OT: midlife crisis purchase

[duff_duffy]

All right all, I got the emotional support needed! Checking insurance and VIN info....got a trailer to bring it home and just need to check with DMV on a few registration questions. Photos hopefully on Sunday!

[mtechnica]

Don’t do it. They’re small and have no torque. You have to really rev it up to get it to go anywhere, under 6000 rpm it’s slower than a Honda Odyssey van. Smart money would be buying a low miles 240 or 260z before they simply become unaffordable. The s2000 will go up in value sure but there are better cars to go after imho. Feel free to disregard my opinion though.

[staggerwing]

Originally Posted by duff_duffy

All right all, I got the emotional support needed! Checking insurance and VIN info....got a trailer to bring it home and just need to check with DMV on a few registration questions. Photos hopefully on Sunday!

Trailer? S2000's are made to be driven.

Enjoy and don't be afraid of flogging it. It takes a bit to get used to, but the real fun is north of 6000 RPM, or as the boy racers say, "VTEC just kicked in, yo." Do be a little careful, as the AP1 variant has a reputation for snap oversteer with inexperienced pilots. People that find them boring simply don't push hard enough.

And while there are plenty of aftermarket goodies available, I would strongly advise against doing anything that is not easily reversible. There aren't a lot of completely unmolested examples out there, and they bring premium dollar.

My 2006 AP2.

[duff_duffy]

Trailer is just in case insurance does not kick in or I can’t figure out the law on driving home without tags and across state lines! Trust me, I want to drive!

Originally Posted by staggerwing

Trailer? S2000's are made to be driven.

Enjoy and don't be afraid of flogging it. It takes a bit to get used to, but the real fun is north of 6000 RPM, or as the boy racers say, "VTEC just kicked in, yo." Do be a little careful, as the AP1 variant has a reputation for snap oversteer with inexperienced pilots. People that find them boring simply don't push hard enough.

And while there are plenty of aftermarket goodies available, I would strongly advise against doing anything that is not easily reversible. There aren't a lot of completely unmolested examples out there, and they bring premium dollar.

My 2006 AP2.

[staggerwing]

Good luck and enjoy.

Even if trailering, I would want to make certain insurance is in place, just in case something goes sideways.

[rwsaunders]

Midlife based on statistics is 39.35 for a male in the US...if you wait until you’re 50, then you only have about 37% of your life left. Go for it.

[19wisconsin64]

Buy it. It's one of the highest-rated driving cars. ..... If you like that sort of thing. It won't go down in value.
Enjoy it!

oooooo, wait, you are having second thoughts..... don't buy it...please put the seller in contact with one of us, I'm sure someone will buy it from this forum if you don't!

[soupless]

Fantastic thread

[a4racer]

Gorgeous S2000.

I almost bought one as my mid-life crisis car last summer. I had my heart set on a beautiful low-miles yellow AP2. Drove it, loved it, but the dealership that had it was NOT moving on price. I did my best--provided what I felt were reasonable comps, offered cash, and at the end of the day, they wouldn't come down the $500 that would get them to where I was comfortable...I ended up walking.

Later that summer, ended up getting a 2003 996.2 C2 instead. For less money. For me, it was the perfect car for the time...

(911 was traded in towards my present car, what I call my "used German wagon"!)

[jfranci3]

Originally Posted by Ken Robb

A German BMW engineer told me that German law requires that a huge percentage (90+%?) of cars sold there must be recyclable so that combined with the incentives to minimize weight has led to using different materials than in the old days. When I commented on how few older cars I saw on the road in Germany he said the rigorous inspections and maintenance required to register cars there caused people to replace them much sooner than is typical in the USA so age-related failures aren't common in Germany because the cars have been scrapped or sold in other countries like Turkey.

Yeah BS. I've worked for a exceedingly large German automotive company. There's a lot of non-sense about this or that backed up little content. Ultimately it comes down to someone with a PHD making some academic argument that is really not a winning argument, especially in a practical design, but they are the expert, so they win. "You only need a 1.88in x 3.9, why are you using 2x4s?????" ( i know 1.5x3.5). Better yet, "why don't we make all the o2 sensors the same o2 sensor? The cord is just different lengths?"
Making the radiator, the hoses, etc slightly thicker won't hurt efficiency, costs, or performance. The Germans, specifically, are just a little tighter about designing engineering requirements, designing to those requirements, and pretty loose about defining what a service part is. In Germany, the new car warranties are pretty short and their cars are not premium there.

[Jeckel30]

Originally Posted by duff_duffy

Trailer is just in case insurance does not kick in or I can’t figure out the law on driving home without tags and across state lines! Trust me, I want to drive!

Just make sure your insurance is in place and you have a bill of sale and the title and you will be fine even with out a plate. Almost every car I have purchased has been multiple states away and I have never had a problem, even when I have been pulled over. The drive home part is a big reason I widen my searches for fun cars even if they are long distances away. There is no feeling like getting to know your new car on a long drive home.

Good luck with the S2000. I owned one years ago when they hit the bottom of the depreciation curve and have been tempted many times to purchase another since. It has been a long line of BMW’s and Porsche’s since and I would probably choose another S2k over another one of those at this point. Have fun!

[pbarry]

Decent write up for potential buyers:
https://www.carthrottle.com/post/10-...a-honda-s2000/

[Ken Robb]

I'm not sure what you mean by "BS". BS that I ever heard what I posted? BS that the engineer knew what he was talking about? BS that such considerations come into play for designing autos and their components?

[dmurphey]

I have a 2001 Honda S2000 w 65K miles of fun and throttle controlled oversteer. I seem to have to buy new sticky rear tires on a frequent basis. My wife can't figure out why. It is a reliable convertible red Itailian sports car that is light weight, rear wheel drive w a close ratio manual 6 speed, high rev naturally aspirated engine w Japanese reliability. I'm getting older and driving little SUV more, but nor giving up the sports car. Go for it. Mess your wives hair up. Take the dog for a spin. Go do an autocross or track day. Buy more sticky tires.

[texbike]

Originally Posted by staggerwing

Trailer? S2000's are made to be driven.

Enjoy and don't be afraid of flogging it. It takes a bit to get used to, but the real fun is north of 6000 RPM, or as the boy racers say, "VTEC just kicked in, yo." Do be a little careful, as the AP1 variant has a reputation for snap oversteer with inexperienced pilots. People that find them boring simply don't push hard enough.

And while there are plenty of aftermarket goodies available, I would strongly advise against doing anything that is not easily reversible. There aren't a lot of completely unmolested examples out there, and they bring premium dollar.

My 2006 AP2.

Originally Posted by dmurphey

I have a 2001 Honda S2000 w 65K miles of fun and throttle controlled oversteer. I seem to have to buy new sticky rear tires on a frequent basis. My wife can't figure out why. It is a reliable convertible red Itailian sports car that is light weight, rear wheel drive w a close ratio manual 6 speed, high rev naturally aspirated engine w Japanese reliability. I'm getting older and driving little SUV more, but nor giving up the sports car. Go for it. Mess your wives hair up. Take the dog for a spin. Go do an autocross or track day. Buy more sticky tires.

^ There are times when this forum really needs a "like" button. These are two of them...

I've yet to own a S2000, but one is on my list. There's a minty, VERY dusty yellow AP1 sitting under a carport at an apartment complex less than a mile from my house. I've left several notes on it and haven't been able to track down the owner as of yet. I hope to have it in our garage one of these days.

Texbike