I tend to go about things rather methodically with a fair amount of care not to mess anything up when it comes to the S2000. Even if I wanted to run a hard top, I would never consider manually lifting one on and off of the car as an option. There is an older thread around here where hard top hoists were discussed. My recommendation in that thread was to find a way to adapt a Harken Hoist (as it turns out rpg51 did). Obviously there are plenty of other suitable ways to make one of your own.

LIft/Hoist for Hardtop 2017

The video shared at the beginning of that thread was priceless. I still laugh when viewing it today. If ever there were an argument for a hoist system, this is it.

 

To each his own...I love how it looks, really do, but can't justify the cost for an OEM. I asked my original owner about the hardtop and his words were quite clear: If you want a hard top, don't buy a roadster. For me, I am good without it, but I do love looking at those that do have it.

 

I don't want to come across as resentful of people who use hard tops on their S2000s. In my case I only drive the S during nicer weather when the top can come down and I don't take it to the track so my needs are going to differ from others. I don't dislike the look of the OEM hard top. I actually think Honda did a very good job with that design. But I can certainly relate to the thoughts shared by the previous owner of your car. The fact that Honda designed the S2000 solely as a roadster remains perhaps the single most important aspect of this car for me. I'm old enough that a "sports car" equates to a somewhat spartan two-seat roadster. The emphasis is strictly on the driving experience with the wind your hair. (Some would say that the motorized top is a bit much, but given that Honda was primarily targeting the Z3 and the Boxster I suppose it's understandable.) By that definition, an equivalent car with a fixed hard top was considered to be a grand tourer (GT) where there was a bit more emphasis on comfort in addition to the focus on performance.

What is somewhat interesting to think about is if Honda had offered the S2000 as both a roadster as well as a fixed-roof coupe like they did previously with the S600 and the S800. If they had done so, would the fixed roof have followed the same lines as the OEM hard top, or would it be more of a sloped hatch design as with the previous S cars and so many GT cars in general?

 

With a hoist you can have your cake and eat it too. Some of the tracks I drive to are 6+ hours away and with no hardtop, no bueno.

Here's another shameless plug for this electric hoist I put together. I can have the hardtop on / off in less than 5 minutes. Understood it's not for everyone but time invested was well worth it:

 

Uhh, hey Deckoz. Nice AP1 in Spa Yellow you have there. Oh and nice hardtop.

Let me know if you'd ever sell the hardtop. I can't find a Spa anywhere... Hell, I'll even drive across the country for it!