At some point in the future I hope to have a roadster as a second car. For a long time I thought this car would be a Miata. Then I drove a
BMW Z3 and considered raising my aspirations a bit. (Click on hyperlinks to read my reviews of related vehicles.) Given my preference for light, nimble cars, the Honda S2000, introduced in the 2000 model year, seemed a natural choice. However, because this car was initially in very short supply I did not even try to test drive one. By last fall the situation had changed. Not only are Honda dealers not charging well over sticker for the car any longer, but a few weeks ago I saw three fresh off the truck 2003s on a Virginia dealer's lot with "$29,990" in greasepaint on the windshield—which is just a couple hundred over invoice. With the prices of used S2000s descending into the low 20s, I'm sensing a real possibility here. Since last fall I've taken S2000s for three test drives, once by myself, once with my father (he ended up buying a
Nissan 350Z), and once with an old friend (who loved the car but decided to go for something more practical). These are my impressions.
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Styling and accommodations I've never been crazy about the exterior styling of the S2000. There is nothing bad about it, just nothing that catches my eye either. It's a rather bland wedge of the sort I associate with the late 1970s and early 1980s. My sense is that this car was primarily an engineering exercise, with the metal simply draped over the engineers' package. Engineers might even have specified the wedge shape, since it tends to be good for aerodynamics and keeping the ends of the car planted without the aid of spoilers. At the very least, since the S2000 lacks a trendy styling theme it should not soon appear dated.
Spy shots of the next generation Miata display a similar design for that car. With the Z3 having already given way to the
Z4, it seems that shapes that recall classic roadsters of the 1960s are passe.
Inside the S2000 is similarly styled with function in mind. Nothing grabs the eye. Aside from the F1 style digital instruments, there's nothing exciting to look at. With the possible exception of the color in the red interior. (My favorite color for this car might be the dark silver with red interior.) As in the Z4 the dash has a horizontal theme. The instrument panel and center console are not seamlessly integrated, which I associate with front-wheel-drive cars where a center console is not driven by the structure of the car. In rear-wheel-drive roadsters like the S2000, where the substantial structure and driveline running down the center of the car force a high console, having this console flow smoothly into the instrument panel is natural. These are the cars those front-drivers with integrated consoles aspire to resemble, after all. Yet Honda has gone the opposite route. I'm puzzled.
Perhaps they were striving to make the interior feel as roomy as possible, and thus the dash and console are no larger or intrusive than they have to be. In this they succeeded. The S2000 is a small car, yet the interior feels considerably roomier than those of the Miata and Z3 despite its taller console. Partly this is because it is roomier, but the styling also plays a role.
The seats, like much of the rest of the car, keep to a philosophy of including nothing that's not absolutely necessary for the sporting mission of the car. No power anything. Only the most basic adjustments. Very firm and well-shaped for aggressive driving. The bolsters do not seem large, but I never felt as if I was sliding in the seat, so they get the job done. My longest drive was about twenty miles, and they felt comfortable to me for that long a stretch despite their firmness. For longer drives they might be too firm.
One thing I like about the Miata and Z3 is that you sit well over the tops of the dash and doors. One disadvantage with both is that the high seating position combines with a low windshield header to place the latter and the mirror attached to it a bit too fully in the driver's forward vision. The S2000 strikes a happy medium here. The windshield header is considerably higher so as to be much less obtrusive. Yet the dash is still fairly low, unlike in an Audi TT or
Mercedes SLK. The situation is not quite so good to the side, a by-product of the wedge form. Still, though I felt I was sitting low in the car I did not feel buried in it.
The trunk is small but usefully shaped. Interior storage is limited to two small compartments (and only one in the first two model years).
The top must be manually released from the windshield header, but otherwise is power operated. I wouldn't mind if it were manual. Given the small size of the car it would be just about as easy, and quicker. Given Honda's philosophy with this car, I wonder why they went with power. Since 2002 the rear window has been glass.
For those with young children—I have three—the S2000 has a major weakness. Unlike in the Miata or Z4 the passenger side airbag cannot be disabled. I imagine that it might be possible to have a switch installed to turn off that airbag, but as it comes from the factory children should not ride in this car.
On the road The S2000's engine produces an incredible 240 horsepower from just two liters, even without a turbo or supercharger. It does this through extremely good breathing at very high RPM—peak power is produced at 8300 RPM. Peak torque is just 153 ft.-lbs., at a very high 7500 RPM. This engine takes Honda's V-TEC variable valve timing system to the extreme. The secondary, high lift, extended duration cam lobes kick in at 6000 RPM, vs. somewhere in the 4000s with Honda's other V-TEC engines. Unlike more sophisticated systems from other manufacturers, timing and lift are not gradually and incrementally altered, so the transition if quite abrupt.
