Lot of retarded posts in here. To sum this thread up owners will be advocates of their model year S2000 for various inconsequential reasons.

Common sense will tell you the current 09's are the "best", newest with the bulk of fixes/revisions. I'd trade my AP1 for a 09 any day of the week. Why would I want to miss out on the updated interior/exterior as well as the more livable engine/drive train?

And honestly this whole revving to 9K thing is pretty stupid considering there are V8's out there that out rev an AP2 and come close to an AP1. It's nothing special anymore IMO so why put it on a pedestal?

I'd tell anyone to aim for as new an S2000 as you can afford but if money is tight then there are compromises that can be made without losing much in regards to certain MY's.

 

06 VSA, full leather seats, roll bar speakers... what more can you ask for

 

Like we are having in EU.

 

The newest S you can afford and a brand new S are 2 different things. I would say that if you could afford a MY03 or MY04 of similar miles and price, you would have to look at the factors laid out in this thread and determine which is a better it for you.

A brand new S, however, is a great thing. I traded in my MY02 for the CR partially because I bought my MY02 used (the best AP1 I could afford at the time) and I've always wanted a new S and regular AP2's didn't really give me a reason to sidestep (avoiding using the word upgrade or downgrade).

For me, there are certain aspects of AP1 that I find enjoyable over an AP2 (9k, steering ratio, small wheels, lighter, less forgiving suspension). And while I like some of the base AP2's changes (interior, torque), the benefits of the AP1 are more important to me. The CR just happened to give me most of the "best" (imo) elements of all versions (with some drawbacks - vsa, cdv, 8k).

Saki - I haven't researched CDV much. I know I've felt its symptoms when compared to my last S. And I know that people say those symptoms go away when they do the CDV mod. But if it's the flywheel then I'll just reword my complaint. BTW - I haven't done the CDV mod so I can stay in my autox class.

 

The total weight gain wasn't limited to the increase from '03 AP1 to '04 AP2. It seems that the weight steadily climbed over the years. To the extent that an 08/09 CR without a top, radio, or A/C is no lighter than an 00/01 AP1.

AP1 chassis is plenty stiff, but if you have as-tested torsional stiffness numbers for AP1 vs. AP2 that would be cool to know...

 

[QUOTE=ZDan,May 8 2009, 11:09 AM] The total weight gain wasn't limited to the increase from '03 AP1 to '04 AP2.

 

was there that s2000 with a shorter steering rack?

 

Most of that describes the basic chassis architecture, which was unchanged. The actual improvement in chassis torsional rigidity is not given. They state a +10% improvement up front and +9% in the rear, but what is the real increase for the whole chassis? That's what is important. If they increased front and rear stiffness, but the middle is the same, then the maximum total increase should be on the order of 9-10% if the middle is quite stiff relative to front and rear, and somewhat less than that if the middle is flexy relative to front and rear.
Anyway, if the AP2 is 9% stiffer overall, great. If it's more like 4-5%, that's fine as well. But whatever the improvement was/is, it isn't/wasn't enough to make the Ap2 a faster autoX car until the CR came out.

As for the AP2's "optimized steering gearbox ratios", I'll keep the AP1 ratio (which the CR also has), thanks!

As far as I'm concerned, the biggest improvement with the advent of the AP2 was the rear suspension geometry change reducing rear toe-in with bump. The AP1 setup leaves something to be desired in that regard. Almost like it's designed to punish the uninitiated who LIFT at the first signs of the back end getting out of line!

 

I don't think so, but Honda played with the ratios. First in 2004 it was opened to compensate for the bigger wheels and given a stiffer bushing, and the EPS was reprogrammed, so it is supposed to be similar to the AP1s when all was said and done (stated by Honda). Then with the CR (and maybe all new S's?), Honda quickened the ratio, so they do turn a bit quicker.

Honda listed the changes from 03 to 04:
[QUOTE]
Steering Gear Ratio

 

"Steering Gear Ratio 14.9:1 (04) 13.8:1 (03) Tuned to match new tire size"

Note the marketing-speak! The slower steering ratio is "tuned to match the new tire size"? More like "detuned to reduce the likelihood of the uninitiated putting themselves in the ditch".

CR went back to the quicker AP1 ratio. Other AP2's have the slower ratio.