YEAR 10: S2000 facts per Energetic and Luder94
Ten years of the S2000 production have yielded countless S2000 facts presented time and again on the forum. We thought it would be a great idea to have 10 facts about the car, but then Luder94 chipped in with a few other gems, that we could not keep from sharing with you. So without further ado, scroll through and let us know what you think.
The S2000 is the only car you will buy again and again and again: It is not coincidence or sheer idiocy that we’ve used the word ‘again’ repeatedly. The S2000 has been a car that many owners have sold only to buy another one. In several cases, some have bought a second S2000. While others have tried to follow a different path, after months or years of owning a different car, they ended up going back to the S2000. How many of you are out there? Show of hands, please 😀
You won’t get wet driving top down in the rain: You have to try this if you haven’t already. Pick some of your favorite roads with light traffic on a nice rainy day and be Senna-smooth as you drive your race-car derived roasdter. Keep a good pace and you will arrive at your destination dry and looking spiffy to pick up your date. Then to impress her/him you will proceed to drive on some rain-infested roads and watch the rubberneckers go wide-eyed in astonishment.
Check your oil regularly: Just as oxygen is essential for our survival, engine oil is the life blood for the engine. You’ve got to understand that the S2000 is not an ordinary car. Honda equipped the S2000 with a high reving engine and a 9000 rpm redline and oil consumption is a by-product of the engine design. Even the AP2’s are not free of oil consumption (albeit better than the AP1’s) and must be checked regularly. We don’t want you to end up with a seized engine so please be diligent.
The Secret Compartment is not a myth: This has to be one of the most amusing facts about the S2000 or a descriptor of how well most of us read manuals. The S2000 has a secret compartment that many owners are not aware of until well into their ownership of the car. Owners are pleasantly surprised as they discover this little storage compartment and then marvel at its ingenuity. Surely this was Uehara-san’s clever joke on all of the unassuming owners or a test to see how many owners actually read the manual before they started having fun with the car. Several Honda dealer representatives are also unaware of this little secret. By the way, word has it that there is another secret compartment. We can’t tell you about it yet. Dan Brown is writing a book about it and Tom Hanks will be acting in the movie version of said book 😉
VSA is a nice addition: Definitely a controversial feature with owners for and against. Just know that no matter how experienced of a driver you may be, the VSA will be there for you for that one ocassion when it means saving you and your car. VSA exists to forgive your mis-judgement when cornering, or even when just driving on a rainy day. Owners with no VSA, believe that there was no point of adding this upgrade in the S2000, however I feel that if they drive an S2000 with VSA, they will think otherwise. As long as you learn from the mistake that initiated VSA correction, and proceed to never repeat the mistake, the VSA will have served its purpose in keeping you safe and alive. But if you are determined to win the Darwin Award, then I hope you succeed, while also hoping that your car is safe.
It is really hard to keep the S2000 in stock condition: Tell me about it! Just trust me on this one. No matter what, you’ll break that promise you made to keep your car stock. Your ride just screams to personalize it and add those special touches that you like. Even if you are not going to race on the circuit or burn rubber on the drag strip, you want to add more goodies to your ride. Your descent into modding madness is all the more steep if you count yourself as one among the many pillars of our community thanks to the constant deals from our fine sponsors and egging from fellow members.
Your passenger window is NOT broken: Check and ensure that the window lockout switch isn’t toggled off. This is the answer you will get on the forum if your passenger window doesn’t work. It is a very common problem – as in a problem between the seat and the steering wheel. Owners post almost every month and are then owned once they discover what is (not) wrong. S2Ki would like to take this opportunity to remind our readers to please RTFM 😉
The S2000 is no slouch on track: This is not a myth, it is a proven fact based on data compiled from several track events. You will find videos on the web with S2000’s hounding Ferraris, Porsches and many more, on track trying to find that opportunity to pass. The S2000 comes alive on circuits with tight corners. The rigidity of the X-bone frame is a milestone in chassis development and is an advantage for the S2000 when combined with its perfect weight balance.
Best roadster that money can buy, and yet the last pure sports driving machine: Big statement some might say. But yes, the S2000 has been voted as one of the cars from the beginning of the automotive history, that you must drive before you die. We would like to share with you what Car & Driver magazine said about the car – “How can you not fall for a car with 120 naturally aspirated hp per liter? How can you not fall for a car with a 9000-rpm redline or the world’s most perfect short-throw six-speed shifter? Most important, how can you not love a car that pairs that drivetrain with a chassis so beautifully balanced—yet not so tame as to allow the driver to relax—and offers the whole package for just over $30,000?”. Not just a quote but indeed a fact, wouldn’t you agree?
The S2000 is not a Miata: Also it is not manufactured by Hyundai and does not have VTECH. While some of the “is it a Miata?” querying is understandable due to common roadster shape, we certainly can’t figure out why the Honda emblem looks like Hyundai to people. What really tops that, is the infamous VTECH. It is not VTECH, it is spelled VTEC and stands for Variable Valve Timing and lift Electronic Control. Now say that fast about 20 times. Kidding aside, please understand that VTEC will get you in trouble and may cause your significant other to shun you for your speed demon antics. At this point you would use VTECH (the phone) to call and mumble your feeble apologies.
How the hell do you fill this thing: Imagine this,You’re driving pedal to the metal, staying in the VTEC zone through corners, getting on the brakes late in the apex, when you see your gas gauge go from half to two bars left in a matter of 15 miles of Dragon-balling. You now decide to jaunt over to the Deal’s Gap gas station. You pull up to the pump, get out, instinctively look for the gas door release on the floor of the carpet. No deal. Then you open the glove box to look for a release button. You hit the big one and the trunk opens; still no luck on the gas door. Then you try to push and pull the gas flap open and yet nothing happens and you are wary of scratching the paint on the gas flap. What do you do?
Panic sets in. You turn to the 20 other S2K owners at the station. Rather than helping, they proceed to:
A) haze you
B) laugh until their bellies ache
C) point at you like you are some freak of nature
D) enquire whether you’ve heard about the secret compartment
E) suggest you get on S2Ki — which doesn’t help with no cell reception or access to any wifi
F)and then finally tell you to look in your owner’s manual.
Not much after pulling out the manual that took you another 10 minutes to find because you were trying to figure out how to open the secret compartment cover, someone comes over and points out the little inconspicuous black pull tab that’s hidden right in front of you near the door jamb. REALLY? Who puts a gas door release there? Yet another mind-game that Uehara-san has played with us.
NOTE: S2KI welcomes the opinions of its members on the S2000 and on all topics related to the S. Should you feel the creative urge to pen a few words then by all means do so and PM Energetic, Aashish2 or Onehots2k OR send us links to what you would like us to write about and we will feature you (or your community) on the S2KI Home Page.