– Los Angeles, California

Ah, the “everyday supercar.” The original Acura NSX is arguably the progenitor of this phrase, the first of its kind to combine balls-out performance with amenities and drivability that wouldn’t kill you in the city.

But these days, most supercars are at least a little bit amicable in everyday use. The Audi R8 feels like an A4 when you’re running errands. A McLaren 570S has one of the most compliant fast-car suspensions around. A Lamborghini Huracan doesn’t make a ton of noise below 3,000 rpm. So with the rebirth of NSX, resting on its laurels of offering “everyday” drivability simply won’t cut it. Don’t get me wrong, it’s very good at the day-to-day stuff. But there’s a whole lot more to love, as well.

Pros

Doesn’t suck in traffic. An hour behind the wheel of the NSX and I’ve traveled less than six miles. Welcome to Los Angeles. But it’s cool, I’ve got comfortable chairs, a lovely sound system, quiet confines, and great visibility of the world around me (for a low-slung supercar, anyway). Plus, with the car working in its standard hybrid mode, it’s quiet and civilized when I’m slowly moving from traffic light to traffic light. The steering is relatively light and direct in action when I’m just putzing along side streets. Honestly, at speeds below 40 miles per hour, this imposing NSX is as friendly to drive as an Accord.

But then you open it up, and... Holy shit. Turn the drive mode dial over to Sport and the NSX wakes up, the brute force of its tu...