Sporty new Honda on drawing board

The NSX, featured in 'The Avengers,' gives clues as to what is coming. Photo / Supplied

R&D chief says latest version of the NSX will be hybrid ... and fun

Honda's R&D chief Mibe Toshihiro has confirmed that work has started on producing a new sportscar in the mould of the popular Honda NSX.

Separate reports suggest it could be on sale as early as next year.

Responding to comments by Honda president Takanobu Ito about the new NSX, Toshihiro told British magazine Autocar that Honda was ready to start work on the next generation of its electric and hybrid vehicles, and suggested a new sportscar would be evaluated as part of that project.

"We are now at a point where we can consider the next generation of electric and hybrid vehicles," said Toshihiro at the Global Automotive Forum in Chengdu, China.

"President Ito has already mentioned a new NSX, and we have looked at that in the R&D department.

"It would be an interesting project - electric or hybrid vehicles can be fun as well as economical. More than that I cannot say."

Ito previously suggested that the new NSX would be a different vehicle to the original NSX, which weighed 1350kg and had 290bhp.

Reports have suggested that a concept car hinting at the new Honda NSX could be shown at next month's Tokyo motor show, a production car on show early next year and sales starting later in the year.

Honda also says it will put its first full electric vehicle and a plug-in hybrid on sale in limited numbers in Japan, China and the United States next year.

And as Driven revealed last week, it's the same car that features with Robert Downey Jr in the movie The Avengers.