I had a "pucker-inducing" spin last August. My stock tires had about 12K miles.....were not bald, but were worn. I was driving through Alabama on my way to Pensacola. I drove from no rain into a wall of heavy rain at the posted speed limit of 70 mph (perfect for the dry weather/much too fast for heavy rain). The visibility instantly turned to pathetic, and my instinct was to let off the accelerator lightly. I did not turn the wheel, but just the slight slowing combined with the amount of accumulating water on the road caused the car to lift up on the water. I proceeded to do a 720......one spin across the asphalt (left lane to right), and another across a (fortunately) wide wet grassy shoulder that had a decline, a dip, then an incline. The incline slowed me enough to prevent an abrupt meeting with trees. I was fortunate that the only damage done was bending the exhaust when I slid backwards into the dip in the shoulder......which gave me a good excuse to purchase the Spugen dual oval exhaust!

Moral to the story........you can spin even if you DON'T turn the wheel if you are travelling too fast and there is too much water on the road.

 

and you have 12,000 miles on your rear SO-2 tires.

 

You guys are forgetting that it is rear wheel drive and that is why it is alot easier to spin out. Most of the weight is towards the front of the car causing the rears to be able to come out behind you easier. I know our cars are well balanced but it I still believe this is the case. Driving a fwd vehicle in rain is a piece of cake and makes all the difference. I too have had 2 bad experiences in the rain within the first month that I owned my car and was lucky no one was around. This is the first RWD vehicle I have ever owned. Both times I put more gas then I should of while turning in the rain. One of them was a 360' and I was trying to make a light before it turned red and the second one I was debating on turning and if there was enough time to get across the road in a right hand turn and made a bad decision. And parked it on a curb.

 

I have said this before, the SO2's are dangerous to the uninformed. Most powerful rear drive vehicles are prone to oversteer but the SO2's create a bigger problem than is necessary on the S2000. Everyone that buys an S2000 can not drive it only when it's dry out. And, no, I haven't spun it (yet).

 

There is more involved here than just the RWD. We have an MX-5, XJ-40, an M-B E320, and a Nissan pick-up truck, all of which are RWD, and none of them are prone to spin even when pushed beyond the limits of adhesion. Also they all tend to give the driver lots of warning, so it takes a real boob to loose control, even when driving VERY hard. The S2k is different, in part because the engine is set further back in the chassis, which puts MORE weight on the rear tires, not less (as compared to most other RWD cars). It is the near 50/50 weight distribution, wide low-profile tires, quick steering, and aggressive alignment (among other things) of the S2k that makes it handle the way it does. Most RWD cars are far more forgiving. FWD cars are even more forgiving, especially if they have limited-slip. Any car, even those with traction control, will go out of control and may spin if the car is driven to fast on slick surfaces, and no surface is any slicker than water when the tires are hydroplaning.

The Benz is very sure footed on the interstate at 70 mph in a downpour. The same speed under the same conditions in the S2k would be potentially dangerous, especially on tires showing significant wear.

Another difference between the S2k and most other cars is that the S2k has a very low polar moment. Most of the mass is located between the wheels, so the car reacts very quickly. Think of a barbell with the weights on the end, as compared to one with all the weight in the middle. The bar with the weights in the middle will rotate with less force applied to the bar. Same thing is going on with the S2k, so under less than ideal conditions it can get away from the driver more quickly than cars with most of the mass at the front (FWD) or back (RWD mid or rear engine).

RED MX5

 

My next set will be the S03's as Florida has a lot of wet roads. Any opinions?

 

Yeah i was lucky enough Not to spin out.... i was having a new set of rears put on and they were showing metal those 2 weeks before when it rained my car would shake side to side while staying in the lane. I just had the khumo mx's put on with the same size tire width as the so-2s and im very happy with the setup.. So as a warning to any S owners Keep an eye on your rear tread!!! could be the difference of life/ deathof you/ your S!!!

safe driving!!!
thomas

 

My new 04 (3800 miles) was riding a bit stiff. I thought maybe that the dealer had left the shipping spring spacer's in my rear springs. I looked and found none. After reading about checking the oil EVERY fill up and checking tire pressure, I decided to check mine. The rear tires were at 37 lbs.... fronts at about 35. I reduced them all to 32 and could instantly feel the difference. The screwed up roads in DC didn't feel quite so bad this morning.
This site is a GREAT resource. Thanks everybody!

 

Hey wrkn4livn........you don't even know HOW MUCH we all get out of this site.

It is THE SOURCE for all your S2k questions/needs.

 

I've only spun on the dry race tracks by pushing too hard!

I think we just need to be real smooth that's all. Stay calm, don't try to change lanes, don't try to lift from the gas suddenly(the sudden shifting of weight forward will further help induce a spin)... just do everything gradually whenever you find yourself going too fast under wet conditions. S2k has this snap oversteer problem. Lowering rear tire pressure should also help alleviate this problem a bit.

Just couple of days ago I found myself going too fast going on a wet highway... decent amount of rain, 75mph... I did notice the car started to sway mildly everytime I change lanes... (I think it's because of the lane markers and the higher water build-up around it or something...) my rear tires are balding too..., but I stayed calmed and smooth and slowed down a bit and all is well!