Greetings. I got my S2000 a month ago, and now that I've spent some good quality time behind the wheel, I realize how very wrong some people are about this car. Two things really stand out in my mind:

No Low-end Torque: Where did this notion come from? My car has plenty of power under 6K revs. It's no V8, but the pull is satisfyingly strong. Even during break-in I was easily pulling away from cars at stoplights. I am perfectly happy with the low-end power this car offers. Is it because I came from owning a 1.6 liter del Sol VTEC? That car had no torque. The S2000 is vastly better in that regard. I don't want the S to ever have a V6, or a 2.5 liter four, or anything other than what it already has. It is perfect. Don't mess with it.

Unsafe Handling: This will ruffle some feathers, but here goes: What's the deal here? I've read this forum for months before my beloved S was finally delivered to me. You guys practically had me scared to take a corner in this car. To those who wreck/spin...How hard are you pushing the car? I mean no offense to you, but the car's limits are far higher than what street driving should allow. The car's stellar handling far exceeds what my cojones will ever let me achieve. You have to enter a corner insanely fast to lose it. I simply can't understand how people lose it in this car while supposedly driving it conservatively.


There are a few more little myths I've heard about the car, but these two are the major ones. Feel free to add any "myths" you might feel are worth mentioning.

 

Station,

I agree on both.

Power is good at all speeds. You can definitely tell the difference when VTEC kicks in, but you still have enough power to pass most vehicles without it.

I also think the car handles extremely well. Everytime I go out with some others I learn more about what the car can do. So far, I have seen some pretty spectacular moves around curves as a passenger in another S2000 at the Firebird International Raceway, without any problems. To me the problems are focused back on the driver.

I plan to take a performance driving class soon. In Phoenix we have the Bondurant driving school. Although it is probably completely different training than what I need for this car, I am interested in the executive protection/anti-kidnapping course. Just sounds more mysterious. Think about slinging a limo or SUV around a corner, into a 180 and then taking off. Kind of like the movie the Bodyguard.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Station
[B]Greetings. I got my S2000 a month ago, and now that I've spent some good quality time behind the wheel, I realize how very wrong some people are about this car. Two things really stand out in my mind:

No Low-end Torque: Where did this notion come from? My car has plenty of power under 6K revs. It's no V8, but the pull is satisfyingly strong. Even during break-in I was easily pulling away from cars at stoplights. I am perfectly happy with the low-end power this car offers. Is it because I came from owning a 1.6 liter del Sol VTEC? That car had no torque. The S2000 is vastly better in that regard. I don't want the S to ever have a V6, or a 2.5 liter four, or anything other than what it already has. It is perfect. Don't mess with it.

 

Your previous car does have something to do with it. You were accustomed to the lower torque output of the del Sol. If you had gone from a car with more torque than the S2k, you might really be hankering for some more engine displacement.
Good! In that case you should not add to the accident statistics, which may lead us all to pay higher insurance premiums. But, being a sports car, I don't think any of us drive the car like our father's Oldsmobile. And, it does seem that I have heard about more single car accidents in the S2k over the last two months that I've owned the car than I have about my previous sporting rides (Miata and E36M3) during the several years I owned them. I have experienced the snap oversteer. It is no myth. It does exist. But yes, you do need to be taking corners pretty quick to induce it or have worn rear tires or drive in the wet like you do when it's dry. I think the "unsafe" part comes in that recovery, once the limit has been crossed, is not as easy as in some other sporting cars...the Miata and the M3 were certainly easier to recover from mistakes than the S2k.

But, it is good that you find your new car to be everything you wanted and more!

 

I don't think those are really myths that can be debunked.

Yes the S2000 has no torque -- although in relation to a Civic it might seem as though it does.

Yes the S2000 has some oversteer built into the chassis, this is fun but not neccessarily the safest design.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by steve c
[B]I don't think those are really myths that can be debunked.

 

The car could use some more low end grunt (almost got a used BMW M-Coupe - ie. MUCH more grunt). But hell, who can complain about 9000RPMs???? I tend to agree though, the car is reasonably quick in low RPMs.

As for handling. The only time i've had an issue with a bit of oversteer was on my testdrive and today. Test drive I threw out the rear end of the car VERY unexpectedly entering a turn. Today, I pretty much provoked the same situation. Both times I think were the result of cold tires. Neither time did I have any problem controlling the rear end. To state the obvious, compared to my old 98 Prelude, the car handles MUCH MUCH better at significantly higher speeds on the back roads.

 

For those who insist on the "NO TORQUE" bull, get a clue;

Torque is directly related to displacement in a naturally aspirated engine. The S2000 is a 2 liter engine and has as much if not more than almost any other naturally aspirated 2 liter engine in production today. What it does have is substatially more HORSEPOWER than any other naturally aspirated 2 liter engine and almost everyone makes the mistake of comparing the torque statistics of it to other 240 HP engines. In this comparison it is always going to lose because NO OTHER 240 HP ENGINE HAS SUCH SMALL DISPLACEMENT and as we learned above torque is directly related to displacement in a naturally aspirated engine.

Compare Apples to Apples and 2 liter engines to 2 liter engines. In this comparison the S2000 is light years ahead of any other 2 liter naturally aspirated engine.

As far as handling goes it is meant for experienced drivers. Other cars have been "dumbed down" with understeer for the brain dead drivers of the world. The S2000 is designed to be a driver's car and requires a higher level of skill than other cars not so knife edge tuned.

Get it now?

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Station
[B]
No Low-end Torque: ....

 

Torque is relative. You need a lot of it to get a large mass at rest moving (i.e. GM V-8 cars). The S2000 has an insanely low curb weight....this is why even with it's meek torque band it still blows the doors off most cars in 0-60. This high power to weight ratio is also what gives this car the fun factor in the twisties.......

Utah