Strip away the fiberglass, and the most famous Acura in the Marvel universe is a 1991 NSX that had already covered more miles than most cars ever will. That car, the one-off NSX Roadster Robert Downey Jr. drove in 2012’s The Avengers, is now listed on Cars & Bids. The auction is set to close October 31, and the proceeds go to charity.
The listing’s own title calls it a “Prop Car.” Bidders should take that word seriously.
A concept car built on an old one
When Marvel needed a car for Tony Stark, the second-generation NSX didn’t exist yet. Acura had only shown it as a concept. The automaker’s August 2025 release says the roadster’s styling drew on the second-gen NSX Concept from the 2012 North American International Auto Show. A team at Acura’s Los Angeles design studio, led by then-Creative Director Dave Marek, designed it.
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Trans FX in Oxnard, California, did the building. The crew fitted a hand-made resin and fiberglass body to a first-generation NSX. They also lowered the suspension two inches and added 18-inch wheels and aftermarket seats. The donor was a well-worn 1991 car with 252,000 miles on the clock. It still wears the “Stark 33” plate from the film.
Marek explained the choice of donor this way:
“We knew it would have to be a reliable vehicle for filming, not just a static display, and we couldn’t come up with anything that would be more reliable than an original Acura NSX.”
That’s the irony collectors will enjoy. The car audiences took as a preview of Acura’s next supercar was really the original NSX in a costume. A film set needs a car that starts on every take. A mid-engined, rear-drive first-gen NSX with known mechanicals was a safer bet than a hybrid concept that was still years from production. The body pointed to the future, and the old car underneath did the work.
The road to the auction
Acura first brought the car out in public at The Quail during Monterey Car Week in August 2025. It sat beside a 1995 NSX-R and a 1999 Zanardi Edition, and Acura used the show to collect names of interested bidders.
In January, Acura put the roadster on display at Sundance. The automaker confirmed in that release that Cars & Bids would host the sale and that Acura would make a guaranteed contribution to the Sundance Institute.
The car’s online debut tied in with Cars & Bids’ Willow Springs event, held October 17 at Willow Springs Raceway in Rosamond, California. The live listing runs past that date, to Halloween.
What owning it actually involves
The hammer price is the easy part. Keeping the car is harder.
Bodywork. A hand-laid resin and fiberglass shell means there’s no parts catalog to order from. A cracked fender, a scuffed nose or a careless forklift means a fabricator rebuilding the panel by hand to match the screen car. Original paint and panels are also part of what makes it valuable. A sensible owner will document every surface before the car ever leaves the transporter.
Mechanicals. The good news is that the hardware underneath is a first-gen NSX, which specialists know well. The catch is the 252,000 miles on that 1991 donor. Even a car that’s well maintained at that mileage is a candidate for preservation, not regular driving. The value of this car lives almost entirely in its history, not its lap times.
Insurance. A standard auto policy won’t work here. Expect an agreed-value collector policy, or coverage written more like fine art or memorabilia. Either way, the insurer will want a professional appraisal, secure storage and clear limits on how the car is used.
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Paperwork. Rebodied concepts and studio props are often sold without the documents needed for street registration. Calling it a “Prop Car” suggests the seller isn’t presenting it as a road car. Before bidding, confirm with Cars & Bids what title or bill of sale comes with the car, and whether the donor’s original VIN survived the conversion.
Taxes. Under the IRS rules for charity auction purchases, a buyer can generally deduct only the amount paid above the item’s fair market value. How the proceeds are routed to charity will decide whether anyone gets a deduction. Ask your accountant before you raise your paddle.
The takeaway
This isn’t really a supercar sale. It’s a piece of Honda design history and a film prop, with a high-mileage NSX underneath that has spent 14 years pretending to be its own successor. Whoever wins gets a great story and a car that will probably spend its life parked at shows, where it looks best. Whether the paddle comes with a tax break is a question for your accountant, not Acura. Would you bid on a 252,000-mile movie prop wearing a fiberglass costume, or is the costume the whole point?
Images Via: Cars and Bids Auctions
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