Looking at a neighbor's white 08 with 30K miles. It has the red interior and that seems to be a factor in driving the price up a bit as for some reason white with red interior are desirable. Also looking at an 04 Sebring silver with black interior that only has 16k miles on it but is $1500 cheaper.
My preference: Silverstone with red/black, also any year prior to 06 as I value the idea of a car being as analog as possible particularly since my DD is a Tesla.
Not sure what to do... Not in a rush to buy but these are very decent options as I know the white one (lives a block from me) but prefer the silver (but a bit more of a PITA to acquire). Also just not sure how many S2K's with milage as low as 16k will come around moving forward.
Just looking for thoughts and ideas from the community as I ponder the idea.
FYI, the white one is gonna get listed about a week from now if I don't make a decision and buy it. Silver one could go any day but unlikely as it's at a dealer and winter is coming...

 

Get ‘08 asap. Do not pass Go, do not collect $200.

not sure what ask is on the 08, but it’s worth at least $45 and probably $50. With the red seats and white and 08, this is a low production spec.

The 14k mileage difference is nothing.

not even close IMO.

 

Qualification for my previous post: Assuming both have comparable underneath structures (no rust) and no/few mods.

If I had a chance at a white ‘08 with red, I would have jumped that quickly.

Unless you are doing significant track time, I don’t think you will be able to notice DBW on the 08 vs 04. The 4 year newer car will have 4 year newer parts all things being equal.

 

It's nice to have choices!

Color was not even on my 10 point priority list when shopping for a S2000 several years ago -- but I don't claim others don't put color high on their lists . My priority #1 was DBW (2006 and newer) to enable convenient tuning for significantly increased mid-rpm range power, followed by the usual condition, condition, condition standards which both these cars have. 2008 wheels and instrument panel are the pinnacle of S2000 styling and, frankly, make earlier cars seen dated when parked side by side.

-- Chuck

 

$1500 difference? Who cares at this point? I would jump on the 08 as fast as I could. Good luck. Frankly I like white a lot. Snappy with the red interior.
As far as tech goes, you can press a button and turn off the VSA if you prefer.
I rented a Tesla Y for 16 days in Germany and I still felt my 2009 was pleasantly low tech!

 

Prices are coming back down. What you said was true probably less than a year ago though.
The white is a decent deal at the price we agreed on and if prices snap back at some point I agree with you.
Right now it seems like low milage commands the higher prices, particularly sub 20k. The only reason the silver one is under $40k is because it's a trade at a Honda dealer and I think they know they're gonna sit on it for a little while if they don't price it fair.
I don't hate white car, I've had a few in fact but it's definitely not my preference. Silver on the other hand is. And I really like the low, low miles.
I think you're probably right about just getting the white one though. Only negative it had was that the drivers seat was a bit too creased on the egress side. Also, having owned a red/black in the past, it's strange to me that there's no red insert in the door panels to match the seats. Looked into it and that is in fact normal but it kinda irks me, red carpets, red seats but black doors... I'll probably get used to it.
Car is strong and in great condition too. The silver one is an unknown unless I fly out to see it but it has been fully inspected by Honda and has 16k miles so I figure how bad can it possibly be. Oh and also, it essentially looks brand new...
Decisions, decisions... Thanks for your input, you and the next few posts have definitely swayed me in the direction of just getting my neighbor's white one.
My only thought with the silver one is that as this time around it won't be my daily, it could easily be over 5yrs till I hit 30k in it. From a collection pov, having a clean sub 30k example going into the 2030s would probably be a good thing.
That said and from y'all's responses, clearly white/red is a thing and maybe that's more collectable.
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The VSA is definitely getting turned off unless weather is just monstrous (and even then, I learned how to drive in Canada so hell might freeze over before socal throws weather at me that I'm uncomfortable driving in).
Seriously though, regarding the analog thing, I just think that in an increasingly digital world the collectability of a clean analog yet modern car could be worth a premium years down the line.
I don't plan to ever sell this one unless I have to (unless to get a better one) as I've regretted selling mine since I did back in late 08.

 

DBW is kind of a turn off for me. The tuning aspect could be good but I doubt I'll mess around with this one much past eventually putting some super lightweight shoes on it.
The ce28's I had on my last S we're the best mod I ever did. I felt the difference more from those than all my other mods combined.

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$1500 difference between these 2 doesn’t seem right - should be more of a delta than that. Sounds like from what you’ve said the 04 may be overpriced and being at a dealer it probably is. Sounds like the white one is a bird in the hand and a car you know something about is worth a lot.

08 GPW with red, while not everyone’s preference, is the more rare spec and long term is more collectible……IMHO.

30k in miles is still low miles and if it’s been taken care of and has good structure, it’s the easy choice. My 08 is NFR and has 22,000 miles and many of the surfaces are like new.

Bottom line is get what makes you happy and drive it. Cars age and are meant to be enjoyed and no matter what you get, getting there is better than the destination.

Pick the best car even if it’s not what us in the peanut gallery say.

When you do, post your pictures.

 

Agree with all of that. I've never babied my car, like you say, they're meant to be driven. That said I always keep them incredibly clean and maintained.
The price difference is low because he's willing to take a loss on it. Ideally he wanted 5500 more than the silver one. But was willing to meet me at what I was willing to spend. I think he bought it in a whim because he has a white Japanese civic type r, a white Integra type r and an nsx. He also has an ap1 in Silverstone that he loves and in the end, doesn't love the ap2 as much. At least, that's what I'm getting from chatting with him. I don't think he's even put 1000 miles on it since he got it.
​​​​​​I can share some pics now but I'll have to come back and do that a bit later.