I'm not sure you're qualified to make that statement. Have you ever even been on a track?

The video demonstrates EXACTLY what VSA is for, regardless of tire.

 

I am pretty sure the "light" indicates slip, VSA works all the time without you actually knowing to prevent slip.

 

If you do something drastic, VSA intervention is noticeable (once I lost the rear, VSA literally kicked it back in line). If not, VSA intervention is gradual, and the light does not come on. I like the fact that VSA allows a little slip for mini drifts.

 

Real talk? You joined in 01... you bought an AP1 because that was the only option available... There's 3 types of AP1 drivers as far as I'm concerned

1) The people that bought them when they were the only option
2) People that rebuy them for nostalgia factor (Either they sold the old S, or they wrecked it )
3) People that can't afford the newer AP2
or, I'll give you a number 4
4) The few people that buy a dedicated track car. Whereas that decision isn't based on a feature that can be turned off, but it's a lot more comforting wrecking an 8-11k car than a 16-20k car


Perhaps I'm going off wild assumptions, but I'm pretty sure the buying percentage of people who go "Well I've got 22k to spend on an AP2 but it has that one feature that I can turn off, so I'm going to buy an AP1" is incredibly small. Or maybe I'm understimating the power of ignorance. Then again, there's a segment of the population that think Obama is a muslim, so what do I know.

You bought worse tires... what did you expect? The VSA system is tweaked to the cars OEM tires (sizes, sidewall stiffness, grip@yaw %). You change those variables, and you change the equation. Getting worse tires was your biggest mistake. Beyond that, have you checked your alignment? Are you running US or UK alignment? If not UK, I'd suggest making the switch. You'll have more tire to play with under hard cornering. "I bought worse tires, and now I'm slower. Help!" Really?
I'm pretty sure you're wrong: http://world.honda.com/news/1997/t970702d.html - It's always prepared, but it's not constantly engaged.

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I'm going to go ahead and say this regardless of how PC it is or not...

1) There's about a .5-1sec delay between when wheel slip, and VSA fully engages. In that .5-1sec the only alteration is the torque output. I've never felt computer aided braking in the time between wheel slip, and the VSA indicator.
2) If you're driving hard enough to engage VSA consistantly you either have an alignment/tire problem, or you don't know how to drive. .5-1sec is plenty of time to react. If you're doing such driving your brain should always be calculating remaining effective grip %, remaining allowable throttle %, allowable steering input %, road conditions (including a change of direction through a turn), and if it's an S or such turn you should always be calculating the line that will allow you to exit the second turn at the fastest rate, not plowing through the first and trying to keep in control in the second, and how these all correlate into a seamless action.
3) If your brain is not able to constantly feel and estimate/calculate effective grip % and the like, please return to cruising main street, fast driving is clearly not for you.
4) If you're at the driving level of Shumacher, Senna, Gan-san or the like, and you're still engaging VSA constantly on the street, once again you either have a problem, or you're clearly going way too fast for public roads.

That's of course if you're driving right

I a speed junky, enthusiastic driver, am able to reach speeds and steering inputs that teeter on the border of "dangerous in public" (not because of a lack of skill or technique, because of the what if factor of public roads, and public safety given the speed) on modest HRTZ III tires without EVER having VSA interact with my drive. The few times i've had VSA kick on were for personal testing (induced) or I was VERY glad it did. There's a whole lot of guesswork, and unknowledgable yapping in here about something that can be turned off...

 

Yea I have, in my 04 w/o VSA, in the rain and dry. And in the wet I drove a lot harder with less drama.

If all he was intentionally sticking the ass out on every single turn to demonstrate that the car can...then okay. Otherwise he needs to learn some better throttle manipulation or get a 240 and join the dorifto crowd.

 

Just to clarify, the VSA is not tuned to OEM tire diameter, but rather as a function of difference in wheel rotation speed between the front and rear.

Setups that work just fine in my experience:

215/45/17 255/40/17 on OEM AP2 wheels
225/45/17 255/40/17 on OEM AP2 wheels
205/55/16 225/50/16 on OEM AP1 wheels
255/40/17 255/40/17 square setup
255/40/18 275/35/18 (don't remember the wheels)
235/40/17 255/40/17 on 17x9 17x10 949 racing 6ULR

Setup that did NOT work:
215/40/17 255/40/17 with the 215 on a 8.5" rim. The stretch reduced diameter enough where the car constantly thought the rear was slipping; it was so bad that I had to turn VSA Off to even daily drive. A simple left turn from a stop light would set it off. Yeah yeah, this was a temporary setup while I was waiting for tires

 

I bought mine in Feb. '07.

No nostalgia here, my first S.

I could've afforded a brand new one at the time, and now I could pay cash for a new Corvette if I wanted one.

240Z is my "dedicated track car", the S2000 is my daily driver and backup track car.

In the end, I didn't see the point in spending more on a newer AP2 doesn't offer any real performance advantages.
And I'm a huge fan of lighter weight, to me the original S was overweight at 2750. So in that regard it appeals more to me than the 2850 lb. AP2.
And I don't really want any nannies, either, but of course if they're turn-offable, no big deal there.
My ABS has been "turned off" for about two and a half years now (damaged sensor when replacing rear wheel bearings)...

 

Unless you can prove driving the same car you can lap faster times than him in the wet with less drama, that's not even a valid point. You can hear there wasn't a whole lotta throttle for it to kick out (course tires factor'd in a lot). For you to watch a video and say you can drive harder with less drama shows how much you know about performance driving at the limit. You can always achieve less drama by driving below the tire's threshold.

Anyways, the video wasn't for comparing how "I can drive better with less oversteer", it was comparing VSA intervention and how it can save the car from excessive oversteer that might get you in trouble. Trouble can range from a deer jumping out causing evasive maneuvers or pure stupidity.


BTW, you ever been to the track? Or are you trying to tell us you can drive a lot harder with less drama with your l337 street racing skills like everyone on the internet does?

 

I don't understand why the non VSA guys are so strongly against it? It's one of the best setups I've ever experienced in a car, not to mention you can completely turn it off unlike a lot of other ESC systems.

The fact of the matter is, people turn it off during auto-x and on tracks since the environment is much more controlled then the real world. You can never be 100% of the traction rating of any public street, especially in places like Arizona where roads can get sandy, or Seattle where everything is always 'a little bit' wet for 8 months a year. VSA can save your ass in those situations where reflexes, muscle memory, and driver skill simply won't be enough. At a track the most that would happen is a spin out. In the real word, there are ditches and trees.

It's not like it adds an exorbitant amount of weight either. It's a GREAT system which is there if you need it, and it SHOULD be on when you are commuting in traffic situations for the safety of others. It's great that you've had the car for X years and haven't had a problem. Those that did have a problem probably aren't on the forum anymore since they ruined their cars and moved on, so it's a bit of selection bias there.

Also I'm not sure how tire pressure sensor monitors are evil too? Those are also just plain helpful systems which really don't add much weight or complexity to the car.

 

Alignment is fine. If the VSA is perfectly attuned to the OEM tires, how is it that the PS2 tires worked so well but the Hankooks do not since the PS2s were not OEM? You seem to have an answer for everything else in the universe so please take a brief amount of time to enlighten a wee peasant.