Odds are, this year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance will be won by yet another Nazi car, but there should also be some legitimately cool stuff there, as well. In fact, there’s an entire Wedge-Shaped Concept Cars and Prototypes class this year, and one of the cars being entered is the 1984 Honda HP-X concept. Originally designed by Pininfarina, the HP-X made its first appearance at the 1984 Turin Auto Show and largely disappeared until now, which is a shame because this thing is rad as hell.
While we love a good, old-fashioned wedge, the awesomeness is more than skin-deep. It got some sweet aero, including ground effects, and it’s powered by a 2.0-liter V6 that was based on Honda’s F2 engine at the time. If you notice, it doesn’t have any doors, either. That’s not because this is one of those concepts that doesn’t have an interior, though. It’s because it features what Honda calls “a jet-fighter style removable single-piece Perspex canopy.” It’s also been fully restored to get it ready for its Pebble Beach debut.
If you notice, part of the canopy hangs out over the rear window. That’s partly for style, but it’s also functional. According to Honda, it was designed to function as a driver-controlled airbrake. Honda experimented with several advanced materials, too, using honeycomb panels, carbon fiber and Kevlar to reduce the HP-X concept’s weight and improve its performance. What’s especially cool is that some of the lessons it learned here later showed up in the first-generation NSX.
Slide inside (No, not like that, JD Vance! Get out of here, you freak!), and you’re greeted with a cabin that feels clean and minimalist while also using a truly absurd number of buttons. It also featured an Electronic Drive Support System that used “special sonar” and previewed more advanced technologies such as navigation and road warnings that we now take for granted.
At 163.8 inches long and 43.7 inches high, the HP-X is pretty dang small, especially by modern standards. And yet, it packs a ridiculous amount of cool into such a small package. We’re sure the competition at Pebble will be intense, but we’re rooting for the little Honda. After 40 years, it deserves some love.
