Try to calculate the smiles per gallon present in this photo

"AestheticsInMotion" (aestheticsinmotion) 05/30/2017 at 00:06 • Filed to: Miatapalooza, S2000

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Serious question. The F20c engine in the S2k is widely regarded as one of the greatest engines of modern automotive history. For good reason. Insanely high revs, a huge power to liter ratio, plenty of character and fantastic reliability. Why did Honda never put it in any other car..? Would it still be possible?

Beautiful car, with tasteful modifications, but I think I win the rollbar comparison...

Two of the most ubiquitous wheel styles, 6ul’s and Rpf1's. Both class leaders in terms of weight, and strength.

Also, having just driven an S2000 for a solid day I’ve come to a tough conclusion... And that is that there’s no way I could decide between a NA8 Miata and a 1st gen S2k.They’re both currently tied in 1st for my roadster list, with the M roadster 3rd, NB and ND tied in 4th, Fiata 6th, NC 7th, and non M BMW roadsters so far down the list it’s almost embarrassing to mention it here. I love the solstice, sky, etc. But I consider them a slightly different class based on size. Also I don’t want to redo my list.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 00:17

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Actually this is a smile-smile-cry, given the third car in photo.

AestheticsInMotion > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 05/30/2017 at 00:19

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At least it’s not black, white or grey. That would have drastically lowered the number of smiles.

promoted by the color red > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 00:26

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This many smiles.

AestheticsInMotion > promoted by the color red 05/30/2017 at 00:28

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I’ll get back to you once the video loads and I can see all the smiles that I assume will be in it

interstate366, now In The Industry > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 00:33

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There’s an aftermarket adapter that mates the F20C with K-series transmissions, called an F2K kit. I’ve also seen an Integra converted to RWD with an F20C swap.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 00:41

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Y u no trunk rack

AestheticsInMotion > Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo 05/30/2017 at 00:46

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Even with the rubber backing it left some minor dents and paint chips I’ll have to fix at some point. But that’s not a big deal.

The main issue is with the rack, my wheels, and rollbar, there were 3 different silvers and it was just too much. Something needs to painted

Out, but with a W - has found the answer > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 00:56

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You’re missing ‘backwards through hedges’ experience, it seems.

AestheticsInMotion > Out, but with a W - has found the answer 05/30/2017 at 01:29

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I put that one a few steps above non M BMW roadsters...

Flavien Vidal > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 01:39

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The S2000 is a terrible daily driver... You have to rev it like a mad man for it to just even start thinking about moving... 160lb.ft of torque at 6800rpm for the AP2! That’s almost unusable without looking like a total numbnuts.

My insanely torqueless rotary as MORE torque earlier than a S2000 (165lb.ft in at 4000rpm)... At least it makes the car also usable and fun everyday. (not to mention it weights nearly 800lbs less lol)

And I forgot also: 100kmh in second gear?? Really?? That makes the car nearly useless during uphill runs un the mountains... Not enough torque to shift into 3rd, not enough RPM to stay in 2nd. Fun!

AestheticsInMotion > Flavien Vidal 05/30/2017 at 02:05

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I have plenty of fun daily driving my Miata with less torque throughout the powerband. Sure, there’s no real surge of power in either car, but there never seemed to be trouble passing people for example. Just drop the clutch at 6k from every stoplight, problem solved! :)

Funny you should mention second gear hill climbs. I’ve been having the same problem doing dirt road hillclimbs, except with the Miata it’s not enough torque to shift into 2nd, not enough rpm to stay in 1st!

Flavien Vidal > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 03:32

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I don’t know man, the miata is not nearly as fast as the S2000, so the fact that it has less torque is fine for me.

Keep in mind, you just unintentionnaly compared a 240hp to a 130hp one, saying that “well, the 130hp car has less torque but I’m fine with it!” :)

It also has 300kg less hehe.

But that’s the whole point I think. A 240hp fast car shouldn’t behave like a 130hp one up to until 5000rpm. That’s what I don’t get with S2000 fans... It’s a 240hp car that is slower than a miata under 5000rpm which is the power band you use daily when you don’t want everyone to think you’re an danger on the road. Fun at a track, sure. But as daily?? Damn no!

