Maybe It's because I'm old and have a little financial flexibility, but these discussions about 500 or 1000 bucks one way or another are silly ( unless you're a flipper)

If you're going to enjoy the adventure of an S2000 for a few years and maintain the car a few bucks up front doesnt matter,

Find one you want at a reasonable price, buy it and hit the road - hard.

 

OK, the car is home and in the garage. I'm in my mid 40s and work for a social media company in the Bay Area and live in San Francisco. I have always been intrigued by the S2K ( Is this the proper way calling the car..S2K or S or S2000)? due to the fact its a Honda and believe the VTEC 2.0 as one of the best engines ever built. I have been fortunate to drive many nice cars in my days and this car was something I always wanted.

I had the pleasure of driving the car home today and wanted to see what she has and it was what I expected. Pure enjoyment.
I have observed some things I need to look into.

* Original owner indicated its still has the original OEM battery. He told me to replace the battery as he had some troubles recently starting. Battery help Gents! Optima or go to Toyota and get a OEM? I need this replaced tomorrow.
* None of the key remotes open the trunk. I used the key and opened it up ( Alarm went off... looked inside and realized I never opened the truck when I looked at the car. Inside I saw the original floor mats in a bag and saw the jack and spare and wheel nuts.
* I think shocks need to be replaced as I felt the front end end was bumpy or it might of been the stretch of freeway-580 coming down by Oakland Zoo. Need to look into this more. So shock recommendations please.
* Where do I put the I-Phone? That space behind the clutch behind the arm rest was perfect but soon realized it interferes with me shifting. Throw it on the passenger seat.
* I need to remove a Berkeley neighborhood parking sticker on the bumper. Best methods or I will ask the detail guy to take it off.
* I have an appt tomorrow at 8am to steam clean the engine. Should I also do the under body?
* Tires look good and new and he is running Bridgestone RE970A. I know this car deserves better so the shoes need to be replaced but not now.
* As I indicated the rear bumper has some small scratches. Buddy tells me to stay away from the mobile dent guys and take it straight to the body shop? any recommendations in the Bay Area?

Last but not least what repair shop do you all recommenced in the Bay Area. Pictures will be up soon and Thank you in advance for letting me learn from you experts.

 

Hey congrats on the purchase! We are located on the outskirts of the bay area. Feel free to drop us a line if you'd like us to check out your car or need any advice/service. Our email is Roguemotorsportsap@yahoo.com we will be glad to chat or answer any questions regarding the Ap1 (Early model s2000)

 

Our 2005 still had the original battery when we purchased the car earlier this year. The battery was working fine but checked out a bit low when I tested it so I went ahead and replaced with a new battery along with the rest of the regular preventative maintenance.items performed. After doing a bit of research I actually went ahead and bought one of the Honda branded batteries. It rated quite well in terms of specs/price/warranty.

 

Does your car have any modifications?
My comments re some, not all, of your questions and some other thoughts are as follows.
First, I suggest that you resist doing a lot of stuff to your car until you have driven it for a few months at least. You will have a better idea about what you want/need after you get to know the car.
If the tires are in good shape and not over 7 years old drive them for a while - tires have a pretty short life on the s2k, especially the rears. Read about tires and mull it over before diving in to new tires if you can hold off a bit. You have a decision to make whether to stick with the ap1 16 inch wheels or move to 17, or larger, wheels. I recommend that you read these pages on that issue and consider things before you make a decision what to do.
I think its hard to beat OEM battery - I had the same issue when I bought my 02 and I bought a Honda brand battery and its been good.
Since I am not an experienced detailer (I am learning since I got my S) I had my car professionally detailed, (interior, paint, engine bay) soon after I got the car. This gives you a good baseline.
Unless you have service records showing compliance with maintenance schedules, I recommend changing all the fluids now - (engine oil, trans and dif oil, coolant, brake fluid, clutch fluid) - to set a base line and get on a good schedule going forward.
I suggest that you adjust the valves soon - or have an experienced mechanic do it for you if you have never adjusted valves. Out of spec valve adjustments are not uncommon and they are deadly to this engine.
Keep an eye on the oil level for a while. Check the oil every time you fill the gas tank until you have a feel for how much oil the engine uses. Do not allow the engine oil to get low. Even very healthy S2k engines can use more oil that you are used to seeing with other engines. Once you have a feel for your use - just keep an eye on it. Don't forget.
Keep tire air pressure set at spec (I believe it is 32 all around). The S is very sensitive to tire pressure.
If it were me I would find a good trusted alignment shop and get a baseline alignment done - the handling on this car is very sensitive to alignment.
There is a thread pinned somewhere on this site that gives you a very thorough list of the issues to watch for and address with your model year S. Find it and consider it.
Your shocks - what you do in this regard depends on your plan for the S and how you will drive it. Many, (most), people who drive on the track or do autocross, upgrade the suspension with coilovers. But, I think most folks would agree that the OEM shocks are very good. If you are a going to be driving on the street completely, or primarily, I would stick to oem for now until you have driven your car for a good long while. OEM shocks are very good. It would surprise me given the mileage you report that your S would need new shocks - but I suppose anything is possible. My 02 now has 30K miles and the shocks are original and they are excellent.
Lastly, drive carefully until you are comfortable with the car and have a good feeling for how it behaves. It can be a bit of a handful. After a while you will get more and more accustomed to the car and you will be able to push it safely. But, take it easy for a while. Be particularly careful on wet roads. As you get used to the car over the first few months - you will start to see that the engine wants and needs to be rev'd out higher than many other engines in normal driving. For me this took a bit of getting used to. Now, in normal conservative street driving, I pretty much keep the car in the 3500 to 6000 range. When I am pushing harder and driving in a more spirited manner I keep it up even higher than that.