Others have complained that below 6000 RPM the S2000 feels weak. As far as I can tell, this is the major complaint about the car. Yet the engine never felt weak to me. Certainly it doesn't throw you back into your seat before those secondary lobes kick in, but to me it felt pleasantly energetic. All in all, a good balance to keep things interesting in around town driving. The very short gearing of the six-speed manual helps (even in sixth the engine is turning 4000 RPM at 70). In the lower gears 6000 RPM is never far away. To get big power when cruising you might have to downshift a gear or two, but to me that's what this sort of car is about.
The engine makes fairly raw noises befitting this sort of car. With the top up, the amount of noise coming from every part of the drivetrain is excessive, more than I've experienced in any other car I've driven. I would expect it to become tiresome on all but the shortest drives. The simple fix: put the top down. With the top down, the drivetrain noises enhance the driving experience.
The shifter is wonderful, perhaps the best I've experienced. Throws are extremely short. A moderate amount of effort is required—just the right amount in my opinion. The shifter never balks going into a gear. The feedback is satisfying mechanical.
The steering similarly is moderately high in effort and very quick. It responds immediately to every input, yet tracks well, so the driver is not constantly making unnecessary adjustments while driving straight down the road. Feedback is excellent.
Handling is generally very good. You feel directly connected to what the chassis is doing. It responds quickly and predictably to most throttle and steering inputs, providing a great deal of satisfaction while inspiring confidence. But don't get too comfortable. Powering out of turns it is a bit too easy to kick the tail out, and this excessive oversteer occurs without warning. Luckily lifting just a bit off the throttle quickly brings the tail back into line. Although my first experience left me grateful that I had not spun the car clean around—or into the curb—it soon became apparent that while the onset was far too sudden the threat was not as large as it initially seemed. Be warned, though, that the S2000 unlike the Germans lacks a stability control system. Get really crazy, and there are no electronics to step in and save you. I only drove the car on dry pavement. Wet or snowy roads could prove difficult.
The ride is good for this type of car. It is firm, but not harsh. Reasonably tall tire sidewalls likely help. In contrast, I found the ride of the 350Z my father bought annoyingly busy even on fairly smooth roads.
The brakes, like the other major controls, are firm, very responsive, and full of good feedback. ABS is standard.
All in all, I found the S2000 a blast to drive. Even around town and well short of the 9000 RPM redline I found it pleasantly energetic and responsive. Honda engineered this car from the ground-up to be a pure sports car, and it shows.
Pricing For quick, up-to-date pricing, and especially user-specified price comparisons, check out the website I created:
www.truedelta.com. Why yet another vehicle pricing website? Well, I personally lacked the patience to keep using the others. They were too slow and required too much effort, especially when trying to compare prices. So I taught myself some programming and created a site where there is no need to dig through option packages, prerequisites, and the like one by one -- the
TrueDelta algorithm figures these out for you in
one swift pass.
The rest of this section dates from when the review was first written.
The sticker is $33,000, and it seems that at least some dealers are now knocking three grand off that. This puts the S2000 about $6,000 over a similarly-equipped Mazda Miata or Toyota MR2. That seems like money well spent. However, if you don't feel the need for leather, ABS, and such in your roadster, a base Miata can be yours for a bit over twenty. Though the Honda is still worth the extra money, if you simply don't have the extra money…
A
BMW Z4 2.5 with minimal options costs just a couple thousand more than the S2000. The BMW is a much more livable car, quieter and more comfortable. All-out it is not as quick, but in normal driving it is at least as energetic. The driving experience is not as immediate or "pure." The interior feels more luxurious, unlike that in the Z3. I personally cannot stand the look of the Z4, but some people no doubt like the styling. Overall, worth a look. For equivalent full-throttle acceleration the 3.0 liter engine is necessary. Load up a 3.0 with options and the price gap quickly exceeds ten grand.
A
Mercedes SLK or Audi TT does not handle nearly as well as the Honda or even the BMW. The key feature of the Mercedes is its folding hardtop roof. The Audi is largely a styling exercise. I do not recommend either for those primarily concerned with the driving experience.
Among closed coupes, the new 2004
Mazda RX-8 comes close to matching the S2000 in driving enjoyment, seats four adults more comfortably than any sports car has a right to, and lists for $30,700 with leather, a sunroof, and many features not available on the S2000 (most notably traction control and stability control).
Overall, if the elemental sports car driving experience is what you want, then the S2000 will seem very reasonably priced. If more comfort and cruising ability is desired, then the BMW is probably the better buy.
Last words Between the just-right driving position and the immediate, elemental feel of the car I greatly enjoyed driving the S2000 every time I had the chance. I do not see owning one as my only car, but as a second car this one is at the top of my list.
To learn more about my
reliability research and sign up to participate in it, or to perform thorough new car
price comparisons, visit www.truedelta.com. A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my
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