Looking at an ap2 tomorrow. .need some advice
09-26-2016 | 03:37 AM
#11
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09-26-2016 | 03:43 AM
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Originally Posted by carguy516' timestamp='1474857883' post='24069795
[quote name='Chuck S' timestamp='1474856325' post='24069777']
Car appears to have been lowered. Ahhh, there we go "upgraded" coil over suspension.
-- Chuck
Car appears to have been lowered. Ahhh, there we go "upgraded" coil over suspension.
-- Chuck
good luck- can't wait to hear your review.
darcy
[/quote]
Thanks darcy, I will def let everyone know about the car. In terms of performance what will it affect? Is it the only the handling? I'm 36 years old and won't be racing or tracking the car. It will be my daily going to woek and home about 120 miles per day. I currently daily my wrangler but gas is killing me.
09-26-2016 | 04:05 AM
#13
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It will just affect handling. And possibly braking. And possibly acceleration. But mostly handling.
There are a lot of crappy coilovrrs out there, and some really good ones. People think that the more adjustments, the better. They also think the stiffer the better. So smart vendors sell setups with lots of knobs, and really stiff springs, and garbage damping. And they can't make 'em fast enough.
Worst case, if the suspension is crap, you can buy something decent for street for around $1.5k (Koni yellow or Bilstein pss). Or buy a used set of stock in good shape for around $300.
There are a lot of crappy coilovrrs out there, and some really good ones. People think that the more adjustments, the better. They also think the stiffer the better. So smart vendors sell setups with lots of knobs, and really stiff springs, and garbage damping. And they can't make 'em fast enough.
Worst case, if the suspension is crap, you can buy something decent for street for around $1.5k (Koni yellow or Bilstein pss). Or buy a used set of stock in good shape for around $300.
09-26-2016 | 05:41 AM
#14
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From: Chesterfield VA
Adjustable suspensions have some use on race tracks where different setups will work better at Lime Rock than, perhaps, Mid Ohio. Note on race tracks you take the same corner again and again and ... You get the idea. Surprising as it may seem the idiot engineers at Honda stumbled on a good general suspension setup and ride height (probably by accident since I doubt they consulted the internet first). 
Just took two speedy morning runs with an S2Ki group at Gettysburg on roads I'd not seen in years. Car handled the tight turns well and fast enough to get a cautionary "Oh!" from the lady beside me. Good tires and no tire squeal tells me I could have driven faster. BTW the OEM suspension is "coil over," just not adjustable coil over. A buddy with a rescued '02 that was lowered by a previous owner got tired of scraping on drives and parking lot speed bumps and put OEM springs on the car (Ebay has the right parts for every year it seems). He reports the car is more pleasant to drive and handles better.
120 mile daily driver? You'll have this puppy over 100K miles in no time! Not sure what tires are on the car but the performance tires many of us are so fond of don't work well below 40°F and some can be damaged below freezing. With all the salt and sludge on the roads my car goes in storage (in my garage) sometime in November and doesn't touch the road until about Easter. Yep, ya need two cars for this. Keep the Jeep too, the S2000 is not a winter driver north of the Carolinas.
-- Chuck
PS: I found color to be the least important item when searching for an S2000 two summers ago. Condition and mileage trumped all. I also wanted a 2006 or later as they're tuneable via FlashPro which can provide a significant increase in mid range power.
Just took two speedy morning runs with an S2Ki group at Gettysburg on roads I'd not seen in years. Car handled the tight turns well and fast enough to get a cautionary "Oh!" from the lady beside me. Good tires and no tire squeal tells me I could have driven faster. BTW the OEM suspension is "coil over," just not adjustable coil over. A buddy with a rescued '02 that was lowered by a previous owner got tired of scraping on drives and parking lot speed bumps and put OEM springs on the car (Ebay has the right parts for every year it seems). He reports the car is more pleasant to drive and handles better.120 mile daily driver? You'll have this puppy over 100K miles in no time! Not sure what tires are on the car but the performance tires many of us are so fond of don't work well below 40°F and some can be damaged below freezing. With all the salt and sludge on the roads my car goes in storage (in my garage) sometime in November and doesn't touch the road until about Easter. Yep, ya need two cars for this. Keep the Jeep too, the S2000 is not a winter driver north of the Carolinas.
