhenit comesup."I justthink
it ’sonlya matterof timebeforethat’s
a £100,000car.They’rejusttoogood
tobe cheap,it doesn’tmakeanysense.
‘Backinthedayit didn’thavetoo
muchpersonalitycomparedto a
Ferrari,but–lookingbackat it
now–it’sgotitsownthinggoingon
andI thinkit’soneof thosedesigns
that’sagedreallywell,likethe
McLarenF1.It juststilllooks
fresh,stilllooksmodern;it’sthe
definitionof a modernclassic,isn’t
it? Becauseit looksmodern,it drives
ina modernfashion,butit isn’ta
moderncar.
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UKcarsleft
