Dave1980

I am thinking of new cars to change to from my scooby. One thought other than a e36 m3 evo is a Honda S2000.

Bearing in mind i am over 6ft and well built. Does anyone around my sort of height/build have one. I know i can drive an elise but its relatively cramped. Presumably the Honda will have a lot more room.

Also whats the engine like as compared to a scooby, i know Vtechs are revvy engines buts whats the s2000 one like. Does it have good midrange?.

Probably going to use the car a lot as i may be changing jobs and get rid of the company car.

Ta
Dave

turboman786

Saxoboy is your man for s2000s...Im sure he'll give you the full lowdown!

Dave1980

well lets hope he answers soon then. might find a honda garage and have a closer look.

Brun

If you've got naff all to do today, why don't you go and have a look?

Dave1980

on my way to honda tommorow.

turboDean

iTrader: (4)

My mate was considering a E36 M3 Cab back last year, when he drove one he was very disappointed with it, in the end he bought an S2000 and is very happy.

94impreza

I love them and have done since one gave me a run for my money a while back lol. I hear they are revvy like the ITR but i'm not sure about the interior size and whether you'd be comfortable driving one. I've been trying to talk the mrs into getting one for a while now as she likes the look of them.

flat4_ire

Im 6ft2 and very well built and i wasnt comfy at all in the s2000! head was hittin the soft top and my knees were up on the dashboard! Great cars but id never buy one, its the kind of car id love my missus to have, if u get my drift

LG John

Sorry for the delay - I've been busy in the house today

I'm 6 foot and 14.5 stone and had no problem fitting in - I could have been a little fatter and taller and still been ok. Whether you feel comfortable is up to you so you'd be best to try and get seated in one.

The engine is an absolute gem but you must be willing to work it. Thankfully the gearbox is also outstanding so snicking up and down the gears isn't a chore. To give you an idea of how willing it is if you are doing 100mph drop to neutral, blip the throttle and select 2nd gear it will go. You'll blow the box/engine/both, lock the rear wheels and crash but it WILL go!! There was many times I'd be coming into a hairpin and effortlessly drop back to 1st. I tried that the other day in the scooby and it wouldn't entertain it until my speed had dropped to near crawling pace.

Vtec engages as 6000rpm; generally if you stay above this rapid progress can be made. However, it pulls harder and harder towards the red-line so if you want maximum progress I'd generally try to keep her above 7000rpm. For overtaking drop in at 45000rpm she'll pull like most 2.0l saloons but you really won't make stonking progress until vtec. Flooring it in 6th at 70mph and you'll be left by any modern TDI. I'd drop to 3rd here but 4th would do for 'keeping up'.

I'm now back in a 305bhp STI-5 (for financial reasons) and I won't lie that the pull in 3rd gear from low revs is useful and fun but the S2000 could make similar progress if I worked her. To try and keep up with the mid-range punch of a classic STI through the twisties is really missing the point of the S2000 IMHO. Last weekend I took the STI out and drove tight narrow roads until the brakes gave up the ghost and started smoking! I had a great time but that joy was derived from the continous assualt on my senses and from the sheer ability of the Subaru to make progress. I could not have kept up with myself in my S2000 as the subaur is just too capable on those roads. It would be fairly close though....

The truth is though - I'd rather have been driving the S2000. It's more challenging, it's more rewarding, it's more fun and it leaves you feeling like you did the driving. The added bonus is that you get a lot more per £ as well because that little blast cost me £20 in the Impreza on fuel and would have cost around £10-15 in the S2000. The S2000 is also cheaper at every other turn in the road as well (servicing, consumables, etc).

I love the Impreza for what it does and I love the S2000 for what it can do. It's my character that I prefer to pat myself on the back after an excellent drive than to pat 4 toyos and some diffs. For that reason I prefer the Honda

I'd suggest you try the car but I warn you that it'll take several hundred miles before you'll even get close to thinking its a worthwhile car. The lack of shove (i.e. the feeling of speed) will convince you its ****-show and the handling will seem ordinary. Once you learn to rev her to within 10rpm of the limiter in every gear whilst working the handling hard and remembering to check your hair in the mirror then you'll appreciate it

jameswrx

iTrader: (4)

The drivers side is ok for a six footer but the passenger cell is cramped in the shin area for a taller person.

