Add a Civic Type R or wait for something else?
 

Hi,

I want to get some opinions from owner who've owned both CTR and S2K....
I bought the s2k around Y2000 and had lots of fun with it in the beginning.. doing all sort of stuff with groups from this forum, meetups, clear the headlights, track days, organizing group buys for red emblems and JDM BBS wheels, autocrossing, etc.
Then, life stage took me a different direction and the s2k has been sitting in garage with only occasional drives just to keep everything lubricated... thus it only has 34K miles.
Now, I'm at a point in life when I want a sporty or sports car to take the whole family along... and s2k only has 2 seats.
I've been looking at the CTR so I can take the whole family.. but worry that it won't really give me the same exhilarating experience as the s2k.
Those of you who owned both, please give your opinion?
The other possibility is waiting for another 4/5 seater that can easily outperform the s2k... just browsing around, I found that Tesla is coming out with a new Roadster that is 2+2 seating for $200K... pretty good price for 0-60 in 1.9 seconds.
I always planned to get 1 exotic/race car in my lifetime, just not sure if combining it with my family sports car need is a good thing.

You can't say the CTR is not a fun car to drive(I took one for a test drive and suggest you do the same), that said I'd wait till '20 to get one to see if they improve on it(the temp gauge rises to far on the track). Motor Trend has the CTR(1:44.22) faster than a '15 WRX STI(1:47.16), '10 370Z NISMO(1:46.53), '10 Camaro SS(1:45.72). There's a lot more cars that I thought would be faster than the CTR but are not, and that is coming from a car that is not all wheel or rear wheel drive with a lot more HP. If it was a drop top I'd get one, we really like our S because of the drop top, the great handling of the S is just a great benefit to my wife and I.

I might be old but I'm not quite ready for a rocking chair,
ROD

So... here are my thoughts on the daily.

It's cool if you want a fast daily driven car.

But I don't know if your family/passenger would appreciate it as much as you do. The driver is doing the input, there's a steering wheel for him/her to hold onto to brace for the changes in the car's momentum. I'm pretty sure most passengers don't care to ride in a car that's being aggressive driven. Shoot, they even look uncomfortable during bad clutch engagement/gear changes. Are you sure your passengers care to be tossed around in your car?

That's my opinion. My daily is fast, but I tone it way down so my passengers won't throw up. So if you get a fast daily for yourself, go for it! But if you're getting it for others thinking they'd enjoy it as much as you do, I'd think twice man.

yeah that magazine track testing really opened up my eyes on the CTR, none of the shortcomings of FWD reared it's ugly head on the track thoroughly beating AWD and RWD cars. I would do the CTR, but if you can afford a 200k sportscar then it would be a Porsche for me, or maybe even an NSX.

I own both a '05 S2000 and just got a CTR 3 weeks ago. I would say the CTR is much more fun around town due to the torque. The CTR has three suspension modes and rides great in comfort mode. I think it is a great daily driver.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...e52322bcd0.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...82f73c1b3f.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.s2k...c60e7c21db.jpg

love it in red , looks great.

runyonwc,
How do like the exhaust note?
The one I test drove was just to quiet at WOT(typical for Honda). Just like a stock S, I wish it was just a little louder than stock at WOT.

ROD

The exhaust does leave a little more to be desired. There isnt much noise at all, seems like the turbo overpowers the engine noise. If it is a daily driver, like mine, then it is kind of nice that way. I do wish it were slightly louder though or had some sort of baffle in the exhaust like other cars do for more volume.

Wow that Civic looks ENORMOUS next to the S2000! Sorry - but really not a fan of the styling on the new Civics not to mention the CTR just looks over the top rediculous - just my opinion (but I know many others that agree)... I'm sure it's fun to drive though and honda makes a pretty good product.

If you are looking for a 4 seater daily which is fun to daily with thrills when you're in the mood but also comfortable and classy when you need it to be there are tons of options from BMW to Audi to Cadillac etc.
My other car is a 2012 Audi S4 with a 6MT. I've done some bolt on simple mods and it's now about 500hp of reliable AWD fun (had it since new with virtually 0 issues). Great all round car - rips in the snow and bad weather, sticks in the summer yet is silky smooth and comfortable when the fam is in the car with me.. just an example of what's out there...

So if you're looking for a 4 seater daily like that I'd suggest looking further than just Honda. Lots of other brands have great offerings in that performance sedan market.

The CTR is cool because it's Honda's return to a reasonably priced car that can really perform. But, I also can't stand the looks of it. But that is just my opinion. Currently, we have 3 vehicles for our needs. The Jeep Wrangler unlimited for unstoppable drop top family mover that also works for camping/overlanding and driving offload trails, the VW GLI for quick and fun to drive family mover, and S2000 for pure drop top driving fun. When it comes time to replace the VW GLI, I'm inclined to upgrade and look towards the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio. It's a 4 door that is also an all out sports car that also happens to be gorgeous and a future classic. Given its Ferrari engine and top level performance, it qualifies as an exotic to me. Although, I could care less about 0-60 times.