Honda S2000's, what do you think of them?

[9746Cobra]

On a slow speed track, like autocrosses, or tracks where your almost always turning, like Roebling Road, a small, light car is what you want.

But when you get to the big tracks with lots of straights, a more powerfull car, even if heavier, gets an advantage. They can do so-so in the turns, "decent" in the braking, and with lots of power kick butt going into and being on straights.

So for me if I'm at Roebling I'd rather be in an S2000, but at Daytona I'd rather be in a Mustang.

Or if made enough money a C6 vette, everywhere.

9746C

 

[gcassidy]

You're right. It's easier to compare different car's performance at venues like the drag strip, but when you look at roadracing or AX, the track can make a big difference.

But unless you're racing for money, I think most of us fall into that category of having a car we like on the street, and can have fun with at the track. I think both Cobras and S2000s fit that requirement.

If only we all made enough money for a fleet of cars.

 

[racebronco2]

I think if i were to buy another track/dd car it would be a mustang gt (sn95). Parts are cheap. There is always someone selling brakes, suspension, trannys, rearend, tires, rims and interior peices. If you do have a mishap on track the cost to repair it is realitively cheap compared to s2000. A fox body would be a good choice except the cost of a 4 to 5 lug swap.

 

[Force4.6]

S2000s do just fine at the track but I wouldn't put them in the same league as the Corvettes. All the instructors I have talked to have also said that the S2000s are very capable cars but at the limit they are unforgiving. At one of my first ontrack events I did see a few S2000s spin on turn in.

 

[boostaholic]

I love the s2000 but they are a handful at the limit and will scare the hell out of you once you lose it. Most people will never drive them to the edge and have to worry but I think a properly setup suspension and a few mods on the honda makes it a great little track car that is hard to beat. My brother is looking to buy one this summer so we can track it, maybe a blower or turbo kit because n/a has such a hard time up here at altitude. Honda built one hell of a car, can't argue with 50/50 and 120hp/liter.

 

[racebronco2]

S2000s do just fine at the track but I wouldn't put them in the same league as the Corvettes. All the instructors I have talked to have also said that the S2000s are very capable cars but at the limit they are unforgiving. At one of my first ontrack events I did see a few S2000s spin on turn in.

At almost every event i do see acouple of them spin. The earlier models have more of a problem then the later models do.

 

[Silver2003Cobra]

I knew several people who OT who have traded in their 03-04 cobras and went with S2000's, for the ease of driving is better than the cobras

They are nice little cars for tracks

I went the other way.. traded in a S2000 for a 03 Cobra.. yes I lost the "toss-ability" but more than gained acceleration to compensate for it..

and I wouldn't say that the ease of driving is any better..

(I put 36K miles on the S2000 and 47K on the Cobra)

 

[CCR]

Just wanted to give my original response a bit of context and address some of the negative stuff that unfortunately is expected anytime someone asks a question involving a car that's different from the underlying theme of a forum. I stumbled across this website when doing some research on a Mustang I recently purchased and hope that even though I own a couple of (horrors) Hondas, that I'm still welcome. As mentioned above, I have a 2004 S2000. But I also have a '65 Mustang coupe (VSCDA-spec vintage racer), an ex-Bondurant '01 Mustang GT, and a couple of big American trucks to haul all that stuff around, so I hope I'm not a complete pariah when it comes to hanging out at this site.

It's interesting to read how others view cars that are designed for different purposes or for accomplishing the same thing, only in different ways. I guess it's a good thing that there's a whole group of people out there who aren't open to other types of cars, though. Otherwise those ricey, girl cars like my S2000 wouldn't be so affordable. Funny, it's the same rationale seen over on the "furrin-job" side of the fence that keeps my heavy, gas guzzling, poorly engineered and built Mustangs down in my price range, too. A round of thanks to everyone on both sides!

So, yeah, even though it's a bit ricey for some people's taste and nothing more than a girl's car to others, I really enjoy it and, if you're a true car enthusiast who looks at the facts, it's a pretty good sports car by any measure. True, it's no Cobra, but then again, the Cobra is no S2000. It's a great all-around street car, yet quite capable on the track. They're relatively inexpensive to buy (mine was 2 years old with 15k miles when I got it as a certified used car with a huge warranty and I paid about 1/3 less than the original sticker) and are inexpensive to maintain. It gets great gas mileage when you stay out of the V-TEC (thanks for the correction earlier on that spelling) and is remarkably fun when run to the redline. Oh yeah, and it's a convertible (without cowl shake).

As evidence of how much fun you can have with one, check out the "ACC Movie 2" on the gallery page of the Northwoods Shelby Club's website: http://www.nwshelbyclub.com/?page_id=65 and you'll see my S2000 at about the 25 second mark on the video.

