DaveB

Just wanted to go on the record and say how impressed I have been with the work I had carried out by Chris at Center Gravity. From making initial contact a few months back to getting all the bushes replaced in December and the car handed back to me my experience was top class and I have absolutely no complaints whatsoever.

I'm not the sort to recommend any old place to anyone without foundation. In the case of Center Gravity I would highly recommend it to anyone with any suspicions regarding their suspension and general handling of their car.

I've had my S2000 since 2004 and in that time I've always thought the car was a little skittish and unpredictable particularly in wet conditions but put that down to my relative inexperience of performance cars beforehand as well as what others had mentioned. I took the car to a local garage that used laser alignment gear and charged me about £100 to "adjust" my suspension which in retrospect had more of a placebo effect as I have since realised. However, in recent years I have come to the conclusion that there must be something wrong with my car. Reading much on this forum drew me to the conclusion that the issue was likely to centre on the bushes but didn't want to believe it. But I did further research on where to take it to get it checked out and eventually found Center Gravity and made contact. I didn't want any monkey looking at it - that clearly hadn't worked previously.

I took my car to Center Gravity for a Suspension Health Check first of all - arguably the best sub-£200 ever spent as this concluded I wasn't going mad and yes that all my bushes were totally seized, NSR camber high and the toe on the front wheels was effectively toe out rather than in - NO WONDER IT FELT UNPREDICTABLE. In Chris's words "it was a widow-maker". This check also highlighted that the previous alignment had actually made no change as the bushes were so seized. I bought my car from a guy in Hove (beside the sea) so this may have been a contributing factor. Chris made what toe and camber changes he could without shearing the bushes completely and took the car for a shake down drive with me in it before giving it back to me to tide me over until I could book it in for the 12 hours job to replace the lot a month later. Even in that month the car felt so much better - Chris assured me the car would feel so predictable with the new bushes and stock setup that it would be a different car. Have to admit I had my doubts but with the s2ki.com comments ringing in my ears I trusted him.

A month later I took the car in and did the geo again to get a datum before setting about the job together. Chris even lent me his personal family VW runaround for the night to go home and come back the next day. Chris is the sort of guy that takes his time to get things just perfect. Very enthusiastic, driven, methodical and more than capable of explaining the effects of each individual suspension metric on the way a car would handle - which helps if you like to understand how things work and interact like me. Together with his wife Jayne who looks after the business side of things, you're made to feel like you've taken your car to a friend rather than a get-them-in-get-them-out part time Laser Alignment garage. Alignment is their expertise. Job complete it was test drive time and boy-oh-boy was I in for a shock. Chris gave me a glimpse of the car's true capabilities as he took it out on the shake down run. Chris is a more than capable performance car driver so trusted him completely with my pride and joy. He then handed the car over to me and we drove back via a few country lanes for me to feel the way the car drove and also gave me a few tips to enjoy the car more whilst still within its limits. I was amazed and disappointed.
Amazed because the car felt so good yet disappointed that I hadn't had the work done 4 years ago when I bought the car. I have had to compromise my driving enjoyment due to car's previous state. But now it's fixed and just so confidence inspiring. Gives good feedback when nearing the limit. Whereas before the limit would have come and gone in a flash without warning, now I could feel it coming and can easily react in good time. The trouble now is that I'm effectively learning to drive the car again. Chris spotted that I was driving very conservatively but that that was down to the way the car reacted to any bump and hollow before the job.

I have already gone on for ages and could continue but I'll stop.

Suffice it say that if you would just like the re-assurance that you are actually driving a true S2000 rather than one that is compromised by poor geo, then I can advise you get to Center Gravity and get it checked out. You don't know what you're missing out on if you too are driving a Seized Bush S2000 (SBS2K)...

Dave

m1bjr

I also have only good words for CG too. I am a fanboy

Interesting point of note regarding latter comments about confidence and results.

The S2000 is considerably more stable in fast corners with the power firmly ON.
IF you turn in too fast or have a bad habit of feathering to the apex and then powering gently out they are loose.
Slower in and immediately off brakes and bang in the power.
Then the confidence will grow anyhow, a lot of the assumed instability id driver inflicted.

The Loon

How do you diagnose seized bushes? Is this something that you can do yourself without an expert's eye?

lovegroova

Essentially, you need to try to undo the bolts that allow you to adjust the suspension.

If a bolt is seized to the bush, both of them turn together. If free, the bolt turns and the bush stays where it is.

ch3tman

Great feedback!

Are you able to disclose how much 'the lot' set you back at all? As whenever Geo/Bushes is mentioned, its common to hear 'the cost is dependant on the condition of your car'. As you had 'the lot' done, it would give us a ballpark figure for a worst-case scenario..

scumboss

Mine was a 7 hour job and it cost me 600 quid. It was reduced from 700. I had new bushes on the back and obviously the geo. Chris is expensive but I would say he's also the best. That's his forte after all.

punchdrunk

It seems expensive to pay an intitial £200 and then book the car back for 12 hours or further work just to do the alignment. Peeps reading this will be put off as the cost seems excessive IMO

Tony at WIM did mine for £110 and while some of the bolts on my 10 year old car were stiff he managed it fine and the numbers were all dialed in no problems. He also mentioned that he has only ever come across 2 seized alignment bolts on the s2k - ever!

I've just done a search on the main forum and it seems that the UK cars seem to be afflicted by seized bolts more than any other country. Seems strange.

Anyhow, you're happy with the car so that's the most important thing.

Hollywood Wheels

DaveB, thanks for the great write-up, real food for thought. Out of interest, what was the mileage on the car when you took it in?

lovegroova

I've used both Chris and Tony for my alignments and they both do excellent work.

Their hourly rates are similar, but Chris takes longer over the job than Tony does, and includes on road assessments and so on, hence the higher cost.

Chris has worked on more S2000s than Tony, so will have found more seized bolts so far.

I think the UK has a "bigger" problem because of the awareness raised on this forum for good geometry settings. The UK is also the 2nd or 3rd largest market after the the US and Japan, and has the wettest climate and saltiest roads of those two (I think most US S2ks tend to end up in the warmer climes of the USA.)

eSeM

Tony also talks a lot less than Chris.