Great cars though.

I think the car drives like a 150bhp 'gti' sort of car at low'ish revs then obviously has more guts over 6krpm.

SiDHEaD

I'm 6 foot and fit in mine ok!

The MY04 onwards has a different shape door card, so a little more room !

Janspeed

iTrader: (1)

S2000= At least 1 crash per owner.......and are as common as 7-11s

SiDHEaD

hmm twaddle talking... nice.

fwiw only something like 7500 into the uk ? yeah sounds well common.. I can go days without seeing (another) one.

Janspeed

iTrader: (1)

Guess so, but here in the south of Europe, they are as abundant Puntos, in fact they crash as much as the old Punto GT too!!

CraigH

Probably ex subaru owners who can't drive but think they can

LOL @ "and are as common as 7-11s"

In England it's the same with Imprezas.

shustir

Good write up Saxoboxy

Just makes me think though, would I want to be revving the absolute nuts of my car to make any sort of reasonable progress. Do I want to have to rev up to the 10,000rpm red line to have any decent performance. Do I want to drop down 2-3 gears every time I want to overtake.

Or I would I prefer to just give the throttle a prod in whatever gear I am in and still have good accelaration. Would I prefer to just rev up to 5 or 6000rpm and have made good progress.

Personally speaking I would rather have the very accessible performance of STI. The S2000 sounds like you really need to work it hard to achieve anything.

scooby_matt

I think that's the appeal. I know i'll be trying one in a few months time when i'm in the market for a replacement for the Scoob, purely for this reason.

f1_fan

iTrader: (9)

Oh the irony when every chav and his mate has a Scoob these days.

LG John

They are crashed a fair bit because they are a real drivers car with no nanny aids! Unfortunately 99% of drivers can't drive/respect a real drivers car. I took a great deal of time to learn mines as it was an expensive car for me and I was mindful of thier reputation. It was also my first RWD car. I found it exceptionally forgiving and capable and it occured to my that the VERY vast majority of these crashes will be driver error or driver arrogance. In terms of vehicle unpredictability that may lead to a hedge moment I'd actually say the STI is more dangerous - it sometimes reacts in ways I just would not expect but the S2000 you always know where you were.

As for common that is simply not the case in the UK. I see probably in the region of 20-30 Subaru's to every S2000.

Shustir, switching gears about is honestly part of the experience of the S2000 and everything about the car encourages you to do it. It's just the character of the car and I never found it a chore. If you assume I was doing 50mph behind a lorry in a 60mph A-road. I spot a reasonable gap and I'm in 5th gear in the STI; I'd still have to drop down to 4th to make it unless it was a sizeable gap. In the S2000 I'd have to drop from 6th to 3rd but in either case you'd have to change gear.

The engine also is more than willing to hold high revs. I've held over 7500rpm for minutes at a time waiting for a tiny overtaking opportunity; it doesn't sound stressed, just mean

John57

I came from an S2000 to a WRX PPP and have gone back to an S2000. Why ? There was nothing wrong with the Scooby - it did everything really well and was quicker than the S2K at legal speeds ..... the trouble was it just wasn't anywhere near as involving as the S2000 - and before the turbo cuts in the S2000 is actually zippier !

Under 6K the S2000 is perfectly adequate. Over 6K it is fun and as Saxoboy states just gets better and better the nearer you get to the red line. It is not a chore to drive under 6K - it just goes much better above that mark!

A good 10+K miles are needed to start loosening up the engine though - low mileage examples do feel quite slow. The Honda dealer I use said a 50K second hand example they were selling absolutely flew in comparison to a demo one ..... most Hondas seem to like a bit of mileage on them before giving their best. Gearbox is great as stated but do be aware it takes about 20 minutes for the oil to warm through and before that changes from 1st to 2nd or 2nd to 3rd can feel like the clutch or gearbox is not working properly.

