Anyone have one of these? Guy was fueling his next to my car. Would have loved to have one during my teen years. Here is a link to pics:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/...2598/with/6313010537

Honda is usually a distant 3rd on my list of auto brands.

But I'm occasionally tempted to buy a small 2 seater convertible, and the S2000 is one that tops the list. Miata is also up there.

A friend had an S2000 and was a blast to ride in. Very high revving.

They were not very well known but excellent handling and general performance.
Kind of a Miata on steroids.
I had a friend that had one so I got to drive it a few times and it was a really fun car to drive.

We had a 2007 that we sold in 2019 with 25,000 miles.

I got one for my first wife when they came out. Super fun car, but I'm not a convertible car guy. It was noisy with the top up.
I almost bought one of the Mugen hard tops for it.

Ended up sending it down the road with the soon to be ex-wife

Test drove a lightly used one in 2001-2002 or so. Didn't like the plastic rear window compared to the 1999 and later 2nd gen Miatas that had already changed to glass. A 2.0L I-4 that makes 240 HP at 8800 RPM is fun if you like manuals and know how to drive them. But the 162 ft lbs of torque at 7000 RPM means you really have to rev it or it's going to be pretty lackluster, and it's NOT going to be a stoplight drag race car.

In hindsight I should have bought one and kept it. They are pretty collectible now.

SIGforum member 'Bald1' has one of those...He should be along shortly and can provide a wealth of info on the S2000.

The pics you linked are for a S2000 AP1 model, which was initially released for the 2000 Model Year. It had a 240 HP 2.0L F20C Inline-4 Engine w/ a 9000 RPM redline and made 240 HP. Honda released the AP2 S2000 in 2004, which was somewhat 'more refined', including a minor facelift, most noticeable by the changes to the front bumper. The AP2 had a 2.2-liter F22 Inline-4 which had an 8000 RPM redline. It provided increased torque and produced peak torque at a lower RPM vs the F20C in the AP1. It also some other improvements to the drivetrain, including the transmission and the rear differential, which improved both driveability and reliability.

Judging by the odometer, and the condition depicted in the pics, that car will certainly demand a premium price.

Though I can't be certain, but I'm pretty sure the Honda S2000 was not available during your teen years...Just Sayin'

I only sat in the ones on the lot while I was getting my vehicles serviced. I thought about getting one, but the leg room turned me off.

Wife’s best girlfriend had one back in early 2000’s before she had kids. Hi winding fun car. Get a manual trans if you have a choice. If I recall it was very comparable performance to the Porsche boxster. But service costs will be much less with a Honda.

Would’ve my first choice for a #1 car. Bug a 2nd or 3rd weekend car or occasionally used as daily commuter would be awesome.

I’ve owned BMW’s, Porsche’s, Miata’s, muscle cars and lots in between.

The most fun car I’ve ever owned was my AP2 S2000. Not sure what that says but it says something.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
Anyone have one of these? Guy was fueling his next to my car. Would have loved to have one during my teen years....

Back around 2015 I bought a low mileage 2007 S2000. I've always liked sports cars, in fact my first car was a 1971 Fiat 124 Spider. The S2000 was a nice car, better in most every way than a 1999 Miata I previously owned. As it should because it was a more expensive car than the Miata, but Miata's are great cars too.
While the S2000 was fun to drive (on the right roads) I ended up selling it after a couple years for a few reasons, no one in particular, that apply to me regarding any sports car.

1) The ride is pretty harsh on poor road surfaces and many of the fun, curvy, roads around here are such. I live off a 1 1/2 lane gravel road.

2) They're pretty noisy both with the top up and down, so while pretty comfortable I found the noise made it less than enjoyable for longer trips.

3) Driving a convertible car in nice weather competed with riding my motorcycles.

I recall thinking about that one time I was sitting in the garage and came to the conclusion that as fun as that little car was, no car is as fun to drive as any motorcycle is to ride (that's where my signature came from). I had dual sport motorcycles that were a hoot to ride on little twisty roads and just glided over the broken pavement and potholes. Plus you get to lean around corners. So I sold my S2000, actually for a bit more than I paid for it.

Having said all this I would recommend an S2000 to anyone who is interested in a sports car. It wouldn't be my first choice though because nice ones are bringing a lot of money now and even the last model year ones are now over 15 years old. I have been contemplating trading my Corolla HB on a Miata or Toyota GR86, either would be more fun than the Corolla but at the expense of ride quality, MPG, and noise. And then I think of my signature....

Great fun cars, but a clean one isn't cheap.
For me, I'd probably get a Miata & pocket the difference in price.

Well, bald1 isn’t here yet. He, MCrimm and I had S2000’s the last time we discussed them, I believe, but MCrimm sold his.

I drove mine up into the mountains east of San Diego (Mount Laguna) yesterday for a hike with a group of retired physicians. One was admiring my 2005 AP2, so I invited him to ride in it after the hike to where we go for “libations”. I let him drive it, and he (owner of a Porsche Cayman) wound it up properly, living in that sweet spot between 6000 and the 8000 redline.

I must take a little exception to ridewv’s comment. On the way to the hike, driving on the freeway with the top up, it was noisy, bumpy, and annoying and I was ready to sell it. Then I turned off the freeway onto the Sunrise Highway; stopped, lowered the roof, and got going again. The difference is night and day. I have to keep it until I can’t get in it anymore..

I leased a 2001 AP1 and returned it at the end of lease (wife was pushing that). Comparing the two, I do miss the screaming 9000 RPM redline; but the ride is much more comfortable, and I’ve never had the feeling with the AP2 that I might end up assbackward in a ditch, as I sometimes did in the AP1. They really tamed that tail-happy tendency.

