jono

Hello all,
I am a proud owner of a 2000 S2000, which I purchased used in June with 38,000 miles on it. What a great car. Every time I slip into my S2000, a smile grows from ear to ear....

HOWEVER

I am experiencing some fairly difficult issues with the transmission and need some advice.

The most annoying issue.... the ominious SECOND GEAR GRIND. Damn that grind. It happens about once ever week or so. Every time it does it, I go

The other issue that I experience is that weird transmission rattle on decellaration. Wow, that can be annoying too. So, it grinds and rattles. On a bad day, it feels more like a pinto than the wonderful car that it's supposed to be.

Here's where it all gets really frustrating... I own the extended Honda Care warranty. I printed out the TSB's and took them to the dealership (Courtesy Honda AND Dublin Honda). They say that they won't fix the clutch plate or the synchros or anything else that is posted in the TSB's because I am not the original owner and because the car has 45k miles and because they just don't have to honor those TSB's. Bastards!

Someone help! I'm close to selling the car I just got and getting something that atleast shifts correctly.

....oh yeah... and the left latch in the roof rattles when the roof is up. while im at it... there are some annoying wind leaks... i know i shouldn't be going fast, but when i do go over 75mph, the roof has MAJOR windleaks... it whistles like crazy. any remedies or advice for fixing this or atleast toning it down a little would be greatly appreciated!

allkingz

Did you purchase the Honda Care warranty when you bought the car or was it given to you from the previous owner? Honda should take care of the TSBs, especially with the Honda Care warranty. The only problem I could see would be if you bought the car privately and did not properly transfer the warranty. (I think there is a $50 fee to transfer the Honda Care warranty.) Either way, you might try contacting American Honda to see if they'll help you out in any way.

As far as the roof goes, you just might need to tighten down the latches and/or strikers. The strikers on mine were loose and after tightening them down, it's remarkably quiet with the top up.

ninegrand

For your sake check with another dealer. Might do a search but there is a specific TSB for the rattle. The grind might be a whole othr issue but I'd start with a helpful dealer and go from there. Might check with some of the Cali guys for sugestions.

FWIW you might check into simply replacing the tranny fliud. I get about 6000 miles before I can feel the shifter change.

BTW congrats on the car , enjoy!

jono

thanks for the input, allkingz and ninegrand...

i purchased the car and warranty from Los Gatos Acura in Los Gatos, CA. The warranty is the standard Honda Care extended warranty, not the original one from the original owner.

i am going to call honda care tomorrow and see what they have to say. i've been told by the dealers that it's not going to help my sitch... and the tranny fluid replacement couldn't hurt.

Thanks again! Any other advice would make my day!

jono

Here's an update:

I called American Honda and got an automated answer stating: "all of our representatives are currently in a meeting. please call back later"
...and hung up...

I then called Honda of America. I spoke with a very nice lady who said that since the dealership said that they tested it and concluded it was a "wear and tear" issue, they wouldn't honor it. That's that. She went on to tell me about how the s2000 is Honda's most abused car (*snicker*) and that they have no control over how the previous owner treated my car... One of the serious downsides to owning a used vehicle.

Based on this negative experience, from now on, I think I'll stay away from Honda.

User 71717

i have a 2000 s2k i bought used and it had both issues when i got it. i bought it from an individual and i didnt have a warranty of any type. my local dealer addressed both issues when i took the car in for its first service free of charge. i believe it is up to the dealership to honor a TSB for a car that is out of warranty. i dont really get it, cause ur car has the exact problems that these were issued for. why not repair them. maybe try another dealership.

jono

gonna try menlo honda in northern CA... wish me luck.

allkingz

Thats crap. The dealership doesn't have to honor TSB requests after the vehicle is out of its factory warranty, but your Honda Care warranty should cover it, assuming you completed general maintanence for the vehicle and haven't modified it in any way that would cause any parts to fail.

jono

Since being in my posession in June, I have taken excellent care of the car. Done the proper oil/45k service... I took it in for the Spark Plug TSB, which the dealership performed... when I then asked them why they wouldn't do the countershaft 1st gear and countershaft 2nd gear (TSB: 00-055) and the Clutch Disk (TSB: 00-054), they simply said that the warranty won't cover wear and tear items. Apparently, there was a recall on the spark plugs... no recall on the crap suspension. :-/

jono

PS: if I was a lawyer and had a lot of time on my hands, I think I'd sue honda at this point.

Oh wait... if I was a lawyer, I'd just get a 2004 s2k.