Honda S2000 What do You Think?
 

Ok.
I'm sitting here and it's 5 a.m. in the morning and I can't take my mind off of this S2000 I saw at a used car dealership last week. It's a 2000 for $14,500, the only catch is that the car has 75,000 miles on it. I test drived it and everything seems pretty new. The title comes up clean on the carfax, and I like how the car drives alot. I have about 7K in my savings right now and was thinking about getting a bike but this seems to be the car I should get. The salesmen said that if I really want it, he could work with me and take off another grand or so. Even though the manager said the price was firm upon entering the dealership. So I think I can get the price down to 13,250 or something alone those lines. You guys always talk highly about S2000, I want detailed info on what you think about it. I don't want to rush it but I missed out on a Z for 15,995 last year and I still kinda regret it. TIA

So you are gonna trade your 8 in--or a 2nd car? Me personally--I like S2000s, their styling is a little derivative and the interior is a little plain--but they are still nice cars. If trading in the 8 I say no (unless you are doing so to save money)--the S2000 is reliable. If getting into one as another vehicle then go for it--if you really like those. If I got a 2nd play car it would be another FD.

when i was thinking of trading the 8 in because of all the problems, this was the car i wanted to get. i wouldnt worry too much about the miles since its a honda and they run forever. a lot of dealerships i was talking to said for about 1000 i could get a bumper to bumper warantee for like 50k miles. try that, it will give you piece of mind. its a nice car

I WOULDN'T trade in the 8 for THIS!! I already traded the 8 in a couple of weeks ago though lol. I traded in for my girl's car, an FX35. I just need a car to call my owe since she is basically moving all her stuff in the FX35 now.

that car will kick your ass.. it's uncomfortable, it's loud and your back will hurt.. But it's fast, probaly a convertable, and the handling is just like the 8.. i don't think the s2000 is a daily driver car, while the 8 is (i drive it everyday to work, while my friend, drives his S once a week)


MrJynx

The S2000 is a great car, but make sure you fit in one and can give up a lot of space. Its basically got about the same storage area as a Miata. The chassis is great. The damping is a pretty good compromise, but the handling on the pre-04's is somewhat twitchy at the limit: snap oversteer.

Honda's in general are very reliable, however the F20C is a pretty high-strung motor. I have heard rumors of them blowing up around 100k, although I suppose it really depends on how the motor was maintained and used.

In any case, its a quick, beautiful car. You won't win many stop-light battles, but it will out-handle most things.

id offer them 12,500.

Why would you trade in your car to get your 'girl' a car, is this your wife or girlfirned? Is the FX in her name, did you just trade in yours, did you own the rx8? if not, how much was left as a balance and how much was rolled into the fx.

I see a lot of people that trade in cars all the time, cars they down own, and you can get in trouble pretty fast.75k miles isnt too bad on that car, in stock from the drivetrain is pretty strong and as long as it drives well and checks out ok with a a mechanic, should be good.

If I bought it I would change the air filter, brake fluid, brake pads, spark plugs, plug wires, engine oil/filter, trany fluid, diff fluid, flush and fill the coolant, lube all the locks and hinges, check the condition of all the suspension bushing, change fuel filter and get a tune-up/fuel system cleaning (throtle bodie, head, valves, ect) and check/replace acc belts.........anything the above the dealer hasnt done I would do personaly. That way you can be sure that everything is in tip top and the car drives the best it can for its age.

So plan to spend about another 1k right there, also check the condition of the tires, a lot of times when people trade in sports cars theres not much tread left, that could be another 800 bucks to get a new set of 4 good tires.

Also look in to owners manual about the recomended service, see if all the service up till present has been done, at least according to what honda calls for. See what service is coming up after 75k miles. Things like timing belt can get expensive, and if it needs it at 80K miles then your gonna have to get that done as well.

S2000's are nice, but it does have a fair amount of miles on it. Which most Honda's cars dont care about. :-)

just go here: http://forums.s2ki.com/forums/index.php and either search or ask some questions. You will get anwers, most will be biased towards the S2000, but no more than questions asked of the RX-8 would get here.

If I was going to get a 2 seater convertable, the S2000 would be first choice.

S2000's are nice cars, I would have one as a daily driver. As for a 2000 what I dont like is they changed a few things that are better in a 2002.

The one you are looking at has a plastic rear window, and they changed the suspension a bit in the 2002's and also offer a little different stereo set up in the later models. They put a tweeter in the door.

If I was looking to get one I would look for a 2002. The newer ones (in the US) have larger heavier rims, lower redline, and a little softer ride better for a daily driver but not as much fun.

