I used to own a 1995 Toyota Camry Coupe. I had replaced the whole suspension, it was kitted (with functional aero parts, and it was a great daily driver. Despite that, it was definately missing something I wanted in a car. I knew i needed a manual, but there was more to it than that.

I used to work at a Honda dealership and had driven the S2000 on numerous occasions. I found it to be fairly fun, but I hated convertables and really loved the G35 Coupe.

Then came 2007, the year from hell. The woman I loved, and had lived with for three years, left me on my birthday. Two weeks later she called me to tell me she met a new guy who was "just like me". Every time i was in my car (the Camry) all i could think about was her...There were a ton of memories attached to the car. I began to feel like I needed a fresh start. A week after the breakup I slammed into a deer on a back road, nearly totaling the camry. I was furious, and began thinking seriously about pushing the car into a river. I kept the car for several months after that, but I had lost the love for it. Then it happened, I slid the car off the road and destroyed the suspension. I went the very next day and traded the car in for my S2000. I took the S for a test drive and it just felt right. I knew I had found my next car (they had a G35 Coupe at the same dealership). I bought it and never looked back. Almost a year later, I love this car even more than I did when I bought it. There is nothing quite like being mid corner at 7000 rpm accelerating to that musical 8200rpm redline. Once I get my hardtop It'll be perfect .

 

The Fiat was a fun car to drive. I replaced the engine with one from a Fiat 2000 but ya it was great. The S remindes me a bit of it. Targa top too, always leaked but who cares I was young.

I would buy another one if I could find one in excellent condition it was that much fun.

 

ECale3: Dang, man. Incredible story! I totally empathized with you, must've been rough times - car troubles after a breakup is just like lemon juice on a stab would..

ikeyballz: beautiful SS. I've always thought the LT1 SS'es looked best - the LS1s look too muc hlike catfish to me. The LT1 motor is.. well.. like jekyll and hyde. When it runs, it's fantastic, but once you get a misfire or exhaust leak, it'll never go away and you'll hate it! To answer your question, the vette is an interesting creature. A lot of it feels like a smaller, tighter f-body. It basically feels like a 2 seater camaro with a STIFF one piece frame, no rattles, no windnoise, and a 50/50 balance that lets it handle. It transitions on a dime with NO body roll, and when there is slight body roll, it's only to make the outside tires bite into the ground and slingshot you the other way. It handles REALLY well - does exactly what you tell it to. It's planted, and has loads and loads and loads of grip. If I dive into a decreasing radius turn, I can keep the same speed, and let the Gs load up. And where the S2k or mr-s would have spun out (and the z28 would have spun long ago), I can keep going, and even give it some gas to accelerate out of the turn staying planted the entire way. It's *the* best performing car I have ever driven. However, it just doesn't feel right. The steering is identical to a camry's - light, overboosted, with no feedback. The seats are comfy, but in a la-z-boy way. They're so plush, that the messages coming through the chassis get soaked up in the seat, and you end up just bouncing up and down as you go over bumps. The sound and torque are great, and turn-in is crisp, planted, and does exactly what you tell it to - but that's the problem. I feel like I tell the Z06 what to do, wait a split second, and it does it without complaining. In an S2000 or NSX, *I'm* the one maneuvering the car, and it becomes an extension of my body. In the z06, like in the decreasing radius turn example I gave - I tell my friends it's all a very "religious" experience - because you need lots and lots of faith to get you through. It doesn't communicate much at all, and you just have to trust the car. I only really felt the 1.0+ gs in a turn once I decided "ok, screw trying to stay planted, I'm going to MAKE this car spin out." I still have yet to spin the z06, so I guess I need to try even harder to make it spin, haha. It just goes! Stubborn little bastard.

Anyways, thanks for all the write ups, guys! I absolutely LOVE reading people write about cars. I've wasted entire work days just googling S2000 (or other fun cars like boxsters) car reviews and reading them all. This thread has been a real treat.

It's great to read your views and stories, and I really appreciate you sharing. Keep 'em coming if you got 'em!

