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.

I didn't have traction control in the 8 and it worked out fine. Although I know that S2000 is a different car. I don't think the insurance is going to be as bad because I have a pretty good track record, I paid 2500 for the RX-8 and paid 3500 for the FX35 (not bad for the metro boston area), I don't think it'll surpass 2000 dollars because it's a used car.
Everybody keeps talking about the rear window though and that kind of concerns me. Like the 8, I'm not going to be driving the S2000 daily. But why does a glass rear serve better then a plastic rear? Is it because it's less blurry for a glass rear or is it because the glass produces less noise when the roof is up? I'm probaly going to look for another S2000 with less miles and not a '00 this weekend and see if it's really a better car. If not then I'll just stick with the plan I had when I traded in the 8 and buy a bike.

As has been pointed out, the S2000 has two glove boxes.

I fully agree that the stock stereo is not adequate to the task of being heard on the highway with the top down, the radio cover is a great thing. I only open it when changing CDs; the dash controls are entirely adequate for controlling everything, so the radio cover does not get in the way when driving, if you know how to work the dash controls.

If you drive like a human being on the public streets, and/or are a good driver, you don't need traction control. Save it for the track.

I'm 6'2", and I'm very pleased that I did "bother." :rolleyes: As a matter of fact, I fit far better in our S2000 than in our RX-8. I can't fit in the RX-8 with a helmet, and I can fit in the S2000 with a helmet, even with the top up. And it's fine daily driver for my 25 mile trip to work each morning.

Yeah, it's a small compartment. Duh! It's a roadster. Try putting the top down in the RX-8.

I've never heard such nonsense as "it can't be driven in the snow at all." Put good snow tires on it, and it's fine. Same as the RX-8. I own both, and only a moron would take either out in snow on summer tires. Or any car. Both cars are very competent in lots of snow if properly shod.

Likewise about rain. It actually rains once in a while in Seattle, and that's never been an issue for me. Perhaps that's because I drive like a responsible human being in the rain, but that's not a bad thing, now, is it?

Just wanted to set the record straight. Whether one prefers the S2000 or the RX-8 (or any other car) is a matter of preference, but let's stick to facts, please.

I wrote that based on MY experiences with the S and what my friend has told me .. You may think my comments are nonsense but I'm only tell you what I have seen/happend to me personally.

i'm 5'8" and I have difficulty getting comfortable in that car.. I don't normally wear helmets when I drive (no track time personally) so I can't comment on that aspect of the car.. The person who owns the car is just shy of 6' and has a tough time getting in and out of the car.. Headroom isn't the issue, it's legroom.

I said you can't drive it in the snow because I've been in one with snows on and it wasn't very fun and was almost scary.. I'm not a tire specialist so I can't comment on why it didn't feel right.. But during the winter months we get quite a bit at times(remember, we get more snow in one month than seattle gets all winter!), further north of toronto there's a massive snowbelt which I"ve been caught in and it gets really really bad. And it's not even when it snows a lot, it's when it lightly snows and screws up the roads which affected this car.. with lots of snow the tires can grip, that lightly packed shitty wet snow is what made the car freak out..

and I was incorrect about the glovebox, sorry about that one! totally forgot about the one at the top of the middle console.

And for the rain, I was driving in a straight line and the bloody thing started to hydroplane when it was raining (it wasn't even raining that hard either).. Had to slow down below 100km/h (which is under our posted speedlimit), i suspect it could have been the tires, but they were brand new potenzas.. besides that it was fine (which is why i said shaky)

To me, the cons outweighed the pros which is why I bought the 8 as my primary car.. My friend has another car and a bike so for him, he didn't care about anything else but the looks, convertible, and performance.

And I've spoken to many S2000 drivers and since the inception of this car I have never heard of ANY S2000 drivers or seen any on the road during the winter, cept my friend.. they actually thought he was an idiot for driving the S in the winter even with snows on(went to a meet).. which he doesn't do anymore :)

yea, the snow comment kinda bothered me.. hehe, i guess it's because when it comes to snow, we know snow best! :)

I'm tall, with disproportionately long legs. It takes figuring it out, but once you've done it a few times, it's not at all hard. And certainly worth the sublime pleasure of driving the S2000. ;)

Well, I've driven it a little snow, and in lots of snow. It's fine. I have Blizzak LM-22 tires on the car in the winter, and they go through anything. There are lots of S2000 drivers in Canada, all of whom say it's just fine in the snow. Put proper tires on the car, drive for the conditions, and it's fine.

