NSX FAQ

Body Kits

What Body Kits Are Available?

Acura

Front Spoiler Lip

Not a body kit, but hey… The front nose guard was changed in ’97 and is interchangeable between model years. The newer part is lower on the sides for a slightly more aggressive look. Either one is about $100 and bolts on using the same hardware.

[CWI – 98/11/27] I just installed the newer designed (97) chin spoiler on my 1991. I am amazed how much it scrapes no mater how I strive to avoid steep driveways and slow to a crawl. And I was thinking of installing Eibachs! Hah! Right! I think I’ll just get a larger wheel/tire combo to fill out that void…

2002 Body Style Conversion

This is an expensive project, but it is possible to put the 2002 front/rear end on the earlier model NSXs. The following information is from Wilson Sham of the NSX Club of Hong Kong, one of the first people to do this conversion:

The job can divided into the following sections:

 Front bumper, hood (bonnet) and headlight section.
 Side step and door panel section.
 Rear diffuser section.
 Rear lamp section.
 Rear boot lip section.

The most difficult section is the front. for the rest, it is just as easy as bolting on the new parts. In order for the new HID fixed head lamps to seat inside to the old pop up lamp base, part of the base flame needs to be cut (see photo). Also, the new lamp needs few point to support it. That’s why the 2002 fender got a joining leg at the front near the bumper section. The reason that I bought the brand new fender was because my right fender had been repair before, and the shape are not so good. Also, when I was in JAPAN, the HONDA people told me the fender are different, well, I found out the parts number are different to the 90 model, but they are same, except the extension leg that I told. Also, for US owners, the rear diffuser can be just bolt on to their 90 bumper. And the reason why I bought a new bumper, because I used to have the UK style number plate bumper.

Acino

Le Mans style hood Really big rear wing!

Japanese kit. Availability is not known.

Comptech 

 
   

      

         Wider/lower front quarter panel (Photo by Wayne Miller) 
         One-piece nose, driving lights, wire mesh grille in front air intake (Photo by Wayne Miller) 
         The quarter panels are much wider than stock (Photo by Wayne Miller) 
      

      

         This car is also lowered (Photo by Wayne Miller) 
         The one-piece nose includes the "ground effects" spoiler. No scrape guard      strip! (Photo by Wayne Miller) 
         Exposed gas cap, wider/lower rear quarter panel, extended rear spoiler. (Photo by Wayne Miller) 
      

      

         Side-by-side with a stock car
         Definately a more aggressive look
         Side-by-side from the rear

Available from Comptech. Cost is around $10,000. Full kit adds approximately 65 pounds to the car. Also knocks 7-10 MPH off top speed. Comptech claims increased down force.

Dali Racing

Big-Ass Wing

Adjustable from 0-1-2 degrees in attitude and supplied with 4 Gurney strips for fine tuning the down force. Billet aluminum skeleton, custom aluminum mounts, etc. Made to handle real down force. Custom painted.

Deep-Dish Hood

The DEEPDISHHOOD comes in two flavors "Race" and "Street" and single or double scoop.

The "Race" is fabricated from an OEM NSX hood with the scoop rake taken all the way down to the bottom of the radiator, and a shelf welded in there to direct ALL the air coming in UP and OUT. In order to do that the OEM radiator cooling fan has to be removed and 2 new 11 inch pancake fans added to the front of the radiator. Trim strips are riveted along the top edge of the front of the scoop to help create the low pressure center there – this is so fun you will need two of them!

The "Street" is fabricated from an OEM NSX hood with the scoop rake taken half way down to the bottom of the radiator. Retains the OEM radiator cooling fan. Trim strips are riveted along the top edge of the front of the scoop to help create the low pressure center there – this is so fun you will need two of them!

[BMA – 00/2/4] Just installed Dali Racing’s dual scoop street hood and it looks fantastic. The fit and finish are up to factory quality.Dali Air Dam

ABS black plastic air dam with metal support brackets — easily installs to OEM holes used by the OEM spoiler. Available in 3 and 4 inch depths. Replacement plastic strips are cheap.

