Las Vegas—
When the S2000 debuted four years ago, it screamed its way into automotive enthusiasts' hearts with a racing-derived engine singing a 9000-rpm song, a hyper-alert chassis, and a driver-focused cabin equipped with bespoke if somewhat bizarre instruments. We last spent time with the S2000 only three months ago, when we tested a 2003 model against the new Nissan 350Z roadster, the Porsche Boxster, and the BMW Z4 ("Four of a Kind," August 2003). During that comparison, the S2000 performed brilliantly on the racetrack, where it demonstrated sharper reflexes than Venus Williams and a ballerina-like ability to pivot about its axis, but the price for the high revs and the track-time smiles was a shortage of low-end torque and a surplus of road noise from the powerful but frenetic 2.0-liter four-cylinder. We deemed the wee Honda "a specialized car for specialized circumstances."
Overly harsh? Harsh is what happens to your eardrums after you drive the old S2000 for a couple of hours on the freeway, because the VTEC engine delivers the goods only between 6000 and 9000 rpm.... Read full article