Hoonigan Goes Full History Nerd in Honda’s Private Museum
Hoonigan‘s John Naderi is the ultimate Honda head, and even he is left speechless by some of these ultra-rare JDM classics.
Honda has a not-so-secret secret. It’s an automotive museum right next to American Honda Motor Co., in Torrance, California. However, as John Naderi of Hoonigan explains, the origins of this museum are as humble as the origins of the Honda brand itself.
Naderi, who goes by the nickname Nads, opens the door to this Honda enthusiast paradise, and is greeted by one of the company’s IndyCar V8 engines. From there, it’s all downhill as Nads’ brain begins to melt from the insanity of seeing this collection of rare Hondas. This collection is so special because it’s founding in 1993 is thanks to several dedicated employees banding together to start this collection. It wasn’t created by the wishes of Honda, but rather, by the passion of it’s employees.
Between the imported-from-Switzerland S660 roadster, to the HondaJet, and beyond, Nads continually stresses that Honda thinks of itself as an engine manufacturer. “The Power of Dreams” tagline lingering in the background certainly strengthens this imagery.
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Eventually, it’s time to talk S2000. Honda has quite the roadster heritage, but, for now, the S2000 is the latest one we’ve seen here in the States. Well, at least until we get our hands on the S660, somehow. Anyway, after several furtive glances throughout the video, our host gets to the New Formula Red AP2 parked in the museum, around the 22 minute mark. And, right away, he opens up a can of worms by proclaiming his love for the AP1 over the AP2. Yes, we can hear the 1,346,049th debate about this starting to rage in the forums now.
Still, credit where it’s due, Nads ultimately loves the S2000 in all forms, for what it represents. He claims that both the S2000 and the NSX were crucial models that cemented Honda’s legacy in the performance car world.
Speaking of performance, if factory-backed race cars are your thing (they certainly are ours), you need to pay attention from the 27 minute mark to the 40 minute mark, because, wow. To be frank, we consider ourselves pretty well-versed on Honda history, but Nads just unfurls a level of trivia that would decimate all in a game of automotive Trivial Pursuit.
If race cars aren’t your thing, then the row of concept cars, from the 41 minute mark onwards may be more your scene. Blended between the futuristic concepts and vehicles that would later become models like the Ridgeline, there are the movie cars. Check out the Super Street Civic build, it’s so of it’s era and excellent. Nads himself is ecstatic over it because not only has he driven it, but in his tenure at the famed mag, he also had a hand in building it. He also proclaims that it was the first of the major tuner cars to be immortalized as a Hot Wheels toy.
Our host wraps things up with a late model NA2 NSX and then racing engines. So, no matter what your taste, Hoonigan’s coverage of the Honda museum has your covered.
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