Bought an S2000!

Simon said:
I've read this several times now, I still can't really see what you are trying to say. I think you havent driven many other cars and you think the S2000 is the ultimate car - I see this a lot in your posts about them.

I didnt buy it cause its a convertible or different, i bought it for the way it drives.
Click to expand...

Not sure how you managed to construct this opinion from what I posted.

Quite simply I am of the opinion stating an S2000 is a waste is a stupid stance to take because it has other redeeming features that make it worthwhile no matter where you drive it. What these features are will differ from prson to person. You bought it for and value handling, I bought it for other reasons than just handling, some people will not even take handling into consideration at all.

In no way did I insinuate the S2000 is the ultimate car, of course it's not? :confused:

Perceived worth is just that, a perception based from opinion - It's not a factual, measurable thing.

Not everyone is like you so stop trying to apply your logic (purchasing decisions) onto others and evaluating the appropriateness of their choices based on nothing but your viewpoint.

With regards to geometry. I bought my car second hand, it had ridiculous amounts of understeer (Much more than standard, specifically commented on by professional drivers at a car handling day) and was very very unsettled on less than perfect road surfaces. I have absolutely no idea what condition the geometry was in but it was certainly not to Honda spec. It seems you are of the opinion though that geometry means nothing and it's just as good to leave it wherever it is set because it makes no odds eitherway. Or are you merely of the viewpoint that setting geometry is something only those that can drive => a certain speed limit should concern themselves with? It's certainly contradictory to many peoples opinions, some of which drive professionaly.

I'm not here to decide eitherway, all I can do is draw from my own experiences. One of which was the difference between the car when I bought it and how it behaves now. Feel free to argue that till you are blue in the face though.
 
So was it terrible then you got a full geometry alignment to Honda spec?

Or was the Geometry set to a bespoke fast road spec.

Did you get the tracking done as an intermediate parts of diagnosing the problem. Ie tracking so the wheels were poitning the right direction is pretty effective before you get into the area of diminishing returns.

Definately worth doing to any car.... but there is a degree of VFM.
 
The geometry/alignment was set as per the recommendations of the company who polybushed the car.

It cost £85.

It's been over 2 years since it was last done, and while in the UK I am getting it checked again. At the bank breaking cost of £110. Even if no changes are made it's worth doing to make sure nothing is totally out of place and the adjustment bolts are not seizing up.

Irrespective of peoples opinion of a geometry and it's value/worth making sure stuff does not seize up is, to me, a worthwhile exercise once every couple of years. As is wear level inspection on the tyres and the chance to catch a "Oh - Component X is about to give way and send you into a wall".

I am in the UK, it's going to cost me pocket change to get checked. I do not trust anyone locally, nor does anyone have decent equipment to do the work on. Why would I pass up the opportunity for an hour of my time only to be right out of luck here in Jersey if I needed to get things fixed?
 
No one said there no point having a fast car in Jersey. It was this comment that go taken completely out of context :

"I notice the difference. The roads are pretty bad here so a setup which is a little more forgiving on B-Road/bumpy type surfaces helps a lot.

The difference was night and day last time I got it done."

Then we got this as a reply
"Forbid anyone to actually buy a car they like on Jersey because it's a waste, compared to driving legally at 70 in straight lines. Pssst, unless you're a complete nugget on public roads, taking cars on a track is where it's at. "

That completely misses the point I was making, my point was that at low speeds I can't imagine there being a difference. If the ride changed it would be the bushes which were done WITH the geometry. How it can be stated this is due to the geometry changes alone is beyond me, i see no reference to the suspension bushes also being changed at the same time.

The only experience of night and day differences will be at high speeds - something hard to get in Jersey.

Now stop getting so defensive and understand why am against this scaremongering I see all the time about S2000s needing 'geo' before they can be driven. Sin Chase above even states he believes he needs the alignment checking to make sure a component doesnt fail :s

This is the type of scaremonging that is complete rubbish and what I disagree with, basically stating that Honda didnt do a good enough job of designing the car and without a geo you will end up in a wall.
 
Last edited:
Sin_Chase said:
The geometry/alignment was set as per the recommendations of the company who polybushed the car.

It cost £85.

It's been over 2 years since it was last done, and while in the UK I am getting it checked again. At the bank breaking cost of £110. Even if no changes are made it's worth doing to make sure nothing is totally out of place and the adjustment bolts are not seizing up.

Irrespective of peoples opinion of a geometry and it's value/worth making sure stuff does not seize up is, to me, a worthwhile exercise once every couple of years. As is wear level inspection on the tyres and the chance to catch a "Oh - Component X is about to give way and send you into a wall".

I am in the UK, it's going to cost me pocket change to get checked. I do not trust anyone locally, nor does anyone have decent equipment to do the work on. Why would I pass up the opportunity for an hour of my time only to be right out of luck here in Jersey if I needed to get things fixed?
Click to expand...

