Hi, ive just moved to LA recently. After having a brief look around the second hand car market, ive decided to buy a Honda S2000. The only reason why i held back when i had a chance to buy one in Durban was because of the ridiculous price. R360 000 (US $48000) for a S2000 is just way over priced if you ask me. Seeing as a pre-owned 2000 - 2003 era model in the states will set me back about $22000 which is close to R165 000. Ive decided to use this opportunity and get my dream car.

I know that the S2000 received an engine upgrade to a 2.2L at 2004 (Only for the US model, i think), but with the engine upgrade the rev limiter dropped down to 8200rpm. Which if you ask me its just a shame really(just my personal opinion, i prefer high revving units). Although you get more torque at lower revs, making the car easier to drive at lower speed and less gear chages, but in reutrn you lose the fun of revving the engine to 9000rpm for a sharper, more thrilling drive. Possibly another reason was that US drivers dont like to change down so much and prefer mid-range grunt to a lower gear. But the whole point of the S2000 is the engine's high revving capability. Taking that away is basically ruining the car. Which is why i want to buy a 2000 - 2003 era S2000 (before the engine upgrade). It should be cheaper than the newer model, but also with more mileage on the clock. Again, im just assuming what the car will be like, Ive only driven the 2litre euro spec model (in Durban), i havnt tried driving the US's 2.2litre version yet.

Now, ive heard that Honda Dealer will offer asupercharger kit fom Comptech for about $6000, and i'd still be able to keep both the factory warranty and motorplan. There are a few questions i'd like to find out before i make my final decision:

The supercharger kit will offer an extra 60 - 70hp at the rear wheels, but it seems that the kit also remaps the max power output to a higher rev band, developing 286hp at 8800rpm, rather than the stock 194hp(why 194hp??? shouldnt it be around 220something??) at 8300rpm. Also torque figure changed from the standard 127ft-lb at 6600rpm to a higher rev range, 172ft-lb at 8500rpm.
Will this kind of top end performance (max power at high rev band) make the car twitchy at the limit? After all, its just upgrading the power, using the same stock suspension and everything else stock too. Also driving at a high rpm will really use a lot of juice, even with petrol being cheaper in USA, i'd still want to save some money for a brake system upgrade. Do you guys recommend this supercharger kit? Or should i rather leave the s/c kit and maybe play around with a few other simple mods (ECU, Exhaust System, Air In-take etc.)??

Ive basically decided to go for the comptech unit, but from what ive heard on other forums is that comptech is closed for good. If thats true, then where else can i get a reliable supercharger kit without losing the Honda factory warranty??? Reliability is a very important issue for me, since i will be using the S2000 as a daily based car. If things go wrong, there wont be another car for me to use. Which is why im a bit skeptical about turbocharging it.

P.S : Sorry if the post is a big choppy, i kept on adding more to it. I really want to buy this Honda, but there are lots of things thats holding me back right now, i want to find out everything about this car before i make my decision.

BTW.. Yes, im planning on selling the BMW 130i, I will be going back to Durban this weekend to sort my car out.

Thanks in advance. Nice to see such a great S2000 forum


CLICK for SuperCharged S2000's Dyno Result

Comptech

 

Its ~194RWhp meaning thats the horsepower the car makes after you take into account drivetrain losses (aka: wheels, tranny, diff, etc). Crank horsepower (rated at the engine so no drivetrain loss) is still 240hp.

Yes the car will be more twitchy at the limit, but of course it will be. Your adding in another 80hp along with 50 more pounds of torque. However, it really all comes down to you, the driver, and how you react to the new horsepower bonus.

If you want power, forced induction is the only way to go. Don't bother wasting money on little 2hp (exageration but its not much at all) gaining things like I/H/E. Whether an SC is the right choice would be your decision.

Comptech is closed for good so if something breaks, as of now you would be screwed. Grab a vortech supercharger kit. It makes more power, proven just as reliable, and they arn't out of business.

 

Thanks for the input, what about the factory warranty, do i still get to keep my warranty after installing the s/c kit?? Does Honda USA approve the supercharger kit from Vortech?? Also, since i have never messed around with a honda's engine before, i would like an experienced technician to install the kit for me, rather than looking through the manual myself and get stuck half way. I can not stress how important reliability matters to me. I dont want things to go wrong.

Coming back to the twitchy part, 260 - 270bhp or so shouldnt be too frisky to handle, ive driven plenty of high power, twitchy RWD cars, so it wont be something new for me to see the back break loose, but the lightness of the Honda S2000 can be quite a handful. But im sure i can soon learn how to control the s2000.

Thanks again.

Hopefully i can get the car by early May. The Vortech Supercharger system sure looks good, and i believe it will make the S2000 much more enjoyable.

 

Welcome to the US. Spent a couple of nights in Durban. Interesting to say the least.

Not sure on Vortech, as far as warranty's go. I know with Comptech no problems in my expierience.

I am sure someone in LA and the suburbs can help you out.

Ask in the SOCAL section. Good luck and have fun.

 

9/10 you will not be able to keep your warranty even with a comptech setup (unless you had a certified dealer ass rape you on labor install and do it).

Get it installed and then bring it to a dyno to make sure the A/F numbers are good. After that, your engine *should* be rock hard reliable

 

Lol, apart from getting to drive around at high speed without any traffic jam, Durban is actually quite a boring little city.

Glad you had fun : p

Say, if i buy a 2002/2003 model S2000, what is the chance of me keeping the factory warranty? Do the dealers count it by year or mileage?

 

lol, what do you mean by "should"? Will i get any overheating problem? Since its a high revving unit, superchargiing it might create quite a bit of excess heat.

And yeah, im prepared to let the dealer arse rape me when it comes to labour, at least i can force them to give me a good warranty on it. If thats how its going to be, i guess i will just have to spend more money

 

Both the Comptech and Vortech kits tend to run lean out of the box. If it gets lean enough you could burn a piston or score a cylinder.

 

Drive it a Month like it is, Get used to it, than Supercharge it to have a Worry free power.
the car will be a blast to drive than.
Get a AF ratio meter when you Charge it to keep an eye on AF.
Thats it....Enjoy
SC rules