Most of all - enjoy your new car. You will love it. Its a lot of fun.

 

As far as the BYS rails are concerned. I just did a goggle search and ordered them. They are kind of hard to find in stock at times because they are shipped to vendors over here in limited quantity. At first I ordered from a company that said they would have them in three weeks. After a couple months I got frustrated and found them in stock somewhere else, cancelled my order and reordered from them. As to who the vendor was I can't rmember, just try several and hopefully you'll find some in stock. expect to pay nearly $400 including shipping but you need them at your height.

 

Don't get the bumper repainted. Touch it up and move on, they're only original once.

Get a valve adjustment asap.

Check the date codes on the tires, even if they look new they may be very old.

Front shocks are probably fine. I suspect flat spots on the tires.

 

Agree with the above posts.

I'd get the seat height fixed first. The car has acceptable all season tires on it at present. The choices in 16" diameter are limited and a switch to OEM 17" wheels (AKA "AP2) wheels is easy and a very common upgrade/change. To be sure there are higher performance tires in 16" size though if you want to remain purely OEM. The larger diameter wheels get a lower profile tire for stiffer sidewalls and tighter control. Retain the 16" wheels in the event the car ever becomes a classic and suddenly worth big bucks. But don't hold your breath.

By passing the clutch interface is asking for trouble as far as I'm concerned. Hit Start with the car in gear and it will lurch. This only happens when you're close to a wall or other parked car.

The post 2006 cars are infamous for tight exhaust valves, the earlier cars don't approach this but a valve adjustment is a simple (albeit extremely tedious) job in your garage on a Saturday morning. Tools and gaskets will run maybe $40. There are photo/video essays in our library. Note the recommended exhaust spec has been increased to 0.012" (OEM spec is 0.011").

Consensus here is to change all the fluids that weren't just done to establish a maintenance baseline. Brake/clutch fluid and coolant are time based changes, not mileage. Get the proper hypoid gear oil for the differential. There are dozens of proper lubricants and hundreds of favorite/darling brands of oil. Use the specific S2000 oil filter.

Read, then re-read the maintenance threads. You'll get several satisfying Saturdays with the car even when you can't drive it by doing your own maintenance.

-- Chuck

 

Thank you all!
The timing of the purchase was not the best. With Christmas around the corner no time to do anything with the car, but I will do all your recommendations. I'm going to take the car to the famous Joey in S.SF after the new year for him to check it out and get it perfect.
Happy Holidays!

 

For what its worth - probably not a lot.

I bought my 02 two seasons ago. First thing I realized was that I absolutely needed new tires immediately - it still had the original tires which were 14 years old. I perused this site for info on tires, and I was persuaded by various posts that I should move to 17inch wheels for performance and to take advantage of more options for tires. So, I did that. I bought a set of ap2 v3 17" wheels and new 17" tires. Later I bought a set of Volk CE28 17" wheels and somewhat wider tires.

Suffice it to say, I'm now back to 16" wheels and tires. I prefer them for "sane but spirited street driving" somewhat over 17". I know I am in the minority. But, I'm definitely not the only one. Track and autocross is another story.