Well guys I have been thinking about the condition my S is in and being the perfectionist that I am, I can't continue to see my car like this. Now keep in mind that I am the second owner that this S has had and the previous owner didn't seem to have as much love for this car as I do. So let me see where I can start:

To begin there's the convertible top, my soft top is in need of replacing. There are rips that are starting to show right by the sides of the windows, where the doors open, and the top seems to be getting dryer and dryer. I wanted to know what was the most cost efficient way to fix this problem. The rear plastic window is in good condition, but the top isn't......

Secondly, there's my seats. My passenger seat isn't worn much, but the drivers is incredibly worn. I know that new OEM seats will run me allot of money, but i have seen on these forums that there are owners who seem to have gotten their seats reapulstered, and the final look is pretty good. So I was wondering what was the best route to getting my seats to look pimpin again, lol........

Then there's my front bumper, the previous owner didn't seem to understand that this car doesn't seem to have much clearance, so most of the bottom of the bumper is scrapped. As far as this problem goes, I am just going to replace it with either the Top Secret front bumper or the J's Style front bumper, I am leaning more for the Top Secret one. So where can I find these bumpers for a good price......

Finally there's my S's liquids that need to be changed. I need to change my diff fluid, tranny fluid, and engine fluid, seeing that my car has already reached 30,000 miles. My last oil change I went synthetic with Mobil 1 and I have no complaints, but when it comes down to tranny and diff I am not sure which liquids to go with. I was hoping for any suggestions concerning which lubricants would be the best, and where I might be able to get them done (of course I would buy the oil's and take it for them to do) since the oil change was a PIA to do last time........

I really appreciate any help that you guys can offer....

Thanks In Advance,
Revs9k01

 

Most of your questions are best asked in "Wash and Wax". You should delete those and "paste" them into a new thread there.

As for your maintenance questions, go to the "Technical" section of this forum and look at the top stickied threads. Check out the "Oil Journals" and the "FAQs ................. ". There, you will find the answers to the rest of your quest.

 

for the top, use "303 protectant"...gives it a great shine and protection.
for the plastic window, use "plexus (sp?)" found at boating stores.
for the leather, short of buying new seats, you can use meguires or mother's leather cleaner. it will take some layers of application over time but it will protect the leather and give it a new shine.
for the fluids, check the DYI threads of how to change the fluids urself.

 

Honestly, the stuff you mentioned doesn't sound too unusual for a S2000 that has decent mileage on it. My S2000 has 71k miles on it and has most of the "issues" you mentioned.

You can condition the convertible top and it will look better. I personally use Vinylex, but any good vinyl cleaner will work. It sounds like your car has wear holes in the top. There is a tendency for these to develop over time with use. All that really indicates is that the previous owner put the top up and down a lot.

The seats also tend to show wear over time. This is especially true of the S2000. The angle of entry causes people to put their weight on the side bolsters when getting into the car. Even if you replace or re-upholster the seats, they will likely eventually develop the same wear. You can try conditioning them with some leather conditioner, and they will look better. Vinylex also makes a good product for this.

The underside of the bumper gets scraped because of how low the car is. You can't dodge steep driveways forever. I wouldn't worry about it since few people are going to be looking underneath the car. Getting an aftermarket front bumper isn't going to solve this; if anything, it will make it worse. Not only will you have a lower bumper, it will be made out of fiberglass rather than polyurethane.

With regards to the fluid changes, do a search for "Lubrication Engineers" or "LE607" to see what folks are using in the differential. Mobil 1 Gear Oil (I think the weight is 75W90) is another choice for the differential, and it's what I use. For the transmission, many folks use Honda MTF, and another popular one is GM Synchromesh Friction Modified. I like the latter myself, but it's mostly personal preference.

Good luck..

 

thank you guys soooo much for your input. once again this web site and its members amaze me by their knowlege and help......