What's up guys/ladies

I'm planning on buying a used low-mileage (< 25000 miles) s2k, probably a yellow 2001. I'm looking for tips on finding a good deal, problems to watch out for, and any other advice you could share. Also I would like to know about warranties, I've heard that it comes with 3yr/36000 and I've heard 4yr/48000. Oh, and how much does it cost to maintain the car (properly), and what type of gas mileage is typical? Can you replace the plastic rear window with a glass one (with defrost)?

I've been following the pricing on cars.com and autotrader.com for a while so It looks like I could get away with around $22000 from a private seller.

I currently drive the first car I bought since joining the "real world" (after college), which is an '02 SVT Focus. It's a great car to drive, but I feel like this may be the only time in my life (until my midlife crisis) that I could use a 2 seat convertible as a daily driver. I'm a little concerned about luggage space and about driving in the winter in Washington DC. Things I'll miss in my current car are my in-dash 6-disc CD changer with built in sub, heated seats, and, well, space. Any thoughts??

 

The factory warranty is 3/36000. You can get an extended hondacare 100k mi warranty as well.

Start with the usual things to look for: paint finish, tires, interior condition, general condition and cleanliness of the vehicle.

Try to find out what if any TSB's were performed or need to be.

I have an 01 with the plastic window and it's not that bad. It is bigger than the glass window. You have to change the whole softtop to get the glass window. They have sold here for $800-$1k.

Maintenance isn't bad. Just change the fluids regularly. It goes thru tires quickly tho. About 9-15k miles for the rears depending on how you drive. My fronts are still ok at 24k.

I get anywhere from 21-25 mpg in the city and 28-30 mpg on the highway. But that is very dependent on how you drive the car.

When you do get it, please take a high performance driving course or participate in a few local autocrosses to learn your limits in the car. I wish you the best of luck in your purchase but I'd rather not see another "I spun out and totalled my S" thread.

 

Thanks for the info. Are there any common problems that people bring up often on the message boards, or any TSBs that should have typically been performed?

 

Not considering the obvious used car checks, look for the following:

Condition of the top. Pay close attention to the inside corners. Do a search on this, there are pictures on this forum concerning the issue.

Mods: Find out if any mods have been done to the car. Then do a cross check of the problems people may have with the mods on this forum.

Spark plugs: See if they have been replaced due to a technical service bulletin that was put out about them dropping inside the engine and doing some major damage to the engine.

Paint: Check the lower front nose for paint chips. This car's paint is known for being thin.

Engine Temp: Make sure that the cars' engine temperature has THREE bars when it is running after a few minutes. Anything higher or lower could be an indicator that something is wrong.

Windshield: Look for pits/ cracks/ chips in the windshield. The cars' windshield is noitorious for pitting easily.

Radio: Ask for the radio code sticker. You don't want to buy the car without this... trust me! If they don't have it, make sure you know the dealer that the car was FIRST bought from.

Side Skirts: If the car has side skirts, make sure that they are not about to fall off. They are known for falling off from a small pebble hitting them at speeds higher than 2 MPH.

Tires: Ask for the receipt of the last tire purchase. This car goes though tires every 12,000 to 18,000 miles. If it's been over 8,000 miles, either get a discount or ask for them to purchase new tires.

I think that that's it.

 

Check the tires, if they are even close to bald, get new ones immediately. Don't go hotdogin' around on bald tires.

 

I'm in the process of buying a used '02 S2000. What's the deal on the radio code sticker? First I've heard about this.

Thanks.

 

if you get a car without a radio code sticker... could you just replace the OEM stereo with an aftermarket one?

 

If you don't have it, then if they ever disconnect the radio from the battery then you won't be able to turn the radio back on. They will have to actually take the radio out of the car to see the vin on the radio to get the code from Honda and it cost like $60 to have this done.

An alternative is that the dealer that originaly sold the car has the radio code so you can just go to them.

 

Yes, you only have to worry about the code sticker if you have the OEM radio.

 

Check the bumpers, the hood, and the trunk lid for the VIN stickers. If they're not there the panels have been replaced and the car has been wrecked. I would also take it to a mechanic and have it put on a lift to make sure the undercarriage looks OK, it's sometimes easy to spot frame damage from underneath the car.

You can run carfax, but they miss a lot of stuff.