[DH – 99/9/1] I went out to Willow Springs today to test out some mods prior to the LA Street Race this weekend. Specifically:

     
  1. Threw out air conditioning (needed to check if anything would leak)
    2.  
  2. Threw out heater (again, wanted to check if anything would leak)
    3.  
  3. New Dali Racing Big Ass Wing (wanted to check that it really does keep rear wheels      planted)
    4.  
  4. New Dali Racing Deep Dish Hood (would it really keep my car from ending up like the      Mercedes LeMans GT Car?)
    5.  
  5. New Dali Racing NASCAR style front "splitter". Not really a splitter, but just      comes straight down to keep air from getting under the car. It is probably 1.5 inches off      the ground or so. (Would this also help keep the car from going Airborne like those silly      Germans who must said, "Wind Tunnel? ahhhh....no, why do you ask?)
    6.  
  6. New rear slotted rotors from Comptech (want to make sure no problems under stress)

Prior to this day, I could put together consistent times of around high 1:32/1:33 in good conditions, with a fluke fast lap of high 1:30/1:31. Today, with not a lot of practice time, but real good conditions, I strung together CONSISTENT times of low 1:30/1:31, using a set of 50% used Hoosier tires, and did a fluke fast lap of 1:29.58. I know the car can do 1:28’s, and perhaps with new Hoosiers it might be able to dip into the 1:27’s, which is really damn fast. Especially for a street car. (well, if you can call a car with carbon fiber doors with no windows, rollcage, no heater, no air, and no cats a street car…..) Point of reference is that I think the pole for the Ferrari F355 Challenge car race that was there a while back was a 1:26. The fast guys in SCCA Sports 2000 class run 1:25’s. The fast P-cars are still out of reach, they probably run 1:20-1:24.

Some data points for those of you familiar with Willow Springs.

 1. Going into turn 2, I used to be able to go about 90-92 mph. Turn 2 is like a big  constant U turn. Today, I went through the first part of turn 2 around 97-98 mph, and the  2nd part of turn 2(before the apex) at about 100 mph! Very cool! Give complete credit to  the Wing/Hood/Splitter combo on this, as the car was sticking really good.

2. I think I can go through turn 8 flat out. I almost did it today, but since there was no ambulance/EMT crew around, I ended up not pressing all the way down, but I was close to going flat out. I was going too fast to read what was on the speedo before the braking zone before turn 9, but probably 135+, maybe even 140. Prior to the supercharger, I be flat out through 8, but since getting the supercharger, I have not been able to come close in doing this for fear of losing control of the car as I was going too fast. Again, give complete credit to the Wing/Hood/Splitter combo on this.

3. At the end of the straightaway, I was getting about 135 or so. The wing/hood is probably causing a little drag on this.

4. The six speed tranny I got from Comptech is awesome. Except I have to learn to properly do a quick 6-5-4 downshift when going into turn 9 and turn 1, it seems a little more tricky to make that 6-5-4 downshift when you are running out of room.

The Big Ass Wing is adjustable for rake, and comes with three different "splitters?" for the end of the wing that has different size lips. I just tried the default position that Mark and Cliff set it for. I didn’t have any gauges/levels to screw around with the settings, and since it seemed to work good, I didn’t want to take a chance at screwing anything up.

If I had more time, I would probably have tried to see if I could increase my top speed down the straightaway by changing the angle of attack on the Big Ass Rear wing and using a smaller end lip. But I ain’t got time, as we are thrashing pretty hard to get ready for this weekend.

Erebuni

Erebuni Corp. (New York) 158 Roebling Street Brooklyn, NY 11211

 Erebuni Corp. (California) 8942 Lankershim Blvd. Sun Valley, CA 91352
 Phone: 718.387.0800, Fax: 718.486.7957, Orders Only: 888.EREBUNI
 Web: http://www.erebunicorp.com, e-mail info@erebunicorp.com
 
   

      

         3-piece ground effects kit plus wing.
         Rear shot. Ground effects kit is $786.
        
      

      

        
          
David Nguyen's black NSX with the      Erebuni kit

[DNG – 99/3/18] The ground effects installed on my NSX consists of 5 pieces. The front lower lip, two side skirts, and two rear side cowls. The front lower skirt (doubles as a splitter) and the side skirts are from Erebuni Corp. They are an exact replica as the ones sold by K&N Japan except it’s half the price. The rear side cowls are direct from Back Yard Special in Japan. No one in the States make the rear side cowls. IMO, the cowls are a must because the stock rears look too ‘thin’ from the side, even if you’re not running ground effects.

The pieces are made of fiberglass; the fit and quality is good with the pieces from Japan being better in quality. They go over existing panels and screw on using existing holes. I have about 4" of ground clearance, but have yet to scrape against speed bumps and driveways. You just have to be careful. Keep in mind that I have lowered springs from RM Racing (1.25" drop) and lowered, ride-height adjustable Bilstein shocks from CGI Motorsport (0.25" drop). The 17"/18" wheel combo raises the car up about (0.25"). If you’re running OEM setup, you should not have problems with ground clearance.