 

First had a 96 eclipse GST fully built engine turbo etc. Was a lot of fun, but fwd and lots of power and torque just don't go so well together. Suspension also sucked so was not a very nice daily driver and vibrated like crazy.
Was looking mostly at a 350z and an S2000. Also thought about a mustang cobra.
The S2000 felt really slow the first time I drove it. Was hard for me to to rev it up, just felt wrong at first. So decided to keep my Eclipse. My Eclipse starting breaking down and I got fed up. Test drove one again(solo test drive this time) and just felt awesome! The feel of the car is better than anything I have driven before. Not fast but not slow either. Handling is awesome, top down is nice too and I think it looks gorgeous.
Made up my mind and couldn't go with anything else.

 

Hehe, you're like me - I wonder how many others felt the same? Where the S2000 isn't really impressive on the first test drive, but the more you get to know it, the more you start discovering its hidden talents and barrels full of awesomeness.

 

About 12 years ago I used to track with non-road-legal cars. I spent about 2 years running on the track, mostly open wheels, 100-150 hp and 1,000-2,000 lbs vehicles. I've only had one driving school, Bob Bondurants performance driving class in Arizona.

A few years later I went to college and did the whole fwd turbo thing with a 1997 integra GS-R and 2000 prelude. The S2000 came out right around then and I really wanted one but couldn't afford it.

I still loved the track and driving on the road wasn't doing it for me so I went the sensible/mature route and got a 4-door economy car (2002 Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V). I ended up riding motorcycles for my speed fix. From 2002ish on, motorcycles took over my life. I rode them 365 days a year in NY. I'd take road trips on the bike in 25 F degree weather and would commute on it daily. I even did several "long" trips (30+ days, x-country, one backpack, no highways). The sentra became my "have to haul stuff/people" vehicle and barely got driven.

Fast forward to summer 2008. I'm married and my wife leaves her very well paying job to get a master's degree at George Washington University. Of course I move with her, we leave NYC. I sold my motorcycles to help finance the move and because we don't know where we're going to live yet and I'm not going to just park the bike where it might get stolen or worse. Besides, the new job in DC isn't motorcycle friendly.

To help alleviate my minor depression of not riding anymore my wife suggested I get a fun car. I've always liked S2000s for their high redline and reputation as a good handling vehicle. Plus I could take it to work.

So in Sept of 2008 I sold the Sentra and bought a used 2000 S2000 with 100K miles. Right now it's my little project. I daily drive it and it runs great. It shifts smooth, no strange noises (other than clutch buzz), but it's cosmetically beat up. I bought it from a guy that used it as his daily (his weekend car was a Porsche), it's been parked outside all its life and street parked 5 days a week. It only used to get washed at those automated washes with the brushes, so the paint is in bad shape and there are numerous door dings.

All in all, I'm very happy with the purchase and I'm slowly bringing the car back into great shape. So far I've changed all fluids, 4 new tires, replaced the TCT (wasn't making much noise, but it's an easy and cheap job so I did it anyway), new clutch + flywheel (SCT HD Pressure Plate, Street Disc, Prolite Flywheel), and new speakers/head unit (that plays MP3s from a USB drive...who uses CDs these days anyway?).

Next up is a new top with glass window (hopefully this spring), paintless ding repair, re-dye the seats, and maybe a brand new paint job sometime in the summer. And any regular maintenance stuff that needs to be done...brake pads could probably be replaced in the next 5-10k miles...

 

I figured I'm young enough to get away with something this impractical. I'm 24, single, unmarried, and do not need to haul much stuff around. I have the rest of my life to drive a hatchback or sedan.

Love the convertible, and it's a great way to pick up chicks. :-D



It was also sort of a quarter-life crisis car.

 

[QUOTE=kertong,Dec 1 2008, 10:44 PM]I'm curious - if the s2000 wasn't your first car, what car did you own previously?

 

Some bastard stole my Prelude. For someone who appreciates Honda's the s2k is the natural upgrade from a Prelude...so actually the bastard who stole my lude did me a favor by forcing me to buy the car I planned on buying anyway. He's still a bastard though.

 

yeah the more you drive it the more you appreciate it