Old racer

I would never let an inexperienced driver behind the wheel of an S2000. They are just too unforgiving.

There was a story on here recently of a girl driving quietly to school in her S2000, who ended upside down, simply because the road was wet.

I definitely believe in starting kids in a manual rear wheel drive. If they don't get experience of them young they will probably never make the transition, just something with a bit less bite.

All my kids started with a late 1999 crew 2.4L petrol Hilux. Tough enough to stand a bit of ham fisted usage, & the odd bump, but not enough power to get them into trouble.

The eldest daughter quickly graduated to a 5 ton horse truck, so she could take her own damn horses to shows. However having seen her doing donuts in a muddy field in her current crew cab Ford Ranger diesel, she is not going to be let out of my sight in my S2000.

RMurphy

I don't have kids, and even if I did, I don't know your daughter. This decision can only be made by you and your daughter's mother. As far as convertible sports cars go, the S2000 is one of the safest on the road. However, there are other vehicles which are, by the numbers, "safer" vehicles.

That stated, no matter what kind of car she ends up driving, I am of the opinion that all young drivers should take one of these driving courses. And preferably in the specific vehicle which they will be driving full time. Stack the odds as much in your child's favor as possible by giving her as much education as you possibly can. The leading cause of death in teenagers aged 15-19 in the US is car crashes. If you want a sobering bit of surfing, just google this string: "highest cause of teen deaths in the us"

http://streetsurvival.org/
http://www.scca.com/about/?cid=44408
http://www.bondurant.com/courses/adv...eenage-driving
http://skipbarber.com/teen-safety-survival/

You didn't ask for advice or commentary on anything other than the safeness factor of the S2000, so I apologize in advance for my presumption in suggesting additional info unrelated to that specific question. I just feel like the most important safety feature in the car is the driver, and instruction and practice are the only way any driver becomes experienced and safer.

r03n_d

I'm approaching the age of 24 and own an s2k. It is actually my first car. However, I have driven A LOT of different cars since I was 19. I've also been on a slip course. But, I'm still a young driver, and most cars I've driven are frontwheel- or fourwheeldrive. The S2k drives awesome, compared to all those VW Golfs. However, manual transmission is the way to go in the netherlands.
You say that girls are more gently on the gas etc. which could be true. However, this could also get her into snap oversteer. Personally, I wouldn't do it. You should want a more forgiving car to begin with. When my parents taught me how to ride my bike, they didn't bought me a racingbike so I would learn it properly. They bought a 3-wheeler so I couldn't fall over.

not4s4l3

Another NO here. NOT FOR the first car, not without traction control..

Coloradocurt

Check into an 8th gen Civic Si (2006-2010). Has great possibilities for minimizing the potential issues you'd have with her driving an S2000, while providing really good performance and economy.

RedCelica

It would be much wiser to get her a miata first and let her graduate to an s2000 later imo, especially when considering an ap1. If this is going to be her daily driver too, you need to concern yourself with winter months and how ap1s trend in wet weather conditions...again, all things to consider.

Saki GT

Yes. We all know S2000s bite those that don't pay attention, and inexperienced drivers are high risk.

Having seen countless S2000s wrecked by 'inexperienced' drivers regardless of gender, I wouldn't put any new driver in an S2000.

If you want her to learn about driving, manuals, rwd, etc, I'd look for an older Nissan 240 that hasn't been destroyed or a used BRZ/FRS - coupe, decent power, generally safer to be in.

NSXLITE

So unlike most people in this thread I'm a 17 year old guy in NJ my first car is a S2000 CR. Now a lot of points mentioned here bring up good points I already knew how to drive stick because of dad, but I think the biggest thing that he did for me that made him feel safe and really helped was the first day of any new weather so snow heavy rain he went out with me and showed me what will happen and what to do if it happens. Honestly if you teach your daughter how to handle situations like hydroplaning, the tail slipping out, snow etc she should be alright. Also the comfort of knowing only one other person and can be in my car and I'll be focused on driving stick instead of texting really helped them. My parents knew I would speed the taught me that if I did speed do it where there are no other cars and to stay safe and slow down the second another car is seen there not stupid I'm 17 so they know I am stupid of enough speed, you said your daughter is responsible but honestly were teenagers just assume we speed. Yea the S2000 isn't the greatest car to learn how to drive you just have to approach it right and I'll gladly provide proof to show I really am 17 if you guys think I'm just some older guy over the internet. I say go for it, just teach her how to handle any situation the first day of snow don't let her drive the S make her drive something else when she gets home show her what happens in the snow, how to handle the situation correctly and what not to do and honestly she should be fine, first day of heavy rain same thing then show her what hydroplaning is how to handle it and what to do and what it feels like to hydroplane so she understands. This my 2 cents, you show her everything that can go wrong and how to handle it she should be fine, it really isn't such a big deal.

Moddiction

Not only a bad idea. A terrible idea imo. Priorities should be a safe, economical car. Buying her a rwd, no traction control tiny 2 seater car that if driven improperly can and will bite you in the ass is a terrible idea!

goldenfri

Another thing to keep in mind is that the insurance on a new driver driving an S2000 is probably going to be crazy high even for a girl.