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When I was about 13 a local restaurant owner bought a brand new NSX that he drove daily to and from work. I lusted after that thing. I knew nothing about it other than how it looked, sounded, and was gushed over by the auto rags I read at the time.
I kept in the back of my mind the possibility that I could buy one when I was gainfully employed, thinking back to the "daily driver supercar" status the magazines gave it. When I sold my E36 M3 I strongly debated buying one, though they were already absurdly expensive, even for early models.
Then I drove one, and drove another one and then a third one, this over the span 2009-2013. To say it was a disappointment would be a massive understatement. The early cars are geared really... let's say "interestingly." The engine sounded good, but didn't give me the same chills a Porsche flat-6 or a BMW inline-6 do. None of them were what I'd call fast - my 986 Boxster would certainly have kept up. But the real kicker was the handling. Every single one of them felt way, way bigger than they actually were. Lots of understeer followed by at-the-limit twitchiness. Brutally slow steering. A bit ponderous and reluctant. Not what I expected.
Yes, the controls were exquisite, but so are a Boxster's.
Yes, the interior was very nice, but in a decidedly '90's throwback sort of way.
I think the appeal is that they're quite exotic looking and were made in extremely small numbers, so they're still a bit of a novelty. But I'm glad I didn't end up buying one, because driving it was a huge disappointment.
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