She's my girlfriend, we've been Happily together for 8 years now. I did own an 8, I owed 19,700 when I traded it in and they gave me 20,700. Everything worked out pretty well since the taxes and excise tax rolled over from the 8, so we got a pretty good amount of money back. Also, we actually qualify for 2.9% apr. And the short version of the story why I traded in the 8 was because she needed to drive to work and I didn't. We use to only use public tranportation because where there was no parking, actually I still do. Oh, and the FX is in both our names, just like the 8.

As for the S2000, according to what you're saying. If the dealer wouldn't take 12,500 and took 13,250. I would have to maybe put an extra 1,800, that'll cost up to 15,200. That kinda of changes everything I guess. I think I can find a S2000 with 40K miles and get it for like 16,750 or something.

I concur.

wasnt too much a fan of the MY00.... its still good but little things here and there turned me off somewhat

The lowered engine redline is due to an 8% increase in engine displacement which also gave the benefit of increased engine torque throughout the rev range.

What was the little things? Was it the stereo? Or was it the seating position? Those were probaly the only two things I really didn't like in the car so far. I thought I could've just put in an aftermarket stereo and the seating I could get use to.

you'd have to change your forum name :P i'd love to have a s2k in addition to the 8. it would be nice to cruise wtih the top down on a warm, sunny day, although those days are coming to an end here in the NW and probably soon where you're at. not sure how it would hold up in those NE winters....

yeah.. those things as well as...

wel lthis may sound a little trivial but.... I really didnt like that carpet running along the centre consol where the stick was... I hated it....I beleive in 2002 they changed that to leather which changes the cocpit bigtime

My brother just got a good deal on a 2005 S2k. You could probably get a good lease deal and try it out for a few years and from what I heard vastly improved from the first S2ks.

The S2k is a better performer (and truer sports car) than the 8 but the practicality, the styling, and the rotary far outweigh the performance issue for me. Then again, I'm not much of a convertible guy and some people need to have their roadsters.

Also something to consider, insurance, a 250hp RWD 2 seater with no traction control or stability control. I heard insurance can rape on it if your younger, or dont have a perfect record

See I thought the same thing and I guess its true for the most part.

But I did an insurance comparison on myself between the S2000 and the RX8.. turns out the S was a buck cheaper a month. :D

I like the S2000 but I like the RX-8 better. Most of the clubs I track with want rollbars and hardtops for verts so that ruled out the S2000 for me. My RX-8 was also about 10K cheaper when new than an S2000 so that buys a lot of track time.

that is EXACTLY what my friend says.. He's got a 2000 and it's got red carpet on the centre console which looks kinda tacky (grey exterior, red interior which took awhile to get used to, heh)

Personally I'd like the s2000 if I were a millionaire, but there was way to many unpractical things.. I've spent quite a bit of time in my friends car so here are my pros/cons

Pros
Great performance
Convertible (I never been in one till this car and it's really cool)
Digital speedometer (i'm so used to it now)
REALLY short shifter (even shorter then the 8)
barely any wheel hop

Cons
- the stereo was a big turn off for me.. that stupid cover always interfers with the shifter.
-THERE IS NO GLOVE BOX.. that's annoying, can't put anything anywhere.. there is a compartment in the middle, but it's awkward and very very small
-No traction control (been in a few scary situations :)
-Feels like a space capsule(if your bigger then 6ft, don't even bother)
-Seats are uncomfortable, i'm fairly young and my back hurts like hell after a 1hr drive
-can't be driven in the snow at all, and it's really shaky in the rain
-carpet on the centre column
-everything is digital for the dashboard (i like digital speed, but not tach or fuel)

So if you have a bunch of disposable income, and don't plan on using as a daily driver it's a great car!! trust me, lots of fun, chics love it.. but for me.. the 8 was a perfect fit for me.



MrJynx

This is seriously something to think about if you tend to drive cars hard. I know most of us tend to rip on DSC/TCS, but it is a wonderful system then things go wrong. Most of us are not as good of drivers as we think we are, especially once the car is already out of shape.

A buddy of mine tore up his s2000 pretty bad when it lost traction in cold weather. If the car had traction or stability control, it would have been a non-issue.

Love the S2000. It really is a pure sports car with little to no frills. It's beast on the AutoX.

If you're looking for an AP1 (MY '00-03) definitely get '02 or '03 with the glass window. I heard the plastic windows are horrid. For a daily driver (which many people do use them for) I'd get the AP2 (MY04+), a more livable suspension and gearing. I heard MY 06 has even more options like stability/traction control, and variable speed sensitive steering. For a daily driver, get MY06 and post pics! :)

Yes, the 06 has stability/traction control standard (not an option), although it can be disabled like in the 8.

The s2000 has 2 storage compartments, 1 in the center between the seats and another "hidden" compartment just above the visible one. I have driven a nicely modified one that puts down over 300 hp to the wheels and with the SO'2 they come with you down need traction control. Plus there is a huge aftermarket support for them.