2001 Refresh
 

I bought this 2001 Honda S2000 in the fall as a project.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...a33c932a3d.jpg


I haven't done much work on cars in decades. Career, kids, life did not leave much time for that. But now I have more time. With COIVD I have a lot more time. In the fall I got a little impatient waiting for my Mustang Mach 1 order to come and I needed something to do. I live in the Toronto Canada area where there is 3 months of winter when I don't drive fun cars. With everything else closed I thought this was a great time to start a car project that I have been eager to do for years. There isn't really much to change on the Mustang. So I thought this S2000 project would be fun for my son and I to do together.

20 Years ago I almost bought a 2001 Honda S2000 new from the local dealer. In fact I still have the brochure from that day.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...2c6327308e.jpg

When I went to the dealer they were "pricks" for lack of a better term and although I was/am a Honda guy. It really rubbed me the wrong way. I was also looking at the Porsche Boxster at the time. The nudge from the Honda dealer and the flawed thinking at the time that the Porsche would hold its value better led me down the path of buying the Boxster. Although I have plenty of fond memories of the Boxster. 20 years later buying the S2000 and driving it tells me I should have ignored those pricks swallowed my pride went to another dealer and bought the car I really wanted.

I have owned several Hondas and Acuras over the years and they have been great cars that seldom let us down. I have not bought Hondas/Acura exclusively but for whatever reason I just feel good about the ones I have owned more so than the other brands I have had over the years.

So I started this thread about my 2001 Honda S2000 project. I am starting with a car which - I think isn't that bad. It needs some love. As I mentioned earlier I haven't done a lot of wrenching lately so didn't want to start with a total basket case.

The goal is to bring this car back to its former glory. I will try to keep it as close to stock as possible with some reasonable modernizations/upgrades here and there. It will never be a concours car or show queen. But it will be well maintained and enjoyed as a driver.

Looking forward contributing to this community and learning as well.

So far I have done the following service:

- Oil change
- Serpentine belt
- Transmission Oil. Changed to Royal Purple
- Diff Oil
- Flushed Coolant. New drain plugs, hoses, thermostat
- Flushed brake fluid
- Flushed clutch fluid
- New air filter
- New cabin filter
- New spark plugs
- Some OCD stuff. Replaced the battery strap because it was rusty.
- Washed out the engine bay etc

Starting now on post-driving season winter projects. Restoring the center console. The gear changer surround was chipped and OCD can't look at that.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...84df758ebd.jpg
Sanded that all down to make a nice smooth surface and cleaned it up. Covered it with 3M dark grey metallic wrap. I suck at painting. Plus was finding it hard to find a close match to the paint. I think this turned out nice.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...c206a7f494.jpg
Natural I screwed up the shifter boot while struggling to get the surround out. It put up a good fight. I nicked the shifter book slightly with my screw driver. So I order a new genuine leather boot that looks like OEM but is leather. Still waiting for it to arrive to reinstall the center console.

While I had the console off I did the shifter rebuild. Love those guys at LHT Performance on Youtube. They have some great videos on this.


This is done. Was easy to do and it did make a real difference!

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...335b4d4d1c.jpg

While I was in messing around with the shifter noticed some rust on the base of the parking brake frame. So couldn't stop myself from taking that out. Removing the rust and putting protectant on it.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...31e136b61d.jpg

The clutch master cylinder is leaking. After the flush it is leaking worse probably because the clean fluid will pass more easily through the blown seal. I have ordered a new master cylinder, slave, boot and the bushings for the clutch pedal. Still waiting for the parts but looking forward to doing that soon.

I am a total sucker for the 20th Anniversary stuff. Honda if you are listening. Make more of that stuff! Totally cosmetic and stupid but I find it jarring to get into the S2000 at night. I am so used to all lights that modern cars have. The halogen dome lights in the cabin were not cutting it.

I bought the 20th Anniversary footlight kit from ICBM motor sports. The lights are a little weaker than I thought they would be. But a nice edition. Plus I am a sucker for the Honda OEM stuff. The little certificate that comes with the 20th Anniversary parts. Somebody stop me.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...165b6fec06.jpg

The foot light kit is primarily designed for a right hand drive car there are a few mods that need to be made on the install. If you want the lights to be on when driving the car the kit supplies a wire tap for this. Not the most elegant. But getting to the wire to put that tap on is almost impossible. Some great instructions here from the community about an alternate method.

20th Anniversary Footwell LEDs - Everything you need to know / DIY - S2KI Honda S2000 Forums

Got my connectors today. I will make that final connection on the weekend!
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...77edcffb58.jpg
Had to buy a couple as understandably they wouldn't ship one $2 part. Good to have a backup if I screw one up.

Another totally buying into the marketing upgrade. But I really liked the 20th Anniversary radio door. Got it today and installed it right away.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...af968ce985.jpg
Could not stop myself.

The new seat covers arrived last week. The seats in the S2000 are well used and beyond saving. I got these from:

Custom Leather Upholstery (canadaseatskins.ca)

I am in Toronto it was nice to find something semi-local for a change.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...b2626d271a.jpg
I have never recovered a seat before so I am not going to attempt this. Going to drop off the covers and seats at a local shop this week. They will fix the seat cushions too.

When I first got the car the headlights were a little yellow but not bad. Restored them with this:


I think this worked well.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...83ba1ef380.jpg