Advice for S2000 fresman
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Advice for S2000 fresman
Hi!
I'm considering to get an s2000 as my daily driver, but I am a bit worried about
the practicalities. In particular since I will be driving it in the winter, and I am living
in Norway where we have proper winters with ice and snow on the roads.
From what I have been able to find here on the forums the ground cleareance
is 4-4,5", that might be an issue with ice and snow on the road. Is there any possibility of actually raising the suspention with a coilover kit, for winter use(and then running lower than standard in the summertime
)
Grip should not be a problem as I would be running studded wintertyres in the winter.
How good is the heater? would it be able to cope with -20 to -30 degrees C, when fitted with a hardtop? how is the noise level with the hardtop fitted.(I understand that the softtop does not do much for sound insulation.)
How useable would the space for the sparewheel be for extra luggage if the sparewheel was left at home(and replaced by a can of tyre "foam")
Thanks
Tor
I'm considering to get an s2000 as my daily driver, but I am a bit worried about
the practicalities. In particular since I will be driving it in the winter, and I am living
in Norway where we have proper winters with ice and snow on the roads.
From what I have been able to find here on the forums the ground cleareance
is 4-4,5", that might be an issue with ice and snow on the road. Is there any possibility of actually raising the suspention with a coilover kit, for winter use(and then running lower than standard in the summertime
)Grip should not be a problem as I would be running studded wintertyres in the winter.
How good is the heater? would it be able to cope with -20 to -30 degrees C, when fitted with a hardtop? how is the noise level with the hardtop fitted.(I understand that the softtop does not do much for sound insulation.)
How useable would the space for the sparewheel be for extra luggage if the sparewheel was left at home(and replaced by a can of tyre "foam")
Thanks
Tor
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From: Fairfax, VA
Welcome!
Mine is daily drive also, but snow here is nothing compare to where you are. But, appropriate tires is A MUST, and I wouldn't use the OEM tires for anything below 45F?either. For where I live, I would have three set of tires, one set for summer, all season( for dry cold and rainy), and snow tires.
-The coilover willhelp you to raise your a bit, but nothing in the effect of 4x4 ride high, plus you need alignment everytime you mess with the ride high, don't forget. Alignment plays a vital role here in this little car. I done mine every 3-4 months, a big change you'll see.
-The hardtop is actually trap noise more than absorb or block, so you will hear engine and gear screaming more than when softtop is up.
-AC works amazingly well in this tiny cabin, no worries there, I feel that highest heat and fan speed could melt my shoes.
-Tire foam do not work in the temp below 50F?, from what I've heard.
All in all, another important factor to drive her in a difficult condition( heavy rain 'n snow) is to drive smart, and hold on to commonsense at all time nomatter what you do. It's a blast to drive in winter, definitely, but not 3-4 inches of snow, though.
Hope this help.
Mine is daily drive also, but snow here is nothing compare to where you are. But, appropriate tires is A MUST, and I wouldn't use the OEM tires for anything below 45F?either. For where I live, I would have three set of tires, one set for summer, all season( for dry cold and rainy), and snow tires.
-The coilover willhelp you to raise your a bit, but nothing in the effect of 4x4 ride high, plus you need alignment everytime you mess with the ride high, don't forget. Alignment plays a vital role here in this little car. I done mine every 3-4 months, a big change you'll see.
-The hardtop is actually trap noise more than absorb or block, so you will hear engine and gear screaming more than when softtop is up.
-AC works amazingly well in this tiny cabin, no worries there, I feel that highest heat and fan speed could melt my shoes.
-Tire foam do not work in the temp below 50F?, from what I've heard.
All in all, another important factor to drive her in a difficult condition( heavy rain 'n snow) is to drive smart, and hold on to commonsense at all time nomatter what you do. It's a blast to drive in winter, definitely, but not 3-4 inches of snow, though.
Hope this help.
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Originally Posted by RM 4 2,Apr 5 2005, 06:59 AM
Welcome!
Mine is daily drive also, but snow here is nothing compare to where you are. But, appropriate tires is A MUST, and I wouldn't use the OEM tires for anything below 45F?either. For where I live, I would have three set of tires, one set for summer, all season( for dry cold and rainy), and snow tires.
-The coilover willhelp you to raise your a bit, but nothing in the effect of 4x4 ride high, plus you need alignment everytime you mess with the ride high, don't forget. Alignment plays a vital role here in this little car. I done mine every 3-4 months, a big change you'll see.
-The hardtop is actually trap noise more than absorb or block, so you will hear engine and gear screaming more than when softtop is up.
-AC works amazingly well in this tiny cabin, no worries there, I feel that highest heat and fan speed could melt my shoes.
