Carper

Hi, so in a few months i will be collecting my 2nd years no claims (touch wood) and at the age of 20 and after owning my current car a corsa for nearly 2 years i am looking at a new car. After looking round for a while i figured it would be between a vw golf or a honda s2000. As a kid i remember looking at the honda and just loving everything about it so i started to do some research on how much the car would cost and insurance. Too my surprise the insurance was fairly cheap considering its a group 20, and the car too. With the money i have i reckon i would be able to afford a fairly low mileage facelift. So the main reason for posting was because i have a few questions about the car and yes i did try and find the answers myself.


1. my biggest concern is the car itself and how it is to drive. After hearing some horror stories on here about people drifting round corners or losing control in the wet has started to worry me about the car. I haven't been driving for years and years and having never driven a rwd car i worry that the upgrade from the corsa might be too much. is it really that bad or will sensible driving and good triers prevent this from happening?

2. how is this car to mod? after doing a fair few things to my corsa and going to a few shows it is definitely something i would want to do to my s2000, after searching ebay and a few websites it seems fairly hard to get some parts here in the uk is it really that difficult to get some of the rarer mugen bits without spending thousands?

3. prefacelift or facelift? obviously the prefacelift is now cheaper than the facelift and is there a good reason for this? I would have money to spare if i did get a prefacelift but if the revisions were that important then i would rather get the facelift, as i do prefer the bumpers and lights.

4. community is there many people from the east in Cambridgeshire or surrounding areas? Im a big fan of meets so knowing theres a good few of us local would be a god send when doing mods or going to shows.

5. the car would be used every day but only for about 5 minutes then another 5 mins as i normally go out then around a hour later come back. In my corsa this hasnt been a problem but i have heard that running the engine for so little time and running it cold isnt good. Would that be more of a probably with the s?


I think that's about it. Sorry if this is posted in the wrong area or anything im new to the forum so wasn't sure where to post. If i have any more questions then ill be sure to post them in here. Thanks for any help given.

AlexGJ248

Hello Carper. To be fair, I will be 20 next month, I have owned the S2000 for nearly a year and as long as you don't drive like an idiot and respect it then it won't try to kill you! I believe the pre facelift S2000 is a little bit sharper to drive due to the thicker ARB's and other modifications. As a result, the facelift S2000 is a bit softer and more set up for understeer to make it a bit easier to drive. Either way they are both great cars, and this is just my view on the pre facelift and the facelift cars. With regards to modifying, it is difficult to get a lot of power out of the F20c engine with just basic mods. The usual way to get big power is to go down the forced induction route.

caboose

Heads up before you get shouted at, check the description between ap1 and ap2. We only get ap1's.

chrisr111

Answers to some of your questions:

1. IMO I think it's a bad idea buying an S2000 when your only driving experience is 2-years in a Corsa. Whilst the S2000 is not difficult to drive or really quick or has much power--it has been known to bite even experienced drivers, I think it's best to work your way up and gain more experience first.

2. To mod the car with with decent parts which are actually an upgrade over OEM can be expensive.

3. No such thing as an AP2 in the UK, unless it's an import. All UK cars irrespective of age are AP1--read the FAQ at the top of the UK forum home page for a fully explanation.

Chris.

Carper

so a younger s2000 driver than me! Would of absolute loved one in my teens. so i guess just getting the best one at the time is probably the best option then. I probably wouldn't be looking at modifying the engine untill i am comfortable with the stock power levels how is it to modified the car visually?

opps sorry if this has made anyone mad ill edit my original post now

I was dredging a post like this . So you think even if i was sensible when in the car it could still snap out? Im not a long distance driver so i wouldn't be using the car all that much but i respect your honest answer if thats it. Its something that has worried me the most as its rwd and a totally different experience to the corsa or the other cars i have driven.

As for the mods i wouldnt go OTT all i would plan on doing is probably front lip, lights, hardtop (if it doesnt come with one), exhaust, runs, suspension...

sorry about any confusion about the ap1 and ap2 ill change it now

AlexGJ248

Generally to modify the car visually, the majority of the people on here go for the factory upgrades. What I mean by that is things like the optional front lips and the optional spoilers that were/are available from Honda.

dan_bourne

youll be fine if you dont drive like a knob...!

integra_man

1. It's almost twice as long as your Corsa, but more importantly RWD which will be totally different to what you may be used to. Any RWD car is a potential widow-maker if driven badly in the wrong conditions. The S2000 is no different, but better balanced and more forgiving than some of its rivals. By all means give it the beans, but sensibly and according to the road/conditions. Do this and it won't hurt you or itself. Don't and it probably will.

2. Can't speak for this as I have zero interest in modding cars and never modded mine. Didn't see the point but I suppose it's down to personal opinion. Plenty on here do, and do so cost effectively from what I can tell. Like anything, it will come down to how much you want to spend.

3. What you need to ask yourself - or your budget - is whether you want the first gen model (smaller wheels but more engaging), second (better equipped and better looking on 17s but a little less raw and involving handling-wise), or third (even better appointed, marrying the good bits of the previous two but the very later models do have ongoing question marks over engine build quality). Bar the wheels and colour combos available to each, to the non-enthusiast they don't look too dissimilar.

4. More than likely in your area. Check out the relevant area on the site.

5. Probably not a great duty cycle for any car TBH but don't see why the S should exhibit any problems another car wouldn't, so long as it gets a proper blast every now and then.

richmc

Quick question, are you sure you put in 2yrs NCB or 20? either that or are you a lottery winner?

As for the "discoraging" post, in the corsa if you floor the throttle going round a bend you may understeer and make some smoke, do that in an S2000 and the back end will become the front end then the back again etc. etc. until it stops and you crawl out from under the car and out of the ditch, if you're lucky. In other words 100% driving concerntration 100% of the time, and no dicking about, the S200 dosn't like show offs.

Forgot to add be ready for 30MPG at very best, and thats on super, don't use unleaded moonshine, and your 5min journeys, will just get you off choke, say 10MPG.

PhilipGB

I'm curious what you consider fairly cheap, I can't see you getting quotes under 2 grand and wouldn't be surprised if they were nearer 4.


The car only really punishes when you are 'pushing on'. The brakes, steering, accelerator are all analogue controls and driven within it's limits it's as safe as any car. But, given the time of year, it's not ideal as an only car on the standard summer tyres. This weekend with the drop in temperature I've been shocked how different the RE50's behave.

I wouldn't give mine the beans until at least 5 minutes of warming up. I also would hate to only drive it for 5 minutes. I popped out today to go to Tesco, as I was approaching my local one, which is only 3/4 of a mile away I justified to my self that the bigger one in the next town would be better, and 45 miles of scenic b roads later I had my eggs for breakfast.