Coolest race car ever?

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It’s not often we use the phrase ‘Is this the coolest race car ever? It just might be…’. But in this instance, we think it’s justified.

This is the Honda HSV-010, a V8-powered monster that’s set to take on Nissan’s terrifying GT-R in Japan’s GT500 series this year.

It looks astonishing. Based on the chassis of Honda’s stillborn NSX revival, the HSV-010 (HSV, by the way, stands for Honda Sports Velocity, not Holden Special Vehicles) weighs in at 1100kg and packs a 3.4-litre V8 hoofing out around 500bhp. As per GT500 regulations, a sequential manual gearbox channels all that power to the rear wheels.

The HSV-010 will race for the first time at the GT500 season opener at Suzuka on 20-21 March. We’d expect it to gain a whole bunch of decals and sponsors and stuff by that time, but Honda, please, we beseech you: leave the HSV-010 exactly as it is: naked and matte and carbon-fibrous and generally amazing.

Once more: is this the coolest race car ever? It just might be.

But if you’re not yet convinced, have a listen to this...