The S2k Xcountry drive
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Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 1,760
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From: Nor Cal (Humboldt, Ca)
The S2k Xcountry drive
I'm rather new here, although I find my enthusiasm for the S2k to be anything but.
I was already an avid Honda guy, having owned 4 different model Honda bikes and 5 total, and 3 hatches. I stumbled onto the S2000 in the other Honda forum about 5 years ago and loved the thing from that moment. Looked at every page and every car, but couldn't afford it due to life (read:teenage kid). So I backed off the delusion of grandeur and started looking at updating my hatch with an Ep3 (I know, I know, save the comments), because I love hatches. The more I looked around and talked with friends the more they discouraged me from making the purchase. So I began looking at my 92 Si with the determination to start a build that I could enjoy, both mechanically, and aesthetically. But once again it didn't make sense to drop that kinda cash into a car that I probably would never realize the total gains from. At the end of the day it would still be a civic, loved by me, but still a civic. And this is where the story begins.
After all the considerations given to buying the Ep3, and building the Si, I ended up here. After committing to the S2k (which didn't take to much prodding) it came down to color choice: Sebring Silver, New Formula Red, Berlina Black, and Grand Prix White. The first two colors were easy to eliminate, the silver went first due to the number of high accidents rates in my area due to weather and over cast skies. The NFR went next, and although there are some damn sexy NFR cars out there, I've already owned a red Camaro and there was no need to travel down that road again. That left me with the BB and GPW, and after going through both color threads the choice was a simple one, GPW. Some other factors played a part though. My hatch is black, and that thing is smoking hot even on not so hot days.
So the search began, assorted online car sales sites, forums, car dealers, ebay, local private sellers(what a joke), and in the end I found what I liked right here at S2ki. For some reason GPW white cars were popping up left and right and to my surprise so did interior colors. I was smitten almost immediately with Black & Tan. With 3 factors in place (color, engine, and interior) it really narrowed what was available.
An AP1 with black and tan interior in GPW was made one year 2003.
One car caught my eye. Location. Philadelphia, Pa. My location? Nor Cal, about 85 miles south of the Oregon border. I knew from the moment I saw his location I was driving that thing home across the country. A couple emails, and phone calls later to discuss price, parts, and flight arrival and its a go.
I live in one of hardest to access places in California. Population is sparse which means almost any and every thing to do with transportation costs more. A four hundred dollar ticket from the local airport to Philadelphia was only two hundred from Sacramento. A four hundred dollar savings for two tickets made the four drive hour to Sac an easy choice. So of we go...
Travel was as easy as it gets, smooth drive to the airport, easy check-in, a food purchase or two and seven hours later we touch down in Philly. It should be stated that I'm a west coast guy so things are a bit different in Philly than what I'm used to, but we'll get to that.
I gotta say that from the moment we stepped off the plane Kamui was fantastic. A gracious and down to earth host who was very knowledgeable about Philly, its landmarks, and its history. He's a bit of a night owl, so picking us up from Philly International at 11:30pm could have been direct trip to the hotel and bed from most hosts, not Kamui. He offered to take us around and show us the city. We had already discussed having a cheese steak over the phone and so that was our first destination... Its a funny thing because there are two competing cheese steak shops basically across the street from one another Geno's and Pat's we ate at the latter. It was weird, Kamui told us that it was coolest night in the last two weeks, we felt like it was pretty warm because where we're from the high temp of the day was one degree warmer than it was that night at about 71 degrees or so. We eat, and Kamui gives us the whirl wind tour of Philly, into downtown, the boat house, the modern art museum, and the steps that Rocky ran up in the first movie. Philly was beautiful to me (as cities go), it was mellow and a bit laid back from what I can tell, and being in an older city was noticeable and different from being in the west.
Time passed as it inevitably does and we were short on sleep and long on travel and it was decided that we should make a break to our hotel. Kamui offered to take us by to see the car before we made our last stop for the night as it was on our way to the hotel, and who's gonna pass on seeing the main attraction and reason for the trip? We go to his house and the car is parked outside, I should add that it was on some of the narrowest streets I'd ever seen, and every frickin' house touched like somethin' out of a movie ( I make a big deal about this because the only houses that touch in Cali are apartments, condos, and project housing). We arrive in short order, and I have to say that I'd only really seen pics of the car on the net. I liked what I saw from the pics, but in no way did they do the car justice. When I saw the S in person my first thought was, "I'm buying that?" "that's f**kin NICE!" The car is just pretty, I referred to it that way then and still do now. It was love at first site.
Kamui starts to show me around the car and offers me a short ride, we mount up and leave my girl standing on the corner In Philly holding a parking spot (sorry baby). And the Vtec does go Bwahhhhh! Haha great stuff. Kamui and I have a little conversation on the quick ride down the highway at 1 in the morn. All is well, a quick park in the saves spot, and we head off to the room and the next day can't get here soon enough.
