[I meant to post this to the Arizona Club forum, but accidently sent it to "S2000 Talk". I guess I'm still getting the kinks out.]

Hi everyone,

I think I'm probably the newest S2K owner in the valley. I just got my beauty a couple weeks ago from Earnhardt Honda in Glendale. I just thought I'd introduce myself briefly to the group.

My name is Dave Perez. I'm a recent mover to the Phoenix area from Philadelphia. I've been an S2K fan since the first time I saw it in a magazine, in 99 sometime. I've been waiting anxiously since then for the opportunity to have one of my own.

My first choice was Silver/Black, but I'm very happy with my Silver/Red. I'll be ecstatic with the red if (as I'm hoping) the red interior stays a little cooler during the summer. I named my baby Donna Marcella--after characters from "The West Wing" and "Grosse Pointe Blank" for those who are curious.

I look forward to meeting everybody!

 

welcome to the group!!

we have yet to have someone with the all red interior...it will be interesting to see at the next event..

take a look at the club website, and if you would like to be a member let me know..

I can use your post as your bio, and if you have a cool picture you want in your bio as other people have, send it to

webmaster@s2000arizona.com

we look forward to seeing you at the next event.

JJ

 

I'd be glad to trade you my black interior for your red.

 

Thanks for the welcomes guys.

I look forward to joining the club. I definitely need to take some cool photos of Donna for my bio.

Any suggestions of a cool place to take some pics with a nice backdrop? Like I said, I'm new to the area, so I'm not too familiar with the areas around here. I'm thinking the orange and violet of a desert sunset reflecting off the sebring silver would be a sight. Any ideas?

As long as I'm asking newbie questions...is there anything in particular with regard to car care that I should worry about living in the easy-bake oven that is Phoenix? Having never cared for a car in this type of environment, I worry a lot that I'll overlook something and the car will be damaged by the heat.

Thanks!

 

Welcome to Phoenix and a great big welcome to the land of S2000 owners.

Try South Mountain for a sunset shot. Just head south on Central Avenue to get up to some turnouts on South Mountain. You need to be a little careful as it's not the best area of town to drive through.

As for car appearance, I'm using:
Meguiars Gold Class Wax, for paint, and wheels.
Meguiars Endurance, for tires.
Lexol Vinylex for all the vinyl/plastic including the convertible top, and non-tire rubber.
Lexol Leather Conditioner for the seats.
Rainx windshield polishing.
Plexus for the plastic rear window inside and out, I also use Plexus on the head and tail light housings, the windblocker, and the speedo/tachometer clear plastic.
I bought a Dashmat.

There's a lot of good info on what's good for car care in the Wash and Wax forum, a lot of owners are Zaino fanatics, I just haven't made the plunge yet.

To minimize rock chips, I'm having good luck with Colgan front-end and mirror bras, however there are a lot of mixed opinions on using bras on our cars.

Hopefully you've checked for spring spacers, checked your spark plug torque, and are keeping a close eye on your oil level for the first few thousand miles of your baby's life.

Hope to meet you at our next event.

 

Dave - welcome!
I second the Colgan bra & mirror covers as they have minimzed damage to my front end due to all the rocks on the highways. I am a convert to Zaino, as I switched to it about a month ago. You can find upteen posts on it if you wany full details.
Otherwise, just make sure that you keep your baby covered if its going to be parked in the sun for awhile. I got the Honda cover and it's a nice one.
Also did the Lexol stuff on my interior - probably should have done it 6-8 months ago...
Have fun - the great thing about living out here is that you can drive top down basically all year round (you might want to get a very good sunblock )

 

Thanks for the tips! I'll definitely be getting the cover soon...I'm already tired of burning my hand when I have to push the knob down to get into reverse after it's been sitting in the sun for a while.

 

For the shift knob hot issue, in addition to a car cover there are two other options:
Use an old sock, preferably washed, to cover your knob until the A/C cools it off. This is also known as the Tanqueray Solution.
Get a Rick's Knob Sock, this is a nice piece of leather, sized to closely fit over the shift knob. I think it costs around $20-$30 from Rick's Signature Accessories, a bit expensive, but it has a really nice feel. Also known as the leather condom. I leave mine on all the time from April to October, just because you never know when you'll need extra protection.

 

Hey, Gloffer,

I have moved up in the world...I threw out my gym socks and bought Rick's version. It is a bit tight to get over the Voodoo knob, but works great. I think I got mine for $18 while Rick was in a pricing duel with the Aussies.

Tanq

 

If you thought the '02 knob is hot, you should have had the original one...I upgraded to the '02 because mine was killing me (even w/my cover on!). So far, it has been a large improvement even with the small amount of leather on it....