Just curious, has anyone played with these? I scared one once but had no room to keep the pedal down very long. They're said to be capable of 0-60 in 5.2. I test drove one when they first came out and it felt slow and sounded like a blender.

 

Road & Track says 5.3 and 14.0, while Motor Trend says 5.2 and 13.8. As we know, performance can vary from vehicle to vehicle. These figures puzzle me a bit, because the 0-60 times are quicker than a stock L., and if anything the Honda should be pulling on the L. at higher speeds where the aerodynamics take over, but the stock 1/4 times would appear to be similar- I'll bet it would be an interesting race.
The mention of S2000 gets my blood boiling, though. I was going to trade my Civic in on one of these puppies. I put a deposit down with a dealer who said he would sell me one at sticker. He later backed out of the deal- I guess he found out he could get a lot over sticker from some other sucker. The dealers in my area were asking (and getting) $5000 - $15000 over sticker. This pissed me off so bad I went out and bought a Lightning (lol). I can hardly wait for the L.A. auto show so I can show the Honda rep my invoices for a 2000 Lightning, 2000 Ranger, and two 20001 Evinrude motors- about $80000 worth of business Honda lost due to dealer greed. And you can bet that one of the main things behind the mods that I am doing to my L. is to make damn sure that if I ever come up against one of those roller skates at a stop light he will see nothing but tailgate. (The twisties, of course, are another story, I will avoid choosing S2000s on Mt. Baldy road.)




------------------
I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy.

'84 Alan Record Carbonio, Aerospoke wheels, Campy brakes.
'00 SVT Lightning, silver, G-tech Pro, JBA headers, cam bolts, 4.10 gears
(soon, Swanson's chip and MAF, Cal-tracs)
2001 Kevlacat 2400, twin 115 Evinrude FICHT, Raytheon VHF, Radar, and Sounder/DGPS chartplotter

gmvye@pacbell.net

 

I just had to try and stay with him (out of "oh no you don't!" determination) around a tight 30mph corner to get the feel of what is too much for the L. I never reached that point but was just waiting for the rear to break loose. I was very pleased with how it hung on. He still pulled on me around the turn but not nearly as much as he thought he would. When we finished the turn we went under the overpass and it was there when I let loose. The sound of that motor booming all around him must have been mighty disconcerting (even gave me a jump)for he backed off immediately, with no cars and no cops in sight. Felt good, I've got an earnest desire to spank every little spiffy sports car I see. Perhaps I should check in at the nearest clinic...

 

They are fast if kept above 5k. Raced with one at Holtville and a open wheel racer there got to drive it and said it was a DOG below 5k.

240hp @ 8300
153tq @ 7500
8900 rpm redline

Got RPMs??????

------------------
Go Hard or Go home........
*Red 2000 SVT Lightning
*Leer Lo-Rider Bed Cover
*PSP 4 Program Chip
*Wet Okole seat covers
*Adopted 3/29/00
*352RWHP / 432RWTQ with PSP Chip
-98 Mustang GT Convertible 4.6L Supercharged with FRPP Eaton M112 @ 9psi, to many other handling/engine mods to list.....



[This message has been edited by Red2000SVT (edited 07-27-2000).]

 

Might as well buy a motorcycle, at least you can dive into the sweeper and float the front whenever the urge hits you.

 

Just thought it might be interesting to note
that an editor, in his review of the S2000,
in the Feb issue of Motor Trend did a like
"real life" somewhat aggressive driving test:

Shifting at 5500 rpms, WOT each gear.
0-60 result? 11 secs!!!

He said like what many have said, to get
any significant power, it's like an all or
none situation, where you have to drive it
like a madman.

 

I've seen a few and the owners agreed that you basically have to rev the little bastards to at least 8 grand to get the most out of them. It's sick but consider that a 4.6 Mustang makes 260 HP out of a V8 and this is a 2.0 Liter FOUR making 240 HP!!!!

 

Very fast around a race track... only average fast in a straight line... you have to dump the clutch at 5-6000 rpm to get the 14.0's.