The stock Potenzas are not particularly good in the rain. But that's not the car's fault, or any reflection on the car's ability in the rain. SO-3s, or any of a number of other tires, are fine in the rain. Just get proper tires, and drive to the conditions (if you were hydroplaning, there was standing water, so driving should be more cautious), and you're fine. Just like the snow tires. Heck, even the stock Potenzas are fine in the rain if you're driving carefully. See, you can talk about snow, but nobody can talk about rain like us Seattleites. :p

I have no problem with people deciding that the S2000 is not a very good "only" car. It isn't for a lot of people. Too little utility and too little comfort for most people. But that's different from saying that it can't be driven in the snow or rain, which simply isn't at all accurate. But for those whose lifestyle fits having a small car, there's nothing like it for less than $15,000 more.

Just as many RX-8 drivers put their car away in the winter, preferring to expose a beater to the elements and other drivers, many S2000 drivers do the same. Heck, I spent over $1000 on the wheels and tires for winter driving, and you can buy a decent winter beater for not much more than that. But that's not to say that the S2000, properly shod, isn't perfectly good in the snow. I'd rather drive a Jeep, or even an STi, in the snow, but the S2000, with proper tires, will do just fine.

I would personally just go for the bike. My cousin had an s2k and loved it (so did i). But for 7k you can get a nice 600cc. Then you have paid cash, owe nothing, and have something much faster. May I recommend the 05 Kawasaki zx-6r.

I'm one of those that sold his RX8, and bought an S2000. Do I think the S2000 is a better overall car? No. Do I think it's a better fun summer/weekend car? Absolutely. This is why I made the change. I realized the RX8 could not fit my needs as a year round car, or a pure fun summer car. This car has grown on me much like the RX8. As a daily driver, I could never deal with it. It's loud, and there is serious lack of room and comfort. The RX8 was hard to live with too, but for completely different reasons. Gas mileage and depreciation were two of those reasons. I get 30mpg highway with this S2K, The S2000 really holds its value. This car, much like the RX8, is not for everyone. It's open to criticism just as with any car. I do love the performance though. Car is noticably faster, but I admit I miss the smoothness of the rotary. It downright sounds like abuse when I rev this sucker high as well. BTW, someone mentioned the S2000 has two gloveboxes. I believe that is for the 02 and higher model. My 01 has only one, and I also have a plastic rear window, not glass like the 02+ ones do.That meant nothing to me, as I drive this car 90% of time with top down, and only when weather is nice. :) Starting in 04, the S2000 used a 2.2 liter vtec, with more torque, and lower redline. It's much more daily friendly, and you get more daily driver power. I can say this. This car is buying me time, because if they make a convertible RX8, I am so so there to buy one. After all I wrote, only one thing made me choose this as a fun summer car. THE CONVERTIBLE FACTOR. ;)

Insurance
 

Be sure to check insurance rates. I'm surprised that for someone here the S2000 is cheaper. When I checked rates, it was nearly $400 more a year for me. Everything else I checked rates on, even a BMW M Roadster, was much less expensive to insure than the S2000.

I drove a 2002 and a 2004 the same day a few months back. The differences are not night and day. I personally like the wider V-TEC band and quicker steering of the older cars. The newer one will still snap oversteer, just not as easily or to as large an extent.

A shame stability control wasn't included all along. This might have affected accident rates, and thus insurance rates. No doubt less-than-expert drivers have snap oversteered a number of S2000s into immovable objects.

I just recently bought a MY00 S2000 with 32000 miles. i love the performance. its a little more raw than the Rx8. I bought2005 white 6spd RX8 gt last year in 04 september...which i sold about 8 months ago. i definitely miss the Rx8......

btw i do have two glove boxes in the s2000 , u just have look hard enough.

How's that do in snow? :D

Sure have. There are posts regularly on the S2ki board about nasty stop signs, dumpsters, onramps and guardrails which jump out at the S2000 being driven by some idiot who doesn't know what he's doing, and chooses a public road to prove that point. :rolleyes:

My favorite was the guy who posted pictures of his car wrapped around a tree (literally, a 90 degree bend in the middle of the car; no passenger, fortunately, as there was no passenger compartment after impact); it seems he was going something over 100mph, at night, in the rain, on a twisty road. His reason for posting? He wanted to warn everyone to make sure your tires were good when driving in the rain (the irony is that the pictures showed his tires were fine, unlike his intelligence).

We pay much more to insure our S2000 than our RX-8.

