Hello everyone,

Short time reader, first time poster. My wife is looking at the S2000 as a replacement for her 2001 330i Sport. She has about 800 on-track miles (Mosport, Ledges, Mid-Ohio) and half an auto-x season under her belt, looking for a slightly faster, more focused car, not as hardcore as my autox car (a Superformance S1) but more so than, say, a 330i Performance Package or Z4 Sport Package. I suggested the S2000 because I have enjoyed running with them in the past (FWIW, I'm only one to two seconds ahead of street-tire S1s at most autocrosses. They really are great cars IMHO).

Our local dealer has a couple of '04s available... and two '03 holdovers left that he says "will be a great deal".

I do not want to start an '03 v '04 flamewar, I understand there have been plenty of those in the past. My question is... If I can get the '04 for $30,900 or whatever the "Special price" on the front page of this forum is (and the dealer is only 140 miles away), what would be a fair price on the '03? I was thinking that $25,000 would be fair, but I have no idea what incentives Honda is giving dealers to clear out the '03.

Does anybody know what the '03 incentives are? Those of you who have driven them both, which one would you rather use for autox/track work?

thanks!

 

25 is probably not going to happen. I got a leftover 02 for 29 and change - so i'd say 28-29 is realistic.

 

Someone in new Jersy got a leftover '03 for a little over $26K....

But then again, a dealership had a leftover '03 by me that wouldn't less than invoice for it...

It all depends..

personall, i would pay more than $27K for it....

I got my '04 for $30,800....

 

I think as a race car you would be happier with the '03. JMHO

 

i think all depends on which area, which state you buy it from.
25K for brand new 03 will not work anywhere in US, but who knows...maybe the dealer is on crack and will sell it to you for 03 but i doubt it.

you might get it for 29 but that would be hard too.
there are many people sell used 03 for more than 25 from private owner and dealers.
how do i know? i just bought brand new 03 instead of 04.

 

You can get an MY04 for $30k. What's $1000? The torque and hp increase is worth more than $1000. Plus you get larger tires.

You'll get more for your money with an MY04.

 

Let's put aside what you can or can't get an '03 for. What you need to do is go into that dealer and say look, I can get a brand new '04 for $30,995. It has a lot of changes, many of which I like (say this whether you like some of the changes or not). However, an '03 would interest me if there were a substantial difference between the two in price.

A substantial difference is going to have a different definition to each and every one of us, so you simply have to decide how many thousands an '04 is worth over an '03. (Not to mention the '03 is already a year-old car, even though its brand new).

 

What does your wife think? It will be her car won't it? Will it also be her daily driver? I think those that point out that the initial cost savings on the '03 will largely be off set by the lower resale value are correct. I drove an '03 early last summer and decided to wait to buy the '04. I'm quite happy that I did...

ron

 

So if you really want to understand the differences race wise pm Kitwetzler. He's a track driving instructor and has driven both the MY04 and the prior MY00-03. He turns in about 2secs better lap times with a MY04 than prior years. He'll be able to explain more....but I think he's in Tokyo for another couple of days. The big reason is when the power is available in the MY04 compared to prior years. Usuable torque comes on at 3K in MY04 versus 6K in MY00-03. The engine is just better for an autoX, even though you lose 800 rpms. Chassis wise....each is different, it depends upon your driving style, you can change the braces, sway bars etc, to have it drive as you want.

Pricewise I wouldn't pay more than 27500 for the MY03. I got my MY04 for 30100 so you might be able to do a little better on the MY04 price. It's about how much you want to pay and if the performance is worth it to you. I would reccomend your wife drive both cars and see which one she prefers.....

 

i would say 26 for the 03 and 30 for the 04