Dear All,
Over a year ago a i sold 1st generation turboed MX-5 and thought to get S2000 instead.
After driving in 2 of those i didn't like it (link to my expirience) and went for 3rd generation MX-5.
I changed suspension, intake, whole exhaust system, got better brake pads and short throw shifter which make it much better and enjoyable than stock.
You can see details here: http://sites.google.com/site/crocweb...o/crocmachine2

During last year i made with it ~10,000km most of which were snake runs, twisty roads journeys, drifting sessions etc.

But now i got S2K bug again.....
I took a longer test drive on my friend's 2006 car (EU F20C engine) and in bottom line i liked it.
Fortunately my driving got improved a lot during last year and i could drive the S smoothly and quite safely.
Although VSA light blnked fiew times making me think whithout VSA it's a very close call for S to find itself around some pole
Now i'be pin pointed my past mistake - to be swift and fast the S should be driven above 5000rpm all the time.
I wouldn't say that after VTEC comes in i flet like a strong boost - but it definitely pools stronger.
Steering is completely dead and the only way to feel what the car is doing is throught the butt.
Breaks are there but shall be pressed quite hard.
I made highway, sweepers and slower turns.

Now i see that S2K is like a guided missle - it's built for much higher speeds - so to start getting a feel of a high pace i constantly went over 100mph.
even at this speed it feels like doesn't even start waking up.

On my way back to our local Rodster club meeting i took fast a 270 degrees intergange corner whith confidence and when i finished the trip i had my hart beating for half an hour more.

When other club member asked me to summarise S2K in one sentence i only could thing about "say good buy to your driving license".

And this brings me to the THE question - if i get it what can i do with it?
Sure it's looks sexy as hell and much more exclusive and it's been a dream of mine for a lot of years. Every time i see one i almost wet my pants (all rights on this expression are reserved to Jeremy Clarkson ) .
But i can forget drifting and we have here only two quite small tracks with ~40 seconds a lap all done in 2nd gear (looks more like x-crossing).

And to get with it thrill at public roads requires way too mad pace (ta least this what the law considers).
So i'm ocncerned that i won't be able to get the S moving at the pace that i would be able to enjoy the whole expirience.

Pls your opinion on what you think about this.

Gennady

 

The S2000 is a blast on short autox type courses... that is what mine is primarily used for... but all in all you need to decide if it fits you

 

The S2000 without VSA doesn't "find itself around some pole"; it is driven there by someone with more testosterone than skill.

 

If you're the type person who needs to drive a car at 9/10 or 10/10 all the time to get enjoyment, then the S2k probably isn't the car for you. You'll either wrap it around a tree or lose your license. The car's handling limits are just too high for the street. Many other cars are similar-- most Porsches, Ferraris, newer Vettes, etc.
There's a lot to be said for driving a car with lower limits at its limits-- lots of folks do that and enjoy the experience-- the Miata is a great car but it does have lower limits.
In the end, you'll have to decide which is best for the way you drive---me, I'm on my second S2k ( sold my 05 to get an 07 with VSA so I would reduce the probability of my wrapping it around a tree!)
you can't go wrong with either a Miata or an S2k-- they're both great cars-- just vastly different in driving characteristics.

 

Whatever roads or tracks you drive, S is the right choice. It's very comfortable @ low speeds & very rewarding to drive @ the limit. Very few cars in the world can out handle the S.(especially the CR) Forget thinking about it & just get one.

 

I never can understand why people act like driving an s2000 is very difficult andm your an immature you will kill yourself or something. Its a 240hp with no torque. Not a Ferrari. Drive it with confidence and you'll be fine. The car can be enjoyed with out vtec'ing its every shift. Put the top down and cruise and you'll still have lots of fun.

 

it's not the low torque--it's the extreme handling limits and the fact the car exhibits virtually no sign that the rear end is coming loose til it does that makes it challenging to drive at 9/10 or 10/10 ---that's what get's most folks in trouble---if you do a search on here, there are dozens and dozens of threads where folks (many of them experienced autocross drivers) have lost the rear end on the street and spun into a tree or curb
I do agree to just put the top down and cruise--that's what I do but that doesn't seem to be what the OP wants to do-- lot's of folks like to drive at 9/10 on the street all the time---if so, the s2k is not the right car for them

 

Out of curiosity, what were the torque and horsepower specs on your boosted miata? If that's the performance that's lingering in your mind as a comparison, it would help us get an idea of your expectations/needs.

 

i have no clue about torque figures buth my both turboed 1st generation and NAed 3rd generation suppose to have ~195% whp.
obviously the character is completely different:

1st gen was starting to pool from 2500 and full boost at ~3300.
with stiffened coilovers and turbo wistle it felt like a small rocket.
in a 5th (and final) gear iwas easily managing trafic from around 80kph it until the top speed.
whith it's light weight and go-kart feeling it was amazing.
being on a low tracktion limits but with tons of communications it was great great great fun.

but honestly - at snake runs stock 3rd generations were keeping pace with it no problem whatsoever.
another thing misleading about 1st generation - it feels much quicker than it actually is.
at 120kph it feels very quick and 140kph feels so fast like it will start coming apart.
i drove it at 170kph once and it was scary.

for the record - eventually the turbine gave it up and sucked all oil from the engine which killed it.
so i drove about 6 month with a stock engine - well, that's a good handling but pretty slow car having no guts ta all under 4500 rpm.
still fun - but for me everything became too much is "slow motion".

3rd generation, even with mazdaspeed suspension installed, is much less communicating (still much more than i felt in S2K).
it's very quick and you're heating 140kph at 4th gear whithout noticing.
but at this speed it feels fast and 160kph feels very quick with nose strting lift and losing confidence.

torque wise 3rd generation, even with full aftermarket exhaust system, has no guts under 4000 rpm. definitely not in 3rd gear or higher.
4000 rpm are fine but to be at strong powerband youn need to be at 5000.
with a red line at 7000 rpm the power band is not that wide to say at least.
worse thing that at 5-6 krpm it sounds like you're really trashing the engine - so if you care about your car you can't be there all the time without braking your hart.

in bottom line 3rd generation is fast. it doesn't feel as fast as 1st generation - but this very common to all modern cars (on my family sedan i do 140kph without any thrill, even 170kph feels normal and very confident - but can be way too bad for the license).
it feels more numb, decent grip (good tires are a must), still good communication and very predictive and progressive handling.
a fact that i always drive it with tracktion control switched off and never ever got myself at scrary situation tells it all.
and it's not like it planted all the time - i'm pushing hard so i do get ocasional understeer, more frequent ovestears and reare end loosing traction - but it always feels manageable and i after almost 5 years with both Miatas i had zero accidents.

on the S driving at 5000 rpm i didn't feel like raping the engine - even at 6000-7000 the sound is pretty OK whthout a hint that it's shortly will start to come apart - maybe that's because i didn't care about as much as it wolud be in my car?

 

I think your bound to get an S now and especially that its been a long time dream. S 2000 is one of those cars that once you have one , you wonder why you took so long in getting one. If you don't get one now you'll always wonder what it would be like to own one.