-- Chuck
PS: I found color to be the least important item when searching for an S2000 two summers ago. Condition and mileage trumped all. I also wanted a 2006 or later as they're tuneable via FlashPro which can provide a significant increase in mid range power.
09-26-2016 | 06:19 PM
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Adjustable suspensions have some use on race tracks where different setups will work better at Lime Rock than, perhaps, Mid Ohio. Note on race tracks you take the same corner again and again and ... You get the idea. Surprising as it may seem the idiot engineers at Honda stumbled on a good general suspension setup and ride height (probably by accident since I doubt they consulted the internet first). Just took two speedy morning runs with an S2Ki group at Gettysburg on roads I'd not seen in years. Car handled the tight turns well and fast enough to get a cautionary "Oh!" from the lady beside me. Good tires and no tire squeal tells me I could have driven faster. BTW the OEM suspension is "coil over," just not adjustable coil over. A buddy with a rescued '02 that was lowered by a previous owner got tired of scraping on drives and parking lot speed bumps and put OEM springs on the car (Ebay has the right parts for every year it seems). He reports the car is more pleasant to drive and handles better.
120 mile daily driver? You'll have this puppy over 100K miles in no time! Not sure what tires are on the car but the performance tires many of us are so fond of don't work well below 40°F and some can be damaged below freezing. With all the salt and sludge on the roads my car goes in storage (in my garage) sometime in November and doesn't touch the road until about Easter. Yep, ya need two cars for this. Keep the Jeep too, the S2000 is not a winter driver north of the Carolinas.
-- Chuck
PS: I found color to be the least important item when searching for an S2000 two summers ago. Condition and mileage trumped all. I also wanted a 2006 or later as they're tuneable via FlashPro which can provide a significant increase in mid range power.
Just took two speedy morning runs with an S2Ki group at Gettysburg on roads I'd not seen in years. Car handled the tight turns well and fast enough to get a cautionary "Oh!" from the lady beside me. Good tires and no tire squeal tells me I could have driven faster. BTW the OEM suspension is "coil over," just not adjustable coil over. A buddy with a rescued '02 that was lowered by a previous owner got tired of scraping on drives and parking lot speed bumps and put OEM springs on the car (Ebay has the right parts for every year it seems). He reports the car is more pleasant to drive and handles better.120 mile daily driver? You'll have this puppy over 100K miles in no time! Not sure what tires are on the car but the performance tires many of us are so fond of don't work well below 40°F and some can be damaged below freezing. With all the salt and sludge on the roads my car goes in storage (in my garage) sometime in November and doesn't touch the road until about Easter. Yep, ya need two cars for this. Keep the Jeep too, the S2000 is not a winter driver north of the Carolinas.
-- Chuck
PS: I found color to be the least important item when searching for an S2000 two summers ago. Condition and mileage trumped all. I also wanted a 2006 or later as they're tuneable via FlashPro which can provide a significant increase in mid range power.
09-26-2016 | 06:28 PM
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I saw the car this morning and it was a disaster. I'm not a s2k expert in any way but I know my way around cars and can spot paint and body work no prob. My uncle is a wholesaler and I've been going to auctions for just about 20 years.
The car looked great at 5 feet away, when I pulled up I told myself I would take it home. Up close was a different story. There was overs spray everywhere. The front vin tags were both missing, the rear bumper tag was painted over. The bottom of the car looked like there was fresh glue or what looked like fiberglass glue (I had never seen that before) I didn't bother getting in the car. The dealer basically said that 99 percent of his customers never ask the questions I was asking nor would they know what to look for. He said they see the car from a distance and think it's great and buy it. Shady dealer. My guess is he got the car and a shitty paint job done so he can do a quick flip. So the search continues. . I'll keep everyone posted and thanks for the insight. It was great and educational getting feedback on the car. Thanks again for the help.
The car looked great at 5 feet away, when I pulled up I told myself I would take it home. Up close was a different story. There was overs spray everywhere. The front vin tags were both missing, the rear bumper tag was painted over. The bottom of the car looked like there was fresh glue or what looked like fiberglass glue (I had never seen that before) I didn't bother getting in the car. The dealer basically said that 99 percent of his customers never ask the questions I was asking nor would they know what to look for. He said they see the car from a distance and think it's great and buy it. Shady dealer. My guess is he got the car and a shitty paint job done so he can do a quick flip. So the search continues. . I'll keep everyone posted and thanks for the insight. It was great and educational getting feedback on the car. Thanks again for the help.
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