S2000 - easy retro-fit '02 suspension?
Discussion
Looking for £5 - 6k S2000 for fun reliable rwd daily driver through the winter 
Many reliable mags like Evo don't rate the earlier cars' handling but praise the '02 revisions. Feasible to buy early car and at low cost change the suspension for about £1k I would think, if pick-up points etc the same?
Many reliable mags like Evo don't rate the earlier cars' handling but praise the '02 revisions. Feasible to buy early car and at low cost change the suspension for about £1k I would think, if pick-up points etc the same?
Not 100% sure, but don't believe everything you read:-
- Suspension revisions from a '99 to an '02 weren't that huge - more was a change to 'standard' geometry settings. Bigger change was '02 to '04, but as that included a change to 17"s and different rubber, again it's hard to work out what effect the suspension changes alone had.
- I found a HUGE difference in my 2003 by changing the geo settings and by fitting cross-braces. So much so that I've been driving it all week in preference to my DC2...the car's in some ways MORE fun in low-grip conditions!
- There's a fair few people on s2ki gone to Nitrons with good results.
- Suspension revisions from a '99 to an '02 weren't that huge - more was a change to 'standard' geometry settings. Bigger change was '02 to '04, but as that included a change to 17"s and different rubber, again it's hard to work out what effect the suspension changes alone had.
- I found a HUGE difference in my 2003 by changing the geo settings and by fitting cross-braces. So much so that I've been driving it all week in preference to my DC2...the car's in some ways MORE fun in low-grip conditions!
- There's a fair few people on s2ki gone to Nitrons with good results.
havoc said:
Not 100% sure, but don't believe everything you read:-
- Suspension revisions from a '99 to an '02 weren't that huge - more was a change to 'standard' geometry settings. Bigger change was '02 to '04, but as that included a change to 17"s and different rubber, again it's hard to work out what effect the suspension changes alone had.
- I found a HUGE difference in my 2003 by changing the geo settings and by fitting cross-braces. So much so that I've been driving it all week in preference to my DC2...the car's in some ways MORE fun in low-grip conditions!
- There's a fair few people on s2ki gone to Nitrons with good results.
Thnaks for that. Braces & Geo settings fairly cheap then (as long as bushes haven't seized, I hear, but even then not a silly cost I would think) but I had thought spring rates & a/r bars were altered to the spec that you have?- Suspension revisions from a '99 to an '02 weren't that huge - more was a change to 'standard' geometry settings. Bigger change was '02 to '04, but as that included a change to 17"s and different rubber, again it's hard to work out what effect the suspension changes alone had.
- I found a HUGE difference in my 2003 by changing the geo settings and by fitting cross-braces. So much so that I've been driving it all week in preference to my DC2...the car's in some ways MORE fun in low-grip conditions!
- There's a fair few people on s2ki gone to Nitrons with good results.
Revised geometry & Nitrons made big difference on the T350 as well.
I'm quite happy with edgy rwd handling in wet etc, but not the slightly loose unpredictable type that Evo suggest in earlier S2000's!
tail slide said:
I'm quite happy with edgy rwd handling in wet etc, but not the slightly loose unpredictable type that Evo suggest in earlier S2000's!
Hmmm...I don't push my ('03) car to 10/10ths in the wet, but when mine does break now, it's eminently catchable even by my modest abilities. Before the geo and braces it was noticeably less 'transparent' in it's behaviour though...and I daresay the evo scribes push the cars as much as they can get away with, so maybe the '99s were a bit worse at 10/10ths. Know a couple of '99-MY ex-owners, and neither seemed particularly bothered with the handling of theirs though...ARBs and spring rates? IIRC spring rates ARE slightly different, not sure about ARBs, but there's some good after-market stuff available. www.s2ki.co.uk will have all the info you could ever want, I suspect (once you work out the search engine on there!).
With the market the way it is, if you're still worried (and you can afford £400p.a. VED), buy a good '02 - you'll nab a good one for under £9k, I'd imagine (hate to say it though...). Aside from suspension, it's got the glass rear-screen.
I agree with Havoc
Go for a +02 car they also have the glass rear screen that is a lot more robust than the plastic one
The rest is cosmetic.
There was very little change from the original cars
You can "tame" an earlier car with HUK's revised geo setting.
Read the FAQ on s2ki
http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showforum=25
Go for a +02 car they also have the glass rear screen that is a lot more robust than the plastic one
The rest is cosmetic.There was very little change from the original cars
You can "tame" an earlier car with HUK's revised geo setting.
Read the FAQ on s2ki
http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showforum=25
mikey k said:
I agree with Havoc
Go for a +02 car they also have the glass rear screen that is a lot more robust than the plastic one The rest is cosmetic.
There was very little change from the original cars
You can "tame" an earlier car with HUK's revised geo setting.
Read the FAQ on s2ki
http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showforum=25
Thanks - the 'reduced neg. camber & more rear toe-in' makes sense after much experimenting with my TVR's settings, and can see why the std. Honda settings would be more effective on smooth roads/track. Go for a +02 car they also have the glass rear screen that is a lot more robust than the plastic one
The rest is cosmetic.There was very little change from the original cars
You can "tame" an earlier car with HUK's revised geo setting.
Read the FAQ on s2ki
http://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showforum=25
If I don't find a +02 car for under 8k (I take the point about the glass window etc) I'll stick with the std. settings on an earlier car for a while & see how I get on with them on the B-roads around here
If it helps, I went with a hybrid set-up for agility (this is a weekend car, mind):-
Rear: 1.5 degrees camber; 10mins toe-in (minimum Honda spec)
Front: Minimum caster; 1 degree camber, zero toe (last two spot-on Honda centre-points)
In the dry it's immense fun, very agile, but still difficult to unstick without trying (i.e. throttle before apex or trail-braking).
In the wet it requires some concentration, but the rear is quite progressive when it does go, and if you drive it 'properly' (which if you've had a TVR I suspect you can do better than me), i.e. using the weight balance and being ultra-smooth, then it behaves itself compeletely at sensible speeds.
Rear: 1.5 degrees camber; 10mins toe-in (minimum Honda spec)
Front: Minimum caster; 1 degree camber, zero toe (last two spot-on Honda centre-points)
In the dry it's immense fun, very agile, but still difficult to unstick without trying (i.e. throttle before apex or trail-braking).
In the wet it requires some concentration, but the rear is quite progressive when it does go, and if you drive it 'properly' (which if you've had a TVR I suspect you can do better than me), i.e. using the weight balance and being ultra-smooth, then it behaves itself compeletely at sensible speeds.
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