S2000 - killer car?
Discussion
I've been casting my beady little over S2000s recently and there is always mention of 'how bad they are in the wet'.
Really?
Is this at normal driving or at a bazillion RPM?
Is it the same as how a 205 GTi will have you in the nearest hedge at the slightest hint of lift off whereas the reality is you realy have to drive like a bit of a tit?
In fact, this question could really be posed of any car with a 'reputation'.
Really?
Is this at normal driving or at a bazillion RPM?
Is it the same as how a 205 GTi will have you in the nearest hedge at the slightest hint of lift off whereas the reality is you realy have to drive like a bit of a tit?
In fact, this question could really be posed of any car with a 'reputation'.
It's perfectly feasible to drive one of those at pace on soaking wet roads.
I had a loan of a friends S2000 for a week or so a few years back and certainly found it more confidence inspiring in the wet than the VX220t I owned at the time.
It's a (reasonably) powerful rwd car, it's always going to handle differently in the wet than the dry but if you're not driving like a tit you'll be just fine.
I had a loan of a friends S2000 for a week or so a few years back and certainly found it more confidence inspiring in the wet than the VX220t I owned at the time.
It's a (reasonably) powerful rwd car, it's always going to handle differently in the wet than the dry but if you're not driving like a tit you'll be just fine.
There's is a bit of an issue with them, I know not 1, but 3 people who have written them off (one of them worked at a Honda franchise and was in his last week!)
I'm pretty sure ESP was an option so just get one which has it.
IMO though they are trully one of the best car, if not the best drivers car for the the money.
I'm pretty sure ESP was an option so just get one which has it.
IMO though they are trully one of the best car, if not the best drivers car for the the money.
kambites said:
Nothing wrong with them at all, except for because of the fact that they're a relatively cheap RWD car with no traction control. As long as the suspension geometry is set up right, they're fine on the limit.
Fixed it. No need to thank.The world needs more cars that bite if you drive with your brain in neutral.
Where's the fun in a car that has electronic nannies lurking in the background to keep you out of trouble/hedges/ditches if you don't pay attention? The gizmos may have their place in snooze-mobiles, but a car with sporting aspirations should have as little as possible to dull the interface between the car and the driver.
Oh FFS!
Had one for 9 years, never came close to spinning it / crashing in the wet (or dry).
Just learn to drive at an appropriate speed for the conditions - its wet try slowing down for a corner / put the power on half a second later. Its not difficult.
Ensure the tyres have lots of tread - they are not good when down close to the legal minimum.
The OH drove it lots, she never crashed / spun it etc and she is a bloody hairdresser. So if you get one and spin it you have less driving skills than female hairdressers
S2000 lovely car - nowhere near as evil as the RX7I had prior to that.
Had one for 9 years, never came close to spinning it / crashing in the wet (or dry).
Just learn to drive at an appropriate speed for the conditions - its wet try slowing down for a corner / put the power on half a second later. Its not difficult.
Ensure the tyres have lots of tread - they are not good when down close to the legal minimum.
The OH drove it lots, she never crashed / spun it etc and she is a bloody hairdresser. So if you get one and spin it you have less driving skills than female hairdressers
S2000 lovely car - nowhere near as evil as the RX7I had prior to that.
What's all this traction control nonsence.....?
Just fit one of these and have more fun with your S2000
http://www.quaife.co.uk/catalogue/products/qdf14u
Just fit one of these and have more fun with your S2000
http://www.quaife.co.uk/catalogue/products/qdf14u
Neil1300R said:
Oh FFS!
Had one for 9 years, never came close to spinning it / crashing in the wet (or dry).
Just learn to drive at an appropriate speed for the conditions - its wet try slowing down for a corner / put the power on half a second later. Its not difficult.
Ensure the tyres have lots of tread - they are not good when down close to the legal minimum.
The OH drove it lots, she never crashed / spun it etc and she is a bloody hairdresser. So if you get one and spin it you have less driving skills than female hairdressers
S2000 lovely car - nowhere near as evil as the RX7I had prior to that.
Had one for 9 years, never came close to spinning it / crashing in the wet (or dry).
Just learn to drive at an appropriate speed for the conditions - its wet try slowing down for a corner / put the power on half a second later. Its not difficult.
Ensure the tyres have lots of tread - they are not good when down close to the legal minimum.
The OH drove it lots, she never crashed / spun it etc and she is a bloody hairdresser. So if you get one and spin it you have less driving skills than female hairdressers
S2000 lovely car - nowhere near as evil as the RX7I had prior to that.
I've only driven one in the dry, but just an observation after lurking on this thread with interest: if there is a proper engineering issue with the car, then TC won't help it. All TC does is mimic a skilled driver's throttle control, and if the car's "problem" is too much throttle on a greasy bend, then that's clearly not a design fault with the car, moreso the driver 
have a search for one of the numerous posts which both Havoc and myself have written
they are NOT a killer car if driven correctly and within the limits of your capability
they ARE rear wheel drive
they ARE front-mid engined
they DO have a slippy diff
the early ones DONT have traction control
they WILL oversteer. should you provoke them
seriously though. they are no different to any other powerful rear wheel drive car. They can be dtriven in the wet, but they do benefit massively from a good geo setup and a sensible approach to wet roads. The newer ones (post '07 i think) had the option of a stability/traction system but the earlier models did not. Subtle tweaks over the years to the handling etc made the car more rounded, however i can speak only from experience of owning an MY00 one. I onl;y ever had two "momements" - one was provoked and of my own making, the second was in a torrential downpour and involved standing water. Both situations could have been avoided and easily replicated in any other powerful rear driver
Get it on a skid pan or drift day at oulton and learn where the limit of grip lies if you are worried
Havoc ..... where are you??!
