Honda starts selling historic racing cars and even restoring them to the new owner

Honda decided to open the safe. Honda Racing Corporation of the United States (HRC US) has launched the HRC Heritage Racing Program, an official operation for the sale, restoration and technical support of historic Honda and Acura race cars — machines that have won at circuits such as Le Mans, Sebring, Daytona and Laguna Seca. They are not replicas or show cars: they are the original examples that raced and won.

The first model offered for sale is the Acura ARX-01a number 26, with the XM Satellite Radio livery used by the Andretti Green Racing team. Equipped with a V8 engine, it was the first long-lasting prototype developed specifically by Acura and also the first car and engine designed by HRC on American soil. He won the LMP2 class at the 2007 12 Hours of Sebring, in his debut, with Dario Franchitti, Bryan Herta and Tony Kanaan at the wheel.

Also available is the Acura NSX GT3 chassis number 5, named by HRC as the most successful NSX GT3 in history: 38 class victories in IMSA and SRO, as well as two constructors’ titles, five drivers’ and four teams’ titles between 2017 and 2023.

Restore done with factory archive

The differential of the program is not the sale itself, but what comes after it. Each car is completely disassembled at HRC’s facility in California, has the engine rebuilt and the chassis recovered from the original homologation documents, cross-referenced with notes and photos of the engineers who built it. Before delivery, the vehicle undergoes tests on the track. HRC also offers maintenance and technical support during events, which allows the buyer to compete again.

“Classic race cars never die, their myth and aura only grow, and the HRC Heritage Racing Program exists to keep our incredible Honda and Acura race cars doing what they were born to do: race,” said David Salters, president of HRC US, in a statement.

What the division has already put back on the track

A recent example is Strakka Racing’s ARX-01c, winner of the LMP2 class at the 2010 24 Hours of Le Mans, which returns to Laguna Seca this weekend in Scott Pruett Legends with Nick Yelloly, current Acura driver in IMSA.

One of the most symbolic services, however, did not involve sales. HRC helped reorder the Reynard 01i that Gil de Ferran used in the 2001 CART season for Team Penske by providing an original specification Honda engine. The car now belongs to Zak Brown, chief executive of McLaren Racing, who bought it from Roger Penske. Dead in 2023, the Brazilian won the 2000 and 2001 CART titles with the duo Penske and Honda.

The choice of available cars is up to the manufacturer itself. The initial focus is on long-duration prototypes, but HRC says it is already working to include historic IndyCar cars with Honda engines. The company did not disclose the amounts requested.