Soon after picking up an 01' from auction a few months ago, I started doing some research at work(Honda dealer) on the S2000. I sold my old roomate one in January(an identical spa yellow 02') and quickly noticed differences. First the ride height was much different. About an inch higher on the 02'. The 02' was easier to drive but felt like it had less oversteer. Less fun. I checked our parts computer and the springs had changed from 01' to 02'. However the biggest difference was in the clutch engagement. The 02' is butter smooth, shifting like a Civic. The 01' is terrible in comparison, jerky and somewhat inconsistent. I feel like I have to concentrate on each uptake. Another trip to the computer and I found out that the clutch disk and friction plate have been changed as well. The system would not let me access info to the tranny. Moving further, I began looking in service for info on the TSB (00-054) regarding the tranny labeled(Buzzing from the engine or transmission while decelerating). Basically it says that the old clutch disk(P/N# 22200-PCX-005) is noisy(A two paragraph detail is supplied with the TSB) and the new one(P/N 22200-PCX-055) found in the 02' (Through extensive testing by Honda), is much less noisy. The thing I do not understand is that they changed the friction plate (The 01' P/N# 22300-PCX-005, and the 02' P/N# is 22300-PCX-015). So I guess what I need to understand is what will effect shifting feel. The disk or the plate? And is all this stuff interchangeable. Will just getting the TSB done fix both issues or should you have the plate changed while they're in there? It would be great if I can get it to shift like an 02'.

 

I had an '01 and now drive an '02 and the shifting is only SLIGHTLY smoother.

Ride height of the '02 is NOT 1" lower than the '01.

 

Dear Mr. WRS2K,

I know Seattle is really rainy but put your wipers on and read correctly. The 01' is lower than the 02' by about an inch. And thank you for agreeing with me that the 02' shifts better than an 01'.

 

my my someone got up on the wrong side of the bed!

i believe what he meant was : "they are both the same height."

when i picked mine up at the dealer, it was parked between an 00 and an 01 (salespeople's cars) and i noticed very little difference in height, even for a brand new car. 1/4" max., stock rims and tires on all three.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by eclipsevdr
[B]Dear Mr. WRS2K,

I know Seattle is really rainy but put your wipers on and read correctly. The 01' is lower than the 02' by about an inch.

 

Yeah, I'm skeptical about the ride height. Besides looking up part numbers, have you actually compared the springs between '01 and '02? For a ride height difference they'd have to be different lengths and/or different rates.

On the clutch/PP: mid-way through the '00 model year Honda started using the new clutch disk and 2nd-gear synchros. This helped the buzzing (somewhat) and grinding. They didn't change the PP, though. That the '02s have a different PP is not a big surprise, since the new disk hadn't addressed the excessive slippage ("weakness") that owners were finding.

What would be really interesting is if there were any gearbox changes for '02. Too bad your computer check couldn't dig up anything...

 

Do you think the spring spacers may have anything to do with the ride height difference?

 

I would tend to agree except that doesn't jive with this statement, "The 02' was easier to drive but felt like it had less oversteer." If it's spring spacers making the 02's ride height greater then I would expect them to be making the car more tail happy.