I run slow advanced open passing groups in track days and have about 25 events worth of experience in a GR86, which is now sold. I am looking in to an S2000 and use it 90% of the time on track. Expected mods will be a race seat, hardtop, coilovers -3/-2 camber, 200TW tires, some are like splitter and wing and possibly some engine mods/replacement but I am real murky about that.

Disclaimer: Here is a resource, go read this thread, use the search bar!!! GOOGLE IT are all valid responses to this post. Just starting a discussion to see if there are like minded people who wants to actively debate the topic.

1) Is there a known track s2000 setup most people use, if so what is it? As an example on GR86/BRZs it was 245/40/17 200TW tires, 9 inch wheels square all around, some $2k coil over setup with F/R 8k springs, rear control arms, 1.5 inch drop, bolt ons and for more modded cars, splitter/wing, race seat, tune.

2) How reliable is the stock motor (used, decent shape) on track? Can it provide significantly more power than 240 with bolt ons (in the past it did not) or FI is the only way to get there?

3) FI on stock motor on track...bad idea? When I had an S2000 around 2003 supercharged and turbo s2000s were blowing up left and right but maybe they figured it out with SW since then.

4) K20 vs K24 swaps, one better than other for FI vs NA? Is there a following on an engine swap for track days? What is a good resource to check for pricing and availability for these swaps? Anyone know if there is a realistic way to pass smog in Cali with a K swap? I have read the documentation on that and understand there are some rules, just wondering if its pipe dream or not.

5) Would a beater but clean title s2000 (160k miles, vins don't match, sprayed here, interior beat) still be ok for heavy track use?

6) Getting a race/track prepped non street legal s2000s and trailering it, do they sit in the market long? Any where else to look outside classifieds and racingjunk? Are they hard to sell? Buying someone else's race car is always a problem but depending on savings...

 

1. Generally it's 245s or 255s on a 9-10" wheel, big front swaybar, coil overs, camber adders in front needed. You can find plenty of info on specifics there to choose your parts. S2ks require high offset wheels and typically need wheels specifically designed for the platform because no other wheels seem to run that high of offset. Karcepts generally has the nicest front swaybar option. A few others available but that is by far the best. Rear bar is available too but not 100% necessary. Very nice to have though to help dial in corner exit behavior. Front camber can be done with an arm, an SPC joint, or camber bushings. Plenty to read up on those choices here. For coilovers, most on here will recommend Ohlins DFV's or I think they're Road and Track now. Good product I'm sure but I have no experience with them. If you want a more motorsports oriented option, MCS, JRZ, or Penske are the golden standards with plenty of vendors. Karcepts specs MCS that work great and what I personally have. For the price of Ohlins, you may be able to get MCS 1 ways which have the ability to be upgraded later. Another option that is relatively new is from Shaftworks. The owner has experience with dialing in this platform and has worked in the industry for years. I think he's essentially buying the same type of parts that the other high ends use and building shocks to his own specs. I've heard good reviews from two autocrossers I know using them on a different platform (86).

2. Stock motor is known to be very reliable, even on track. If you're fast and in a hot climate, probably best to get an upgraded radiator and oil cooler. A few options available, SakeBomb garage is a vendor on here that has a nice package on both. It costs $$ but is very nice and well thought out. You don't *need* these necessarily and plenty of people have put many days on a stock radiator. Oil temps will creep up if you're doing 20+ minute sessions. There is not much you can do to gain significant NA horsepower without spending a ton of time and $$.

3. The stock engine holds up to FI well if the tune and cooling is built out well. Engines are expensive and hard to rebuild though and of course you're going to add risk/wear by going FI. Transmissions and diffs also become weak at 400+ hp.

4. ASMotorsports are the K Swap experts. K24 is typically the preferred swap with very little downside to the K20 unless you just want to rev higher. There are no rules for HPDE. If you want to run a time trials class or any type of door to door racing, you're going to need to figure out which organization you want to run and build to spec. They're all different.

5. As long as it's in good shape, should be ok. There are a number of high mileage S2k's still tracking. Just be prepared that everything on it is more worn and going to be a wear item. These engines are difficult to get rebuilds right. Plenty of threads about that here. Things like bushings, wheel bearings, engine mounts, etc. will likely all need to be gone through.

6. Race prepped cars are kinda hard to sell. It takes a very specific buyer to buy one. I'd look on here, racing junk, facebook, and talking around with other racers. There have been some nice S2k race builds sold. With the pricing on these cars never really hitting < $10k, most builds I've seen have looked pretty nice and well thought out. Screening for part quality and talking to the owner should be pretty telling about the build of the car overall.

