Gallery: RS Future Unlimited NSX – GTA Finals

In early November, when the push to prepare for Global Time Attack Finals was in full swing, I stopped by the RS Future/Art of Attack headquarters to see how Amir and the crew were getting along in their preparation of the new unlimited class NSX.

Long time friend, Amir Bentatou, owner of RS Future, is no stranger to NDF.  He has been competing in the GTA Street Class for several seasons now in his K20 powered NSX, gaining further traction in the campaign as the car became more refined year after year.  The success of his program can be attributed to both his incredible ability to drive, as well as the hard work and relentless dedication of both himself and his team.  During his tenure in Street Class, Amir was able to set course records at every circuit on the current GTA calendar; Ridge Motorsport Park, Road Atlanta, COTA, and of course Buttonwillow.  Having the course records under his name had always been more important to Amir than winning championships, and the move to Unlimited Class was a decision made years in advance; the one barrier to entry being each of those records.

Ridge Motorsport Park
1’42.6 – Amir Bentatou RS Future Honda NSX – (2022) On Yokohama Tires
Amir also held the previous record at a 1’44 set in 2020

Road Atlanta
1’25.787 – Amir Bentatou RS Future Honda NSX – (2022) On Yokohama Tires

Circuit of the Americas
2’13.894 Amir Bentatou Acura NSX NA1 RS Future X Koyorad – (2022) On Yokohama Tires

Buttonwillow Raceway Park
1’44.412 – Amir Bentatou RS Future Honda NSX – (2021) On Yokohama Tires

Not that it counts for anything, but it’s worth noting, many of these records are knocking on the door of Limited Class, despite the restrictions of being in Street Class.

I stopped by RS Future the week before GTA Finals to see the progress.  With the car having just been delivered from RS Motorsport, the Sacramento based fabrication shop owned by skilled fabricator Riley Stair, it was a race against the clock to reassemble the car and get the new setup tuned.

Aside from the battle-scarred body panels clad in Midnight Purple, the NSX that was returned to Amir bore little resemblance to the one that he had left in the hands of Riley.  The rear end of the car was completely rebuilt with weight savings in mind, and the rest of the chassis was given a once over to make the most of the Unlimited Class rules.  The layout of the engine was completely revised to specific standards in a way that even challenged Riley’s craftsmanship – in his own words:

“I built out an Air/Air intercooler to fit in the rear of the car using a Koyorad tube and fin core, and designed the set up to poke the compressor housing outlet straight into the end tank using a Vibrant Performance HD clamp – A design Amir and I had talked about executing for some time, and finally had the opportunity to put to use. Being in the rear of the car, a duct had to be made to direct air flow off of the hatch and through the core. With all of the Docol R8 structure webbed around the Intercooler, the turbo inlet filter tube, charge pipe, as well as needing to be sealable to the future trunk lid that was made for the car, made for a pretty intricate and challenging part to make. Amir witnessed how disgruntled I was to have to cover the turbo manifold and trans mount, etc, but as I got closer to complete, it grew on me. I’m quite pleased with how it came together in the end, and I can’t wait to see if cram air through that core.”

While I was there for just one long night, documenting what I could, the team had spent several 18-20 hour days of work to get the car in condition for Kristian (Battlecraft) to get it on the dyno.  The NSX was now running a new Emtron ECU and the new setup needed to be tuned.  As Thursday bleed into Friday, the first practice day of GTA Finals, the team got the car to SP Engineering and on the dyno.  The plan was to get the car tuned and make it to Buttonwillow Sunday morning to shake it down and if all was well, try to put down a lap.  As the night dragged on, however, complications with the ECU and the engine put those plans to rest and ultimately they would not make it to Finals.  At the very least, this gives Amir more time to go over the car, to test, and to prepare for the 2023 season.

And so it is with great anticipation we await to see the results of the new Unlimited-spec build.  In the meantime, please enjoy the gallery of the NSX.  Keep in mind, when I shot these at the shop, some of the body panels weren’t fully attached, and the ride height/alignment was way off because of the amount of changes in the chassis weight.  Next year we’ll definitely be revisiting the build.

 

While I was on site, I also took some time to photograph the Art Of Attack M4, a project that was built by RS Future, which was also being prepared for GTA Finals.  The subject of a rather controversial Instagram post on our behalf, the Art of Attack M4 in my opinion, is among the better looking G82’s I’ve seen.  When it comes to the overall execution and styling, there is a ‘good enough’ attitude that permeates time attack builds in the US.   I wrote that the emphasis on style here has never matched that of Japan’s, where looking good is held in equal regard to going fast, noting my conversation with Shinichi and Shiobara of Escort on the subject.  It’s not gatekeeping, it’s simply an opinion, albeit an opinion of those building race cars that are almost universally accepted as good looking – I think that holds more weight.  Anyway, I could write an entire dissertation on this subject, but I digress.  Enjoy the gallery.