Honda S2000, the worst tuner!
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 8,842
Likes: 1,700
From: Illnoise. WAY downtown, jerky.
I wish this car sucked more so I could waste money making it suck less.
You can pointlessly tune a S2000 and have fun. Putting thousands of dollars of fart cans, "race" suspension, bigass brakes, headerzz, etc didn't deter the billions of people that enjoyed pointlessly tuning their Integras and civics and other Hondas. In fact, this formula of tons of money for "not much speed" is exactly why Honda is the most popular and favorite car amongst people who mod cars.
and I'm not at all saying that in a negative light.
You can also take the car to a track or build towards some sort of purpose. Its usually more fun and cheaper to do it this way.
As far as people saying its not a quick car....Its a quick car. 13 second quarter mile times out of the box is respectable. Not to mention how fast and capable the chassis is on a race track.
You can pointlessly tune a S2000 and have fun. Putting thousands of dollars of fart cans, "race" suspension, bigass brakes, headerzz, etc didn't deter the billions of people that enjoyed pointlessly tuning their Integras and civics and other Hondas. In fact, this formula of tons of money for "not much speed" is exactly why Honda is the most popular and favorite car amongst people who mod cars.
and I'm not at all saying that in a negative light.You can also take the car to a track or build towards some sort of purpose. Its usually more fun and cheaper to do it this way.
As far as people saying its not a quick car....Its a quick car. 13 second quarter mile times out of the box is respectable. Not to mention how fast and capable the chassis is on a race track.
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 231
Likes: 2
From: London
The most proven parts, not counting hen's teeth (hytech & gernpipe), are the J's manifold, PWJDM intake, 3" test pipe, a straight though (unbearably noisy) single 3" exhaust, and a chip and tune.
Sure, new, they cost more than a gold iWatch, but it's not so much the price that matters, as retained value.
You can buy almost all of these items in good condition for about 50% of their new price via the forum, aside perhaps from the intake. Additionally, the parts, if still in reasonable condition, can be resold for around 1/3 of their new price third hand, which is only 1/6 less than they cost to buy second hand. Of course, you'll still need to factor in labour and won't recoup as much if you sell them with the car, but in that case you can sell off you original parts to recoup some change. Either way, buying the exhaust, test, pipe and chip second hand can save you about 50% even if not resold. You may not gain masses of top end, but with a lower VTEC and tune there's plenty to play for in the mid range.
This will also save you a few Kg. Factor in some light weight wheels and a battery and remove the spare wheel etc. for track days and you could save over 50Kg without skipping meals, worth about another 4-5% or 8-10 bhp in addition to improved dynamics and breaking.
Sure, new, they cost more than a gold iWatch, but it's not so much the price that matters, as retained value.
You can buy almost all of these items in good condition for about 50% of their new price via the forum, aside perhaps from the intake. Additionally, the parts, if still in reasonable condition, can be resold for around 1/3 of their new price third hand, which is only 1/6 less than they cost to buy second hand. Of course, you'll still need to factor in labour and won't recoup as much if you sell them with the car, but in that case you can sell off you original parts to recoup some change. Either way, buying the exhaust, test, pipe and chip second hand can save you about 50% even if not resold. You may not gain masses of top end, but with a lower VTEC and tune there's plenty to play for in the mid range.
This will also save you a few Kg. Factor in some light weight wheels and a battery and remove the spare wheel etc. for track days and you could save over 50Kg without skipping meals, worth about another 4-5% or 8-10 bhp in addition to improved dynamics and breaking.
Registered User
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 463
Likes: 0
Originally Posted by Fokker' timestamp='1420386788' post='23455708
I think "extensive research" is a bit of an exaggeration if that's your conclusion.
Im trying to find a balance between comfort and performance and understand which aspects of this car can be improved. Currently I'm looking at coilovers; I'm tempted to cross the line into aftermarket territory but it is scary as I don't want to ruin the car.
Spot on the PSS9s..You can adjust the stiffness of the ride from a scale of hard (1) which is really meant only for track use to
softer settings for the road use (up to 9). I've heard 6 is good setting for the road but this boils down to everyone's preferences. Good thing is that this adjustment is fairly quick on the front tyres as the coil-overs are exposed after lifting the bonnet. A bit more fiddly at the rear tyres (as you need to remove trunk trim) but after a while you get used to it and your time adjusting your coilovers subsequently improves.
I wish this car sucked more so I could waste money making it suck less.
You can pointlessly tune a S2000 and have fun. Putting thousands of dollars of fart cans, "race" suspension, bigass brakes, headerzz, etc didn't deter the billions of people that enjoyed pointlessly tuning their Integras and civics and other Hondas. In fact, this formula of tons of money for "not much speed" is exactly why Honda is the most popular and favorite car amongst people who mod cars. and I'm not at all saying that in a negative light.
You can also take the car to a track or build towards some sort of purpose. Its usually more fun and cheaper to do it this way.
As far as people saying its not a quick car....Its a quick car. 13 second quarter mile times out of the box is respectable. Not to mention how fast and capable the chassis is on a race track.
You can pointlessly tune a S2000 and have fun. Putting thousands of dollars of fart cans, "race" suspension, bigass brakes, headerzz, etc didn't deter the billions of people that enjoyed pointlessly tuning their Integras and civics and other Hondas. In fact, this formula of tons of money for "not much speed" is exactly why Honda is the most popular and favorite car amongst people who mod cars.
and I'm not at all saying that in a negative light.You can also take the car to a track or build towards some sort of purpose. Its usually more fun and cheaper to do it this way.
As far as people saying its not a quick car....Its a quick car. 13 second quarter mile times out of the box is respectable. Not to mention how fast and capable the chassis is on a race track.
Especially about taking it to the track and going from there..and YES, it is a QUICK car for us mortals!
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 420
Likes: 2
From: Livermore
Tires are the second best mod. The highest bang-for-the-buck performance mod is modding the driver. A few classes or some track time can do wonders.
Registered User
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
From: The Great Northeast
Terrific info from you all! Kudos! I'm in the process of buying a sweet '07 and eventually selling my moded '05 TSX. Big YES to a Hondata, intake, header, exhaust, suspension, wheels and tires. But, first I want to learn the S2000.
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