As a Honda, upkeep is pretty cheap, and it will probably outlive me as it has only 47,000 miles on it in its 20 years of life. Potential buyers should look for one like mine: driven only by adults, not raced, and strictly stock.

quote:

Originally posted by sjtill:

...I must take a little exception to ridewv’s comment. On the way to the hike, driving on the freeway with the top up, it was noisy, bumpy, and annoying and I was ready to sell it. Then I turned off the freeway onto the Sunrise Highway; stopped, lowered the roof, and got going again. The difference is night and day. I have to keep it until I can’t get in it anymore..

I concur, they're in their element on pretty smooth roads where they ride well, and IIRC it was a little noisier with top up than when down. I really wasn't knocking S2000's per se, rather most sports cars in general, that's just the way they're made. What makes them so fun is they're built low to the ground, light, with close ratio gears, and corner w/o leaning. The flip side is the taunt, relatively limited suspension travel on rougher road surfaces, little to no noise insulation, and a little higher revs at highway speed.

I had an AP2, bought new in January 2005, 2005 model.

I ran it a few years. Was enjoyable in the beginning but honestly as a motorcyclist, the motor was never that big of a deal to me at all. I’m not fond of inline 4’s (unless it’s a crossplane crankshaft) and the power was limited to 2k RPM’s on mine, between 6 and 8k on the tach. You had to keep it on boil and no matter what you did, there just isn’t enough torque. That makes driving through mountains, with elevation changes, a bit cumbersome.

I also had the snap oversteer bite me twice on track. The S2000 is known for this. One time, it was just a trip in the kitty litter. The other time it snap oversteered, I did a 180, and tapped the front bumper against a concrete barrier requiring just paint work. But I was pissed. I didn’t make a mistake in the apex, it’s just a design flaw IMO. I prefer to have some give at the limit in a corner.

It was also extremely noisy, NVH was high. The cockpit is extremely tight. So much so at my height I couldn’t even fit in the AP1. The AP2 cockpit had some changes to accommodate but it was still tight. I don’t really miss much about that car. My favorite thing in it was the ability to brake really late and deep, and I could flick it at the last moment into the apex.

Today there is a better option to get the same driving experience, the Twins. GR86 and BRZ. If you opt for the performance pack on either you get Brembo full brake setup (calipers, rotors, pads) and semi-aftermarket suspension. For $1500 for the package it’s a steal. The Twins have a lot more torque so the powerband down low is actually usable. The cockpit is a dream too. Short to tall, it has you covered. At 6’2”, the cockpit feels like a glove without making you feeling cramped. The chassis is amazing and I much prefer the 2.4L boxer to the inline 4 in the AP1/AP2. Some UEL headers and an exhaust and it sounds glorious. I prefer AWD with diffs and 6MT for year round corner carving (I own a GRC Circuit Edition) but I’m planning on picking up a GR86 with the PP within 12-18 months. It’ll work better as a daily once I move to my land in the mountains. Picking up groceries, or running errands, it will be a dream to drive and if you aren’t constantly spinning it to redline, it actually returns some decent fuel economy. The Twins (newer gen with the 2.4L) address all the issues I had with the S2000, in spades. The vert aspect is nothing I miss living in TX as you only get weeks, not months, per year where you could actually use the vert. And as a motorcyclist, top down is nothing to me compared to putting on the suit and helmet.

Good car though. Just way overhyped IMO. I preferred the NSX much more. I had an opportunity to buy one that was in the snap ring failure recall, but Acura had done the recall. I could have bought it for $30k. But it was the first gen with the 5spd and folding headlights vs. the later gen with the 6spd and fixed headlights (HID’s) which is what I wanted. I waited and waited for used values to fall some and they never did and then it went drastically up in price, even to this day, so it wasn’t meant to be. I could buy a brand new Supra 6MT for 1/2 of what a used NSX would cost and it’s way more performance.

I feel the same way about the first-gen NSX. A friend of mine let me drive his, and the sound of that V-6 winding up just behind your ears is heaven.
The advantage of the S2000 is that it’s a hoot to drive on the twisties, and you can have great fun without (too greatly) exceeding the speed limit.
I was stopped once by the sheriff on the road between Petaluma and Sea Ranch. I had been passing cars, probably going about 100. For some reason the fact I was going to Sea Ranch seemed to grant some benevolence, I ended up not getting a ticket. Never did in an S2000.

I'm posting from my phone which is a PITA.

I have a 2003 AP1 I bought new. Has around 38k on the clock. Installed a 50% beefier front sway bar and went with the Uber aggressive "UK" 4 wheel alignment which tames the snap oversteer a great deal.

The car is an enthusiasts machine so creature comforts are not the focus. That said I've taken it cross country and through the southwest and never felt uncomfortable.

Mine sports a full throated racing exhaust which is louder than stock. It is rare that the top is ever up.

My sports car history goes back to a 1953 TR3a. I've had others since including a 1999 Miata. But the S2000 is a pure rush. It's meant for twisty roads with that 9k rpm engine screaming away. Folks who like quarter miles and brutal acceleration need not apply.

So for those whose tastes run to open cockpit curve trashing roadsters. The S2K is an icon.

I'll take the S2000 or the MR2 over the Miata, just based on look alone.

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:
I'll take the S2000 or the MR2 over the Miata, just based on look alone.

Ummm maybe. The newer Miata's are pretty nice looking IMO though.

Price equal, I'd have an S2k, a Suzuka blue AP2 with the 2-tone black/blue interior.

Given what a clean S2k goes for today, I'd take a ND Miata Club.