watch this video....thanks to someone else post.....


Top gear even mentions, if you listen closely, that the VTEC engines has proven to be really, really reliable.


The engine is rock solid. It's the person on the throttle and shifter that usually fcuks things up.

I say stay away from the S if you plan to drive it like a civic



http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=46...&q=top+gear+bbc

 

Tell you what...just ignore everyone's comments and look at the engineering and materials that make up the S2000 chassis and engine. When you compare these things with what is typically found in (even high performance) street cars you won't be concerned with longevity. That being said, even the best engineered and constructed vehicle will suffer from poor maintainance, neglect and abuse. So, if buying used be careful of the owner and demand maintainance records.

 

- You hear of more problems with 30k S2000s than stories about 120k trouble-free cars because they've only been produced for five years. Not many people drive 24k miles a year... and even if they do, they'd have to own a model-year 2000 to hit 120k miles already.

- The car is rock solid. You only hear of blown engines when people can't shift right and over-rev. That's a problem with any car... moreso with ours only because people drive them agressively, and the gear box is pretty tight. It's 100% driver error. If you can't trust yourself not to do this, look elsewhere.

- Yes, you will need lots of new tires. This is a problem with ANY performance tire. Most sports cars will burn through a set of stock rubber just as quickly as ours, unless they come with econo-tires you'd want to replace anyway. You don't want to put the same rubber on a sports car as on a Civic.

- You are talking about a motor-swap into a 10 year-old car when you want reliable? You're kidding, right?

 

Speaking of engine swap, you should go for it if you think the the 1990 vechicle of choice will be more reliable. At least the workmanship on your install with top notch


If you are under 21, worry about bigger things like insurance. The difference in your insurance rate will be enough to offset looking for a cheaper reliable car to insure vs. a more expensive reliable car to insure.

 

If you drive this car spirited, but with half a brain, this car will no problem. I am sure if I tried, I could kill the engine, but even Michael Schumacher says he doesn't like to light up tires and such because it needlessly wears down the car (passenger cars) and you can drive fast without doing all of that.

 

So true...

A sports car that is built so tight and well is few and far between. Drive a Boxster with 30K on it and an S2000 with 30K on it, with the same kind of owner, and tell me how well the Honda is made.

 

Like any car, including the civics, integras and crx that you've owned there are always non-owner induced failures. Rest assured the civics, integras, camrys of the world have as many or more failures than the S2000. If you have friends or relatives in the car biz at dealerships that carry those cars ask them what they think as they see all of them. Trust me that '85 CRX was a great reliable car but I saw plenty of them getting engines and transmissions at the dealerships (company owned 4 Honda dealerships) I worked at back then. You must remember that the internet has made more info available so you are more likely to hear about the problems than in the past. Also remember that the people with problems are more vocal than those with no issues. I know of nobody who is on a third engine that didn't cause the engine failure but there are some who are on the second engine through no fault of their own and a lot through driver error or abuse or modifcations.

There are a quite a few people with 100k+ on their S2000s with out blown engines, etc but there are far more of these cars that are driven about 5K miles a year as it is a second, third, fourth or higher car. You buy a used S2000 you take your chances like any other used vehicle so due diligence applies and get a PPI done by a mechanic who knows the car.

As far as the tires go welcome to the modern world of performance tires. You can put tires on that will last a lot longer than 8k-12k miles but generally won't have the stickiness you get with better rubber. You can also get a less aggressive alignment done if you wish but it is all a trade off for performance. My Porsche burns through rubber at the same rate as the S2000 while my truck and 4Runner use them up and at much more gradual rate. From what I have seen the '04+ burn the rubber a little slower than the previous models.

A lot of people burn a lot of oil other like myself don't have that issue. Good luck whichever way you go.

 

most of the engine failures I have seen on this board have been because of driver error (mechanical over-rev comes to mind). Also hydro locking because of a crappy CAI. I have not heard much of "my car just blew up on the way to work" stuff. If all seems to be related to the driver taking the car beyond its design limits. I think that as long as you drive it responsibly, it will be fine. Also, if you get a Certified Used one, they carry a LONG powertrain warranty, so if the engine just "dies," they will get you a new one, or repair the old one.

John

 

I have 92k on my 2001. My clutch is going but I have always felt that the clutch is a weak link in the s2000. I purchased my01 used with 32k and I have been to 3 track events, plenty of mountain drives and this car still loves me back. I could probably get another 20K out of my clutch by babying it but who wants to do that.
This will be my first major maintenance to the s2000. We have someone here in the Atlanta club that has over 150K with over 60K w/ Comptech Supercharger that also frequents the track events we have. Only thing he's replaced was the Clutch too.

Just do it! You won't be disappointed.