124Spider, well, you've convinced me the S can be driven in the snow with a good setup :) but that one day in the snow really scared the shit out of me :)

If i didn't have to deal with snow I would have looked at the S much more seriously though.. Maybe I should move to California :) I hear it's nice all year round

We're just starting our monsoon season, where it will rain far more days than it won't, between now and next June. I do lots of California dreamin' during this dreary stretch. :)

I ran into this problem and learned that the insurance companies each have different rules regarding convertibles. When I got my S2K, I had State Farm. My premium went up about $250 per year by switching RX8 to the S2000. I was not happy. I then went online to Geico. My rate was $50 less per year, totalling a $300 swing aroundin yearly savings. I asked the lady why they are so different then State Farm, and she told me that car insurance companies simply view certain cars differently. In their system, the S2000 and RX8 were pretty much identical insurance risks. She acknowledged that they may be in the minority, but I don't care. I suppose more times then not the S2000 will be more because it's classified as a pure sports car, and the RX8 is not. Even so, I was going to raise the deductible on the S2000 to make up for this price increase, since this is a pure weekend summer car, but I am glad I got to keep same identical coverage by switching insurance companies, and actually pay a bit less to boot. With that said, had I purchased a brand new 05 S2000, I do not believe this would have happened. This may have been a different result had I bought an 05 model, but the real raping I am taking is on the STI. I cannot wait to pay it off so I can drop collision, which is why it is so expensive. :)

o h

Did you check how much State Farm would have charged for the RX-8?

No doubt different insurance companies charge different amounts. Rates tend to be based on their claim experience with a car. My company, USAA, must have awful experience with the S2000.

On the other hand, I priced both a regular Z3 and an M Roadster, and the difference was about $50 a year. Shocking.

Equally shocking: an RX-8 as my only car would cost less than $100 more than the 130-horsepower Protege5 I currently drive. This is what happens when you drive a car favored by young drivers...

I never priced an STI, but based on the claims experience stats I saw once it should be about the worst thing going.

I think its a great car , my cousin has one. brand new 05 AWESOME MACHINE!... really fun to drive!


but i would not spend 20k on one with 75 k miles my friends brother got an 03 with 14kmiles for 21k, So shop around

I had State Farm the entire time I owned the RX8, so I knew exactly what they were charging, as I was paying for it. State Farm told me the S2000 is in a higher insurance class, and Geico told me the S2000 is only listed to them as a standard 2 door coupe. I faxed them the Geico quote to try and get them to match the premium, and they told me that cannot do that. They let me walk, because their computer says the S2000 is more expensive. So I had the choice of switching to Geico, or pay $250 more per year more for the S2000 by staying with State Farm. All I know is that I saved a bunch of money on my car insurance by switching to Geico. YEAH BABY. YOU CAN DO ITTT. ;)

im paying about 1100 a year for my S2000. 500 deductible.

$650 a year for my S2000. 100 Comp deductable 500 collision. My STi is $1150, and it's listed as fun car, and S2000 Daily driver. I am taking in the behind with that car. Might unload it next year and go with a economical daily. ;)

But then you wouldn't have a fun car for the winter! The S2000 surely is not a viable option as a winter car. If you are able to support the STi, I recommend keeping it :p That's what I'd do anyway. Good luck with whatever you end up doing, but make sure you've always got at least one sports car, alright? :D

I have had both the RX-8 and the S2000, I loved both but....
The RX-8 had more room even though the back seat was never used.
The S2000 is faster and has better build quality.
The RX-8 sounds better.
The S2000 HID headlights are much better and has a true blue color.
The RX-8 got 12 MPG when I drove it hard, the S2000 gets 20 MPG even when I run the shit out of it. 25 MPG on the road.
Both of sound systems suck
Both shift great.
The S2000 handles more like a go-cart.
Both have great brakes.
No traction control or stability control on the S2000 (mine is a 2005) the 2006's have both now.
It is a very close call but when you put the top down on the S2000 you remember what a sports car is all about.
The S2000 wins. It also has had a much better track record, less recalls not as fragile and better gas mileage.

man, that is a great rate for the S2k. How old are you? im 24.

I'm 33. I think due to the fact that the S2000 is much like the RX* in that a wider age of older folks own one, makes it an affordable car car to insure, like the RX8. No matter my age or clean driving record, even I cannot escape the wrath of the STI. Too many parents are buying their kids the STI, so the risk factor jumps. As soon as STI is paid off, I'm removing collision, and it will drop significantly. :)

there are sweet cars i would get one but i don't hondas like me anymore after i broke 2 of them