Hey everyone,
First lets get one thing straight, I love to drive. Now that thats out of the way I'll state my dilema. Im a college student attending Cornell and residing in New Jersey. Recently my rents decided to start looking for a new car after our 91 Explorer basically died, having serious trannsmission, radiator, and oil problems. Now even though I drive a 2000 Honda Accord Coupe, a very admirable car I might add, my heart began to race with anticipation. Through some very smooth talking I worked out a deal, where if I put in a portion of the money, and give up my car that I have now, I get to choose and have control over the new car. Now, me and my friends are some serious car people. Between us we have an Alfa Romeo GTV6 2.5, a 1974 BMW 2002, an 89 Porsce 911 turbo, a 92 Porsche 911, and 89 BMW 540i, a CLK 430, and an S600 (an absolute beast).
Now for what I need the car to be able to do. I love driving street, yet want that good 0-60 time that gives you that little rush when you take a Civic or a limited edition Jeep to school, and not to mention a good top end (like max speed). I wont tell you how fast me and my friends occasionally drive, but I'll tell you that we've topped out my car and the CLK, so if you know the numbers, then you have an idea of what Im talking about. Another thing I want to maintain control of is how my car performs, so in other words, I want to be able to modify the car.
It should be obvious by now why Im posting in a S2000 forum. Im looking for information on what you think the best call would be for me. My choices are pretty limited, wanting to stay under 35 grand (hey if I could spend more, no offense, but I'd just buy a ZO6). They are, the S2000, the Subaru WRX (Im waiting for the STI with the 6 speed and hopefully 280 hp), the BMW 325 or 330, and the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII if it comes out. The S2000 is obviously a first choice, and what an awesome car it is.
So my question is how well does it handle in the snow and rain. I'm a college kid who wont abuse the car at all, frankly I'd break an arm to keep my car form getting scratched, but I need something that can be driven everyday. The Beemer is great for long lasting, but the rear wheel doesn't make it that good a contender (snow and rain), as well as its relatively weak numbers in the power department, even though its such a blast to drive. The WRX is an all wheeldrive tuner car, but Im not sure if it will compare to the joy of a 9200 rpm redline and Honda gears, let alone top end. So I wont right any more, but is the S2000 good in snow, and what would you recomend from the cars mentioned above, for my drive patterns and geographic location, and why?

 

Although I love my S2000, I would recommend the Subaru. Having lived near Ithaca I cannot imagine surviving a Finger Lakes winter in an S. You will not have as much fun with the Subaru but I feel the AWD is a necessity in that area.

 

If you're going to break an arm to keep your car from getting scratched, you're going to be breaking a lot of other things for driving that thing in the snow.

I was thinking about going to Cornell until I realized how shitty the weather is up there.

I would never consider the S2000 if it was my only car. If I lived in a place with bad winters, even with another car, I wouldn't have bought the S2000.

So there's my answer. If you can wait for the STi, then I can see that you have a couple of years to decide.

So if you're going to be up in Ithaca for a while, I suggest you wait until you graduate or just pick up an AWD vehicle right now... an Audi S4.

Good luck.

 

My wife went to Cornell. She says that you would never make it up Lib Hill in an S2000. She says to go for the WRX.

My wife's 2 cents,
Tanq