2004 Honda S2000 GT

Highlights

• Legendary F20C engine revs to 9200rpm

• Just 59,000 miles from new

• All original spec, not messed about with

• Sought-after MY04 facelift

• Enthusiast owned, with reassuring history file

• Wheels recently refurbished

Overview

One of the best things about a convertible is that you can hear the engine better. And when you’ve got an engine as sweet as the F20C, you may never want to put the roof up again. This car has an absolute screamer of a motor, a 2.0-litre VTEC four-pot which once proudly boasted the world record for ‘highest specific power output for a mass-produced, naturally aspirated engine’. It serves up 237bhp at a howling 8300rpm, redlining at 9200rpm, and features clever cam timing, forged pistons with ultra-low-friction skirts, and all sorts of other clever race-car tech. And it sounds utterly glorious.

Honda’s iconic S2000 enjoyed a ten-year production run, the name indicating its engine displacement in the tradition of the classic S500, S600 and S800 roadsters. Designed from the off to be a drop-top with strong sporting credentials, the company developed a chassis that was super-light and incredibly stiff. The cleverness of the engine is complemented by a fancy digital dash, allowing you to observe the rapid building of revs in a colourful streak across the vista as your hair is comprehensively messed up by all that horsepower. 

And while the body is crisply styled in a way that has aged impressively well, the relatively sober lines mean that it flies under the radar of the average motorist, which is good news for the enthusiasts. It’s basically a race car underneath (well, sort of), and no-one suspects a thing.

Now, if you’ve been researching these cars, you may have come across the model codes AP1 and AP2. While North American markets switched to the 2.2-litre AP2 in 2004, the UK and Europe famously retained the legendary 2.0-litre, 9,000 RPM engine for the car's entire production run—meaning every official UK S2000 is officially designated an AP1.

However, 2004 marked the arrival of the major "facelift" refresh (often called the MY04 by enthusiasts). This update included the switch to sleek oval tailpipes, LED taillights, revised headlights, tamer suspension settings to improve handling, and 17” wheels instead of the older 16” items.

The car we have here is a fantastic example of this sought-after generation. Registered in March 2004, right at the start of the facelift rollout, it carries the correct UK AP1 VIN plate alongside all of those definitive, factory-fit styling and mechanical upgrades. Impressively, it’s only covered 59,000 miles from new, it’s all factory-spec, and is owned by a devoted enthusiast who, believe us, will be very sad to see it go.

The car comes with its OEM hard-top (plus stand), the soft-top is in great order and works amazingly quickly, the car looks solid underneath, and the interior is in lovely condition throughout. If you’re after an S2000, this is the sweet spot: all original, not messed with, properly looked after, and utterly joyful to drive

History and documentation

• Registered 24 Mar 2004

• V5 present in owner’s name

• Original books and manuals present

• Service book stamped Jan 2005 @ 4115 miles, Jan 2006 @ 14,480 miles, Jan 2007 @ 22,957 miles, Apr 2013 @ 41,663 miles, Apr 2014 @ 43,629 miles, Apr 2016 @ 46,467 miles, May 2018 @ 50,349 miles, Jul 2019 @ 53,423 miles, Jul 2021 @ 56,428 miles, May 2023 @ 57,808 miles 

• Multiple invoices for maintenance work carried out between 2018 and 2024

• MOT with no advisories expires 22 Jun 2027

• ULEZ compliant

Interior

• Wonderfully retro digital dash

• Black leather seats in lovely condition (with just a little minor bolster wear)

• Clean carpets and mats

• No undue wear to dash buttons and controls

• Tidy doorcards and storage bins

• Clean inside the boot, with original toolkit present

• Apart from the central locking for the boot which works using the key, the owner reports that everything is functioning correctly

• No warning lights illuminated on the dash

Exterior

• Sought-after Royal Navy Blue Pearl paint

• Soft-top hood in great condition, and raises and lowers correctly

• Hard-top in excellent order, complete with storage stand

• Light lenses and window glass in good order

• Shutlines are all even and correct-looking

• A few minor stone-chips to the nose, but nothing untoward

• Alloy wheels have recently been refurbished 

• Headlights have been compound polished

Mechanical

• 237bhp F20C 2.0-litre VTEC

• 9200rpm redline!

• 6-speed manual transmission

• 0-62mph in 6.2 seconds

• Owner reports that the car runs very well, with good acceleration and strong brakes

• Underside looks tidy and solid

Summary

A ground-breaking engine from Honda, the F20C remains one of the best forged-from-factory engines of the twenty-first century; revving beyond 9000rpm but with a modern EFI and coil-pack ignition system, it makes great power and complements its agile chassis perfectly… but don’t go thinking this is tricksy car to live with, it’s been engineered to be as comfortable and cosseting as it is taut and agile – so you could genuinely use it every day without stress. It helps immeasurably that this example has been lovingly looked after by a proper enthusiast; it starts on the button, idles happily, pulls eagerly through the revs, does everything it ought to do. And the fact that it’s in such tidy condition and original spec means we expect there to be a great deal of interest in this fabulous roadster.

To arrange a viewing, click the 'Book Viewing' button located under the 'Place Bid' button. Viewings can be booked up until the day before the auction ends, after which the option will change to 'Contact Seller' for further enquiries. This seller is located in Surrey.