A few years back, Ever was presented with an opportunity to go “ALL IN” and try to make the biggest financial mistake thus far: buying an actual sports car. And we’re not talking about some hopped-up Civic, 30-year-old 240sx, S2000, Evo, or STI. We are talking about a full-on purpose-built exotic/super/track car—one with actual pedigree, one designed in a wind tunnel with power-to-weight ratio and braking at the forefront of design. One where actual race car drivers had a say in its design. A car that would eventually become Ever’s forever car.
Now, just imagine if you had in the ballpark of high-five figures to spend on your dream car… What would you buy? It seems like an easy enough question, right? But actually start to think… What would you be happy with for the rest of your life? What are some of the features or specs of a car that would be your forever car? What could you live with or without? Am I making the best bad decision?
These are the questions that started to go through his mind. It’s a very big and important decision, and rarely are you given the opportunity to make a decision like this. You will always want more, and the fear of regret for making the wrong decision and possibly wasting your money on the wrong car is a heavy burden to bear.
Here are some of the cars that were on his “list”: E92 M3, R35 GTR, 981 Porsche Cayman, Mercedes AMG C63, and the NA1 NSX. Now, he was having a tough time finding a black M3 with a carbon roof, manual transmission, and low mileage. Additionally, aftermarket parts for the M3 were quite expensive.
Let’s move on to the GTR, a technologically advanced sports car that almost completely eliminates the human element from the driving experience with its array of driver aids aimed at achieving the fastest lap times. While there is nothing wrong with that, the question arises: would it be as enjoyable to drive? Would it truly allow the driver to enhance their driving skills and techniques? Furthermore, all the available options were equipped with automatic transmissions, and purchasing 20″ R888R tires would prove to be costly.
The Porsche Cayman, situated at the upper echelon of his financial means, would provide limited leeway for immediate modifications. It is pertinent to mention that we are alluding to a situation from four years ago when the prices in the second-hand market were significantly higher.
Regarding the C63 AMG, it was also exclusively available with an automatic transmission. Apart from its noteworthy horsepower, there were minimal distinguishing features. An additional factor that carried importance was the car’s level of exclusivity and rarity.
He contemplated the feeling he experienced upon encountering these cars on the street. How did they make him feel? How exciting were they to gaze upon? Which one ignited his passion the most… On a side note, one thing I can confidently say about the NSX is that people adore it. A mere glimpse of it brings an irresistible smile to their faces. They feel compelled to capture its beauty in a photograph. It genuinely brightens their day and prompts them to share their encounter with as many people as possible. It is truly remarkable to witness the impact of the NSX, a masterpiece, on the world.
While M3s and GTRs have become relatively common, the NSX continues to stand out. In a way, it is a Neapolitan among cars… I hope you catch my drift. Therefore, please refrain from suggesting a WRX or EVO as alternatives. His goal was not to purchase a cheaper car and transform it into a speed demon. He sought a car that would consistently evoke a sense of fulfillment every time he laid eyes upon it. Whenever he entered his garage, he wanted to be certain that he had made the right choice.
Certainly, the NSX might not be the fastest or the most dynamic option available, but in the end, he was investing in a platform that he could continuously enhance for years to come. Let us circle back for a moment. The NSX encompassed all the elements he desired. It did not surpass his budget, allowing him some financial leeway for future customization. This automobile stood as a unicorn, destined to be regarded as Honda’s finest creation, earning eternal respect from car collectors. It possessed the legendary VTEC technology, boasted a sleek black exterior, featured a manual transmission, and served as a true sports car designed by Formula 1 royalty.
Before you rush to judgement, let’s set the record straight: Ever is not some privileged trust fund baby who effortlessly owns an NSX. It’s important to recognize that he and I are actually much older than you might assume, and that Ever has dedicated over 15 years of hard work at Whole Foods. But he didn’t stop there. He took a leap of faith and left his steady job to chase his dream of becoming a self-employed tattoo artist. Currently, he juggles two jobs, working 15 hours a day, 5 days a week, and even takes on additional work whenever possible, including tattoo appointments on his days off. Oh, and did I mention that he leads a frugal lifestyle, allowing him to minimize living expenses? Even when times get tough, Ever isn’t afraid to have a humble dinner of ramen or cereal. His relentless determination and unwavering focus have brought him this far, and I have no doubt that his journey will continue to inspire many.
On to the story of purchasing it… What an ordeal it was, now that he knew he wanted an NSX, it was all hands on deck searching for the healthiest unicorn around. One lead almost took us to Florida, but after some sketchy issues with the title, he opted not for that one. Months would go by, every lead ending up a bust, or already sold. But most just had too many miles, too many owners, or too many “let me explain it to you” situations.
One day, on his daily search of his top 5 sites, he stumbled across “THE ONE”. It was just posted 1 hour earlier. He sprung into action, emailing the guy to see if it was still available. The guy got back to him pretty quickly, so he had to call his bank and move something around so we could drive to southern California that evening to get the car.