-Tire foam do not work in the temp below 50F?, from what I've heard.
All in all, another important factor to drive her in a difficult condition( heavy rain 'n snow) is to drive smart, and hold on to commonsense at all time nomatter what you do. It's a blast to drive in winter, definitely, but not 3-4 inches of snow, though.
Hope this help.
Mine is daily drive also, but snow here is nothing compare to where you are. But, appropriate tires is A MUST, and I wouldn't use the OEM tires for anything below 45F?either. For where I live, I would have three set of tires, one set for summer, all season( for dry cold and rainy), and snow tires.
-The coilover willhelp you to raise your a bit, but nothing in the effect of 4x4 ride high, plus you need alignment everytime you mess with the ride high, don't forget. Alignment plays a vital role here in this little car. I done mine every 3-4 months, a big change you'll see.
-The hardtop is actually trap noise more than absorb or block, so you will hear engine and gear screaming more than when softtop is up.
-AC works amazingly well in this tiny cabin, no worries there, I feel that highest heat and fan speed could melt my shoes.
-Tire foam do not work in the temp below 50F?, from what I've heard.
All in all, another important factor to drive her in a difficult condition( heavy rain 'n snow) is to drive smart, and hold on to commonsense at all time nomatter what you do. It's a blast to drive in winter, definitely, but not 3-4 inches of snow, though.
Hope this help.
Raising the height to 4x4 heights is not needed, 1-2" would do wonders.
Is it possible to swap the front spoiler easily?(that is the lowest point of the car?)
And thereby gaining some clearance.
I am driving an Celica Alltrack now, and am getting by without too much trouble
with stock rideheight.
Using stock(summer) tyres in winter here is illegal, (and also plain stupid).
So the hardtop works like the softtop in any other convertible(traps sound),
(I'm quite familiar with this issue from my other cars)
I thought the hardtop would be trimmed with fabric that would kill some of the noice. I must admit that I have not check wheter the the tire foam would work in winter, but I have heard that the trick is to heat the bottle(with the heater) if the weather is cold.
Careful driving in the snow with 240bhp on the rear wheels goes without saying, but at least the low torque works to the cars advantage, as it won't rip the tyres loose that easily(unless you put the pedal to the metal).
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Originally Posted by Daveg27,Apr 5 2005, 10:47 AM
Nonsense, I drove my S2000 as a daily driver for 2 winters before I got a company car. Fitted with proper winter tires the S2000 is a great winter car, one of the best I've owned as a matter of fact. Better than all the FWD cars I've owned except for the '85 Jetta and it's 5.5" wide wheels.
I'm not sure if coilovers will raise the ground clearance enough to make a difference. Do you have effective and consistent plowing in your area? Do they salt the roads or use sand/ash?
The heat is strong enough to fire a blast furnace! Even with the soft top I never had to use it at the highest setting. Hell, I've driven with the top DOWN at highway speeds for over an hour at about 20FA (~-5CA)!
The spare tire location isn't really all that great for storing things. It's bare metal and shaped kind odd to fit the spare. You can do it, I've used it when I needed the space for camping, but only if you've completely filled the rest of the car. BTW, if you have the top up you can store stuff behind the seats on top of the rear tray too. Just remember to take everything out before you put the top down!
I'm not sure if coilovers will raise the ground clearance enough to make a difference. Do you have effective and consistent plowing in your area? Do they salt the roads or use sand/ash?
The heat is strong enough to fire a blast furnace! Even with the soft top I never had to use it at the highest setting. Hell, I've driven with the top DOWN at highway speeds for over an hour at about 20FA (~-5CA)!
The spare tire location isn't really all that great for storing things. It's bare metal and shaped kind odd to fit the spare. You can do it, I've used it when I needed the space for camping, but only if you've completely filled the rest of the car. BTW, if you have the top up you can store stuff behind the seats on top of the rear tray too. Just remember to take everything out before you put the top down!
There will be some(limited) need to be able to drive on roads which
has not been plowed, and which the snow in the middle of the road has been
packed to ice,(in residential areas).The trick is usually to not drive in the tracks
that have been created, but sometimes you can't really avoid it, and it would be nice if the exhaust or the front and side spoilers would not be crushed .
I also need to be able to get out of my fathers court yard with 3-4 inches of fresh
snow. As I have mentioned earlier, today I get by with my Toyota Celica Alltrack(GT4) on stock ride height.(Haven't checked the rideheight of that car yet, but it will be done, shortly
)Sounds like this might be feasible. I know Mx5(Miata) owners drive
in the winter here, but I know the ground clearance could have been better.
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