I am noticing some wear around the clasps on the top, I thought this was an 04 and newer problem, does anybody else have wear around this area in ap1's?

 

Absolutely! I have an 01 that is tearing pretty bad in the same area. Every s2k top has this problem regardless of the year from what I've noticed. From the research I've done it seems like a manufacture defect that just happens over time. I've had mine patched by a local auto top place and it seems to be holding up pretty good.

 

Soft top wear/ holes threads - the S2000 top is a defective design