Im pretty positive that posting in this forum will cause an overwhelming support for the Si.. but here it is.. I have a 14K-15K (max) budget to buy a new car.. probably not till summer though so i still have time to save. Here in NJ the S2K's are primarily high mileage S2K's 60+ but for the same i can find a low milage Si (07/08)... so my thing is.. would it be feasible to get the high mileage S2K? even though it may already have 60K+ miles on the engine or stick to the Vic?.. its going to be my DD... i currently drive a EM2.. getting tired of trying to make a mountain out of a mole hill... so i think im going to abandon my sneeze project

 

S2K.

if I didn't have a kid I'd own an S2K instead of my SI.

 

^Convert trunk into rumble seat.

 

lol...the wind would suffocate the **** out of her.

 

The biggest issue im facing is maintenance... I dont want to buy a S2K and have to do the timing belt, water pump, tranny flush, rad flush 5-10K miles later ya kno?... and im only finding up to 03's (S2K) in that price range.

 

^get the civic then...newer is better in your case. but still, all that depends on how the previous owner treated the car.

 

I would think that having an s2000 as an only car in NJ would not be so practical, with the crappy east coast winters and all.

 

s2k becouse its rwd y spend 15k on another fwd car wen u have one already?

 

s2k.

Production is stopping. So as prices get lower, people are going want them which will increase demand and price.

 

Depends on your needs. Kids? Weather? Etc...

Given my circumstances and your price range, I would buy a used S2K.

 

be careful with the S2K. Because it is discontinued part cost will begin to rise exponentially.

I ran into this problem when I bought a 97 Ford Probe GT.

As the years pass and more work needs to be done, the parts will become much more difficult to find, so not only will you have to pay for the parts, you'll be paying an increased premium for them too.

Also I don't know about a 2 seat DD. Seems very limited.

All things for you to consider. Good luck.

 

With that amount for the sole purpose of purchasing a car/cars, I'd get a daily beater that I won't worry so much about driving in the winter months or on poor roads and then I'd get another car as a toy.

I mean, if you're looking to modify one car then a beater daily would definitely protect the toy you might want to focus on and it will allow you to modify the toy in ways you might otherwise not be able to because of limitations based on weather, places you need to be able to drive and time the car is allowed down.

It's cool to be able to drive your favorite car everywhere, but it's also really cool for people not to slip on ice and slide into your favorite car.

 

ive driven both alot, i was in the same boat as you. i just happened to like the si better, but everytime i drive an s2k i wish i would have gotten it over the si.

 

Nexx You definitely are a girl because buying the s2k is totally impractical. But hey I guess girls do impractical things.

Given his circumstances sounds like he should go civic to me. Money seems to be an issue for him and if he intends for it to be a DD it will be parked in the snow. That's not what you do with DD's.

Naturally you would want the s2k for the performance. He has champagne taste on a beer budget. If he is worried about the scheduled maintanance for the s2k he already found his answer. His money issues tell all. Insurance on a RWD car and a car with a higher power to weight ratio and sporty reputation of the car will likely be discouraging to him.

Just buy the civic and a sick turbo and just walk over everyone in sight including S2k's.....Wait you don't have the funds for that.

 

I think my post was pretty practical.

 

it might be the opposite actually. Usually when a company discontinues a car and sells the plans to aftermarket producers, the price goes down

 

Being the east coast and all i live in Pa. and would not want an s2k for the winter. I dont know how bad it gets out in jersey though. A couple mentioned getting a beater for the winter months, that seem slike the best route for the s2k. I just bought and Em1 and wish i would of waited and just got an s2k. Like many others said what ever is more pratical, we are not blessed with the beatuiful weather in cali so we are forced to get beaters for the winter months haha.

 

The biggest issue is not maintenance. The S2000 uses a timing chain, and water pump leaks aren't a frequent occurence on Hondas with less than 120,000 miles. You should be changing the transmission oil immediately on any used car you buy no matter what, and Honda OE extended service coolant is good to 105,000 miles even though some people insist on changing it sooner. Fluid changes are so cheap and easy that I can't imagine why anyone would complain about having to do them. Replacement parts are generally more expensive and more difficult to source as should be expected with a low-production sports car, but all in all there isn't anything expensive that breaks much more frequently than in any other Honda car (though the diff and trans will fail if you beat hard on them constantly) so it won't necessarily be considerably more expensive to repair than something like a Civic Si for example.

The biggest issues that you should be concerned with are winter performance and tire cost/lifespan. An S2000 is decidedly NOT a snow-friendly commuter vehicle no matter what you might think, and S2000 tires are both expensive and short-lived.

Just because you have enough money to buy a particular car doesn't mean that you can afford it. It may sound like a good idea at first, but once your "dream car" becomes a reality, you find that it was much better as a dream. A 2-seat roadster with essentially no trunk space may work for some people as a daily driver, but it is definitely not for everyone.

In addition, don't get caught up on mileage alone as a determining factor for buying a vehicle. I see too many people get into the business of "buying an odometer" and ending up with a poorly maintained vehicle in sorry shape, when they could have paid much less for a higher mileage vehicle in better condition. Concentrate on maintenance history and overall condition regardless of the mileage.

 

qtf.. my buddy bought a 1999 camaro z28 with only like 59,000 miles, and ended up replacing nearly everything on the car..

don't buy just for mileage, buy based off previous care of original owners.. or owners before you.

 

About mileage... I daily a '93 Accord that has over 260,000 miles on it. Replaced the O2 sensor and cleaned the FITV when I got it. Replaced a few plastic interior pieces that were damaged or missing (nothing bad, I'm just picky). All that needs to be done now is a new muffler and a new wiper switch I believe.

Drives great though.

 

Man you guys are the real guys, afraid to drive an S in the snow...It's soooo fun any set of decent snow tires and if you want to be ocd get some studded snow tires and your good to go. It's not like you're driving a ferrari here maintenance is the same price as any Kseries would be.

 

thanks for all the input guys.. I really appreciate it.. I'm taking into big consideration of "buying the odometer" thing.. never really thought of it in that way.. i just figured a5 year old car with 100k+ would have been heavily driven.. but i guess assuming makes an ***-of-u-n-me.. and winter doesnt scare me too much.. i guess it would be comparable to a G35 or Z in the snow right?.. anywho.. im going to test drive both and base my decision off that.. i figured somewhere around 2k for insurance under the parents.. my insurance for my Vic now is only 800/yr.

 

^ have you driven a g35 or 350z in the snow? You make it sound like its no big deal. I got my 350z stuck in the snow on level ground. You will go nowhere in the snow with your s2k I repeat nowhere. Snow tires and studs will get you far enough away from home to make it a pain in the *** to get back.

g35 350 s2k are not built for snow at all, the tires, suspension wheels, weight distribution, EVERYTHING.

Well have fun when the quarter panel is next to you instead of behind you and don't say i didn't warn you!

 

Winter driving doesn't "scare" me. I grew up in the Northeast and never had many problems.

My concern is taking care of the car I enjoy more. I want to keep it around for years and years to come, and driving it in snowy, salty conditions isn't good for keeping it in the best condition. Just like the car I enjoy just plain cannot drive in certain areas. It doesn't have the ground clearance. But that's no problem since I have the daily.

Less wear, less tear, less me screaming at people for opening a car door on my nice car.

Buying a daily driver was one of the best things I've done for my hobby of modifying my (other) car.

Not to mention if I were afraid of driving in the snow I would just take the bus. I wouldn't have gotten a daily.

 

S2000 FWT. I have owned 2 SI's and 2 S2000's,and S2000 FTW.