they are NOT a killer car if driven correctly and within the limits of your capability
they ARE rear wheel drive
they ARE front-mid engined
they DO have a slippy diff
the early ones DONT have traction control
they WILL oversteer. should you provoke them
seriously though. they are no different to any other powerful rear wheel drive car. They can be dtriven in the wet, but they do benefit massively from a good geo setup and a sensible approach to wet roads. The newer ones (post '07 i think) had the option of a stability/traction system but the earlier models did not. Subtle tweaks over the years to the handling etc made the car more rounded, however i can speak only from experience of owning an MY00 one. I onl;y ever had two "momements" - one was provoked and of my own making, the second was in a torrential downpour and involved standing water. Both situations could have been avoided and easily replicated in any other powerful rear driver
Get it on a skid pan or drift day at oulton and learn where the limit of grip lies if you are worried
Havoc ..... where are you??!
I know somebody who destroyed an S2000 approximately a mile from the Honda dealer, about 2 minutes into ownership. Pulling away from the lights in the wet, fish-tailed and slammed into the central reservation.
To be fair, her husband had chosen the car and she hadn't driven it before -She'd jumped into the S2000 and drove it in the same way as she did her previous car, a 1.1 206.
If the driver is aware of what they are driving then there shouldn't be an issue. Expecting it to drive like a shopping car is not ideal.
To be fair, her husband had chosen the car and she hadn't driven it before -She'd jumped into the S2000 and drove it in the same way as she did her previous car, a 1.1 206.
If the driver is aware of what they are driving then there shouldn't be an issue. Expecting it to drive like a shopping car is not ideal.
Edited by MC Bodge on Monday 5th July 12:30
rehab71 said:
There's is a bit of an issue with them, I know not 1, but 3 people who have written them off (one of them worked at a Honda franchise and was in his last week!)
I'm pretty sure ESP was an option so just get one which has it.
IMO though they are trully one of the best car, if not the best drivers car for the the money.
Not being funny but cars don’t crash them self only the input from the person driving it will make it crash or become unstable, drive accordingly to the road conditions and all is fine I have owned a few RWD cars now and allot more skittish in the wet than a s2k never had a issue yet but I don’t drive like a tit .I'm pretty sure ESP was an option so just get one which has it.
IMO though they are trully one of the best car, if not the best drivers car for the the money.
I have had a few of oversteery moments. Most were when I had just bought it, and the idiot dealer had painted/blackened the sidewalls, and got it on the tread - meaning zero grip anywhere near the limit for the first couple of weeks.
The only subsequent one was in the wet, when I was showing off a bit. Nothing serious, just a kick from the rear end.
A little bit of "action" in the snow is expected in any car. The S2k actually handled the snow amazingly well.
If you take account of the conditions, and the amount of power going through the rear wheels, it's no harder to drive than any other RWD car.
Yes, an inexperienced driver can get badly caught out. But the trick is to drive within the limits of your abilities. Having seen S2000s driven very quickly in various conditions, I can assure you that accidents are the fault of the driver, not the car.
The only subsequent one was in the wet, when I was showing off a bit. Nothing serious, just a kick from the rear end.
A little bit of "action" in the snow is expected in any car. The S2k actually handled the snow amazingly well.
If you take account of the conditions, and the amount of power going through the rear wheels, it's no harder to drive than any other RWD car.
Yes, an inexperienced driver can get badly caught out. But the trick is to drive within the limits of your abilities. Having seen S2000s driven very quickly in various conditions, I can assure you that accidents are the fault of the driver, not the car.
Edited by Dominicc01 on Monday 5th July 12:42
Find somewhere with nothing in the way when its wet and provoke it, reapeat many times until you have the measure of it, a track day is probably the best place.
My dad had me booting his old Mk1 Capri round a car park to get me used to the fact it would bite, 17 years old, no talent and a heady 100 bhp through 165 remounds, made me realise that you didnt have to do much to end up in a situation where you are just along for a ride.
Remember, before about 1990, no cars had the electronics, people either backed off, got experience or crashed.
I do however think that the electronics are a positive development, would you want a Cheshire School run mum in a Cayeene Turbo, in a hurry to be coming the other way without anything to control 500 bhp and 2.5 tonnes of clueless ?
My dad had me booting his old Mk1 Capri round a car park to get me used to the fact it would bite, 17 years old, no talent and a heady 100 bhp through 165 remounds, made me realise that you didnt have to do much to end up in a situation where you are just along for a ride.
Remember, before about 1990, no cars had the electronics, people either backed off, got experience or crashed.
I do however think that the electronics are a positive development, would you want a Cheshire School run mum in a Cayeene Turbo, in a hurry to be coming the other way without anything to control 500 bhp and 2.5 tonnes of clueless ?
Edited by J4CKO on Monday 5th July 12:37
MC Bodge said:
I know somebody who destroyed an S2000 approximately a mile from the Honda dealer, about 2 minutes into ownership. Pulling away from the lights in the wet, fish-tailed and slammed into the central reservation.
To be fair, her husband had chosen the car and she hadn't driven it before -She'd jumped into the S2000 and drove it in the same way as she did her previous car, a 1.1 206.
If the driver is aware of what they are driving then there shouldn't be an issue. Expecting it to drive like a shopping car is not ideal.
well then no wonder it was destroyed!To be fair, her husband had chosen the car and she hadn't driven it before -She'd jumped into the S2000 and drove it in the same way as she did her previous car, a 1.1 206.
If the driver is aware of what they are driving then there shouldn't be an issue. Expecting it to drive like a shopping car is not ideal.
Edited by MC Bodge on Monday 5th July 12:30
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