I was already an avid Honda guy, having owned 4 different model Honda bikes and 5 total, and 3 hatches. I stumbled onto the S2000 in the other Honda forum about 5 years ago and loved the thing from that moment. Looked at every page and every car, but couldn't afford it due to life (read:teenage kid). So I backed off the delusion of grandeur and started looking at updating my hatch with an Ep3 (I know, I know, save the comments), because I love hatches. The more I looked around and talked with friends the more they discouraged me from making the purchase. So I began looking at my 92 Si with the determination to start a build that I could enjoy, both mechanically, and aesthetically. But once again it didn't make sense to drop that kinda cash into a car that I probably would never realize the total gains from. At the end of the day it would still be a civic, loved by me, but still a civic. And this is where the story begins.
After all the considerations given to buying the Ep3, and building the Si, I ended up here. After committing to the S2k (which didn't take to much prodding) it came down to color choice: Sebring Silver, New Formula Red, Berlina Black, and Grand Prix White. The first two colors were easy to eliminate, the silver went first due to the number of high accidents rates in my area due to weather and over cast skies. The NFR went next, and although there are some damn sexy NFR cars out there, I've already owned a red Camaro and there was no need to travel down that road again. That left me with the BB and GPW, and after going through both color threads the choice was a simple one, GPW. Some other factors played a part though. My hatch is black, and that thing is smoking hot even on not so hot days.
So the search began, assorted online car sales sites, forums, car dealers, ebay, local private sellers(what a joke), and in the end I found what I liked right here at S2ki. For some reason GPW white cars were popping up left and right and to my surprise so did interior colors. I was smitten almost immediately with Black & Tan. With 3 factors in place (color, engine, and interior) it really narrowed what was available.
An AP1 with black and tan interior in GPW was made one year 2003.
One car caught my eye. Location. Philadelphia, Pa. My location? Nor Cal, about 85 miles south of the Oregon border. I knew from the moment I saw his location I was driving that thing home across the country. A couple emails, and phone calls later to discuss price, parts, and flight arrival and its a go.
I live in one of hardest to access places in California. Population is sparse which means almost any and every thing to do with transportation costs more. A four hundred dollar ticket from the local airport to Philadelphia was only two hundred from Sacramento. A four hundred dollar savings for two tickets made the four drive hour to Sac an easy choice. So of we go...
Travel was as easy as it gets, smooth drive to the airport, easy check-in, a food purchase or two and seven hours later we touch down in Philly. It should be stated that I'm a west coast guy so things are a bit different in Philly than what I'm used to, but we'll get to that.
I gotta say that from the moment we stepped off the plane Kamui was fantastic. A gracious and down to earth host who was very knowledgeable about Philly, its landmarks, and its history. He's a bit of a night owl, so picking us up from Philly International at 11:30pm could have been direct trip to the hotel and bed from most hosts, not Kamui. He offered to take us around and show us the city. We had already discussed having a cheese steak over the phone and so that was our first destination... Its a funny thing because there are two competing cheese steak shops basically across the street from one another Geno's and Pat's we ate at the latter. It was weird, Kamui told us that it was coolest night in the last two weeks, we felt like it was pretty warm because where we're from the high temp of the day was one degree warmer than it was that night at about 71 degrees or so. We eat, and Kamui gives us the whirl wind tour of Philly, into downtown, the boat house, the modern art museum, and the steps that Rocky ran up in the first movie. Philly was beautiful to me (as cities go), it was mellow and a bit laid back from what I can tell, and being in an older city was noticeable and different from being in the west.
Time passed as it inevitably does and we were short on sleep and long on travel and it was decided that we should make a break to our hotel. Kamui offered to take us by to see the car before we made our last stop for the night as it was on our way to the hotel, and who's gonna pass on seeing the main attraction and reason for the trip? We go to his house and the car is parked outside, I should add that it was on some of the narrowest streets I'd ever seen, and every frickin' house touched like somethin' out of a movie ( I make a big deal about this because the only houses that touch in Cali are apartments, condos, and project housing). We arrive in short order, and I have to say that I'd only really seen pics of the car on the net. I liked what I saw from the pics, but in no way did they do the car justice. When I saw the S in person my first thought was, "I'm buying that?" "that's f**kin NICE!" The car is just pretty, I referred to it that way then and still do now. It was love at first site.
Kamui starts to show me around the car and offers me a short ride, we mount up and leave my girl standing on the corner In Philly holding a parking spot (sorry baby). And the Vtec does go Bwahhhhh! Haha great stuff. Kamui and I have a little conversation on the quick ride down the highway at 1 in the morn. All is well, a quick park in the saves spot, and we head off to the room and the next day can't get here soon enough.