-Dreamin
'00 L

 

HP is a representation of TQ at a given RPM. HP can not be truely measured. Mustangs make almost 300tq and the S2000 makes a wopping 153tq. Simular HP #'s due to the extended RPM's. Put that motor in a mustang and detune the GT to equal 240HP's and the V8 would kick its butt across the world. TQ is more important as weight increases.

Long but intersting reading on HP verus TQ.
http://www.vettenet.org/torquehp.html

------------------
Go Hard or Go home........
*Red 2000 SVT Lightning
*Leer Lo-Rider Bed Cover
*PSP 4 Program Chip
*Wet Okole seat covers
*Adopted 3/29/00
*352RWHP / 432RWTQ with PSP Chip
-98 Mustang GT Convertible with a destroyed 4.6L Supercharged with FRPP Eaton M112 @ 10psi, to many other handling/engine mods to list.....

 

I'm with ralleyone - might as well get a bike.

Mike

 

The v-tech on the Hondas feels like a turbo when it kicks in. Unfortunately, you'll be burning through a couple of clutches a year to make it look like you can compete with cars that actually have torque.

 

FYI, there is an answer to the clutch problem- after you burn the first one up, install a Centerforce Dual-Friction clutch and your clutch worries are over for the forseeable future.

 

Having both vehicles I can tell you that they are basically as opposite as two vehicles can be. However they are both extremely fun. The lack of low end torque in the S2000 is extremely overexagerated. This car is extremely fun even if you had to shift at 5500 all day.From 6k-9k it is extremely quick. If the driver knows what there doing they can easily stay in the powerband due to the gearing.It is not as peaky as many people would think. The lightning is an altogether different beast.(Tons of Torque and Tons of Fun)

2000 SVT Lightning (Red) 7-21-00
200 Honda S2000 (Silver/red)

 

AAAH Yes, the old horsepower versus torque story.

12gage is truly a lucky guy as he has the best of both worlds as I did once upon a time.

Over the last many months, I have posted about my '69 Chev Belair 427/390 ex cop car and how bad it was. Real Saturday Night sleeper, as it was rusty, noisy and ugly. But, it had torque, and some mighty horsepower, but it was all done at around 5000 RPM.

At the time, I was VP Service and Parts for what was then SAAB-Scania of America and was tight with the racing and engine development types, including a still continuing friendship with Eric Carlsson of SAAB rallye fame.

After much negotiation, they shipped me a full blown rallye car, with respect to the motor and transmission, coupled with a road course sort of suspension that was at least somewhat driveable on the road.

With all due respect to the Chev, which I still have and my Lightning, that car was awesome.

It was normally aspirated, not a turbo, and it made almost 300 horsepower at around 8500/9000 RPM. Kinda slushy below 3000, and you had to launch it every time, but once it got up on the cams, it was a rush.

It was geared for a road course as opposed to a rally course, and had a 5 speed gear box. The most fun I maybe ever had was doing a then current Corvette in South Carolina when I dropped down to 3d gear at about 100 mph and just started rowing up through the gears and ate him up.

That was also the last and most expensive speeding ticket episode I ever experienced.
The SCHP type knew he could never hope to catch me so radio'd ahead to a partner a few miles up the road. I still have the ticket somewhere here in the house, and I think his radar stopped at about 145 mph.

Funny thing, and maybe life is not always unfair, I paid a $700 fine and it never appeared on my driving record.

In any case, there is always a case for power at high rpm and a case for torque at lower rpm. Right now, I am in the torque mode.

Bill



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99.5 Lightning
Build #247
PSP Chip/Filter
Bassani full system
White/normal options
Tamiya 1/10 scale Bolt
Several old trucks/cars
Thunder & Lightning
Rag Doll Cats
E-mail MOSTOYSINC@AOL.com
Kennesaw, Ga. (Atlanta)

 

I agree that a bike is the most fun you can have on wheels. I seriously considered getting another one after I totalled my Civic, but decided that I have grown too attached to my epidermis and other vital body organs for a bike. Besides, its too hard to carry a set of golf clubs on one. I am attracted by the notion of having a car that would do well in the twisties. A Boxster S would be nice, except its a tad pricey, and I still haven't forgiven the Krauts for WW II. Oh well, still waiting on an F-type.