Rare S2000 Find Becomes One Man's Automotive Unicorn

Landing a Unicorn

For most of us, an S2000 is our idea of a dream car. From there, you've undoubtedly got your favorite options, colors, model years, etc. For S2KI member Kyle, that perfect car was a GPW S2000 with a red interior. And with the help of a fellow member, he finally landed that unicorn not too long ago.

Rare Find

At first, Kyle didn't really know what he was getting into. "At the time I wasn't aware of just how hard they were to find. I was willing to settle for a nice later AP2 and was actually ready to spend quite a bit of money on one, but luckily I found EXACTLY what I wanted." 

>>Join the conversation about Kyle's S2000 right here in S2Ki.com.

Patience Pays Off

After watching many GPW cars go for big bucks, the OP caught a break thanks to a fellow member. "User bzammit posted a link to a CL ad in Arkansas which was exactly what I was looking for. 53k original miles, IMMACULATE interior, overall mint body with just a few blemishes.

Mainly some damage on the bottom of one of the fenders that can be repaired by a competent body shop and a few dings and paint chips. All 10 VINs intact and a long history with just one owner and really only one more short-term owner after that. In my mind, it was as good as it was going to get unless I was willing to wait an eternity." 

>>Join the conversation about Kyle's S2000 right here in S2Ki.com.

Preservation Project

Despite this car's obvious rarity, it wasn't going to stop the OP from living out his dream, either. "Car is basically bone stock for now. I have a ton of mods planned for it, but I consider them all tasteful and preserving the car's originality. I will not modify a car in a way that cannot be reversed, and I refuse to modify factory wiring, sheet metal, etc. Fenders will not be rolled." 

>>Join the conversation about Kyle's S2000 right here in S2Ki.com.

Boosted Future

Those plans began with replacing a few stock wear items, of course. But there are much bigger plans for the future. "ULTIMATE goal is to send the car down to LHT for all of the goodies when I go supercharged, but for now I want to enjoy the car stock, then NA modded, and finally boosted." 

>>Join the conversation about Kyle's S2000 right here in S2Ki.com.

Little Things

Regardless, the build started off modestly enough with things like a black anodized billet antenna and Osram D2S CBBs. Then, replacing the OEM TCT with Billman's uni before little stuff like replacing worn O-rings, shifter basket, and shift knob.

>>Join the conversation about Kyle's S2000 right here in S2Ki.com.

Nice Contrast

Adding in foam insulator surround helped keep road noise out, while a fresh Alpine stereo helped crank up the tunes inside. The interior redo kept going with a DC5R Momo steering wheel and some red accent stitching for a nice contrast. 

>>Join the conversation about Kyle's S2000 right here in S2Ki.com.

Upgrade Me

Next, it was onto the outside where an OEM spoiler and red badges really turned things up in the looks department. And since the OP is a rather tall guy, he also nabbed a BYS lowering seat rail to make driving the car a little easier. 

>>Join the conversation about Kyle's S2000 right here in S2Ki.com.

Winter Blues

Unfortunately, winter reared its ugly head and halted progress for a full five months or so. However, that didn't stop the OP from ordering a whole slew of parts to install once spring finally arrived. And now, we're anxiously awaiting that to happen...maybe even just as much as Kyle!

>>Join the conversation about Kyle's S2000 right here in S2Ki.com.