Honda S2000 test drive

A

Adamski

Lifer
 Edinburgh
Ok - so I've finally contacted a dealership to arrange an S2000 test drive.

When I bought my zed, the car shortlist was: S2000, Z4, M3. I test drove the Z4 and bought it right away, but that has left me wondering...

Dont think I'll be tempted to buy the S2000, but just have to test drive one to know what it's like.

I'm glad I bought the Z4, and think that overall it's the right car for me - I'm a big fan of torque 8)

I've read many reviews for the S2000 and think that the low torque, demanding nature of the car, and need to rev the nuts off it would deter me from owning one. But all reviews mention how awesome the VTEC is once you're in the power band.

Any former/current owners on here? What's your view on the car? Is VTEC really that good?

I'm looking forward to the test drive :thumbsup:
 
I had an S2000 for 2 years

Few of the technology issues that the Z4 has

But very tricky in the wet

Great fun to take passengers on a spin to 5k revs

Oooh thats fast..

Come back at 8k revs and they sh*t themselves :D

On balance Z4 is a more sensible car
 
My last car was an S2K.... was a great fun, imo more enjoyable to drive then my Z.. but also much harder.. to get any performance you have to be within the 6-9k rpm... screaming off the light and down the high street is not cool :oops:

But aside from the low torque, bad interior and noisy drive.... its biggest weakness is also its biggest strength.... the lack of any traction control.. in the wet its scary... but its also pretty exciting as long as you dont die!

Its a good way to learn how to drive a RWD car!
 
The VTEC engine is spectacular when the valves finally start lifting....at 4500rpm! I looked when I bought my Zed but apart from not being keen on that wedgie look, I just found the whole thing too frantic when you wanted to do anything rapid.

Oh and did I mention its one of Vicki B-Hs fave cars? :cry:
 
It was also my previous car before my Z4. It was a great car in some respects but not in most. Basically, Its not an all rounder.

The drive is great fun - WHEN the conditions are right.
On a track the gearbox is awesome and the wide powerband means that your only really in 2nd or 3rd gear and thats it, so its almost like driving a playstation game (especially with the digital dash :D ).

On the road/in reality its not as great. The cockpit is very cramped and the interior does not look good over time at all. the controls are naff and everything will look well worn unless its a 2007+ pampered car.

IMO Its shape has aged remarkably well due to its quite classic wedge shape which you can easily argue is pretty dull. I think the early Z4's are looking dated now especially with the amber indicators but at least its got some very strong design in there. Like all cars i guess, you spend a long time looking at them and dont notice until they are plonked next to a 2010+ model how old they look.

The low torque isnt as noticeable as everyone says i dont think, its still quick enough for most situations but occasionally your wishing you had full beans at 3k like most cars.

I do have a big soft spot for them though and a supercharged slightly track biased S2000 would be EXCELLENT fun.

Everyday though.....A Z4.
 
Ok so I've been for the drive. It was a GT version with the hardtop fitted. Low mileage, couple of years old.

Like the interior, shame about lack of adjustment on the steering, or seat height.

The drive - when driving at sedate speeds, very good. More torque than I thought it would have, and bearable for low speed/high gear driving. Brakes were very powerful, and the steering was very direct.

On the open road.... There's a lot of talk about how great VTEC is. I must admit, I was a little disappointed. You can only enjoy the power of the car on full throttle above 6,000rpm. This really restricts you to 2nd and 3rd gear unless you're not bothered about keeping your driving licence. VTEC kicked in at 43mph in 2nd gear, and 63mph in third. I really didnt feel anything special when the VTEC cam took over, but must say that the noise was impressive (particularly given that there was no induction kit). Getting power from the engine meant constantly changing gear to keep in the power band. Plus, once you get in the power band you want to keep going.... which would inevitably mean speeding tickets, loss of licence, and selling the car.

A fantastic car when driven like a hooligan, and would make a perfect track car, but just not enough mid range grunt to enjoy when not thrashing it.
 
Interesting to re visit the old question again (Z4, S2000 or Boxster) I'm with the flow of opinion on the Honda. I loved the engine once it was spun up, the steering, box and brakes were gems, but it's very tight inside for me, It also looks too much like an MX5 and the lack of in gear pull was tiresome.

At any particular price point I still think the Zed wins :driving: Mind you I bet Hondas don't break springs, roof motors or window lifters!
 
inkey$ said:
Mmm..digital dash :)
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The digital dash is fun, but the real buzz of the S2000 is the motor between 6000 and 8000 rpm, its like a turbo kicking in.

DSC03975.jpg
 
bluestreak56 said:
inkey$ said:
Mmm..digital dash :)
Click to expand...

yea baby!
Click to expand...

Am so on the same wave length!!! :lol:

Just my 2 pence... I owned a Honda Accord Type R ... after a few months the vtec became annoying it felt like all or nothing. So my theory was that all "vtecs" would act in the same way so not bothered with them since, although a face lift s2k has had me tempted a few times. If you want a real buzz go forced induction nothing quite like it when you starting hitting big bhp

I had a 330 fq and a friend of mine went a bit nuts with his Evo was in the 400 club+ ATW and the thing was bonkers for speed! not been in anything quite like it since.
 
rhodesey35iM said:
........ but the real buzz of the S2000 is the motor between 6000 and 8000 rpm, its like a turbo kicking in.
Click to expand...

That's what the guy in the showroom said - and what I was hoping for. But compared with, say, a Subaru Impreza - in the Impreza you really feel the turbo kick in. In the Honda it didnt feel the same :(

I really wanted to like the S2000, but it left me disappointed

Totally agree on the digi dash. Cool :thumbsup: If it turned orange to red in the VTEC zone it could have been soooo much cooler :driving:
 
I spent nearly £500 buying bits and pieces for a digital dash in my scirocco known as a Digifiz - looks awesome but never got around to fitting it :(
 
Interesting thread I have owned an s2000 just sold a TVR chimaera and will be collecting my 3.0l 2004 z4 tomorrow do will be interesting to compare!
I agree with what the majority of others have added about the s2000 it is an all or nothing car which can be tiering! The gear box is sublime really Is great and once in the vtec the car is amazing! With regards to the handling they can be a handful, a lot of this comes down to the geometry being out, these cars are very geo sensitive, I had the geo sorted out on mine and it transformed the handling, but it still could be a handful! Doing the geo is not always a cheap job as the adjusting bolts seize as Honda never greased them on production! Great cars tho!


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I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?pl30jx
 
A mate has a 2009 one. Very quick cars in the right hands. Here he's taking me for a quick spin

[youtube]QBJSCbQEbV4[/youtube]
 
I agree that getting performance out of the Honda is a bit too much work. The seats were not that comfortable, especially the passenger side. The interior seemed quite ordinary, even a bit cheap. One thing that clinched the cheap feeling:

On a test drive, I made a wrong turn and ended up on an Interstate where the next exit was 18 miles away, and the tank was already on fumes. 24 miles later, we found a petrol station, but couldn't find the fuel door release, not for trying hard either. We had to call the dealer to explain why we were so tardy, so they filled us in. The release turns out to be a little tiny plastic stud you pull on that is located in the door jamb. It was black plastic on a black car, I would never have found it without a hint! Talk about cheap!
 
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