The S is my only car. It has been my daily driver for 2 1/2 years. The only time I found it to be too stiff was after I had surgery, the ride is a bit harsh when you have a large incision. I take my 80 year old mom on 5 and 6 hour drives. She is perfectly happy with the ride. You either like marshmellows or you like sports cars.

 

The only time this car sucks is in 90 degree heat, in a two hour bumper to bumper traffic jam with a stock stereo.

 

Being 600-800 pounds lighter certainly can't hurt the MR2 either

 

yeh, you should go ahead and get some progressive springs then, old man.

"many great sports and GT cars have very supple suspensions" ok, which one? Miata, it's a very sporty car indeed.

of course there are many factors to a great sports car, suspension, chasis, engine, etc.

but if you have a great engine and stiff chasis and have 1k springs and sways like crazy, i wouldn't consider that a sports car.

 

[QUOTE=plokivos,Apr 27 2007, 11:26 AM] "many great sports and GT cars have very supple suspensions"

 

I don't think the sprung weight is much of a factor, because both my wife's Benz and our RX300 can go over the same dip flat out. The real issue is suspension travel. Our front fenders look cool the way they seem to stretch out to cover the front tires, but the look compromises travel. On large dips and bumps, at speed, the S2000 simply runs out of travel. To my eye the MR2 looks like it's up on stilts, but when they hit a big bump or dip the suspension has enough travel to absorb it (up to a point of course).

I think it was in 1979 that we too the X-1/9 to the Divisional Runoffs in Atlanta. The event was held in a fairground parking lot if I remember correctly. Anyway, there was a huge hump in the middle of one of the fastest straights. All the Brit cars I was running against had to slow down over the hump, and even after slowing way down many of them where throwing sparks when they'd scrap hard things. My car, on the other hand, could be driven down the straight flat out and the hump could be completely ignored, because the suspension had enough travel and was well tuned enough to simply absorb the thing.

In contrast, our 9C1 Camaro was so stiff that the back end would skitter around over bumps you don't even feel in the S2000. As long as the road was smooth the 9C1 was leathel, and it was as capable on a smooth autocross course as the S2000. The X-1/9 was more capable on almost any surface, in spite of the power deficit (as long as the road didn't straighten out for too long ).

A supple suspension is really more about improved handling than comfort. There is a BIG difference between supple and soft, and suppleness is primarily a function of available travel.

 

I use mine as a daily driver and have had no problems with it. I dynamated the entire interior and trunk of that car, and have noticed a quieter ride. I think the write had to just be a stupid A&@. I love the car and love the high reving engine. Thats what i bought it for!!