Pop-up headlights were developed as a way to differentiate ... but in the end, the JDM car that perfected the supercar formula won. When the NSX came out, it came out of nowhere.

It’s a stock visual in any 1980s movie montage: A character jumps into a cool sports car, revs the engine, and activates the pop-up headlights. Violating the speed limit inevitably follows.