Glad to be here!!! I couldn't believe it when my wife talked about selling our Grand Marquis and getting a new Thunderbird. It's time to get another "fun" car, like we had a few (LOL) years ago, she said, and I like that new Thunderbird. Well, I jumped on the Internet, and soon found out that there wouldn't be any more T-birds until 2003. Oh, well, we'll just wait a few months and look into it.
Then came the recall on our new ('01) Caravan, and while I was at the dealer (Chrysler, Dodge, HONDA), there was a little white roadster in the showroom that caught my eye. And what is that name? S 2000? Never heard of it. Hey, that was the model name of our little Datsun (the "fun" car) that we had when I was a 2nd LT in pilot training! 30 years ago, we cruised the Superstition Mountain roads (Phoenix, AZ), top down, and going rather fast. A wonderfully fun, and very fast (I thought then) little roadster. Maybe it was fate that brought me there to rekindle our affair with the 2000. For those of you a bit young to remember the Datsun 2000 (and 1600) series, read about it and the start of Japanese sports car racing at http://www.gordon-glasgow.org/ClassicRoadster.asp .
I read the S2000 brochure while my van was being reprogrammed. 240 HP? Get a grip! My little Datsun had 130 HP if I remembered correctly, and it was FAST. This Honda must be nearly SUPERSONIC! I took the wife back to the dealer the next day, and she felt that same mystic feeling, "another 2000!" This must be the car for us.
We weren't too thrilled with white, and my wife definitely didn't want red interior, so we asked about another color. The dealer made some excuses about availability & demand, etc. I hadn't done any research other than read the Honda brochure. We asked for a blue one, and the dealer said for an extra sum of money, they MIGHT be able to locate one--but the other dealer had to agree to trade his blue one for their white S2k. Oh, well, give it a chance. Find us a blue one, and we'll take a test drive, and probably buy it.
Back to the Internet. Fill out several forms for "price quotes" and a dealer will contact you within a couple days? Sure, why not? And while I was at it I found out how rare (5,000 per year) the S2K was. And the performance! The handling! I had to have this car. I was planning to test drive a BMW Z3, but the nearest dealer was 100 miles away. And now, a local Honda dealer, and the S2K seemed a much better performer--and I hadn't even seen one on the street (I live in a rather rural NM town), while the BMWs were starting to multiply significantly. Well ...
I should take delivery of my Suzuka Blue S2k within a couple weeks. I got to test drive a 2001 model at the dealership that contacted me (not my local Honda dealer). Would it be "orgasm" that equates to the feeling you get the first (and every) time the tach goes past 6,000 rpm? I'm really looking forward to my new S2K, but it's brought back many fond memories of that little green Datsun 2000 a couple technology generations ago. Any one else out there ever own or drive one?

 

Glad to have you here!! I just hope you don't end up paying over sticker.

 

Buzz -

Welcome to the board. Glad to have you here.

I strongly encourage you to spend a bit of time scanning the Forum FAQ section of the board. It's got a lot of great advice/insight for newbies and old timers alike.

Words of wisdom. 1) Don't pay over MSRP for your car. If need be, get back on the internet and start looking for dealers outside your area. Shipping the car is often time much cheaper than padding the dealers wallet with their BS "market adjustments". 2) Don't test drive the car you buy or allow anyone esle to do so. The cars typically come from Tochigi with 8-10 miles on them. These little guys are pretty sensitive to proper break in and one of the ways to screw that up is to jump right in and start redlining the motor.

Again, welcome and good luck.

 

Nope. MSRP, $32.400 + $440 delivery. The folks in Roswell wanted a couple grand more, and my salesman (El Paso) said they "usually" mark them up $2K, but "that can be waived." It was. Locally (Alamo) they just have the MSRP sticker on the beast, but there are too many white cars around here--and we wanted a blue one!
Don't test drive my own car? How about driving it home? Keep her under 5500 rpm until 650. Don't change the oil until due. Only petroleum 10w-30 until 7500. But what was that letter to the dealer asking not to wash it or put the roof down?

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by QPhox4
[B]Nope.

 

If I post again, will God kill a kitten?
Any comments on the Datsun?

 

I can belive anyone would live in Alamo .
Really my wife is from there, and we hope to retire to Cloudcroft.

Yes I remember the Datsun 2000, but now about the Honda 600.
Both where very nice sports car for there time, and I wouldn't mine
having one of them right now.

I am going up to Chicago Saturday to pick up my Suzuka Blue S2000.

 

The Honda S 500/ 600 looks amazingly like the Datsun Fairlady. I'd never heard about the Honda S 500 until I started looking at the S2K, since it wasn't imported to the States. If I had only known that there would be so few Fairlady's made/imported...I wonder what happened to mine.
Got stuck here in Alamo due to the job...had been in Florida for 11 out of 22 years, and had to get away from that humidity and back to the southwest. Panama City, or Alamogordo...what a choice. I prefer Alamo! If only there were some decent stores...at least I'll be able to get to 'Cruces or El Paso faster in my "S"...soon.
Now, to find another kitten...