Hi all!

Thanks to all the great posters here.

I am looking to get a second car and give my jeep to my wife for her commute to school. I am deciding between an rx-8 and an s2000 and have pretty much decided to go with the s2000 but had a few questions:

1) Reading some of the posts here it sounds like the s2000 is "difficult" to drive (sliding out, bucking in first gear, etc.). I am 30 and have been driving for 14 years but have very limited experience driving stick. How hard is the s2000 going to be for me to get used to? Do i really have to be nervous about sliding out when I drive it? This worry seems like it would diminish some of the fun that the s2000 provides.

2) Without going into styling or practicality... what are your opinions about why the s2000 would be more or less fun to drive than the rx-8?

Thanks in advance!

Jeremy

 

Any car will get out of hand when pushed beyond its limits, and for those who don't know how to manage the car when at it's limit.

Whichever car you choose, learn the car first. Don't try testing its limits on the open road either... preferably an open lot, or even better, a driving/autocross course.

And don't try to be an F1 driver in the rain... that is when you get problems

And helping you decide on which car is more "FUN", I don't think the RX-8 can compete in rawness. I honestly haven't driven one, but I really haven't had the urge to want to try. Yes the S2k is less roomy and louder, but the driving satisfaction is hard to get elsewhere, unless you visit your local exotic dealer. (OK maybe an Elise would be better also, but you didn't include Elise)

Since you have the Jeep as a 2nd car, more room really isn't a necessity at this point in your life. Don't sell yourself short... Don't let a little thing as the car bucking get to you. If you KNOW how to drive the car, you should be fine.

But in the end, it's all on you! Goodluck

 

I testdrove an RX8 at the end of last month just to jerk the salesman around for fun. That thing is slow. Yes, it has a back seat which the S 2000 doesn't, but who cares? If you select the spare tire (which unbelievably is not standard), you have NO trunk in the RX8. It's handling is nowhere near that of the S's. It's a rotary engine, which in the past have proven to be somewhat unreliable and expensive to service. Not enough time on the new engines yet to see if it will have the same problems with cooling, etc. Do yourself a favor and buy the S 2000. Just don't go around turns near redline at full throttle and you'll be fine.

 

The S2000 can go topless. That increases the fun quotient quite a bit.

 

Why are we having this discussion?

The RX8 is a piece!! Rotary Smotary......it can't keep up. I blew the doors off of one with my wife in the car just last weekend on the 15N... It's heavy, it's got a rear seat w/suicide doors that you will never use anyway, it's not convertible.

I'm a chain smoker but have never smoked a cigarette while driving my S. The car demands your attention and it's the most enjoyable car I've owned. The ass will stick if you don't push it on the turns. Tires, spoiler, road conditions and most of all down shifting in a turn all play into the handling during cornering. Don't do it!

The S2k is the best car in it's class and out performs 90% of the competition you will run into on a day to day basis.

Make the right decision......don't be scurred!!!

 

no it's not difficult to drive. if you take a right turn and then you hit vtec you've better hope it's a wide right turn
if you drive normal then you won't slip out.
if you can drive a stick the s2000 is easier then most of the other stick cars i've driven(jeepwrangler - saturn) no you don't have to be nervous if you shift around 3-4k or push in the clutch until after the turn(acclerate at the apex and through the corner(speed TV)) i've driven a friends rx-8 and it sucks. i'd say about .7 seconds slower on a quarter mile. the s2000 is more fun then a rx-8 and the rotary engines are not reliable. plue we got a convertible top. chicks loves this car more (so if you feel like cheating on your wife and pick up some chick i think this is the car to go with) that's all

 

in order to get the RX-8 fully loaded itll run you a lot more money than an S2000
i was looking at gettting a RX almost bought one too but i fell in love with the S, cause it can go topless

 

Thank you for all of the responses. I realized I had one more question:

I am debating between getting a used 2003 with low milage (under 10k) or a new 2004. What reasons would anyone give for the 2004 over the 2003 (or vuce versa)? I know there were some changes to the 2004 (lower redline, etc.). How do people feel about them? The increased low-end torque sounds like a good thing...

Jeremy

 

I raced a pre MY04 from a low RPM roll (both of us were in 4th gear) and pulled over a car and a half length on him before we ever got into VTEC. The additional torque is significant. The car is easy to drive around town, despite all the hype that the S2000 has "no torque". It's got plenty of torque and is actually quite peppy out of VTEC. You just have to learn how to drive it and keep it in the right gear. Between 3-6k RPM, it's got plenty of passing acceleration without having to go into VTEC. If you want all hell to break loose, take it past 6k. Handling-wise, the MY04 doesn't have as much oversteer as the previous models. I autocrossed my MY04 last weekend and was impressed at how solid the rear was around turns near the limit. I ran some of the fastest times there on street tires and took 1st in the Novice class. Guys running R-compound and more experience were only running 3-4 seconds faster. This was my first time autocrossing the S2000 and I didn't get the rear end out on it once on any of my runs. Go with the MY04. You won't be disappointed. Having 800 less RPM to play with is no big deal to me. I know the MY00-03 owners wouldn't give it up, but I've never had it, so it doesn't bother me. It's still one of the highest reving street cars on the road at 8200.

Kris

 

Very well put. The 04 is daily driver friendly with all the high rev'n Vtec excitement you need. You can't go wrong either way.