When he purchased this 1992 Acura NSX in 2016, Anthony Lezada had no intentions of taking on a cleanup effort followed by occasional time behind the wheel in hopes of preserving the chassis and adding to its well-documented resale value. The Acura had almost 230,000 miles under its belt when he acquired it, and Lezada is determined to double that number, at the very least.
With so many miles on the original C-series engine, a rebuild was expected, but Anthony continued right where the previous owner left off, and the NSX remained roadworthy for another 12,000 clicks. Finally, it began throwing in the towel with signs of knock becoming more noticeable. "I pulled the engine out in my garage and decided to rebuild it rather than doing the K or J-swap that everyone was suggesting," Anthony adds. "Being my first time ever pulling an engine, I wanted the satisfaction of re-installing it and getting it running again on my own." Universal Car Floor Mats
Relying on a local machine shop to refresh the long block turned out to be a huge headache. He adds, "Literally two years later, I finally get my engine back, install it in my car and four days and 150 miles later, there was knock. I was beyond pissed." Rather than dealing with that shop again, Anthony pulled the engine back out and shipped it to David and Ryan of HQ Engineering. The team tore the block down to find that the oil squirter O-rings and the oil pick up, both vital to bottom end performance, had not been replaced, leading to a loss of pressure. Four factory rods, new piston rings, and a much better machining of the block and head mating surfaces later, and HQ had the entire engine wrapped up and ready to ship back to Anthony in just two months' time.
While HQ Engineering was cleaning up the previous machine shop's shortcomings, Anthony's NSX was busy with its second paint job. Much like the engine debacle, the first shop that worked on color-changing the originally white body failed to keep up on their end of the bargain. "It was a huge mess and I had to just take the car from the shop because of the empty promises and sub-par work," Anthony recalls. "I ended up bringing my car to Linh at Garageworks of Hayward where he took very good care of my car." Six months after its arrival, Linh had corrected all the previous body shop's errors and applied the BMW San Marino Blue that Anthony selected.
Gone are the NA1 pop-up headlights, replaced by a 2002 front end conversion and topped with Downforce's carbon fiber hood and Vector lip, both of which were color matched along with a pair of Marga Hills side skirts. The DFR vents, MR side mirrors, MITA Motorsports B-pillar garnish, a Pride Type R-style wing, and Dali Racing rear diffuser were all left in raw carbon fiber.
After the C30A V-6 and the NSX body were both refreshed and ready to reunite, Anthony once again installed the engine and was confident it wouldn't be coming back out. He adds, "It took me about a day and a half to make sure everything was good and got her back on the road. I was finally able to drive my car again." Wiseco pistons and replacement of some of the bent factory rods make up the bottom end, with Science of Speed valve springs, retainers, and lost motion assemblies atop Cometic head gaskets on the upper halves.
Comptech's carbon fiber intake feeds an SOS throttle body with RDX injectors supplying the fuel from a Walbro 255-lph pump, while Comptech headers lead to Pride test pipes and a Version 2 exhaust, with the engine overseen by AEM's Infinity ECU (tuned by Bisimoto to 240 hp). The updates liven up the 3.0-liter engine but maintain its reliability, an important factor for Anthony, who adds "I've been daily driving it and I take it on road trips to Portland and SoCal." Though cargo space is limited in any NSX, there's more than enough room to transport Anthony's equipment to keep his fender rolling business completely mobile.
With an already low-slung factory stance and the addition of BC Racing coilovers cranked down far enough for the look Anthony was after, a set of Stance Parts AirCups were installed to give him the option to lift the front end enough to hurdle speed bumps and steep inclines when needed. Bright white Work ZR10 in staggered 17/18-inch sizing fill the factory fenders that've received Anthony's surgical touch in the rear, with wider Pride fenders up front.
With over 40,000 miles now added to the NSX's cluster (more than some NSX owners tack on in a lifetime), the HQ Engineering-built engine is holding strong, and the plan now is more of the same. Anthony states, "The goal is to get her up to 350k, 400k, and even 500k if possible. At the end of the day, it's a Honda!"
Engine Science of Speed-spec Wiseco pistons 10.1:1, valve springs, retainers, lost motion assemblies, big bore throttle body; ARP rod bolts; Cometic head gaskets; RDX 440cc injectors; Walbro 255lph fuel pump; Downforce intake scoop; Comptech carbon fiber intake box; Comptech headers; Pride resonated test pipes, V2 exhaust system; NCAutoUSA carbon fiber intake manifold cover, radiator stays, radiator plate; Pride carbon fuel rail covers; Hydrodipped valvecovers; DressUpBolts blue titanium front and rear bay kits; Titanium Works oil cap, coolant tank cap; AEM Infinity ECU
Drivetrain 1997 NSX 6-speed transmission; Science of Speed 275 clutch, flywheel, short shifter; Type S shifter stalk; Revolution shift linkage
Suspension BC Racing coilovers; Swift Springs; Comptech front/rear sway bars; Cedar Ridge spherical end links, rear subframe solid bushings; Carbon6 Composite front inner/outer tie rods, upper/lower ball joints, rear outer tie rods; Type R front bracing; GT Spec 4-pt. shock tower brace, lower brace; StanceParts 4-wheel air cup system; Spoon Sports subframe collars
Braking Adams brake rotors; Hawk HPS pads; stainless lines
Wheels & Tires Work Wheels ZR10 17x9 +17 front, 18x10.5 +22 rear; Bridgestone RE71R 245/40-17 front, 275/35-18 rear
Exterior BMW San Marino Blue; 2002 NSX front bumper, headlights; Downforce carbon fiber hood, Vector front lip, hood scoop vent, DFR vents; Pride 20mm front fenders, Type R rear wing, engine hatch cowl; Marga Hills side skirts; Mita carbon fiber B-pillars; SCW carbon fiber sash plates; Dali Racing carbon fiber rear diffuser; Magical Racing carbon fiber mirrors; Diode Dynamics fog light bars; Cedar Ridge tow hook; Illumaesthetic LED taillights
Interior Recaro SR4 Raptor; Bride RO brackets; Type R floormats; Cedar Ridge harness bar; Renegade Motorsports x Willans 4-pt. harnesses; Personal Neo Eagle 340mm steering wheel; Works Bell short hub and quick tilt; DressUpBolts titianium hardware; Race Seng engraved shift knob; Type R shift boot; NCAutoUSA carbon fiber A-pillars, B-pillars, headliner, center console, arm rest, door vent trim, door panel trim; custom wrapped door panel inserts; Science of Speed carbon gauge cluster faceplate; GaugeArt video display adapter; Kenwood head unit
Car Mats Thank You David and Ryan at HQ Engineering, Linh at Garageworks510, Bisi and Bisimoto, Tom at SpeedImage, Jay Jesse and Fong at Vex Motorsports, Stanceparts, BCRacing, DressUpBolts, Stephen at NCAutoUSA, Mark and Heath at PrideCarbon, Adam and the gang at Illumaesthetic, BZ at GoldenstateAutoSalon, the entire NSX Community, and lastly, my fender rolling clients, friends, and family!