When we arrived at this guy’s house, we were pretty out of place. The guy basically lived in a mansion with an 8-car detached garage. Now, for those of you that know Ever, he doesn’t really look like the kind of guy that would be buying a high-end mid-engine sports car. Anyway, the guy was very polite, and Ever took it for a test drive. We jacked up the car and looked in every nook and cranny. Clearly, this guy wasn’t trying to pull a fast one on us (I can only imagine the cars he had in the other garages).
Now the story gets interesting. So, we live in Vegas, and it’s about a 5-hour drive to where the car was. We get there, Ever drives it, loves it, and is ready to buy. But wait, there is a problem. Ever doesn’t have cash. He was planning on doing a wire transfer, but unfortunately, it wasn’t working. This made for a very awkward situation. If I wasn’t sure that the guy thought we were trying to scam him before, I was sure that he thought it now.
Ever’s now on the guy’s personal computer, logging into his (Ever’s) account and asking for the guy’s routing number or something so he can try to transfer the money. I’m just thinking in my head how embarrassed I am that this isn’t working, how this guy probably thinks we are just some scumbags trying to scam him. And it didn’t help that his wife kept coming in asking, “Why is he on our computer?” “Don’t give him our information.” The lady was a total stuck-up bitch.
We ended up driving back to Las Vegas empty-handed. We told the guy we would be back the next night to buy the car cash. The guy was very polite and very respectful, but c’mon, what would you be thinking if Ever and I came to your house with Ever’s 18-year-old nephew saying that we had all the money to buy your NSX, and then have problems getting the bank to transfer money into your account? You would think that this was some sort of “Prince of Tunisia” scam shit going on.
The next day, Ever got the cash out of the bank, and we drove back down there and paid for it in cash. Unfortunately, the guy’s wife wasn’t there to see Ever pull all those racks out and slap them down. The guy seemed pretty surprised that we came back and actually had the money, but like a true gentleman, he played it cool and was very nice to us the whole time. He did, however, mention that there was another guy who was interested in the car and wanted to come get it if we didn’t come back the next night to get it (don’t they all though)
From the guy’s house, we drove directly to Little Caesars and feasted on some cheap-ass pizza with a mid-engine super car parked right outside. This is when it all started to sink in. After that, we gassed up and drove back to Vegas. I had to drive his nephew’s truck back with his nephew, and Ever was riding solo in the NSX. I’m pretty sure he smiled all the way back to Vegas. Since he was alone in the car and it was nighttime, there is no way to prove it, and no way is Ever going to admit to smiling or being happy. He has to keep up his image of being the prince of darkness.
So, what did Ever buy: A 1991, Berlina Black NA1 NSX with 50,000 miles. I call it 1.5 owners, since it was a father-son car. The father bought it brand new in 1991 in northern California and then passed it on to the son in the early 2000s. The Carfax report matched up with the history of the car, and it has a clean title and service history receipts too. The car was pretty much too good to be true, and he’s very lucky to have come across one like this. There were a few issues, but they were purely due to its age and the fact that it sat in a garage for most of its life. The valve cover gasket had a little leak, the hood dampers didn’t hold up the glass hood, and the CV boots dried and cracked. As with most cars that are 20 years old.
Since they had money left over, they jumped right into transforming this car from a boring stock virgin into a modified, track-ready machine.
Specs:
Engine/Transmission: Mugen intake system, Science of Speed advanced headers, and test pipes, Pride exhaust, new NGK plugs, and OEM fuel filter, Science of Speed Billet Twin Carbon 700 Clutch & Flywheel Set, Science of Speed clutch damper kit, A/C delete.
Suspension: KW club sport coilovers, pole 2 flag Bladed ARB v. 2.0 Front & Rear Bars, NSXr front chassis reinforcement bars
Wheels/tires Volk TE37 18×10.5 295/30 rear 17×9 245/40 front toyo R888r, Rays lug nuts
Brakes: Spoon mono block calipers, Hawk HP+ pads, NA2 stoptech front slotted rotors, stop tech rear slotted rotors hawk HP+ pads, pole 2 flag stainless steel brake lines, pole 2 flag ABS delete kit with brake bias valve
Exterior: H badges front and rear, down force rear carbon diffuser, front lip, minor fender roll to fit wheel and tire combo
Interior: NSXr cluster, works bell hub, vertex wheel, momo wheel, buddy club rails Bride zieg III not pictured just because it’s on 3 month back order from japan, radio delete.
Here are the pictures, as always the first one is a link to the flickr of 40+ pictures of this Unicorn
That Downforce rear carbon diffuser and Pride exhaust combo!
Black on black on black (on Spoon Blue)
OMG Mugen! Authentic Mugen Intake direct from Japan (RHDJapan.com)
295’s are THICC
ABS delete and adjustable prop valve.
They just don’t make ’em like they used to.
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