Ok, the S is the newest on a relatively short list of cars that I've owned/driven regularly. I noticed that I hear a lot more ticks, pings, and other little noises while I drive the S than I did in previous vehicles. Haven't had any problems so far; bought it used and I've put about 3k on it so far including one 1k road trip.

Is that just the nature of the S since it has so little (ie no) insulation and sound dampening material, or should I be paranoid about every little tick and ping? None of them sound like they're coming from any particular section of the car, I just seem to hear more of the car than I'm used to. I don't want to be paranoid everytime I get in, but I also don't want to write off some problematic noise and have a problem down the line.

I check my oil religiously at every fill up and keep an eye on the tires, etc. I'm very familiar with the car, but I haven't ridden in enough of them to know whether these sounds are normal.

Thanks!

 

Hard to tell from your description, but my guess is:

1. After driving the exhaust is pretty hot, as it cools it makes a lot of funny sounds like you have described. Pretty much all cars do this.

2. You may be hearing road dirt and crud hitting the underbody while driving. Because the car is low, and you are probablt driving most of the time with the top and windows down, means you are going to hear more going on around you.

Overall: I would not worry too much, but if it gets worse or really starts to concern you take it to a mechanic or at least a knowdledgeable friend to hear what you are talking about.

 

and you didnt say whether the top is up or down...
i have only driven the car a couple of times with the top up, but can tell you that it is a lot noisier top up than down!
lots of normal engine and tranny noises that you dont hear without the top.

 

The S does make more noise than any other car I've had. Look for a local gathering, seriously, and listen to their cars after a ride, or swap rides. That seems to be the best way to tell what's normal NVH.

 

I doubt you are hearing anything out of the ordinary. Most 4 cyl hondas sound like sewing machines.

 

Well, I don't get many of the annoying interior "jiggles" that I've had with other cars. I find this refreshing. Top up, I hear creaks and groans and occasionally loud snaps when I hit bumps, but that's pretty much par for the course with roadsters.

Danny, I you can be more specific about the noises that you hear, they can probably be pinpointed. In any case, I doubt it's anything significant.

 

i can kinda understand what you are talking about. i think it has to do with the fact that the chassis and suspension is so firm that a lot of the vibration gets transferred to all differnent parts of the car such as dash, interior, etc. over time all these vibration causes things to get loose and thus more "ticking" sounds, etc. i live in the san francisco bay area and the roads that i normally travel on are not anywhere near "smooth", so yes, the suspensions, chassis, and the rest of the car gets a serious workout daily trying to absorb all these road "imperfections," and i can honestly say that the longer i've own my car, the more new "ticks" appear over time. i don't really think there's anything you can do about this, other than avoid driving the car on any rough roads that will "shake up" your car. aside from that, it is something we have to live with for selecting to own and drive a sportscar.

 

First off, let me specify that I drive with a hardtop on the car 95% of the time. Most of what I'm hearing, I can't even pinpoint exactly. I know I have the clutch buzz going on and I have a relatively loud exhaust, so those two pretty much drown everything else out at least to the point that I can't hear them well enough to pinpoint an exact location.

I think that what I'm getting at is that I feel like I hear the "workings" of the car more than I'm used to. I've owned 2 s2k's now and both seemed to have the same noisy personality. If I come up with an exact sound that scares me, I'll certainly come here first, but I don't think I've heard anything out of the ordinary.

 

well, in that case, we all hear those noises. yeah, the s2000 does not insulate the mechancial sounds created by the vehicle as well as others. this is all normal. it's a price to pay for a car that's designed with pure performance in mind, with comfort and practicality far down in its list of priorities.

 

Cool. Thanks for the help guys! Just wanted to make sure I wasn't being paranoid.