pran

Hi everybody,

I'm new here and have got a question for those who have had their s2000s for a while. I'm seriously considering buying an S2000 to use as my daily drive, year-round. Unfortunately, I live in Ottawa, Canada, which has a pretty severe winter (worse than Toronto, very similar to Montreal). Do you guys think that would be completely crazy?

If I do buy the s2000, I would buy the hardtop, would use winter tires and rims and would even consider suspension mods to raise the car in the winter. I have never owned a rear-wheel drive car before, but am somewhat knowledgable about driving and have signed up for BMW advanced driver training and will take any courses necessary. I imagine that the S2000, given it's relative lack of low-end torque, would be somewhat well behaved in the snow as long as I shift at low-rpms. From talking to the local Honda dalers technicians, there is someone else in Ottawa who drives their s2000 in the winter (if he sees this I would love to hear from him).

Sorry about the long post, but I'd love to hear any opinions you guys might have. If I decide that the s2000 doesn't make sense, given the winter here, I will probably buy a 2-3 year old M3.

Pran
A RWD sports car fan stuck in Ottawa.

P.S. you guys have got a great board here; it seems like there's lots of good information to be found.

lvs2k

May I suggest you move a little further South, say, to Texas. We have ice and/or snow maybe once or twice a year. When that happens, my baby stays in the garage. My, haven't I been helpful?

Seriously, I know that some in the snowbelt areas of the U.S. have had pretty good success with winter tires driving in snow; however, it seems that many have a second "beater" car that's either FWD or 4WD to tackle the obstacles of winter driving.

A gentleman named Barry in Wyoming may be able to share his firsthand experiences with you on this subject. You might also use the search function at the top of the page to see what previous posters have had to say.

girlzrace2

This is something I posted awile back. My first experience with the s2k in winter weather. Lovely Chicago weather!!!!

In response to Rahvis. This past winter was an interesting one. Unfortunately I do not have a hardtop. But I was pretty disappointed when I heard that Canada had a special edition s2k with the hardtop all for around $34 thou. For us here in the states it was an option for around $3 geez. Being that this was my first rear wheel car, in the beginning it wasn't fun at all. My previous car was a 96 Gsr and I had Nokian tires on my stock rims. Those tires were awesome in the snow and rain. This would be the time for all those 4x4's to shine and I would pass some of these suv's up. Okay I'm exaggerating a little but it sure felt like it. I wish I had those tires on the s2k. I know that it wouldn't have created miracles but it would have made a bit easier. I would spin out constantly. Even with smallest amount of accumulation I could feel the car slide a bit. The temperatures were so cold that my tires were practically frozen. My car on ice skates!!! I finally got the routine and as long as I kept the rpms around 2000-3000 I had pretty good control. As long as the roads were somewhat salted. Salt oh how I despise Salt!!!!
As far as the back plastic window. Didn't really give me any problems. When it came time to remove the snow, I just used my gloves to brush it off. If it was frozen I would pat the window so the ice would break away from the plastic and pick up the ice. I admit It did take longer to cleaner off the snow, but I'd rather take my time than put an ice scraper to the window and have it all scratched up!!!! So now I'm on the hunt for a winter car!!

Girlzrace2
white/red 01'

Liebernoodle

I don't know what winter is like in Ottawa, but here in Ann Arbor, Michigan, they put tons and tons of salt on the road. Salt will rust any car up quite quickly. So if you value the looks of your S2K, I wouldn't recommend driving it during the winter or you'll find big rust marks creeping up from the bottom within a couple years.

teqeeler

Your going to making a big investment in this car and you probaly thinking that i want to get the sweetest car for my money but its gonna have to be a year round driver? well in my opinion i dont think you should drive it in the winter, i could not imagine what would happen driving it these maine winters up here, so i suggest that you buy the car and instead of gettin new tires, wheels etc, you drop down 3000 on a used car that will do the job for the winter, i bought a 1989 jetta in 1997 and its done the job for me since. peace.

Louie

Pran:

I think you should be fine with a S2000 yearround:

Here in Saskatchewan, I know first hand what driving in the winter means. We have tons of snow and icy streets with our -30 C temperatures (with severe windchills). I know there is one S2000 I see driving yearround. I know of a NSX that is driven yearround also but thats another story. From what the dealer told me, the S2000 guy put a set of Blizzaks on his car and gets around OK. I haven't talked to him personally.

Myself, I was confronted with this same probem. I also wondered whether I can/should drive an S2000 yearround in Saskatchewan. I ended up with a 99 M3 for various reasons other than the snow and ice problems. I have no problems driving the M3 in the winter with a set of Pirrelli Asymmetricos. The traction control (BMW's ASC+T), which can be turned off or on, also helps in the winter.

As you probably know, the E36 M3 is an excellent sporty compromise. The new E46 M3 is nice but will cost about $80,000 Canadian taxes paid. My 99 M3 has about 90% of the performance for about 50% of the price($45,000).

When my lease is up Aug 2002, I am giving up the 99 M3. Are you interested? As I said, it is an excellent car yearround. My next car? Either S2000 or Nissan Z car!

Good luck in your decision!

xviper

Got my car 1 week before winter hit. During that week, I scrambled around and got 4 aftermarket wheels (ADR 10 spoke for $195.00 each - actually looks nicer than the stock wheels) and 2 Blizzaks for the back and 2 Goodrich Winter Slaloms for the front. Drove it every day. The main problem is ground clearance. You can plow a certain amount of snow but too much and you'll get it all inside the grill hole. The car doesn't like really cold temps so you must plug it in or it won't stay running after the first crank. The heater is one of the best I've ever seen. Brushing the snow and ice off the back window is NOT a good thing. I have a hard top now so next winter should be fine. I'll be installing a seat heater before then, too. Calgary uses a lot of gravel (less salt than other cities) on the streets. I didn't get a single paint chip this winter. It wasn't till the Spring that I got a couple. I've just installed the 3M Scotchcal protective film on the front of the car. Shoulda done this long ago. Actually the car is a helluva lot of fun in winter. Next winter, I'll be able to put 5W30 or even 0W30 synthetic oil for the cold months and it'll probably run after the first crank even without plugging in. I just can't justify owning another 3 season car again. Been there, done that. And I don't feel quite "old" enough to drive a 4 door sedan no matter how fast it is.

S2kRob

I say go for it. This past winter was quite miserable and I saw several S2000's on the road. The most important thing is to take precautions. Remove the S02's as soon as the temps go below 40 degrees Farenheit, and get the best snow tires you can afford. Also, wash the car once a week, especially the underside, to get all the salt off of it, and it will come through the winter looking like new. Access to an AWD vehicle during snowstorms of course helps, but probably isn't absolutely critical.

The most important part, though, is to get out into a few empty snow covered parking lots and have a lot of fun! Learning to drift the car in a low speed low traction environment will undoubtedly help you control the car when the weather warms up and the speed rises.

cthree

I would never drive an S2000 through an Ottawa winter. Brrrrr! I would definately have a beater for the snow.

Nside

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Liebernoodle
[B]I don't know what winter is like in Ottawa, but here in Ann Arbor, Michigan, they put tons and tons of salt on the road.