If you have driving experience and are fast, consider a big brake kit. People tend to go through front rotors quickly and they are susceptible to cracking when you come off the track and they rapidly cool. Our rear rotors are also not vented and heat up quickly. There are a few solutions for that.

 

The STR setup threads here are probably a good basis for a light track build. (The SST one is more recent, but is more of a discussion thread. There are "STR setup 2019", "STR setup 2020" threads that are much more focused rundowns of people's setups, which I think would be a great start. (Or even finish.)) That will also allow you to compete in the Tuner 4 class at SCCA time trials, if you have those in your area. The only thing you'd want to change is potentially wider wheels; if you don't want to struggle too much, 10" and 265s are possible with sufficient camber and rolled fenders. (You can go up to 10.5 and slightly wider tires if you get custom wheels, but it's much more hassle and expense.) 255s on 9s are possible without rolling fenders, but might as well just roll them. Though it might be worth finding out what autocross the S2k is going to land in for next year before deciding. I know you're just looking at track days, but having a class-competitive car for local autocross and time trials can be really fun.

Personally I would add a roll bar to your plans; they're not all that expensive - certainly cheaper than a hard top - and more likely to actually save your life if you do end up rolling it. Unlikely, but it's cheap insurance. Also 6-points and a HANS to go with your race seats. And a fire extinguisher; I like the Element 50 with their roll bar mount.

Personally I would skip FI for a track car. You really don't need it; my modified S2000 is basically as fast around a 1:20 lap of our local track as my GT4 was when it was stock. The fun of these cars is their light weight and handling. I don't think added power down the straights really adds that much to the experience. And if you ever do want to do autocross or time trials it'll put you straight into a non-competitive class. Plus you're just asking for all the headaches of a modified engine when you push it.

 

Between the age of the S2000, the price of an S2000, and the challenges fixing an S2000, Im surprized / not surprized these threads still pop up. Its a testament to how few cars meet our driving experience needs in the last 10 years.

 

As much as I love my s2000, it's no longer the ideal track car that it used to be when i bought it back in 2010. Now, prices have sky rocketed, and replacement parts/motors are expensive and harder to come by. I'd say that e36s are better suited as track cars due to the huge numbers manufactured. There isn't much difference between a standard e36 and an m3 once you start modifying them. The S52 is essentially just a beefed up m50 with not that much difference between the two.

BUT, if you insist on an s2k.

The basic bitch setup is - coilovers (MCS, JRZ, Ohlins (not DFVs), Penskes). Wheels 9.5 to 10" wide with 255 square tires with current gen 200TW. BBK of some sort for the front. Wing - apr GT250 or equivalent voltex, 9lives racing, zebulon, etc. - avoid 3d element wings like the GTC200 or Voltex 1s (they produce too much drag). Home made plywood splitter with splitter ducts (professional awesome makes nice ones).

Stock motor with stock tune is reliable. Mine has 100+ track days. I just have test-pipe, snorkel for OEM box, and exhaust. More power would be nice, but this setup is more than sufficient to consistenly do sub-2:00 at bw cw13 and at chuckwalla. It's good for sub 1:23 at SoWS as well. Gave you those references since your location shows Los Angeles.

FI on stock motor is fine as long as you don't push more than 350 whp, and you have a good tune with appropriate cooling - v-mount intercooler/radiator. Lots of variables for that one though. And generally lots of growing pains to get it just right is what I've seen from other locals that have gone FI.

K-swap. Say good bye to AC if you care for that. Are you planning on trailering or driving the car to events? How much street driving are you planning on doing? Smog? No. Not happening without funny business. My stock motor/tune with OEM CAT s2k gets all sorts of scrutiny when I get it smogged, since it looks the part (illegal). They really look it over very extensively. I swap everything back to stock except for the cat-back exhaust.

High mileage s2k is perfect for track use. Check for clean title and do a compression test before purchase. Everything else will get addressed in the modding process. Make sure to replace all of the old rubber bushings with either sphericals or hardened rubber from hardrace/spoon/mugen. I'd avoid poly-urethane.

Ready built racecar s2k... depends. Lots of variables for that one.

