I'm certainly more in your camp but unfortunately have tried and failed to find any suitable roads near me that aren't a 2+ hour drive away. As you point out everyone is different but if I am being honest, taking the S out for a "normal" drive usually leaves me feeling frustrated. Going from point A to point B in an S2000 on local semi-congested roads is usually not relaxing or fun. Maybe its just where I live that is the problem but I am surprised that certain people who daily this car find it so enjoyable.

I love the car, I know what it can do, but I struggle to find ways to enjoy it.

 

I feel exactly the same except that I am very lucky to live in an area where as soon as I start driving the roads are not congested with traffic, reasonably twisty, some decent elevation changes, lots of lakes, pretty views, lots of forest and trees to shade the road so you don't get sun beaten, and places to go and visit (it's a known tourist area). The weather gets cold though so our driving season is short, about late April - October. After we got ours I quickly began to realize there are a lot of places that are not so great to own one. I would say flat, straight road topography in rural or large city stop/go traffic would be an S2K hell. I would love to see a map of where approximately all the cars reside. There are likely vast areas of the US and Canada where few exist.

 

I fell your pain MAVTS2K. I fortunately live in an area with curves and hills, especially if I drive within an hour of home. I could see some parts of the US where it would be less exciting to own an S2000 like forgive me but Florida, Iowa, Kansas,etc. If you're out West in mountainous areas or back east in the Appalachians, Blue Ridge or Catskills (and whatever other ranges I can't think of) you've got it made. Anytime I'm hemmed up behind slow traffic its a frustrating experience. Sometimes I think the people ahead of me have never seen a curve before..lol.

 

Great posts above:
02civicsi, GuthNW, MAVTS2k, dcdbdave, WVCR-V.
I share your feelings exactly. I'm fortunate that even though I live in the most densely populated state (NJ) I have back roads just miles from my home.
When I go for my 25 mile drive I get a chance to experience what the S is all about and come home with a big smile on my face.
It's sort of therapy for me!

 

NW Omaha here. I know exactly where to go and where not to go when driving the S. Just north and west of my home, much more road than traffic. Elevation changes and curves and tree canopy cover and farmland. Just this past Friday night, we put 150 miles on the clock driving the aforementioned "course". Late March/early April, after the rain has washed away the corrosive elements of winter, to late October before they start putting the corrosives down again, is my driving season. There is one stretch of road that gradually increases in elevation for about 2.5 miles. Just two lanes, straight the whole way. No entrances/exits to the road for this stretch. Everything is right there for the driver to see. It is this stretch where I blast through the gears, shifting just before redline...hard to describe the feeling here. I can say that my top speed was reached on this stretch...up the hill and pulling hard the whole way. Yeah, I am never parting with my S. It is a driver's car, pure and simple.

 

Therapeutic for so many things in life that ail us for sure

 

I live in the twisties ..... it never gets old.

 

You've just mentioned a whole lot of variables that have an impact on all of us one way or the other: do you deal with congestion?, what is the complexity of the road to be navigated? (how interesting/challenging is the drive?), are there elevation changes involved? (do you have a series of hills / valleys to go with your twisty roads?), what kind of scenery / terrain is available to you? (does your drive include twisty river-side roads, prairies, forests, mountains, canyons, coastline, wide-open spaces, vast urban sprawl, etc?), is there isolation from the heat?, is there isolation from the cold?, what is the length of your driving season? Obviously many of these fall under the classification of topography, but not all.

In the past I've mentioned the thought of having a map to reference that indicated where all the S2000's exist within this country. My initial thought was that these cars would likely be found most often in parts of the country that are not flat with long, straight roads. But it has been pointed out to me since that a number of people originally bought these cars who don't care about twisty roads and rarely, if ever, managed to engage VTEC . They were just wanting a good looking, reliable car, to enjoy cruising around in with the top-down. While that might be surprising to some, a Honda S2000 does fit the bill in such cases. Another question that comes to mind for me would have to do with those who choose to go the forced induction route. Are they more likely to be found in those places that feature lots of wide open spaces and roads with lots of sweepers or are they still seeking out tight, twisty roads? What about guys that lower their S2000's within millimeters of the tarmac — where are they most likely to hang out? Another thing that surely matters to a good number of S2000 owners is access to a nearby track(s). It would surely seem that S2000's and sports cars in general would be more likely to congregate in those areas that lay claim to at least some autocross events nearby if not at least one one road course as well. Lots of different possibilities out there, all of them involving S2000's for a variety of reasons. Interesting to think about.

 

I took a short cruise this evening around some twists and turns and it just always puts a smile on my face. UPS guy was here today and chatted a few mins with me about the car. He’s always wanted one. I’ve had my S2K since ‘06-purchased it off a member on here locally. I don’t think I will ever sell it. I’ll have to pass it onto my kids whenever that day may come. My uncle had a Miata and I always felt that deep down he was very jealous.

In other news: I went to see Billman last month and it is so worth the drive out to see him. He’s worked on my car twice now and I look forward to seeing him again. You cannot beat his passion for these cars along with his knowledge and attention to detail.

 

I too count myself lucky to be able to live near some very good roads. I live in the suburbs of Northern VA near D.C. Going down 50W through wine country and Shenandoah mountains, snickersville turnpike etc. in the S2000 is pure joy. These roads were made for S2000 (2nd and 3rd gear twists through trees providing enough shade in the summer for top down to be comfortable. With occasional straights so one can go through all the gears. With elevation changes and lack of torque from the S2000 you never feel like you have to be doing jail speeds to hear the engine note of that lovely vtec. It took me a long time to get comfortable with being int he second cam for long stretches (always felt like I was hurting the car - and this is my second S in 4 years). The only thing is ... in VA going 20mph over can get you in a lot of trouble. So in daily driving I am very cautious.Also deer...those majestic retarded freaks of nature...I hate them.

My ultimate car would be 981 Cayman GTS, if I was ever going to replace the s2000. I felt like that car has a similar DNA and tone more refinement. The gear shift is still not as pure but the engine note on those last generation flat six with the sports exhaust is something to be sure. It's just that I'd have to sell my S2k to be able to afford it, and that is something I am not prepared to consider (maybe for a 911T I would, but I have yet to drive that car).