It's not exactly new: rumors of a new sports car by Honda, positioned below the NSX, have been circulating for some years. And we know this mainly due to the registration of patents. In 2015, we came across for the first time images of the hypothetical sports model. The following year, Honda patented the ZSX designation – similar to the NSX designation – which fueled rumors that a new sports car was even on the way.
And now – already in 2017 – new images taken from the EUIPO (Intellectual Property Institute of the European Union), allow a first glimpse of the interior of the new model. When comparing the images of these new patents with the previous ones, it is verified that they are effectively the same model, with the only difference being the removal of the roof and windshields.
The proportions of this model are typical of a car with an engine placed in the center rear position. Perception reinforced by the presence of generous lateral air intakes. The interior also has some similarities with the NSX, especially in the elements that inhabit the center console. Stranger is the presence of a steering wheel… square.
Patent registration in 2017
Add the external cameras – replacing the mirrors – in the first patents, and we have to assume that the chances are high that the images indicate a concept, rather than a production model. To know how close this model will be to a hypothetical production version, we will have to wait until its revelation. Will we have any surprises in September at the Frankfurt Motor Show, or a little later at the Tokyo Motor Show?
Patent registration in 2017
ZSX to plug a big hole
The Japanese brand has in its portfolio two sports cars placed at diametrically opposite points. At one end we have the sophisticated NSX, the super sports zeitgeist, which pairs a twin-turbo V6 with a trio of electric motors, totaling 581 hp. On the other, with a meager 64 hp, we have the S660, the kei car that, unfortunately, is limited to the Japanese market. The only thing that unites these very different machines, besides being Honda, is the fact that they put the engine “behind your back”.
The so-called ZSX would help to create an extra step among Honda's purely sporting proposals, in case we ignore the Civic Type R hot hatch. In other words, it would occupy the place left vacant by the late S2000.
Despite being totally different, there are common points between the ZSX and the S2000. Like the latter, rumors point to the ZSX using an in-line four-cylinder engine. Unlike the S2000, which lived on stratospheric regimes, the engine of the ZSX would have its origins in the Civic Type R, that is, the 2.0 liter turbo with 320 hp. The difference would lie in the addition of one or more electric motors, as we see in the NSX, thus enhancing performance.
Will it come true? Cross your fingers!