NSX innovative cuz it brought Honda's F1 tech to mass market. And it did it with the usual japanese quality and durability. Gotta remember this car was design and built in 1990. And it hasn't gotten any design change except cosmetic. And as for 290 bhp, well that's cuz of Japanese manufactor have agreed to this gentleman's rule of production car limited at 276 bhp. And you know hp isn't everything. Cuz i can have a 1000 hp "truck" going against a 100 hp Honda. and the honda might win, cuz of weight, gearing, wheel size, traction, driver, etc. NSX is a great car and it survived for 13 years without a major design change is a TESTAMENT to it's original design. Some of the cars that I can think of that have survived at least this long without any major engineering modificiations and remain in production in recent memory is the VW Beetle(old one).
And enough about STi, it's porky and it pushes. If you want an awd car pine for the Cosworth Focus or if Peugeot makes a street legal version of their 206 WRC.
But if you wanna jump on the bandwagon of awd is what import is all about then get a STi. I thought u got taste in liking Ferrari, but I guess not.