[QUOTE]Originally posted by SiK182
[B]S2000 is an amazing car....But for handling, especially off pavement, etc..

 

General rule of thumb -- less weight = higher apex speed. Now after the apex HP and driving the proper (rear) set of wheels begins to play a bigger role. (This theory was proven out by the guys in a mildly prepped Miata carrying more speed through some turns (until Apex) than me in the M coupe last Friday.) I don't know if Speedy noticed the same thing -- he was too busy doing donuts for our entertainment.

Geez Miata bashing now? Miata +LSD + Turbo = Reliable 250RWHP = S2000 smoker.

I have played around in Miatas for years and still feel they have the slickest shifter out there (the s2000 being a close second).

Back on subject. Drive both. Seeing as I have no idea where east stroudsburg is I cannot say if I have any friends in your area that would be willing to let you take an extended test drive -- but you might post such a question on this and honda-tech.com ... you'd be surprised how many people are willing to share their toys with fellow car enthusiasts.

 

whatever [edited]....the WRX will beat the S2000 on anything.....[edited]....

[edited by pfb. Please refrain from this kind of language on this site]

 

Especially back to the shop for repairs....

 

Don't forget the noise! Tight, twisty, mountain type roads are often hard up against something big - like a cliff! And when you're taking an S2000 along in 1st-3rd gears at 8000-9000 rpm a good chunk of the fun is the echoing blast you're getting off the cliff-face. There's nothing like it in the world. Enjoy!

 

"...WRX will beat the S2000 on anything..."

2001 SCCA Solo II National Results
Best time (WRX) 52.843 - good for 7th place in G Stock
Best time (S2K) 50.379 - good for 2nd place in A Stock

Slip verified 1/4 Mile Results
Best time (stock WRX) 14.5 @ 92.72 - have heard rumours of faster (14.2) runs but no slips to back them up so far
Best time (stock S2K) 13.8 @ 100.35 - our own Sev

I'm currently looking for lap records for stock WRX and stock S2K from both Nurburgring and Laguna Seca. Suffice it to say that I'm confident of the results.


WRX is a great car, don't get me wrong. But you should be careful of wild generalizations (just as I would never claim that an S2K could beat a WRX on dirt, or that a $40k S2K could beat a $40k WRX in the 1/4 mile).

oh, and personal insults don't exactly help your argument or result in anyone taking you seriously.

 

oh
and i believe the countdown is continuing...

 

Oh yea
My crotch rocket motorcycle will kill you in the twisties
And my go cart will destroy you at the autocross
and my mother can beat up your mother.
WHO CARES
All I know for a fact is that I just returned from 8 days of driving every twistie I could find in California and I have never ever had as much fun and to me thats what it is all about. The S2000 is the most fun car I have ever driven and I would not trade it for anything. The trip was wonderful and we got to see some beautiful scenery and had a ball.
The car did every windy mountain road at speeds far in excess of what was posted and dis not ever ever even come close to its limits. After two years I love it more each day. If you love your car, enjoy it, if not sell it.

 

I think that many would agree that the 'limit' is not as accessible in the S2k as it is in a miata or integra (or M3, from my experience).

However, I also read that the tail twitchiness and oversteer propensity can be tamed by switching to a beefier front sway bar, to induce a bit more understeer. Anyone here do this?

Some guys on the racing forum stated that the change in front sway is absolutely critical for fast and consistent autocross runs. . . I'm guessing the same holds true for road courses too.

 

yeah, a lot of folks have gone to the beefier Mugen front bar and have reported more push as a result (which for many people is a serious confidence booster). for AutoX, however, the current trick setup seems to be one of the custom blade style bars. i'd guess a search of the 'racing and comp' forum will yield a lot of info on this subject.

i don't know if it would be as helpful for a road course as it is for AutoX, but i could be wrong (and much of this is personal taste of course). AutoX is so much more technical that risking death-plow understeer could be more palatable than risking windmilling off the course (grin).

i agree that the Miata is far more forgiving than the S2000 at the limit. the Miata is a wonderfully neutral and accomodating car. to use an analogy, a Miata is a speedy but stable and fun quarter horse while the S2000 is a tightly wound and perhaps overbred but super fast arabian thoroughbred.