The Silver Lining
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The Silver Lining
My love of cars started with Gran Turismo. Before long, I had been seduced by high turbo AWD cars... Skyline R32, 3000GT, Evo IX, Subaru WRX/Sti, etc. In college I set a realistic goal of owning a WRX someday as what I believed to be the ultimate balance between performance and utility on a budget. Shortly after joining the military, I traveled home to the Carolinas to buy TOOTHLSS...
A year later, I deployed to one of the nicer bases in the desert...
While playing in the giant sandbox, I kept thinking about going to auto-crosses with a co-worker, how insanely quick the Miatas were, and instantly falling in love with soft-tops after my first ride. I realized auto sports could be within my budget if I bought a Miata, but my projected mod list began to add up: forged internals, stroker, steel sleeves, HIDs, stiffer suspension, LCD display, roll bar, bigger radiator, etc.
The more I read about Honda's engineering of the S, the more it grew on me. I had "the itch".
After *7 months* of searching and 20 CarFaxes, I finally came across a 2004 Silverstone S2000 with 2 owners, 74,688 miles, and no *recorded* accidents. On 2 May, we met in Roanoke, VA and agreed that I would just pay off the lien at $12.1K. On Wednesday, I began the 1K mile journey back to bayou country.
On a rural highway in Alabama, Fido and Butch decided they wanted a piece of my S as I stopped for a break.
Overall, the trip went well. 24-25 MPG and a mild sunburn. I did some maintenance before and after the trip and have more planned in the next few weeks while waiting on tags.
COMPLETED/IN-PROGRESS:
Cleaned the IACV and MAP sensor channel and reset the ECU which remedied an intermittent idle issue. {source: negcamber and NVMY4N at https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/492738-how-to-clean-iac-valve/}
Pulled the seats and started detailing the interior. The previous owner was kind enough to give me 2 gallons of gas in spare change under the seat! And while I am sure he didn't smoke in the car, I had a feeling he smoked Marboro based on the steering wheel and armrest smell... sure enough.
TO-DO:
New tires (edit: going with the Michelin PSS)
Change fluids (previous owner believes the dealer did all fluids 15K miles ago when he bought the car, but I would rather be sure)
Plugs and filters
Get stock airbox lid... secondary air pump is annoying, but I am avoiding deleting it. {source: https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/266787-humming-noise-from-intake/}
Clean master cylinder and attempt to resolve minor leak {source: https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/916842-tiny-leak-from-above-clutch/}
Repair 3" tear in soft top
Valve adjustment {source: Rob Robinette at https://robrobinette.com/S2000ValveAdjust.htm}
Obtain quotes on repairing very light hail damage to trunk... and the dog bite.
I thought I had a name picked out for the S, but it's a male name and I am convinced the car is female. I determined this after running out of gas while working the idle issue... unlike the WRX, when my S says she's hungry... she was starving an hour ago.
While it has been covered here before, please feel free to PM me for comparisons between my WRX and S2000. Keep in mind I plan on getting a small truck with money from the WRX since the S2000 has its limitations. Nonetheless, I am slowly falling in love with the S and have already enjoyed lurking on the these forums. I am looking forward to Tail of the Dragon this fall if everything works out!
-- Jonathan
A year later, I deployed to one of the nicer bases in the desert...
While playing in the giant sandbox, I kept thinking about going to auto-crosses with a co-worker, how insanely quick the Miatas were, and instantly falling in love with soft-tops after my first ride. I realized auto sports could be within my budget if I bought a Miata, but my projected mod list began to add up: forged internals, stroker, steel sleeves, HIDs, stiffer suspension, LCD display, roll bar, bigger radiator, etc.
The more I read about Honda's engineering of the S, the more it grew on me. I had "the itch".
After *7 months* of searching and 20 CarFaxes, I finally came across a 2004 Silverstone S2000 with 2 owners, 74,688 miles, and no *recorded* accidents. On 2 May, we met in Roanoke, VA and agreed that I would just pay off the lien at $12.1K. On Wednesday, I began the 1K mile journey back to bayou country.
On a rural highway in Alabama, Fido and Butch decided they wanted a piece of my S as I stopped for a break.
Overall, the trip went well. 24-25 MPG and a mild sunburn. I did some maintenance before and after the trip and have more planned in the next few weeks while waiting on tags.
COMPLETED/IN-PROGRESS:
Cleaned the IACV and MAP sensor channel and reset the ECU which remedied an intermittent idle issue. {source: negcamber and NVMY4N at https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/492738-how-to-clean-iac-valve/}
Pulled the seats and started detailing the interior. The previous owner was kind enough to give me 2 gallons of gas in spare change under the seat! And while I am sure he didn't smoke in the car, I had a feeling he smoked Marboro based on the steering wheel and armrest smell... sure enough.
TO-DO:
New tires (edit: going with the Michelin PSS)
Change fluids (previous owner believes the dealer did all fluids 15K miles ago when he bought the car, but I would rather be sure)
Plugs and filters
Get stock airbox lid... secondary air pump is annoying, but I am avoiding deleting it. {source: https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/266787-humming-noise-from-intake/}
Clean master cylinder and attempt to resolve minor leak {source: https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/916842-tiny-leak-from-above-clutch/}
Repair 3" tear in soft top
Valve adjustment {source: Rob Robinette at https://robrobinette.com/S2000ValveAdjust.htm}
Obtain quotes on repairing very light hail damage to trunk... and the dog bite.
I thought I had a name picked out for the S, but it's a male name and I am convinced the car is female. I determined this after running out of gas while working the idle issue... unlike the WRX, when my S says she's hungry... she was starving an hour ago.
While it has been covered here before, please feel free to PM me for comparisons between my WRX and S2000. Keep in mind I plan on getting a small truck with money from the WRX since the S2000 has its limitations. Nonetheless, I am slowly falling in love with the S and have already enjoyed lurking on the these forums. I am looking forward to Tail of the Dragon this fall if everything works out!
-- Jonathan
Enjoyed reading your intro. Sorry about the dog bites. Guess they thought your S looked tasty. 
Anyhow, keep her safe, rubber on the road and shiny side up!
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