RE: Honda S2000: Spotted

[Little Bob]

Beautiful design, incredible engine, and one of the best gear changes I’ve had the pleasure to use.
Replaced my Elise, this is much more useable and the F20C in a different league to the K series (I did love my Elise too though).

Wonderful, special car, and definitely an event to drive. Not as scalpel focussed as my Elise or Caterham, but the S2000 is superb if you drive it the way it was intended.
Just ticked over to 23k miles today in my late 2005 S2000, another fabulous drive with the roof down and intoxicating 9000 rpm soundtrack.

[s m]

RossP said:

cb1965 said:

RossP said:

andyp03 said:

Honda fitted a restrictor so that you couldn't dump the clutch and wheel spin

What is the restriction you speak of? Neither my current or previous model have this issue.

I fear it's in his head! Couldn't get it to accelerate up hills??? Learn how to drive it!

Indeed. Never had a problem driving mine up hills either!

Even the French can drive them uphill with wheelspin

https://youtu.be/ds_Ao7yIPx8

[ninepoint2]

Little Bob said:

Beautiful design, incredible engine, and one of the best gear changes I’ve had the pleasure to use.
Replaced my Elise, this is much more useable and the F20C in a different league to the K series (I did love my Elise too though).

Wonderful, special car, and definitely an event to drive. Not as scalpel focussed as my Elise or Caterham, but the S2000 is superb if you drive it the way it was intended.
Just ticked over to 23k miles today in my late 2005 S2000, another fabulous drive with the roof down and intoxicating 9000 rpm soundtrack.

Very nice

[RossP]

s m said:

RossP said:

cb1965 said:

RossP said:

andyp03 said:

Honda fitted a restrictor so that you couldn't dump the clutch and wheel spin

What is the restriction you speak of? Neither my current or previous model have this issue.

I fear it's in his head! Couldn't get it to accelerate up hills??? Learn how to drive it!

Indeed. Never had a problem driving mine up hills either!

Even the French can drive them uphill with wheelspin

https://youtu.be/ds_Ao7yIPx8

I drove around the Peak District in mine yesterday. Many hills were involved (often steep). I had to get out and push it up most of them.

[Bibbs]

Black S2K said:

Bibbs said:

Has an S2000 for a few years, now have a Boxster 987 3.4 S.

The Porsche is better designed (but still pretty sparse), more comfortable, and a whole lot quicker as stock.

But my S2000 had a load of suspension work and 375hp at the end, and then the engine expired.

Yup - they're chalk and cheese.

A Boxster is probably more of a 'poor man's NSX' than it is an S2000 and there's nothing wrong with that!

My first engine expired with 237 BHP. I did reverse off a few tracks in it early on, which might not have helped the oil pressure.

No-one really knows exactly why some suddenly throw rods and most others don't.

Mine had bore score on 3 cylinders, broken pison rings, bearings in the oil filter, bend crank, and no oil. Still started and ran, just sounded a little bit deisely.

But then I'd upped the limited to 9200 and bounced off it daily from cold.

With the supercharger I made the same peak torque NA at under 4500rpm, vtec was around there too. Made it a lot more drivable.

On the handling side I had springs, front braces (top and bottom), steering rack spacers, and in the back a 4 point cage. CoG sorted the measurements, and I've not had a car that drove so well since (slightly unfair, as I had understeery MR2s before, and oversteery HSV since). The 987 is close, but stock, so unfair advantage.

[KaiserDahms]

Do s2000's still carry a stupidly high insurance premium?. 7 years ago I was in the market for a new car and the choices came down to

- S2000 - £4.5k car and £1.2k insurance
- RX7 FD - £4.5k car and £450 insurance
- Supra - £8k car and £500 insurance

Ended up getting an Rx7 FD as it was the cheapest to buy and insure. I paid around £450 to insure it but for an s2000 it was nearly £1.2k.

[Squirrelofwoe]

Lewtyper said:

I had a ‘99 import. My dad still has his ‘07 facelift.

Great cars but not a patch on my DC2 in terms or driving experience IMO. YMMV.

I was looking at one as a replacement for my DC2 about 8 years ago, I have always been a huge fan of their looks and had been out in them as a passenger several times. When the test drive finally arrived, I was actually a little disappointed- compared to my DC2 it felt cramped, yet heavier, and the steering also felt a step backwards after the Integra.

I guess I was my own worse enemy as I was expecting it to feel like a RWD, soft-top DC2, and it really isn't. Which is of course unfair on the S2000, but it ultimately led me down a different path.

I fully subscribe to Honda's ethos in this period though- I actually went and brought an Accord Type R after the DC2 (foolishly) got sold, itself a brilliant car that I also wish I still owned

I find it interesting that the Accord Type R had roughly the same (perhaps even less) weight increase over the S2000 as the S2000 had over the Integra- I have always wondered what a lightened, more hardcore version of the S2000 (a Type-R if you will) might have been like.

I've now got a TVR Chimaera for my open-top RWD car thrills and couldn't be happier, but I do miss not having a screaming Vtec engine anymore.

Oh and slightly OT but a bit of a chuckle for everyone else- I sold my DC2 (80k miles, 97 import with TE37s, Mugen exhaust manifold etc), and subsequent Accord Type R for a combined total of £5,400.

If I could time the global equities market with such (inverse) precision, I would be a rich man. And would probably then buy an S2000!

[CharlieAlphaMike]

Great cars for those who appreciate a truly great car

[Wiltshire Lad]

When Honda made fast cars that didn't look like the owner had received a Halfords voucher for Christmas...

[virtualm]

Still an amazing looking car, I nearly bought one years ago but went for a 350z instead. If only Honda did a proper coupe version instead of a hardtop option.

[RossP]

Run out in the Peak District last weekend

[havoc]

Squirrelofwoe said:

Oh and slightly OT but a bit of a chuckle for everyone else- I sold my DC2 (80k miles, 97 import with TE37s, Mugen exhaust manifold etc), and subsequent Accord Type R for a combined total of £5,400.

If I could time the global equities market with such (inverse) precision, I would be a rich man. And would probably then buy an S2000!

I sold my second DC2 - UKDM '99, black, completely standard, 96k, FHSH, new clutch, new rear wheel bearings, new back-box - for £3,600 inc. a second set of UKDM alloys. All it needed was the rear arches sorting out and it'd have been as good as almost any on the market.

I still regret that as I still want another but can't justify >£10k to get me the same sort of car again.

[Squirrelofwoe]

havoc said:

Squirrelofwoe said:

Oh and slightly OT but a bit of a chuckle for everyone else- I sold my DC2 (80k miles, 97 import with TE37s, Mugen exhaust manifold etc), and subsequent Accord Type R for a combined total of £5,400.

If I could time the global equities market with such (inverse) precision, I would be a rich man. And would probably then buy an S2000!

I sold my second DC2 - UKDM '99, black, completely standard, 96k, FHSH, new clutch, new rear wheel bearings, new back-box - for £3,600 inc. a second set of UKDM alloys. All it needed was the rear arches sorting out and it'd have been as good as almost any on the market.

I still regret that as I still want another but can't justify >£10k to get me the same sort of car again.

Mine didn't even need the arches sorting, it was as rust-free as I've seen- but then I did get £200 more for mine!

I would settle for another ATR, but a decent one of those now costs more than I sold my Integra for