Back in 2011, I made the one of the best buying decision I've ever made, followed shortly by the worst selling decision. I bought a 2006, 35k mile, in Berlina Black. Unfortunately the child in me (I was 22), sold that car 8 months later for.... $15,500!

Of the unnecessarily long list of cars I've owned in my relatively short driving career, this is the one I've missed the most. Maybe the E46 M3 (which I also have owned, briefly) was the ultimate expression of what an affordable road car can do, the S2000 is the essence. No frills, and by extension, no nonsense. As a wise man once (paraphrasing) said, "Engine at the front, drive to back, a million miles a headroom, and a happy lump of meat in the middle!"

So, nearly a decade later, and with some disposable income (and a wife who's not EXACTLY on board), I'm going for round 2. I haven't bought any thing just yet, but have an appointment to see a 02 with..... 179k miles on it! Yikes! Clean Autocheck, and has been kept in what appears to be excellent condition. I found it on FB Marketplace, which is always a gamble. So, after snooping on the owners page, I've found pictures of his MKIV Supra, GT-R, E92 M3, and some other stuff that at least lets me know he cares enough about cars not to ruin one on purpose.

I have NO idea where this car is going to take me. Track weapon, perfectly stock run around, or somewhere in between. I thought about the investment side of the S2000, but I want to DRIVE it, and starting with one clocking over 100k miles isn't going to yield as many dollars as it could smiles. So away we go! I love the S2KI community, I've learned more about a car I used to own over the last 3 months of research than I did back when I owned one! Excited to get back in the game.

Very Respectfully,


Steven



The one that got away

With her 2-wheeled sister

 

I started my journey with 213k miles..for ~6k. now at 231k miles. it's more fun to drive then collect dust.



Good luck in your search.

 

Well, I did it. Found one not too far away that I could drive to and purchase privately while maintaining social distancing!

2000 Berlina Black, mostly stock, with the exception of a K&N intake and Koni Yellows with Eibach springs. Sitting just below 110,000 miles, all sounds great so far; until I got to the phrase of the Facebook Marketplace ad that said "It has led a hard life."

Boy was that the case! Blown CV joints, means it clicks and vibrates at the common 40MPH mark, top is completely ruined (multiple 6" gashes in it), Every single body panel has either a dent, major scratch, or peeling paint on it, wheels are curb rashed, and there is an intermittent idle chug that I'm hoping is just an O2 sensor issue. Oh, and some really interesting wiring exists for an aftermarket alarm system, which included a LAWN MOWER BATTERY, instead of any sort of automotive one.... GOOD NEWS! The top end was professionally rebuilt by the most recent owner, with SoS sourced parts, which included OEM AP2 Keepers and retainers! There is also no VISIBLE rust, as it was kept in a garage and hardly run. The VINs are all in tact as well, so I even though the outside is rough, it appears that the underpinnings are ok.

I picked her up on Saturday morning, drove around the area, making sure to hit VTEC and all 6 gears, as well as some hard breaking and spirited cornering, before deciding that I was willing to take on all the heartache (costs?) that could be involved in adopting the equivalent of a 19 year old blind dog.



Back at my Father-In-Law's shop


I towed her back to my Father-in-law's house, where he had room for her in his garage, along with his 13 other cars (not the little one, the one on the right side that you can just see that side of). She'll stay there until after the 4th of July, when I can source some new axles and drive her back to Norfolk to undergo the first stage of her reconstructive surgery! My plan is to grab some $99 Autozone OE replacements and send the originals off to Gator's in FL for an uprated rebuild (Does anybody have an idea what that might cost?). Of course, thanks to the wisdom of this fantastic site (Which I will most certainly be contributing to!), I know OEM is the only way to go, but it seems like the Gator uprated rebuild is the hollow tubed, best of both worlds...

I'll most likely be turning this into a complete rebuild thread, as I've got a ton of extra time on my hands (like many of us, for better or worse). Thanks, already, to this fantastic community for helping me figure out how deep into I can go before I even started! It's going to be a ride!


Steven

 

Nice tow vehicle!

Do you mind revealing how much you have in the car? That helps others who are also looking.

 

No Problem. Asking price was $8,000. Paid $5,800. Thrown in free was a spare AP1 transmission and almost complete rear end (subframe, control arms, (all 4) coilovers, sway bar, knuckle/bearings, rotors, calipers/lines).

 

Not bad. Sounds like a lot of work but it also sounds like you are up to the task.

 

Nice to see that Raptor being put to good use! Thanks for picking up that S2K with intent to restore it, glad to see more people doing that these days. It definitely looks like it's had a hard life, but from what you've posted, I think it's in good hands.

Also, the lawnmower battery is likely from an old GPS tracker that was installed. LoJack installations of that era used what looks like an RC car battery as the backup power source. Sounds like the one installed in your car may be a bit more obtrusive.

 

Good luck on your project!

 

Thanks for all the support! Great information on the LoJack battery system. That should help me isolate and remove the system. Can’t wait to see what’s behind the radio lol

 

You are my hero. <3

Sounds like you know exactly what you got, and are going to have a beauty on your hands for a great dollar.

I am 100% excited for you, and am gonna be watching your thread. I've been waiting for someone to come on here and do a restoration. I wanna see what you do!

And you got my price beat by $200! This is gonna be good.