Behold the Magic Behind Acura’s $6,000 Andaro Paint Package
Behind-the-scenes trip to Acura’s special NSX factory in Marysville, Ohio, shows all it takes to make Andaro shine like a diamond.
The Acura NSX is quite the car on its own. There’s the mid-mounted twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6 linked to its nine-speed dual-clutch and a pair of electric motors up front providing tons of power to the corners. There’s the innovative space frame made from a composite of aluminum, ultra-high strength steel, and other lightweight materials. And of course, it’s built here in America at Acura’s special factory in Marysville, Ohio.
And yet, there are more ways to make the NSX outshine the competition, like the special-order, $6,000 Andaro premium paint package. AMMO NYC Drive & Protect’s Larry Kosilla recently got a chance to see how this special paint package comes together in person, in order to better understand how to detail it without ruining the whole affair.
“Way back in the day, they just had a monocoat,” said Acura paint department manager Keith Bullock. “No clearcoat. No UV inhibitors… Then, they learned from their mistakes, so they start adding clearcoat, some UV inhibitors, but it was a single-stage, so we still have some problems. Now, the OEM plants, not only do they have clearcoat, but they have a mid coat, which gives you more UV protection.”
Over at the NSX plant, though, Bullock says Acura adds a mid coat plus two clearcoats for the NSX. The Andaro package, meanwhile, drops the mid coat for a thick tinted clearcoat, then the two layers of clear on top. He adds that detailers should be okay as long as they don’t buff out more than half a millimeter of the top coat, protecting both the UV inhibitors and the paint.
“While the frame is being prepped in the baths, the body panels are placed on a proprietary structure called a buck,” says Kosilla. “This wireframe holds the 28 body panels in the same relative position and shape of the vehicle to ensure the paint is consistent from one panel to the next.”
Kosilla goes on to add that the panels are inspected and sanded prior to the application process, the placed on the buck for cleaning before heading off for the priming booth. From there, Bullock explains that the robot arms used in applying each respective coat use a guide on an unpainted part to lead the way. Technicians monitor every step for quality and consistency every step of the way.
After the robots do their part with the ground coat, a technician then paints over what the arms could not while another checks for imperfections and records what needs more paint. After it all passes QC, the robots apply the thick tinted clearcoat, which brings out “the depth and intensity” of the ground, per Kosilla. Finally, the buck moves into the clearcoat booth for the first coat, then is baked and gassed-out over 24 hours before prep and application of the second and final coat.
“Once the painting process is completed, the buck travels to the inspection department,” says Kosilla. “Here, the panels are individually removed, and any minor imperfections are sanded and polished to perfection once again… Once approved, the panels are moved to these special sealed bags.”
Bullock adds that the panels remain in the bags for three days so as to cure and gas-out. The parts are then placed on a mock chassis to ensure everything is perfect before moving on to the real frame, where they are attached and inspected again for perfection. The assembled NSX then receives its Acura badge, a dyno check, suspension road test, and a final seals check to complete the build.
“In person, the Andaro paint is obviously special because of the tinted chroma-clear that adds this distinctive depth or what feels like an aftermarket specialty paint job usually reserved for show cars or prototypes cars like that, that take several weeks to months to complete,” said Kosilla. “To have this produced in a factory setting is pretty impressive for $6,000.”
And the Andaro package, which is also being applied to the limited-edition Acura TLX PMC, is worth every penny. With his handy paint depth meter on hand, he measures the standard NSX paint, which comes in at a respectable 7 to 8 millimeters. The $700 premium colors has a depth of 9 to 10 millimeters, which is pretty good, but not as good as the Andaro. The intense paint package tops the depth chart at a gob-smacking 16 to 17 millimeters. Not a bad way to cap off an already amazing work of art like the second-gen NSX.
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