Hi,

I am a new member and have been searching for the right S2000 for a few months now. In my city there are few S2000s that pop up for sale and generally 1/2 are salvage title and 1/2 are older or higher mileage than i'm looking for. Recently two cars have come up that were closer to my expectations, but I keep finding issue and getting cold feet. Am I being too neurotic about finding the 'perfect' S2000?

Here is the story behind two recent cars.

1) AP2 <50k miles, gorgeous...well maintained paint, pristine interior, well maintained top, etc. Take a test drive and don't notice anything unusual, car feels good and owner has good service history. However an issue arises and i back off from the purchase: Car has been flat-towed for ~5000 miles. Owner tried flat towing in neutral and lost his transmission, dealer replaced transmission because they told him he could tow it that way. With new transmission he still wants to flat tow and decides to tow with the car in gear. He's probably flat towed it about 5000 miles this way. Most everything I can find says flat-towing will result in damage so I just cant feel comfortable with his car even though i didn't notice anything during the testdrive.

(Another potentially related observation is that his rear right tire is much more worn than the rear left, I start to think the differential could be damage from towing)

2) AP2 <50k miles. Good condition, a bit older than car 1 and not in as good of shape but still decent. Car feels good on the test drive but produces a noticeable thud when going neutral to first gear. Otherwise shifting seems smooth, clutch seems to have less travel and require a touch more force than car above. Read up on the thud which online reads to be 'normal' for a lot of cars, but cant get over it because I have not noticed that same 'thud' in the other S2000s I have driven (5 cars). Also the seats and door cards are a different color combo and had to be swapped at some point, worried about theft but title is clean.

For those in the know, especially mechanically, on the S2000. Am I right to be passing up these cars in pursuit of 'perfection' or should I just grow a pair and buy something?

Thanks for your input and newbie bashing.

Cheers.

 

My PO (personal opinion):
Considering you are about to spend several thousand dollars and, assuming that you are not independently wealthy, it does seem reasonable that you would want to buy a car that is in good condition and about which you have no misgivings.

There is no such thing as a completely perfect car, but if you aren't sure about a vehicle, you shouldn't buy it. Has nothing to do with various body parts having descended or not. Get a PrePurchase Inspection done on any car you plan to buy and that will certainly help with regard to peace of mind.


Moderator advice:
When you find a car about which you want advice (Is it worth it?), post it on this thread and request feedback: https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/953...-thread-vol-2/

 

Welcome.

When you get the car check out the link in my signature for new owners.

 

Welcome! I would also pass on both of those cars for the reasons you cited.

 

Your money, your call. If you're not finding what you're looking for you might want to cast wider net.

 

Like everyone has said there is no magic formula for these cars its your money so buy what you are comfortable with. If it was me I wouldn't worry to much about the perfect car there is none. These cars hold up really well and you can beat the crap out of them and they will still last 100K+ miles. Mine has 164k on it and I beat on the car every chance I get. Although I am putting her up for the my new build I hope to be done with buy the start of 2015

 

if you find one you like, just make sure to get a good assessment of what will need tending to. there will not be a perfect car especially if you are on a budget. be realistic on what you will have to face when buying a used car.

 

That thud going into first gear is completely normal on all s2000s. I dont know the actual mechanical reason for it, I've read it before. It has to do with something that was spinning in the tranny coming to a complete stop once on gear. Very common

 

Thank you so much