I was just reading the "S2000 gone soft" thread and chuckled at the MY2000 owners bleating on as usual!

Some have upgraded or replace their shocks... so fair enough.

But for the majority who have not, do you realise that after 7 years your shocks are probably so worn that your car will handle far worse then any new S2000.

On that note, I am starting to think about the need to replace mine. Any ideas how much this is likely to cost?

 

I didnt know about this generalisation.

Its funny that the fastest lap times with the s2000 were with the 99-01 AP1 on S02 rubber. One example it lapped Tsukuba quicker on mild-damp weather than what the 04 model did in the dry!

Since every revision it has gone progressively slower in overall pace.

Honda only made the handling different (i.e easier to control the rear end) but at the cost of reduced grip by switching to the harder RE050 tires.

 

nick, you car still feels pretty good on the handling front from the passenger seat. The dampers can't be that worn yet.

 

i think my car is 'worn in' rather than 'worn out'

i doubt any of the revisions make any difference to any of us in reality(although i'm sure some aspiring (dreaming? ) Schumachers (Hamiltons?) will argue the toss)

 

And they will, at length

 

The S2000 is much more of a predictable 'softy' these days. I get a little frustrated with it and don't enjoy the 'on-the-edge' dry weather spirited driving as I did with my 03.

I love the feeling of getting close to the edge and the harder setup of the suspension. Yes the tyres make a difference but it's no where near as big as some may think. IMO the loss of grip is down to both a softer suspension setup and tyre choice combined.

The 06 understeers quite a bit, I get it often in roundabouts, but it's easy to correct with a slight lift of the throttle which pulls the front in.

However, in the wet, the 06 is transformed and it's much easier to 'push on' with more predictable handling (I don't have VSA). This is down to the tyres. The S02's were pretty poor in the wet. I drove 43k of all types of driving with S02's and I have done 15k in the RE050's.

I think the 03 setup with the RE050's would be the perfect setup for me.

 

My little beast is coming on for 8 years old this september (date of first registration) and I am now having thoughts about replacing the shocks...

Rubber first though, I think I am down to 2mm

 

Well I'm thinking of replacing my 40k '05 shocks as to me they feel worn out and sloppy.

 

I can't imagine how that happened.

I felt mine were pretty worn after about 65K miles and 7 years. They'd be okay cold, but once warmed up things would get a bit too bouncy bouncy (and not in a good way).

And then there's the bushes which will wear out, and the geometry which will drift. Things deteriorate slowly so you don't tend to notice, then you replace everything and it suddenly feels great.

 

Nah, mine are actually fine. However at very high speeds they feel sloppy. And then you trundle around town at slow speeds and they feel ok.