VX220 or S2000 - in 18 months time :p

Status
Not open for further replies.
I plan to SC mine down the road :D

N/A tuning is extremely expensive and yields relatively little on the S2 because its already had most of its 2 litres rang out into its stock power values.

No idea how easily tunable N/A VXs are.
 
Criticising an engine because it is untunable is a bit odd considering it already has the highest specific power of any road car
 
I guess it all depends what you want from a car, if you are content to have a decent well sorted car off the production line then the s2000 ticks all those boxes, because as you well point out its got the highest bhp versus displacement, however if you want a decent car to build on and modularly upgrade then the s2000 is dire when compared to something like a vx220 turbo where power gains are easy to be had. Sure the engines longevity will suffer but for someone like me that changes cars every few months thats not really a concern.

To counter that you could argue why not just buy a better spec in the first place, I definitely prefer getting my hands dirty, finding out how things work and more often than not how to fix things I break along the way! or just buy a porsche where most things are already awesome and the thought of tuning its engine incurs 5 figure nightmares for pretty much any component you want to enhance :p

awesome looking car, crap for extracting more horses without chucking the value of the car at the engine again. even mx5's are more tunable and lets be fair as stock lumps they arent exactly electric! (im now incurring the wrath of the vtec and mx5 crew, :eek: )
 
No wrath from me, most (if not all?) S2000 owners know the cars drawbacks, power ones can be got around with the right mods - Might not be cheap but it is possible.

I bought mine and I am sure others for the same reasons because it ticked so many boxes for the right price with the right level of practicality.

Other than on the drag strip or on the track (at higher levels) I think the S2000 is more than capable and not severely hampered versus the competition.
 
oh i love them looks wise, and the cockpits and gearbox are awesome, the engine just let me down, its the kind of car I'd buy for my GF and enjoy driving from time to time, much like a clk55 or dare I say it a boxster :p

thats not me saying its a chicks car, its definitely not, its just not a car I'd buy (Again) for everyday usage
 
The potential is there tough and for someone like me who keeps a car for a fair amount of time I am sure I will be looking at those options when it becomes appropriate :)
 
S2000 Is perfect in every way (except for seized bolts!).

I love mine, always look back at it when i walk away when its parked up, true thing of beauty.

Just wish I could fit more than a few bags of food shopping in it :P
 
Will Gill said:
however if you want a decent car to build on and modularly upgrade then the s2000 is dire when compared to something like a vx220 turbo where power gains are easy to be had.
Click to expand...

To a point I would agree, however if you sod off the NA tuning and just save up for a supercharger and do it in one go, you very easily get to 400hp.

It's wideley accepted that the S2000 engine is very expensive to tune if you keep it normally aspirated.

You comment about Porsches does apply to the S2000 surely, both are tuneable but expensive. There is no denying the VX220T has the benefit of being a turbo so it's very easy just to chip them and for less than £1000 you can get 280hp.

Some people don't but cars as a platform to modify though, they just want to enjoy them as standard, reliable cars.
 
Simon said:
You comment about Porsches does apply to the S2000 surely, both are tuneable but expensive. There is no denying the VX220T has the benefit of being a turbo so it's very easy just to chip them and for less than £1000 you can get 280hp.

Some people don't but cars as a platform to modify though, they just want to enjoy them as standard, reliable cars.
Click to expand...

agree totally mate, those are just my reasons for not liking either brand from a tinkering perspective

think I'm secretly addicted to cheap japanses turbo'd sports cars where power gains are so easily extracted :D
 
I don't see the VX/Elise and S2000 as the same sort of thing really. One is a 2 seat sports car with refinements to make it a workable day to day car for many where as a VX/Elise is a bare sports car that gives up most of the comforts to deliver a sharper and more focused experience. The fact that they are pretty simliar performance wise doesn't mean they are similar cars, not in my book. One is far more practical than the other and aimed at different targets I'd suggest.

If I wanted to track it I would take the Lotus/VX route I suspect as its a little sharper and lighter but if I wanted to use it day to day and do some track work on the odd occasion I think I would take the Cayman........I mean S2000.
 
Owning an S2000 it'll naturally pull you away from the modding scene and focus you more on the actual driving. Yeah, remember that - driving, it's what people did before modding.

It's definately a back to basics car - sure you can modify them, but it takes a big leap, there's nothing in the way of stepping stones to gradually up the power - it's all or nothing. So, most people just crack on with enjoying the car for what it is - a rewarding sports car that won't let you down.

I'm not anti-modding at all, but sometimes I think it can pull you away from the fundamental of driving.
 
I can see the appeal of modding but I think people lose site of the real benefits and go chasing bolt on brands rather than genuine and realisable driving improvement.
 
Housey said:
I don't see the VX/Elise and S2000 as the same sort of thing really. One is a 2 seat sports car with refinements to make it a workable day to day car for many where as a VX/Elise is a bare sports car that gives up most of the comforts to deliver a sharper and more focused experience. The fact that they are pretty simliar performance wise doesn't mean they are similar cars, not in my book. One is far more practical than the other and aimed at different targets I'd suggest.

If I wanted to track it I would take the Lotus/VX route I suspect as its a little sharper and lighter but if I wanted to use it day to day and do some track work on the odd occasion I think I would take the Cayman........I mean S2000.
Click to expand...

Remember what the S2000 did to your GT3 at Donnington
 
Simon said:
There is no denying the VX220T has the benefit of being a turbo so it's very easy just to chip them and for less than £1000 you can get 280hp.
Click to expand...

Cor i wish it was that cheap when i had mine, you would struggle for a full exhaust system for that price :D
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom