A Legendary Honda Revival Breaks Cover with a Striking Reborn Design and an Impactful New Name

JAS Motorsports and Pininfarina have pulled the wraps off their reimagined NSX, and it looks absolutely stunning.

Close-up of the front side of a red sports car with black and red alloy wheel and black side mirror against a dark background.

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Published December 3, 2025

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Back in July, Honda racing outfit JAS Motorsport set the industry aflutter by stating that it would be fielding its first-ever road car. Though details were sparse, the knowledge that Pininfarina would be handling the styling was enough to guarantee some good looks.

A few months later, the two firms teased further details, revealing that the project would be based on a first-generation NSX. Coincidentally, rival Italdesign had also announced that it would be reimagining the Honda icon as a modernized tribute.

Red sports car with black roof and modern LED headlights in a dark studio setting. — JAS and Pininfarina have named their NSX project ‘Tensei,’ as it’s a rebirth of the Japanese icon.

In any case, though JAS and Pininfarina plan on debuting their creation in full early next year, they’ve just shared the clearest images of the car to date — along with its name.

The rebirth of a Japanese icon

The striking NSX-based design before you is called ‘Tensei.’ It’s a fitting name for the car, as it means ‘rebirth’ in Japanese and JAS is billing its creation as an “ultra-modern supercar reinterpretation based on the DNA of the first-generation Honda NSX.”

Red sports car with illuminated rear lights in a dark setting viewed from above. — Tensei brings subtle improvements to the exterior while staying true to the spirit of the original.

As such, in choosing a donor for its “chassis and mechanical base,” JAS and Pininfarina will be “remaining true to the characteristics that made it an icon.” In other words, Tensei will feature cutting-edge tech and advanced engineering, but it’s still to be “based on the principles of the original NSX.”

In practice, this means that beneath the Pininfarina-styled carbon fiber body, the car will incorporate an “original NSX-inspired, naturally aspirated V6,” as well as a six-speed manual transmission to “enhance performance, dynamism and driving pleasure.”

Sleek red sports car with black roof and dark alloy wheels on a dark background. — Though the first-gen NSX hit the market over 30 years ago, it looks surprisingly modern with just a few tweaks.

To that end, JAS will also be tapping Pininfarina for the interior. In keeping with Honda’s philosophy that “a car functions through a direct connection with the driver and passenger” and that “its quality is determined by whether or not it inspires enthusiasm in the driver,” the Italian outfit is to double down on the original design with an even more striking-yet-functional cabin.

A project with extensive expertise

Between a mid-mounted engine, a rear-drive layout, an all-aluminum monocoque and a striking jet-inspired design, the first-generation NSX already had a lot going for it as a driver’s car. Moreover, updates throughout the run meant that the later 3.2-liter models put out as much as 290 horsepower.

Red sports car with black roof and illuminated rear lights on a dark floor with red background. — JAS and Pininfarina will be improving the NSX with modern tech and engineering, though it’s still intended to keep the spirit of the Honda creation.

However, that’s not to say that the Honda legend is without room for improvement.

Quite the contrary, as Pininfarina has proven with these initial images, there’s still room for new interpretations of an icon like the NSX. In the styling of the lighting arrangements alone, the Italian firm’s tweaks have made for massive improvements. (Though remember, Pininfarina did pen the HP-X that preceded the car)

Accordingly, if anyone can bring impactful improvements to the Honda NSX’s driving abilities, it would be JAS Motorsport. Having won multiple world-level titles and over 900 individual events, the outfit knows a thing or two about what it takes to build a successful car.

Pininfarina penned the HP-X (Honda’s first concept car), so it’s only natural that you’d see some similarities in the designs.

Honda

Especially in the context of Hondas. Having first partnered with the Big Red back in 1998, JAS Motorsport’s TCR Civic Type R recently had its most successful season ever. In 2022, the platform took home 76 race victories and 19 championship titles in Europe, Asia, South America and Oceania.

More to follow

According to previous communications, JAS Motorsport and Pininfarina will be unveiling the Tensei in full come the first half of 2026. However, given that the name was revealed to a “select group of customers” at Fuji Raceway in November, it’s possible that some early actors are already getting in on the fun.

About the Author: Gray is an associate editor at Gear Patrol, covering cars, motorcycles and anything else with wheels. When he’s not chasing the latest industry news, he’s probably wrenching on one of many projects. For better or worse, he believes classics make perfectly practical daily drivers.

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