Finding a Cheap S2000 Is Pretty Much Nil, but Not All Is Lost
Sadly, 2017 was the last opportunity to score a cheap S2000 and check off the Japanese dream var checklist.
Want to find a cheap S2000? Yeah, well most of us want to win the lottery too. In all seriousness, S2000 prices are climbing and fast. They’ll soon reach Unobtanium levels like their Japanese Bubble Era counterparts – Supra, NSX, and Skyline. It’s only a matter of months at this point.
In a recent video by Albon on that vaguely popular thing called YouTube, we get a look into exactly what’s going on with the S2K. “Ten years ago, you could get one for $10,000!” cries Guff, host of Albon “So how did Honda’s back-to-basics sports car go from being a dime a dozen to costing three times as much as Honda’s most expensive car on sale today?”
History
It all started with two wheels and an engine for Honda. Hence their particular skill with building killer engines. Things were going great for Honda, but those with more to gain were begging for something to sell in the winter when motorcycle sales dipped.
In 1955, Japan put out a People’s Car promotion which looked to fast-track production of any car with a top speed of 100km/h, seated 4, and cost 150,000 Yen. This was incentive enough for Soichiro Honda to get his hands dirty and put together a team to produce an automobile for Honda.
Not too much longer in 1962, Honda debuted their first sports car, the S360, which raced around the legendary Suzuka circuit. The S360 sported a 360cc engine, convertible top, and utilized a RWD platform. This was the genesis for the iconic S-Series platform. Honda brought it and the “Big Brother” S500 to the Tokyo Motor Show. The S500 housed a 500cc engine “That’s 0.5L by the way,” remarks Guff. And in case you’re wondering, 44 hp. It stole the show.
In the vid, Guff travels through the following iterations of the S-Series touching on the S600 and S800 including the coveted RSC model which improved upon the S800 and later placed 3rd overall in the 12 hours of Suzuka, competing against the like of the Datsun Fairlady Z, Toyota 1600 GT, and Skyline 2000 GT. But the smooth sailing wouldn’t last forever.
“Just like that, the S-series, the car that launched Honda’s entire automotive business,” states Guff “was dead” The wave of depression that was the 1970s claimed its first victim and put an end to the Honda S platform.
Re-Emergence of the S-Series
Fast forward several decades later and Honda was sitting pretty atop the Japanese economic bubble. In 1995 at the Tokyo Motor Show Honda revealed the SSM (Sports Study Model). “It was a wild car with no roof and separate cockpits for the driver and passenger” shares Guff. The SSM boasted a front-engine RWD platform with an inline-5 mated to an automatic trans and suspension setup from the NSX.
People were excited. Eventually, that excitement was rewarded in 1999 with the S2000. The F20C Engine in the S2K boasted an incredible 237 hp. At 2L, it was the highest horsepower-per-liter car in the world with a screaming 9,000 RPM redline. Oh, and it was paired with 6-speed manual which was perfect for the gauge cluster which was pure honey.
In 2004 the S2k got a refresh. Bigger wheels, F22C1 engine, fancy bushings that sucked less, and new tech to knock down those bump-steer issues. The only real downside was the fuel cutoff went down to 8200 rpm. The AP2 S2000s also received drive-by-wire.
In 2008 we received the S2000 CR (Club Racer) which was essentially a pure sports car. No frills or creature comforts, and only 699 were made. Japan got the Type S and other special editions were sent to Europe. But as with all good things, it too came to an end. Production of the S200 halted in 2009.
Rising Value
And here’s why you clicked. In 2010 early AP1 S2000s in good shape were going for $10-12k. Prices continued to dip as the years went on and the mileage racked up.
But in 2017 several ultra-low mileage S2000s went for over $30k, causing a trend shift. CR models quickly climbed above $40k, and things were about to take off. S2Ks were now above original MSRP and finding a cheap S2000 was about to get a whole lot harder.
One 91 mile 2009 AP2 S2000 sold for $70,000! In 2020, a 2008 CR sold for $76,500 sporting only 1,300 miles. Earlier this year a 2009 CR went to auction with only 985 miles. It came with factory radio and AC making it 1 of 10! That car went for $112,111…
This is were we currently stand today. Prices for the S2000 are getting absurd and a cheap S2000 is now just a pipe dream.
Cheap S2000s Are No More
“To get a well-sorted car you’re looking at $30,000 to start with AP2s touching $40K,” remarks Guff “A far cry from the days of clean $10,000 S2000s.”
A little bit of advice… buy one now, if you can. They will continue to rise above attainable status and you will be sitting on a quickly appreciating asset.