Bytemite > Flavien Vidal 05/30/2017 at 07:08

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That’s a bit harsh Flavien :) You’re a driving enthusiast with an FB so you should understand the charm of slow car fast. Come on, you know the S2000 is fun. Just because it isn’t the most ideal lazy in-town cruiser doesn’t mean it’s a terrible daily driver.

Flavien Vidal > Bytemite 05/30/2017 at 07:49

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Oh I never said it wasn’t... it’s a very fun and very enjoyable. In the mountains, if possible not uphill unless you REALLY know the road and can actually shift in 3rd :)

But as a daily driver, the insane lack of torque and the fairly heavy weight make it just not good to me. Passing in the mountains is the worst with it... The time it takes to get back into the powerband and actually move make it borderline dangerous at times... 2nd gear goes up to 100kph. If you fall down to 45kph, actually accelerating in 2nd takes forever!

gettingoldercarguy > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 08:12

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Honda needs to do a simple high revving naturally aspirated engine with a small electric motor. A crz type but in a convertible and more performance oriented.

pip bip - choose Corrour > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 08:29

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smiles per gallon?

easy answer, LOTS!

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 09:12

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Yeah my luggage rack has pretty much destroyed the trunk lid on my Miata. Tiny dents all over it and the paint all scratched to hell. Not to mention the lip getting all scuffed and rusting. But that is more because I transport two wheels on it that are way past the weight limit.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 09:24

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I drove an S2k for about a week that I rented from Turo. I definitely could tell why these cars are special. But I think the biggest realization I had was that it was just not incredibly faster than my Miata. The only real difference was that the S2k just felt more solidly put together; no rattling and better interior materials. In town at slow speeds, the only part I disliked about the s2k was the shifter. So notchy and just didnt like shifting smoothly. Going hard in the canyons, it felt fine as ever but otherwise it was painful. I am used to the Miata feeling just as awesome at 30 mph as it is at 80mph.

But anyways, both cars were a lot more comparable than I thought they would be. The “more usability” of the Miata made up the difference in top end performance for sure.

My list of similar fun cars driven in preference order:

Cayman > FRS > NB Miata ~ ND Miata > S2k > NA 1.6 Miata >> Anything else

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 09:48

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Miatas are fun but my friend has an s2kCR and it is bonkers, way better. His is nowhere near stock so I can’t say what a stock one feels like.

AestheticsInMotion > 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) 05/30/2017 at 23:21

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And S2k’s just look so cool.

That’s the problem, both my Miata and the S2k I drove both had roughly 10k in mods, put into different areas. Hard to compare. I would love to get my hands on two stock ones... Mmmmm

AestheticsInMotion > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 05/30/2017 at 23:24

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You know, for all that people praise Hondas for their clutch and gearbox I’ve greatly preferred every Miata I’ve driven over the various 90's Hondas my friends have owned over the years.

Yet to drive a 1.6 or Cayman... Unfortunately

AestheticsInMotion > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 05/30/2017 at 23:27

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And you had the same Raceland one right? I might try some felt strips or something next time... Annoying but not the end of the world.

Still trying to fab up a swing arm to mount a tire directly behind the license plate. With room for a gas can... Duelsport Miata coming alone haha

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > AestheticsInMotion 05/30/2017 at 23:34

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Yeah my friends is a track machine, but he drives it on the road as well. He ruins dentists in M3s. I would think he has spent more than 15k on it, turbos and I don’t even know. It is proper fast but it has amazing grip too. whoever built his car in San Jose knows what they are doing.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > AestheticsInMotion 05/31/2017 at 08:52

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I’ve seen this one sold somewhere, not a custom fab type of thing:

That’s probably the most elegant solution outside of a trailer.

But yeah I have the riceland one with the rubber strips. The dents and crap are mostly from the tie down straps and bungee cords though. I havent been the most careful with it since trunk lids are pretty cheap and my paint is crap anyways. I imagine just being a bit more careful and putting a little more padding on the feet would be helpful. I’ve also found that adequately polishing and waxing seems to fix the main paint issues so its mostly superficial scratches.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > AestheticsInMotion 05/31/2017 at 08:55

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Yeah, Idk if that car was just extra janky or if hondas arent really as great as they are praised to be. I thnk the clutch was going in that s2k since there were other symptoms I could associate to that too. It just really made me appreciate how smooth my Miata shifter is (aside from the 3rd gear crunch common to the 6sp).