Honda Racing has officially announced the HSV-010 GT will join Japan’s Super GT racing series this year, releasing a huge selection of photos for those who just can’t get enough of the car. Based on the discontinued NSX replacement (yup, we’re still crying about it too), the HSV-010 is powered by a 3.4-liter V8 that makes 500-ish horsepower and 289 ft-lbs of torque. While the road car was expected to be powered by a V10 and get AWD, this race car is RWD and the V8 engine is thought to be a version of the V8 found in the Acura ARX ALMS cars.

Thanks to a stripped-down interior and bountiful use of carbon fiber, the HSV-010 weighs just 2,424 lbs.

The car will debut  on May 20-21st during the season opener, with four cars expected to compete.

We’ll keep our fingers crossed that a successful racing season might make Honda reconsider a road version of the car. Then again, the HSV-010 will be up against some very steep competition in the Super GT series, including several race-prepped Nissan GT-Rs.

GALLERY: Honda Racing HSV-010 GT

Official release after the jump:

Honda’s race-only replacement for the NSX has now been spied undergoing testing at Japan’s famous Suzuka track. Called the HSV-010 (HSV standing for Honda Sports Velocity), the car is powered by a 3.4-liter V8 engine that makes roughly 500-hp. The car will race in the GT500 class, where all cars are limited to around 500-hp.

We have to say, even in purpose-built race car style the HSV is still a looker and we really wish Honda had plans to bring this car to the streets. Still, the official word from Honda continues to be that this is race-only version. Pity…

Four teams are expected to run the new HSV models in the 2010 Super GT season, with the numbers 8, 18, 32 and 100, with the first race being at Suzuka on May 20-21.

GALLERY: HONDA HSV-010 RACE CAR

Be sure to check after the jump for several videos of the HSV-010 on the track and in the pits at Suzuka.

[Source: MotorsBlog and Circuit Diary via TOV]

It’s here at last… sort of. Above is a lone photo of the replacement to the Honda/Acura NSX – at least in race car trim. Called the HSV-10 GT, or Velocity Sports Honda, this track only exotic is built to run in the GT500 class of Japan’s Super GT series. As cars in that class are limited to around 500-hp, we can safely assume the HSV-10 GT makes exactly that.

With a full carbon fiber body, what’s even more impressive is what’s under the hood – a 3.4-liter V8 engine that no doubt revvs to an impressively high (even for Honda) rpm range to get all 500 ponies. (Honda has yet to release official specs though.)

Underpinning this impressive creation is reported to be the very same chassis that Honda was working on for several years to replace the NSX but which has now been rumored canceled.

A light weight body and 500-hp 3.4L V8, only for the track? Please Honda, nobody likes a tease.

[Source: Le Blog Auto]

Acura is reportedly moving away from its brand strategy to become a “tier one” luxury automaker in favor of volume sales. While no official word has been given by Honda or Acura representatives, the news has been reported by Honda fan site, TOV, which claims that several dealerships have been told a new strategy will focus on “Smart Luxury.”

What “Smart Luxury” means is not exactly clear, however, additional dealer information does seem to point towards a higher volume sales and away from vehicles like the NSX. Acura will also continue with its plan to not offer a V8 in the RL, instead delivering it as a hybrid (assumedly with a V6) – which is likely to make V8 power. A new V6 engine is also in the works for many of the vehicles in Acura’s lineup, but the biggest news is that Honda’s luxury brand aims to bring a new entry-level car to market to slot in under the TSX.

While we’re obviously sad to hear about the future of the NSX, it’s refreshing to see Acura working with its strengths, namely, returning to building small fun-to-drive cars. And who knows, maybe this sub-TSX model is the necessary step in bringing back the RSX.

[Source: TOV]

Speaking to reporters at the Tokyo Auto Show, Honda CEO Takanobu Ito suggested that when the time is right he would like to build a “green” sports car. The Japanese automaker faces two big hurdles first, however: a lack of cash as well as insufficient technology. “Once we have that technology and once we have cash on hand, I would like to see Honda have a sports car that symbolizes our technology,” he told Automotive News.

While Honda is set to launch the compact hybrid CR-Z sports car next year, this new car would be a range-topping vehicle with optimum performance and fuel economy. Honda is struggling in the technology department, however, with hybrid systems that are much less efficient than competing systems.

Ito made the comments just after Toyota drew back the covers on its 560-hp Lexus LFA supercar, which uses “old fashioned” internal combustion technology. Earlier in the month he told Reuters that big displacement engines are nostalgic and that the people who like them are, “stuck in the past.” Knowing full well at the time that Toyota was about to debut its new V10-powered flagship, Ito professed that, “The era of V10 engines is gone.”

Until last year, Honda was in development of a V10-powered replacement to the Acura NSX, but Honda canned the project due economic concerns. The concept car’s harsh reviews by the automotive press also, no doubt, had a hand in the vehicle’s demise.

[Source: Automotive News]