Honda has confirmed its presence in global GT3 racing from 2018 onwards, with the unveiling of an NSX customer program.
In a reveal event at the 24 Hours of Spa, head personnel from Honda Performance Development, JAS Motorsport and SRO detailed the new car that will join the likes of Audi, Mercedes, Lamborghini and BMW in the category.
The NSX GT3 will be produced in an initial run of 12 models, with the 3.5-litre, twin-turbocharged V6 engines set to be produced at the production vehicle workshop in Ohio.
Research and Development is being conducted by Honda Performance Development in Japan, in collaboration with JAS Motorsport in Italy.
After a successful introduction under the Acura banner in the North American IMSA Sportscar Championship, the car is now being offered to customers elsewhere.
“When the car was original developed we always planned to race it,” said Robert Watherston, Head of Motorsport at Honda Motorsport Europe.
“The question was how and where we race it. We took a couple of years to develop various prototypes, but we came to the conclusion that GT3 is absolutely the best place to be with the car.”
“The car’s been very successful in IMSA. We led the Daytona 24 Hours this year for a significant time, and we’ve had both pole positions and race wins. We have proved the competitiveness of the car, so now is the right time to announce it in a global customer program.”
Honda plans to homologate the car until 2024, with a projected total output of 70 models during the next seven years.
It will be eligible to compete in numerous GT3-accepting championships, including the Blancpain GT Series, the IMSA Sportscar Championship, the Nurburgring 24 Hours, and Japan's Super GT300 category.
Customers can purchase an NSX GT3 for starting price of €465,000 (£413,624).
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