Once Acura added some S-Type goodies to the final 2022 NSX, the car was about right. Then, Acura’s people decided that they were trying to give us too much of a good thing and killed the Acura NSX Type S. And, they even added insult to injury by only selling 300 Type S cars in the U.S. The second generation of the Acura NSX supercar is no more, but it did go out with a bang and the perfect one could still be sitting on your local Acura dealer’s floor.

The second-generation Acura NSX Type S was the first hybrid supercar

The first generation of Acura NSX re-wrote the supercar book. The first time Honda decided to build a supercar, it enlisted none other than Formula 1 racing legend Ayrton Senna to be a test driver. The car came with a small but mighty six-cylinder engine that didn’t sound powerful on paper. But, the NSX forced Ferrari, Lamborghini and every other manufacturer to up their game and build more reliable, lighter, and faster cars.

When the second-generation car debuted in 2017, Acura again took a big gamble. Instead of trying to shoehorn a big V8 into the car, engineers relied on turbos and a hybrid booster to increase the power to 573 horsepower. And, cleverly, since the electric motors are on the front wheels it has all-wheel drive and can even go several miles in an all-electric Quiet mode. It looks exotic, it’s fast and was built to be as reliable as any Acura or Honda.

Acura tried to recapture the feel of the original

Acura knew that the market was hungry for a new Acura sports car after the success of the first NSX generation. But, the cars failed to move souls and often sat on dealer lots for months with discounted sticker prices. Acura didn’t quite capture the soul-stirring nature of the original. Maybe that was the hybrid drive, maybe it was the subdued styling, or maybe it was the $160,000 price. While it’s true that the Audi R8 and McLaren 570s are quicker cars, it’s really hard to argue with any car that can do a sub-3.0 second zero to 60 time.

Nobody ever bought a car like this to brag about their gas mileage, but the NSX might surprise you. Since this car is a hybrid, it’s 21 mpg in city driving means you can pass just about every Porsche 911 and Chevy Corvette while they’re stopping for gas.

Then, the final NSX Type S came out and nailed the assignment

The final NSX sequel really is more “Empire Strikes Back” than “Space Jam: A New Legacy.” For the second generation’s curtain call, Acura decided to add a Type S badge to the car for 2022. That meant an even 600 horsepower and new styling with dark carbon inserts. Acura also increased the speed of the nine-speed dual-clutch automatic, improved the car’s active suspension, and even added better seats and better materials in the cabin.

By the time the NSX turned six, it finally became the car we wanted it to be in 2017. It became faster, quicker, more luxurious, and simply looked more exotic. Too bad we didn’t have $172,000 to buy one of these future classics when they were new.