I would not want to go back - I am driving slower but getting much more enjoyment + roof off motoring is great when the weather allows and superb when you go out on a cold winters morning with the heater on full!

FWIW I am 6'1" and 15 stone - and have no problems fitting the S2000. I agree with the point about the passenger side though .... not that I sit in it (unless drunk being driven home by the wife)

Best thing to do is to go sit in one and then have 2 test drives - regardless of how the first one feels get another booked for a few days later. Thats what I did to try and get a good feel and be able to think on it for a week or so.

Dark Blue Mark

I would do a search for one of the few hundred other S2000 threads

I have given up trying to convince people of the benefits of an S2000 - some people just aren't able to see past bhp figures, and they are best left to it. I used to argue back when someone told me my car wasnt quick - I dont need to. Just let them keep on their merry way!

I think the Evo will be off soon, going back to an S2000 to mod it

MB

nickwrxstiV2

I've just gone from a Version 2 STI circa 320bhp to a standard S2000. I thought that I'd really have to work it hard and that the low/mid range would be shocking. As it happens, it's not that bad at all. When you hit Vtec it's brilliant, there's no sound like it! Very twitchy in the wet though! Becareful!

My advice - take one out for a spin, hopefully on a sunny day, you won't look back!

scooby_matt

I'm in the same boat as you were (320 ish bhp). Does the s2k feel slow compared to the scoob, and is the "fun factor" enough to make up for any loss in performance?

LG John

Yes it does feel slower! My 300bhp+ STI-5 feels sooooooo much quicker because of the brutal way in which the boost comes in. But its not that much quicker than the Honda - it just feels it.

SiDHEaD

The thing i find is although it doesnt feel quick, if you are willing to commit in the corners (dry) it goes and goes. Its rare to have to slow for any (normal road) corner in the dry.

Dave1980

some interesting points there, i have driven the civic type r and was impressed when the v tec kicked in although below that it wasnt particulary special.

going to get on the blower and book a test drive. is there much difference between imports and uk models?.

LG John

The jap import is said to have 10bhp more but I'm not sure whether it would achieve all that on 95-v-power fuel as the japs have 100ron. I don't think any of the positive differences are enough to outweigh the negative such as alarms, resale, etc.

Flatcapdriver

You're going to struggle if you are north of six foot and well built. The cabin is cramped and you do have to duck your head with the roof down and personally I could never get comfortable enough on long journeys. I'm 1.91/96kg for comparison purposes.

The car is great fun for caning it but that's all its good for, so you have to be prepared to rinse it every time you drive the car, although advocates will point to the VTEC (marvelous though it is) it can be a pain on the motorway when you have to drop in down a couple of cogs to keep up with some farmer fuelled shopping trolley. Same applies in town - lack of torque is a disadvantage.

It can be quite skittish in the wet which can be entertaining but when you simply want to relax. Again, if you're in the mood its a very entertaining car but there are times (more often than not) when you simply want to get home without wrestling the damn thing.

Fun for a weekend car but as an everyday driver, somewhat flawed. Ultimately, its up to you but to compare it to an Impreza is pointless as they're very different cars.

SiDHEaD

The jap ones dont tend to have leater interior either.

I found it fine as a daily driver at 30k+ a year, doin motorways etc. (6 foot / but only 12 stone lol), but then i like a bit of interest/fun in my drive.

Dark Blue Mark

I used it every single day for 18 months, no issues other than lack of storage, and that was only a problem on a couple of ocassions. (transporting stock exhaust and wheels)

While I agree to an extent with what you are saying, I think if you buy a car like this because its enjoyable to drive on or off VTEC. If you want to go home without "wrestling the damn thing", then just dont drive flat out Its as easy as any car to drive in the wet, but yes it will bite you if you are silly with it.

If it catches you out in the wet, its your fault IMO.

MB