Im not disagreeing with that. Just some out of spec toe at the front could have got 80% of the improvement...

I mean you do know how much it was out before compared to after? Is it actually any different to what Honda spec'd? Honda spec is no longer appropriate really though due to the complete change in bush compliance you now have.

You shouldn't need to spend £110 to have the car suspension checked. Its the labour to adjust stuff out of spec thats expensive. Just got to protyre for example for a full laser readout.
 
Last edited:
Sin_Chase said:
. It seems you are of the opinion though that geometry means nothing and it's just as good to leave it wherever it is set because it makes no odds eitherway. Or are you merely of the viewpoint that setting geometry is something only those that can drive => a certain speed limit should concern themselves with? It's certainly contradictory to many peoples opinions, some of which drive professionaly.

I'm not here to decide eitherway, all I can do is draw from my own experiences. One of which was the difference between the car when I bought it and how it behaves now. Feel free to argue that till you are blue in the face though.
Click to expand...

You haven't even read anything Ive said, I already said it makes a difference on the limit, often the limit is also at speed. Now I'm sure these professional drivers are race drivers who also experience the same as they tend to drive on the limit, or do you mean taxi drivers who drive no faster than 40mph around an island when you state professional drivers? Do these guy see the difference.

For what it's worth I spend a lot more on getting my suspension working and most bushes were seized, needing cutting out and replacing with poly bushes. This is after I changed the suspension for Konis too, I certainly understand the importance of gemetry and it's odd that you haven't picked up on this.

From a stock car with in spec Honda settings to konis, poly AND 'geo' there was no massive difference on the road - except for a worse ride due to bushes. On the track it made a big difference on the limit, both in terms of overall grip and feedback.

Oh and sure going from really **** settings to Honda settings would have the same difference as going from **** settings to your 'geo' settings.

I just fail to understand how you really think its only the geo thats made the difference when there are other factors, but I guess you can also argue till you are blue in the face that it was 'geo'.

Getting the bushes greased before they seize IS a great idea as preventative maintainance for sure, especially with the price of bolts and nuts from Honda
 
Last edited:
Simon said:
From a stock car with in spec Honda settings to konis, poly AND 'geo' there was no massive difference on the road - except for a worse ride due to bushes. On the track it made a big difference on the limit, both in terms of overall grip and feedback.

Oh and sure going from really **** settings to Honda settings would have the same difference as going from **** settings to your 'geo' settings.

I just fail to understand how you really think its only the geo thats made the difference when there are other factors, but I guess you can also argue till you are blue in the face that it was 'geo'.
Click to expand...

I took my car as it was. It came out with polybushing and a geometry/alignment.

Nothing else changed. The difference, even at normal road speeds was huge. It does not matter what it was setup like prior, the fact was whatever it WAS set at was total trash and it needed a geometry to straighten out. Had I not had one, it would still be trash now. You can feel free to call me a liar that's fine and it does not bother me really. I still maintain the opinion that for the cost and time investment a geometry is worth doing every couple of years irrespective of whether you are are driving on the edge.

I am not stating that a geometry is the be all and end all for handling or that it will put your car on rails. Simply that for me the changes made a big impact, whether that be because it resolved a terrible setup before or improved upon something else, I do not really care - Just that getting it done at all was worth doing.

I am not a suspension guru. I did not go in with a sheet of adjustments I wanted to be made and come out with some custom setup. The car was polybushed, the company advised upon geometry, they did it - I was happy with the result. Why are you of the opinion anything but that was the case?

Is this to say you should get a geometry done on a Fiat Punto 1.2 every year? No.

On a car that provides full adjustment, is prone to seizures and can benefit from it? Yes.

To turn around and point blank state "What's the point, you live on Jersey" is ridiculous. And no, you did not state this directly, but you agreed with the person who did.
 
Last edited:
Jonnycoupe said:
Interesting view when you havent done yours for 2?
Click to expand...

I have no idea what you are getting at? :confused:

Did you mis-read what I wrote or something? I am saying that it's probably worth getting a geo done every so often on something like an S2000 but it does not mean I think you should go take your Fiat Punto 1.2 to a suspension/chassis tuning specialist every year.
 
So in summary
  • There's nothing wrong with the standard S2000 geo
  • If the geo is a bit out, you probably wouldn't notice until near "the limit"
  • If the bushes replaced and geo setup at the same time, you'd probably notice a difference
  • Max speed in Jersey is 40mph

Does that about cover it? :p
 
Getting back on topic, here's mine.

afterfocus_1336221776385.jpg


Before anyone points out the blatantly obvious, I've nowhere to store the roof at the moment.
 
PiKe said:
Getting back on topic, here's mine.

afterfocus_1336221776385.jpg


Before anyone points out the blatantly obvious, I've nowhere to store the roof at the moment.
Click to expand...

Very nice, I assume you changed the wheels to the 08/09 ones?

55plate is a nice version, just before the March 23rd 06 tax increase too.

Red black leather interior too ? :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom