Pininfarina Is Designing A New Sports Car For A Honda-Backed Race Team

You might not have heard of JAS Motorsport unless you’re a motorsport nerd of the highest degree, but it sounds like you’ll soon be hearing a lot more of it. Here’s the short version: the Italian race team and constructor has been working with Honda since 1998, developing and running various touring cars based on the Accord and Civic as well as the GT3 version of the second-gen NSX.

Now, though, it’s announced it’s branching out into road cars, and what it’s cooking sounds quite exciting. The company has announced it’s going to build a JAS-branded roadgoing sports car, and based on the one grainy teaser picture we have, it’s looking quite promising.

There are big, wide arches, Michelin Pilot Sport rubber, brake discs with the distinctive look of carbon ceramics about them, and a low, stubby bonnet that absolutely screams ‘mid-engined’. What’s more, this styling is the work of none other than Pininfarina, a company that knows its way around a pencil.

What else can we glean about the car so far? Not a lot, but JAS says it’s going to “reimagine one of the most iconic sportscars of the past.” So, a Honda-affiliated racing team is reimagining a legendary sports car of yesteryear with what looks like a distinctly mid-engined layout. There are three letters coming to mind here – N, S and X.

Whatever’s being worked on, it’s going to be based on “a mechanical platform” (we really hope this slightly clunky translation means it won’t be electric – a Civic Type R engine, perhaps?) and will be a very limited-production thing produced at JAS’s HQ near Milan.

We’ll see the finished product during the first half of next year, with more information set to be trickled out ahead of that reveal. Whatever’s being worked on here, it’s safe to say we’re quite excited.