And no, I'm not touching the "are you saying your S2000 is faster than that Shelby Cobra replica?" argument, so please don't go there.

Thanks,
Chris

 

[SPXTrader]

As Silver2003 did, so did I. From a S2000 to the Cobra. Both were/are 2001 models, and both verts. The S2000 seemed much tighter with a lot less squeeks, rattles etc. you find in a vert. Really couldn't tell you were driving a vert. A very fun car to drive, I had the 6K to 9k powerband. It really needed a shift light as the move from 6 to 9 was so fast, I found myself getting into the rev limiter quite often. As for OT, yeah, it was good, but once you pushed it just a tad over it's limits, it was gone. Very unforgining.

The main reason I sold mine was, at the time Honda was having major problems scorching the #4 cylinder. It was so bad that they recalled all euro and asian models for a fix. Honda said that since Americans didn't drive as hard, they weren't worried about the problems here. Personally that's a crock. The "fix" was a simple change of an oil sprayer that put oil up under the pistons. Old ones had 2 holes, the fix had 4. Not an expensive part, but a pain (and expensive) to replace. So since Honda decided to screw over the US owners, that was enough for me.

A really nice car and fun to drive, but being old, I'm much more into the V-8 thing. Liked the Honda, love the Cobra...

 

[gcassidy]

CCR, I went back and skimmed the replies, and I think the S2000 is getting a better shake from this crowd that you're giving credit. With the exception of a few, most replies agree that S2000 and Cobras are both fun cars, just a little different.

I understand what you mean about bringing up the qualities of a car in another marque's forum, but I hope that most of us that frequent the OpenTrack/Racing forum on SVTP look at cars without the myopia of unwarranted fanaticism. There are some forums here where a misspoken word long ago has become a mantra for many. But racers (and dedicated open trackers) I think are better at evaluating the data, and only coming to a conclusion when they have the tech to back it up. And my only experience with an S2000 was a very pleasant (exciting actually) one. Which seemed to be echoed by those others who have also had some experience with them.

I can't speak for others on here, but I agree with the essence of what you are saying.

But I must ask, is that your Silver S2000 in the video? Who lets you run a vert without a rollbar?

 

[racebronco2]

The s2000's have factory rollbars.

 

[gcassidy]

Ahhh. Hadn't remembered that. :bash:

 

[CCR]

gcassiday - I agree that overall the S2K has been given a pretty fair shake here, so my apologies to all if my rant seemed a bit over the top under the circumstances. I also agree that in general, those who frequent open track sections of forums tend to be more appreciative of cars in general, rather than strictly adhering to the virtues of a single marque. Glad to hear that you had an exciting experience with one. They, like most other fun cars, tend to offer those experiences in the right venue.

Yes, that's my S2K in the video. The S2K has what many track-day organizers consider to be a structural rollbar (Honda bills it as such). Northwoods Cobra and Midwest F Body Association both let me run with it last year, but I've heard that this year most are requiring that it be able to pass the "broomstick" test with the driver's head at least two inches below a straightedge laid from the top of the windshield to the rollbar. With my huge pumpkin up in the slipstream (I've gotta paint that helmet - it makes me look like Mr. Staypuff!), it wasn't a very safe way to enjoy a track day and was probably the last I'll do so with the S2K.

KR,
C

 

[Quicktime_GT]

I think they are sweet cars... the high rpm is amazing

 

[gcassidy]

gcassiday - I agree that overall the S2K has been given a pretty fair shake here, so my apologies to all if my rant seemed a bit over the top under the circumstances. I also agree that in general, those who frequent open track sections of forums tend to be more appreciative of cars in general, rather than strictly adhering to the virtues of a single marque. Glad to hear that you had an exciting experience with one. They, like most other fun cars, tend to offer those experiences in the right venue.

Yes, that's my S2K in the video. The S2K has what many track-day organizers consider to be a structural rollbar (Honda bills it as such). Northwoods Cobra and Midwest F Body Association both let me run with it last year, but I've heard that this year most are requiring that it be able to pass the "broomstick" test with the driver's head at least two inches below a straightedge laid from the top of the windshield to the rollbar. With my huge pumpkin up in the slipstream (I've gotta paint that helmet - it makes me look like Mr. Staypuff!), it wasn't a very safe way to enjoy a track day and was probably the last I'll do so with the S2K.

KR,
C

I gotta admit I didn't lose a moments sleep over the choice to put a rollbar in my car, because...well...it's just a Mustang. But some of my MACA friends were aghast at taking one of the 247 Atlantic Blues and hacking it up like I have (the tow hitch was the last straw for some of them). :lol1:

But I might think twice about putting in an aftermarket one on a S2000, just because they're so nice. But I wouldn't be surprised if some nice rollbars are available for them...ala Miata's Hard Dog. I'd have to look into that before I'd let that stop me. :banana: