Hi All,

As a new owner (still haven't even took delivery of the car yet) of a 2001 S2000, I would like to know if the wheels, rear anti-roll bar, the shocks and springs from the 2004/5 will bolt up directly to the 2001 chassis?

I am weary of the snap oversteer condition of the older models, and would like to know if is is possible to tame it with the 2004/5 suspension mods Honda made.

Any advice is welcome.

Trini

 

Yes, they will all bolt up.

 

The 04/05 shocks and springs are a little softer and help a little.
There are other things that Honda did to the AP2 to make the car more user friendly

 

Thanks for the info folks. The rest of the stuff they did I guess is doable one I know that the 04/05 stuff bolts up. Nothing much i can do about a lowered roll centre, but everything else looks like a plausible WIP to build it as close to 04/05 as possible.

 

You don't even have the car yet. It's not like its undrivable.
I would suggest going to a parking lot and find out how "snappy" the car is, see if it is really an issue for you. I hate it when someone mentions "snap oversteer". I'm not slagging you, but the term is a blanket excuse for not having enough driving talent, not knowing what to do in skid situation or mismatching tires (or some other mechanical thing). It's true that the earlier cars are less forgiving to driving mistakes and the unavoidable crap that happens every once in a while, but if the car is driven in a "reasonable" way, you'll never see this type of behaviour.

If you still want to mod for rear stability, you might want to consider the rear antibumpsteer control arm the GoFast sells (or maybe the J's, although I don't have any experience or info on it). Also, try out the UK suspension alignment, which essentially more rear negative camber. A bigger front antiroll bar will also dial in some safe understeer.

 

I'd wait, see how your car responds, and THEN decide if you have a snap-oversteer problem.


I did on my 2001 UNTIL I had a slightly more agressive alignment, and it TOTALLY cured that problem. Now my car is extremely forgiving and predictable in virtually every situation I've thrown at it (including rain).

You can search and find many others who have done this. Many use the "european alignment specs".

The one downside is more camber wear on the tires, as I see it.

 

Snap oversteer is a term used for people who can't drive the 00s - 2003s.
Take a performance driving course, that will have way more utility for you than changing the suspension to be like an 04.

 

I think your comment is inappropriate.

I certainly experienced "snap oversteer" in my 2001, where it was "unpredictable" in when it would break-away under power. What I experienced was an extremely fine line between controllable slide and complete lack of control. No warning - just loss of control.

By simply adjusting alignment (as I said in a previous post), this unpredictability disappeared, and I could easily control power-slides under many conditions.

I agree that a performance driving course would be great, but the snap oversteer can be real, and it can be a real problem. Not only unpredictable, but dangerous.

 

Hi All,

Thanks for the various comments and recommendations, especially on driving school. Wish we had one down here. Anyone want to come down for a weekend and give us a few pointers?

About the driving part - i do autocross, but a front wheel drive civic SiR that i still have and will keep till it stops rolling. Being one who has already flipped a car because of snap oversteer on same said civic, you can see why I am weary.

The S2K-2001 felt a bit unstable just on the test drive, maybe because its original rear tyres are a bit worn. And since this car was brought in directly from the UK, I guess I should already have that recommended "UK aligment". I'll check that when I get it tomorrow.

Have to disagree with most of you who say this car does not bite, when that is one of the major complaints I have heard against it, so much so that it seems Honda had to go tame it. I have a lot of learning to do getting used to rear wheel "instability", but heck, that's where the fun is going to be right?

That said, there are posts in other areas of this forum regarding tyre sizes etc. I have seen the recommnedation that if not using OEM tyres, then the rears should be 245/45 16s. Are S02's from Tire Rack Original equipment spec or should I be buying the 245/45 S02's instead of the 225/50? The rears have to be changed, and I want to do what's right!

Thanks again.

Trini.

PS

I won't be spending money "upgrading" it until l know what it can do, or more accurately, what I can /cannot do with it. For the most part, it looks and feels great the way it is. I actually want to make it safer if needs be. So I am just exploring the options from ppl. who have been there, done that.

 

Sorry, perhaps my 02 doesn't have this characteristic.
Honda changed the suspension a bit for 02, guess it helped

Another recommendation is to get more predictable tires where you can feel them let loose rather than the sudden S02s. I heard the Kumhos were good for this predictability.