James Nazarian Jr. has an enviable job perk in his role as Large Project Leader Commercial Motorsports for Honda Performance Development (HPD, now Honda Racing Corporation HRC) in that he gets to drive a beast of a Honda CR-V – the CR-V Hybrid Racer to be exact! This conglomeration of part Indy car and part NSX GT3 IMSA GTD car was conceived and designed in Santa Clarita and is a super cool engineering marvel. From the hybrid powertrain, to the suspension, to the advanced aerodynamics, this vehicle (that includes some stock CR-V parts) is ready to blow your mind at a race track near you. We met up with Nazarian at the 2023 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach media day. In this interview, he takes us on a walkaround of the “Beast” and points out some of the unique features. Besides that, he also tells us what it’s like to drive. There are lots of pictures to go with his words, so feel free to scroll through each one as we get our personal tour. Enjoy!
NOTE: The 2024 NTT IndyCar Series was supposed to start their season with hybrid powertrains, however that has been delayed until after the Indy 500. The Beast gives you a preview of what it will be like. For additional information and to see this vehicle on track, please vist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kpMARRd-Ac to see Honda’s development story.
By Larry Mason
Copyright © 2024 Larry Mason
