Hi ya'll,
this is my first post on this forum.
I've thinking about purchasing a S and I test drove one at two dealerships and I like it more on the second test drive. On the first test drive, the car felt just like my Si, but with more power, and better handling, and it's a convertible. But on the second test drive, the free-easy-happy revving engine was something I noticed and enjoyed very much. So since I've never had a convertible before, I thought this car would be the best choice for me since the S gives us the best of both worlds, handling and convertible.

I also notice that when the convertible top is up, and you are sitting inside it, you can see the three or four hinges that prop up the top. Is this normal for convertibles? How are the BMW convertibles like? Do their hinges show also? And a bad point about the S convertible top is that it's not fully automatic, the driver still have to hook/unhook both sides when putting the top up or down.

I'm spoken to others about this decision, whether I should purchase a S and some recommended the G35 Coupe which has great reviews and was the car of the year for 2002 I believe. The G35 is also rear-wheel drive and has HID and a slew of other luxury amenities. Also in condiseration is the WRX STi, which is all-wheel-drive and has similar horse power compared to the G35. If I want to get the G35, I might as well wait for the Skyline to go on sale in 2007. But then again, I'm not a speed person though, I'm much more in to handling. Taking that in to consideration, maybe the S is the better choice even though its price tag is comparable to the STi, G35, Evo, etc.

What do you guys think?
Thanks in advance for your comments.

in His love,
HS

 

yes every soft to to my knowledge is going ot have hinges to hold the top down.. none are fully automatic.... but you know.. also keep in mind.. our top only takes roughly 6 seconds to go up or down.. faster then any other car out there... ....

the only tops that are fully automatic is i believe the targa type tops.... and the S is way way way different then the si... i used to have an turbo charged si.. and wow... the handling doesn't compare to the S.... the S is just so much fun to drive... day in and day out.. puts a huge grin on my face everyday i get into it.....and i can assure i'm not the only one that still has a grin on my face when i get into the S....once you actually drive it .. and not test drive it you will definently fall in love with it.....

and as you stated with the g35.... wait till the skyline comes out.... as for the sti and evo.. they are so similar it's just a matter of tastes..... by the way... the sti has 300hp..... the evo and the g35 have similar hp numbers...... the s only has 240.. but to be honest.... we are faster then the g35... and we can still hang decently with the evo and sti.... and since you said you're not a speed freak and you like handling. i would go with the S.. it's so much more fun to drive...

 

Well just to comment on one thing...the S2000 also is RWD and has HID's, about the only luxery piece you wont find on the S2000 that the G35 has and is worth it is nissans navigation system, which is incredible...i think rated best of any manufacturer, but seriously, i have navigation in my CL and i hardly use it since im typically local anyways.

As far as whether its worth buying an S2000...there are so many variables...

- How big are you? (this is a very important question though many people dont ask it)
- Will this be your daily driver?
- Are you planning to modify it alot, a little, or leave it stock?
- Are you wanting a luxery car? or a sports car?

...to be bluntly honest, the S2000 is no luxery car in any aspect other than its curb appeal, you will get noticed with the car because its just one of those "Oh, whats that?" kind of things, especially to people who dont know what the car is (which me and my wife get all the time...to the shock of some that its actually a Honda...lol). Its very small inside (but comparible with other roadsters out there), the stock sound system sucks to say the least, and its a noisy car, especially with the top up. But the pluses to me out weigh those things...i love high reving n/a engines, this car just simply comes alive after 6K (well, ours anyways...2004 with the 2.2) and with the top down racing around the mountain roads here its truely a joy to drive. But then thats where you have to ask yourself about daily driving, my wife HATES it for daily driving, rush hour traffic turns into a chore (more so than it already is) and constant stop lights just kind of turn this great sports car into an anemic little convertible...like the car is asleep and doesnt want to be disturbed, its frustrating, especially when you want to string a couple of gears out and just get everything out of it.

Its hard for anyone but yourself to tell you what you should do in consideration of purchasing this car, i would not buy this car for myself, i bought it for my wife because it is the car she wanted...she is also much smaller than i am and it is a good fit for her, just kind of a pain driving a sports car in traffic and such...for me the car is fun, and its a good weekend getaway kind of thing, but i wouldnt own it myself for daily driving, i leave that to my CL Type-S...

 

hey acura has that nice new navigation system in their RL... the thing is sweet.. it finds alternate routes that dont' have trafic for you.......

 

Yes it does...when i sat in the new RL a few weekends back, i was jealous and when i got back into my CL, lol...my nearly 5 year old navigation system seemed like an old Nintendo or something in comparison...hahaha. I just know that for the last couple of years, Nissan's 3D setup navigation system has been rated best of the best...

 

speaking of the RL.. the system it comes with is killer also.. hehehehe..

 

Man that red S makes me wnat to get my wife the hard top sooo badly.

 

yes it's sweet..... here's some more pictures for you to droll over.

 

Oh...my...god...beautiful.