 

Well we are neighbors as I hit BW cw13 and SOW for al most all my track work. On a stock GR86 with (camber bolts + top hats) decent tires I was hitting about 2:10. Sub 2 is a significantly faster time than that but I am sure it is not just the car difference but also driver. Given that a sub 2 capable car is plenty fast for me at the track so stock motor plus maybe some bolt ons should be fine. So you are saying 150k mile s2000 in its stock form with some track prep is going to be reliable? I mean it depends on how much it was abused but generally speaking just a street car with high miles?

Can you expand the e36 idea a bit? I am a huge fan of something like a Group A E30 but never looked in to E36s. What years would make a good track car? What are the basic track prep/mods for it?

 

S2000s are old. A 150k mile car is going to need some refreshing. Bushings, belts, maybe wheel bearings, radiator, etc. Any S2000 that's tracked should probably have those things addressed/checked regardless of miles. Rubber and plastic deteriorate over time.

You can blow an engine on track @ 20k miles or 150k miles. OFC, I'd place my bets on the 20k mile motor. Get a compression/leakdown test before buying if you're paying market value. If it's an AP1 check and/or replace the valve retainers (search it, AP1 *problem*). No guarantees of anything @ 150k but the engines are pretty robust and there are definitely a few out there running fast at high mileage. They really don't have an achilles heel and the oiling system is darn good for an OEM car. Nobody is going to guarantee anything on a track car and tell you that it's for sure good @ 150k. Over a long enough period of time, everything is a wear item. Pay now for low miles or take the chance and save some money. You can money shift either and blow it up real quick.

 

how much do you want to spend? I could consider selling my 05 with all the stuff mentioned above (JRZ RS Pro, AP Racing Pro5000R, 17x10, hardtop, seat, harness, rollbar, wing, a brand new F22C etc.) but it won't be cheap.

 

Any particular reason you got rid of the GR86? It's a very capable car as well and can hit sub-2:00 with just wheels, tires, coilovers - no aero needed. It's a much easier car to drive at the limit versus the S2k. Plenty of documented youtube videos. Also has the added benefit of being able to fit a set of 4x wheels so you can drive with street tires to event and swap to track tires at the event. All of that said, I'm wary of the FA24 oiling issues and it not being fixed with oil pan baffling (yet) - killer B's prototype pan didn't help.

Is there a particular intended use for your track time? Competing? Time attack? General HPDE for fun? Trailering the car to events or planning to drive to and from with the car that's being driven on track? Budget?

E36 is the same deal for hitting sub-2:00, albeit with more drastic measures for weight savings. Wheels, tires, coilovers, m50 manifold bolted onto S52. strip out all of the rear interior, replace driver/pass with bucket seats. You can add in the MSP style wing with gurney flap for the OEM+ look, while generating functional down force. HVAC is kind of old and might need quite a bit more work if you want that to function.

I'd say that a $25k-$35K budget will get you a sub-2:00 e36 or s2k. between purchase price of car and modifications. They'll be higher mileage examples with fair cosmetic condition. That same budget will also give you plenty of options for purchasing someone's track car.

Given what you've communicated of your driving experience, avoid adding any power. You have plenty of time left on the table to extract via driver modification. Focus on reliability and modifications that increase consumable life - thus decreasing you tracking expenses and leaving more money for seat time, which will likely be the area where you'll find the most time.

 

There are multiple reports of engine failures on GR86es since they were first released. First the silicon in oil pickup issue leading to oil starvation then oil pressure dropping from 60 psi to 20 on fast right hand turns. Couple that with Toyota doing everything they can to deny warranty claims I thought it would be best to sell it after 21 track days with the car.

For reference a person I personally know blew the 4th gear at the track right next to me and Toyota denied his warranty claim saying the car was tracked. A few people that I don't know but read about went through the same thing with motors. I personally had my car looked at a dealer due to suspension noise. It was fixed under warranty (loose upper bolt), however the tech made sure to fill out a 3 page report saying my tire wear is abnormal for street usage and that the car has camber bolts (only mod on the whole car) which means the car is tracked and that he wanted to document that on the paperwork. A long block and dealer installation for that was being quoted at $19k.

Outside all that I had no issues with the car, it was one of the best cars I owned and felt great at the limit.

As far as driver modification, yes there is definitely time I can pick up, about 4 seconds to lap record with that setup which is the street 86 class (2:06). Its not going sub 2 without engine mods I think. Most sub 2 GR86es were tires,wheels,coilovers, raceseat, front/rear aero, headers, tune. Maybe aero and power mods cancel each other a bit due to drag.... I don't know what that rear wing does at 60mph anyways...add 30lb of downforce to the trunk?