Honda S2000 - service history advice

[Gio G]

Been looking at an S2000 to potentially replace one of ours cars. Came across a very nice condition early car, which appeared to have very little use and was in great condition. However when going through the service record over the last 19 years, servicing was not done every year, the car has managed to do around 20,000 miles, which is low, however looks like some years have been skipped for servicing..

The dealer is looking for top money on this car, however the lack of scheduled servicing concerns me.. Especially if we keep it for say 3 years..

Should I be concerned? Reading up on these cars, it seemed that people religiously service these cars every year regardless of mileage, due to the nature of the engine..

Also any advice around avoiding low mileage cars not being used?

Thanks
G

[Quags]

I'd be more concerned about other things not being checked or changed.

Most engines will be ok with a good oil change/maybe flush, new filters. No worry of timing belts on these.

My car had two previous owners, one of which developed Alzheimers and lost all the service history.

The people I purchased it from tracked down all the previous garages and got a new book stamped, i've checked to confirm. What I don't have are tons of reciepts.

But mine had 59k (2005) and I paid £8,500 due to some other items, but mechanically, she's great.

[griffter]

S2000s are easy to service but the service schedule is a mystery. It varies from country to country and dependent on use. Dealers seems to use a generic checklist which gets updated over time and fails to reflect what the S2000 needs.

Anyway I think the UK schedule is every 9k miles or every year. Intervals for diff, gearbox oil, coolant, plugs and air filter etc fall periodically. To be honest the biggest worry isn’t really whether the oil’s been changed but whether it’s ever been allowed to run too low. Early cars use a lot of oil and the advice in the owner’s manual to check every time you fill up with fuel should not be taken lightly!
Of course on the car you’re looking at there’s no way of knowing. I think the best you can do is assess the car as it stands in front of you and budget for a full service - everything - ASAP.

I recently bought a ‘99 with a full Honda history (bar one). So many stamps it’s on its second service book! 93k miles. But it wasn’t clear when the diff, gearbox oils etc were last changed so I did it all myself.

If the car you’re looking at is red and the one I’m thinking of it looks very nice in the advert!

[Gio G]

Thanks for the replies..

It is funny looking through older posts on this forum and some of the other specialist sites how much prices have gone up on these cars - maybe I am buying at the wrong time, missed the boat.. The lucky thing is that there is still a nice population of cars around to chose from. I think having something serviced regularly is a good sign of someone looking after their asset and giving it what it needs.

I was trying to figure out what potentially was the best year for these cars, it seems revisions after 04 seem to be sought after.. Are very early cars more of a raw experience?

Thanks
G

[motor mad]

I looked at so many S2000’s over a 10 year period before finally settling on one last year. If anything the price of the cars was similar to where they were 8-10 years ago for a decent one. The type of car they are and how low mileage cars are used, they are rarely serviced annually. With an engine capable of reving so high, that’s not ideal, but I bought based on condition and low number of previous owners.

Equally if not more important, is proof of regular wheel alignments and the condition of the soft top, as these can be expensive to put right. Also sticking brake calipers and worn clutches are fairly common.

I bought a low mileage car (48k) with a black dash (I’m not a fan of red or blue dashes) on a 55 plate, so before the tax jumped from £325 to £555 and it was fantastic. I had it for a year and really enjoyed the experience. It has without doubt the best manual gearbox I’ve used.

[Quags]

Yep, I personally think the sweet spot is 2005 as you get the revisions without the tax price hike.

[Gio G]

Quags said:

Yep, I personally think the sweet spot is 2005 as you get the revisions without the tax price hike.

Oh dear, I am actually looking at a very early car - 2000, low miles, really well maintained and look after..

G

[griffter]

Caveat: I’ve never driven a facelift S2000

But the differences are really very minor. Some trivial cosmetic changes which you either prefer or you don’t (I don’t), 17” wheels, a smaller glass rear window and softer rear suspension. There are some suggestions of a slower rack but I don’t know for sure. The biggest change is the suspension and wheels which make the car less prone to oversteer on the limit (and perhaps make the limit higher).
There are no changes to NVH or “refinement” as far as I know, although very late cars get an electronic throttle and traction control. If you’re driving the car daily in all weathers maybe the changes matter, but by now most suspension will be worn and under-performing and tyre choice is much improved. You can easily fit facelift wheels to an early car if you want to.

In short, I don’t get the love for the facelift, preferring the purity and edgy reputation (whatever the reality!) of the original. In the grand scheme of things the differences are very minor. It’s personal choice.

[Quags]

I've had both.

I had a mint pre face lift which was lovely. I hated the plastic rear screen and it was certainly more snappy to my mind (not in a good way, but hardly terrible)

9 years later i've just got in my 2005 and I do prefer the look and feel. But as mentioned, very little difference. Going to do a thread on mine soon.

[Gio G]

Just put a deposit down to hold early car in silver with red leather.. . My son prefers the look of the pre facelift car and felt the one we inspected was the best condition for its year. Looked at a few which given the slight premium in value was no match.. only downside was the drivers seat was a little creased.. the owners before were maybe a little robust.. so we will need a decent trimmer..

G

[griffter]

Quags said:

I've had both.

I had a mint pre face lift which was lovely. I hated the plastic rear screen and it was certainly more snappy to my mind (not in a good way, but hardly terrible)

9 years later i've just got in my 2005 and I do prefer the look and feel. But as mentioned, very little difference. Going to do a thread on mine soon.

Interesting experienced view
I look forward to the thread.

[griffter]

Gio G said:

Just put a deposit down to hold early car in silver with red leather.. . My son prefers the look of the pre facelift car and felt the one we inspected was the best condition for its year. Looked at a few which given the slight premium in value was no match.. only downside was the drivers seat was a little creased.. the owners before were maybe a little robust.. so we will need a decent trimmer..

G

Good work

Do you mind me asking why you passed on the low mileage car? I assume it was this one?:

http://www.woodmanmotorcompany.co.uk/cars-for-sale...

Seat base bolster can be repaired quite easily if you’re handy and optimistic, but shouldn’t be a big job for a trimmer if you get it done professionally.

[Gio G]

griffter said:

Good work

Do you mind me asking why you passed on the low mileage car? I assume it was this one?:

http://www.woodmanmotorcompany.co.uk/cars-for-sale...

Seat base bolster can be repaired quite easily if you’re handy and optimistic, but shouldn’t be a big job for a trimmer if you get it done professionally.

Thanks. I think I will leave the seat to a professional

So the car we are going for was originally purchased by the previous owner as an investment for his grandson back in Jan, however due to circumstances had to move it on. Interesting what you can find out online, as the previous classic dealer posted lots pictures of it online and it's history.. even made a little video... cannot wait to pick up, my son is so excited.. He is coming from a 595 Abarth, so this is a very different car!

https://youtu.be/gWd-mihxdAk

G