[DS] With respect to fit and finish, expect to receive rough parts that you’ll have to have body shop sanded, primed, and painted to match.

Fiber-Tek

Kit starts at $2500. Includes front bumper, side skirts and rear skirt. E-mail Mike at robin@viser.net or call (503) 910-5555

Mugen 

 
   

      

        

        		
        
          
 

[BM] Mugen in Japan makes a Lexan rear hatch, with a carbon fiber air intake duct at the top of it. The price was $4215 plus shipping charges from Japan. They were made to order. Mugen has ceased producing their body kit, sports damper kit, and sports exhaust system for the NSX.

Option Dai

Availability is unknown – assumed not available.

RM Racing

Chin Spoiler / Brake Cooling Kit

Basic spoiler is modeled after their full race style spoiler, but constructed from flexible plastic for street use. Features 2" drop and 2" forward lip. Finish is semi-gloss black and can be painted. No modifications to install. Price: $180.00

The brake cooling version adds two 6" cut outs to allow air flow to the front brakes. Kit includes air adapters, brake duct hose, clamps, and ties. Price: $275.00 

 
   

      

         Basic spoiler
         Spoiler plus hood
         Spoiler front view
      

      

         Brake cooling version
         Closeup of brake air duct inlets
         Shot underneath the car showing the hoses
      

      

         "Drop      Shadow" [BC]
         Side view [BC]
         Front      view [BC]
      

      

         Intake      closeup [BC]
         From the      rear quarter [BC]
         Front      closeup [BC]

[BC] I received my RM chin spoiler yesterday and did a fit test last night. A very cool item, serious as death. It is a dark gray shiny plastic, almost black, that RM recommends painting, though after an application of Zymol HD Cleanse it looks reasonably good raw. I’ll ultimately paint it semi-gloss black.

RM should call this the "Drop Shadow" spoiler, the projecting front lip gives this effect. The overall style is evocative of the RealTime car, and you may wish that the projection was similarly metal instead of plastic the first time you hit a chunk of shredded truck tire at 80 mph.

I have the version without the brake ducts so I can only comment on aerodynamic performance (of course subjectively since I don’t have the NASA wind tunnel test data at hand). I may be deluded but I think the steering feels more solid at triple digit speeds. The RM air dam looks like it should be large enough to have some measurable effect at high speed, particularly when compared to a 91 style, it’s huge. So you’ll at least get a strong placebo effect working for you. Randy says it’s a copy of the "European Cup" NSX racing spoiler, so presumably someone over there has done track testing and noticed a useful improvement over the stock part.

As for ground clearance, there is a danger of "stubbing" the protruding front edge on an incline. I haven’t had this problem, but I’ve been driving low clearance sports cars in the same area for past 8 years and know the terrain. And you must always remember that carrying a passenger or heavy braking and turning can compress the suspension and make a formerly safe spot a spoiler killer.

On my car the distance from the bottom of the RM spoiler to the ground is about the width of four fingers. This is a finger lower than the 97 spoiler in the center, though slightly higher at the corners. Better keep tools in your car to remove this thing before flatbedding… All in all a worthy addition to your "racing" car.

[HR] Just got my NSX back with the new RM chin spoiler. Very low to the ground. Not to mention the Eibach springs and koni’s! This puts me about 3 fingers from the ground.

[KM] I have the RM spoiler with the brake duct kit and it definitely makes a difference! Recently at Road Atlanta, I was able to get a "feel" for the new equipment. My closure speed at the back straight is about 125 to 130 mph and I felt the front end "squat down" more than with the stock spoiler. However, I felt that the tail end was now getting a little looser than before. At these speeds, it probably wouldn’t make that much of a difference, but I could see the need for a bigger wing in the back to reduce lift. I think Randy is working on that as we speak. It would be neat to have a GTR style wing in the back.

Anyway, installation was a snap. It basically bolts on using the same bolts as the stock spoiler. There are two inlets per side for the hoses and you are supposed to run one to the the caliper and one to the rotor. I did the caliper but I did not do the brake rotor (you have to take the backing plate off the brake rotor assembly and I didn’t have enough time for that). Routing of the hoses is relatively easy and it definitely helps to have the car on a lift (doing it using a creeper is a pain).

