Owning an s2k scratched off my bucket list
 

Hey guys,

I recently purchased an s2000 and would like to share my experience with all of you!

Back in September, I was in the market for a new car as I have recently returned to Canada from being in Hong Kong for over years. Unfortunately, I love so many different model cars that I had no idea which one to purchase. What i did know, is that I did not want another black car (already owned a Black MY04 Accord Coupe I4) and that it would be used. During that time, I was hanging out with one of my friends who owned a MY09 Mercedes Benz C350 fully loaded and I loved it. Off I went looking through dealers and Craigslist for a decent priced Benz with low mileage. Low and behold, I didn't have much luck but there was still a few that was just alittle over my budget.

One night, a few days before I was gonna bite the bullet and go to a dealership to purchase a Iridium Silver Metallic C350, I was having bubble tea (you know, that asian drink with the tapioca pearls in it) with my old high school friend (MaceWindu on s2ki forums)and he was talking about how he did something crazy that day. He put a deposit on a MY06 Sebring Silver AP2 with 40k miles. This was a big deal because as far as I could remember, we have both dream about owning this car from when we were still 14 years old going to band class. (Yes, we were those guys. XD) And just like that, monkey see monkey do, I was no longer in the market for a C350 and in the market for my own s2k.

At the beginning of October, I came across a stock MY00 Silverstone Metallic AP1 on Craigslist with 63k miles for a great price. The posting did list that there was some body work required and there was a tear on the soft top. Me and MaceWindu went to go look at the car and all VIN stickers was intact except for the rear bumper. Carfax did say that there was a minor rear collision that resulted in the replacement of the rear bumper. This wasn't a big issue for me as I don't really plan on selling the car in the foreseeable future anyways. The body damage was relatively minor (one dent on left rear quarter panel and some hairline scratches on the body) and the cracked in the soft top was due to opening it on a cold day (plastic rear window cracked).

I slept on the offer and finally came to the conclusion that I do not mind having a low initial cost and investing alittle more into the s2k over time to get it to mint condition. A few days later, I closed with the private buyer and became the proud owner of a MY00 Silverstone Metallic AP1.

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Parked in my driveway after first drive home.




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Parked in front of my girlfriends house waiting for her to be ready.... as always




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Met up with MaceWindu at his parking lot. (my MY00 Silverstone Metallic AP1 beside his MY06 Sebring Silver AP2)




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Went to go take some amateur photos at our local mall




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#TopDownLife




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MaceWindu's AP2 came with CR radio door and he had a spare AP2 door that he gave to me. Installed




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Bought some 3m vehicle wrap and matched the color of the housing to the door




The clutch, master and slave cylinder has since been replaced after I got the car. Also, a bluetooth Pioneer deck was installed in it as well (can't recall what model right now). Lots more planned on the car but they are mostly going to be clean mods. I am looking to drop the car on lowering springs, rpf1's and get a Q300 installed once spring rolls around.

Thanks for everyone who took the time to actually read this and I look forward to contributing lots to this forum (also milking information dry from it as well).

tl;dr: wanted benz, didn't buy benz, got s2k, less vroom, more BYAHHHHH, no ragret :thumbup:

Looks good, Brian! Make sure you get to know your car as the early AP1s can be quite tail happy.

haha yep. Driving like a granny until its not as wet and I get wider tires. All season on AP1 stock wheels have as much grip as bicycle tires :argh:

Another thing on the list that I am gonna get. Any particular one you would recommend? What's on yours?

Welcome.

Check out the link in my signature.

Hello and welcome to the Forums! :hello:

Thanks. Thats some useful information. Bookmarked it

Thanks Mugen.

:hello: and welcome....

Everyone seems to have RPF1 wheels and they really don't fit well unless you mess with your wheel wells. (The sizes that fit are narrower.) OEM 17" AP2 wheels and fit perfectly and the staggered tire widths improve cornering. Don't forget you buddy's '06 has stability assist.

If you like drone get the Q300 exhaust. It drones to the point of pain between 3000 - 4000 rpm behind a high flow cat or test pipe. Sounds wonderful outside that range... I sold mine at a significant loss after a few weeks this spring and fitted the Tanabe Medalion Touring dual system. Couldn't be happier. Nice performance and performance sound without hearing protection.

-- Chuck

:hello:

:hello:

Thanks for the info Chuck. Yea I've heard that I gotta do a little tweaking of my wheels weels in order to get the RPF1 in a wider tread. However, I've been shopping around for rims and the RPF1's are the ones that stand out for me the most (even though they come a dime a dozen on s2k's). Perhaps I'll find another one that I like before spring comes around and it'll work out better *fingers crossed*..

I can go either way with drone. I mainly do my driving throughout the city and end up cruising at around 2.5k after I get up to city limits on 5th gear so if it drones starting at the 3k range, it wouldn't bother me on a daily basis. I'm planning to keep my cat stock as well so that would probably result in less droning.

I'll look into the Tanabe exhaust though. Always open to new options. How is it in noise level compared to the Q300? (excluding the droning issue)

:hello: