Car comparison/Test
 

My mate has just bought a vx200 02 plate 2.2 litre non turbo, thought id post my findings etc, as i was going to get one before the S. And few owners have gone/from to the vx200.

I had a go in it too.

Looks: I like it, looks like a sports car, nice blue colour and looks the business, love the fron but not the back.

Interior: Horrid, basic at most, i couldnt live without any elec windows etc. seats uncomfortable - allthough it probably isnt made to be a daily drive. Bit noisy too.

handling: Awfully bumpy in some part, but nice and responsive and sticks to the road - well good unbumpy roads.

performance: Fast, although it lacked the thrill and responsiveness of the S. Seemed slower?

We actually had a run up a road from a dig equally apart.

Intially was even stevens but by the time id chaning into 3rd i passed my mate.

overall i liked it, but not for me as a daily drive and no creature comforts. Overall i guess its a poor sportscar and in that sense thumbs up.

Poor sportscar but thumbs up? :)

MB

I went from an S2000 to a VX220 Turbo. I know what you mean about comfort and basicness! :) When I tried the 2.2 non turbo VX I found that it lacked grunt and felt no faster than my S2000 fand as you said once in 3rd gear the S pulls away.
I wasn't prepared to move from the S and accpet all the trade offs unless it had a performance hike which is why I went for the turbo. Plus the turbo has an easily tunable engine - I've gone for a stage 1 remap which gives 10% more power and torque and in reality translates to covering the ground 10% more quickly on the road.

I've had my VX about a year and wrote a review on here comparing the two (all in my humble opinion). I'll paste it below because I can't find the link. It's a long read though (and was written before I had the remap)...

How the S2000 compares to my VX220 Turbo
Based on a totally stock standard car.

I did say that I would do a more comprehensive report on my new car so here we go, this is a long one but hopefully worthwhile for those who take the time to read this especially as there have been a number of recent posts from people thinking of having a sniff at one and a number of recent S owners who have moved in this direction.

I came from 3 years of S2000 ownership in January and have done 5 months in the VX220 Turbo including a couple of track days, I had also done numerous track days in the S2000 and have had a driving professional drive each so I know what the cars are capable of.

It

Bugger me, you typed that in 14 minutes! :D

Very interesting review though, and the VXT is something im keen on trying, simply for the tweaking potential over the S or an Elise.

MB

No idea about the tuning abilities, i suspect something along the miltech, filter etc variety.

For me it would have to be the turbo vx220 and tune it!, must be scary with such a light weight too.

Full Miltech + charge coolers + remap (i.e. Stage 3), sticky semi slick tyres, adjustable dampers and you start knocking on the door of 4 seconds to 60.

For less than 5k extra spent and with no signs of chav/maxpower additions to the car you could embarrass some supercar owners. I am currently fighting the demons that are poking me this way :D

I just came from a 2.2VX to the S.

I'm not sure on speed, but handling wise the VX has it at the moment (at least until I get a little more sure footed in the S).

Praticality was the whole reason I chopped the VX in for the S really.

bare in mind these aren't as light as the S1 Elise... not far off 1000kg in fact.

but i still quite fancy the turbo.. all the others are gash though.. rubbish engines. remind you of anything ;)

Good comparison dws2000 :thumbup:

Your write up seemed pretty much how I'd imagine the two cars would compare and in summary; no brand value with either, sublime engine in the S and an excellent chassis in the VX.

This confirms what I have been thinking recently in that a top car in this bracket has to be a Honda engined Elise (S1 of course not the "lardy" S2!). Lotus brand (and it does have some value again these days), Honda power and the best chassis this side of track only car.

Now let me see how much is an engine conversion going to cost me........

Fantastic review dws2000.

Kinda tempted to take it for a cheeky test drive.