The downside is that the spoiler is very brittle (Randy had to use this type of material so that it would not deflect down at speed) but the compromise is that the clearance is much, much, lower. I have Randy’s lowering springs and I have to be very careful of the road situations. This weekend, I went over a concrete joint and I heard the horrific crunch of the spoiler becoming toast. So, be very careful how and where you drive the car with the spoiler. Lastly for looks, it is way cool. Randy will tell you you need to paint it but I have a black car and it matches fine.

[STH] I have (had, actually) the one without the brake ducts… it’s made out of plastic, so I highly doubt it would adds any "aerodynamic effect" to the car. The spoiler is very flexible, so it should be able to take abuse of angled driveways, etc. I put mine on for a day, went out to some mountain areas for some "spirited driving"… I must have bottomed it out 20 times during the span, but my car is much lower in the front than stock.

So, I took it off… sitting in storage now. As far as looks, this is very subjective. I personally did not like it… so take a look at all the pictures you can before making a decision. I think it looks very nice from the front, but from the side, it seemed like it broke the natural lines of the car… If you do get it, I highly recommend that you paint it because when the plastic gets bent from bottoming out, it turns a white color along the edge (trust me, this doesn’t look very good!)

[BC – 99/4/7] I noticed a furry lump on the highway the yesterday as it appeared from under the car ahead of me. I had time for three thoughts: – What the hell is that? – Is it flattened enough to fit under the air dam? – It doesn’t matter I can’t change lanes with that car next to me.

Thunk! Later inspection revealed a red smear and a morsel of mystery meat carried along by the forward projection of the air dam, but no damage.

RM Hood

The RM Racing Race Style Hood features the same style down scoop as the race versions, but modified for street use. Bolts directly to the factory locations with no modifications and uses factory hinges. Available in fiberglass or carbon fiber, ready to paint. Price: $995.00

 
   

      

         
         
         
      

      

         
         
         
      

      

           
         
          

[KM – 99/4/29] I  have the RM hood on my car and ran it at Road Atlanta a few weeks ago. With a before and after comparison, it does add better airflow through the radiator and up – and does marginally increase down force. I got the hood because the car felt light on the back straight at Road Atlanta and I was thinking of ways to increase down force so I decided to experiment with this part. Many of you may have seen the spectacular crash on October 10 at Road Atlanta

 at the Petit Le Mans where one of the Porsche GT-1s caught air, went airborne vertically,  and landed after a 470 degree flip on its tail (needless to say, the car was totaled, but  the driver, Yannick Dalmas - Porsche Works Team walked away). No that our cars have the  power or are light enough, but ever since this, I wanted to tweak the NSX and down force. I  only get to 130 - 135 mph at the back straight before entering the braking zone but the  car on stock tires and wheels and the dips and pavement make for an unsettled feeling.

Does the hood improve the feel? Slightly, and it does make a difference in driver confidence. You do lose the capacity to carry the spare tire but with the big brake kit that I am putting on, this doesn’t matter to me any more. I have asked Randy to design a bolt on compartment that will sit in the old spare tire mount that will hold tools, etc. and still fit below the new hood. Another option is to add an adjustable wing for down force but now we’re talking lots of bucks and slowing down the top speed (there is always the tradeoff between down force and speed).

Wings West

Wings West, (949) 722-9995, Fax (714) 722-9997, E-mail info@wingswest.com, Web http://www.wingswest.com   

 
   

      

        
          
Air      dam, side skirts 

        
          
"Commando"      wing available separately 

        
          
On a black car (stock rear spoiler)

Wings West made a minor change in their original front spoiler design. The new one blends better with the Wings West side skirts.

[BMA – 99/10/25] I installed the full Wings West body kit on my ’91 and it looks great. The fit and finish are excellent- front air dam, side skirts, mid height wing and they are now making rear spats to finish off the rear to continue the lines of the side skirts.

Le Mans-Style Front Hood

thumb|left[YH] A front hood made of carbon kevlar + FRP with single scooped vent (identical to the Le Mans car) is available in Japan from the Backyard Special, co. ltd . It costs 260,000. yen. I do not know whether you feel it cheep/reasonabl e or not. You have to remove your spare tire as you assumed to put the hood on. If you are seriously thinking of importing it from Japan, I can help you. Would you give me a private e-mail in that case, please?

Body Kit Comparisons

[AHA – 2000/5/15] I used Erebuni’s (they are the replica for M’s) and they are lower than Wings West. However wings west front kit extend out a little further, therefore create the same problem if u’re driving of the driveway. then again wings west made from polyurethane, so I don’t crack them, just the paint.

Performance