True but their is only so much power that you can add to aluminum block vs iron like on previous Nissans including the 300TT, that is why you see tons of them with lots of power. That will not be obtainable with the aluminum block.

 

imho, the s2000 is one ugly a$$ car. doesnt stand out on the road. not eye catching. just another miata looking car. but if handling is what you wanted then its all good.

 

Well, if we're comparing apples to apples, the 2003 350z isn't convertible so there's no added weight.

Actually, Car & Driver compared the 2004 Roadster to the 2003(?) S2000 ... The S2000 inched it out, but not by much. .2s in the 0-60 and it got a few extra points via the 'bang for the buck' category.

Just some thoughts ...

 

Where is all this "S2K'ers hate 350Z'ers and vice versa" coming from. There plenty of S2K guys here in the bay area and we frequently go on runs together. Everyone of the S2K'ers I've met are very laid back and very cool guys. Is all this hating happening in other areas? Just curious because I don't see it here locally.

The S2K is a great car. Congrats on your new purchase and have fun.

 

WERD.!. but, you got it wrong, the 350Z out handles the S2000.

S2000350Z

 

If you knew anything about S2000's, you would also know that '02+ models are a tick faster as they dyno about 5HP higher than the '00-'01 models.

All I'm saying is that magazine racing is extremely dumb. The two cars are extremely different but their performance is very, VERY close.

Basing your assesment of car's "performance" on what some yahoo from a magazine managed to get while some other yahoo from some other magazine on some other day managed to get is pretty dumb as well.

Overall performance is SO MUCH more than who gets faster 0-60 (NOBODY races 0-60 anyway), or 1/4 mile (if you care about 1/4 mile you got the wrong car regerdless of whether you got the Z or the S).

For example when we talk about "performance", the one and ONLY thing I personally care about is lap times.

A stock S2000 on TWS is about 2-3 seconds faster per lap than a Track model 350Z, both with expert drivers.

So in my book, S2000 has better overall performance than the Track model 350Z (not to mention that is cheaper too).

 

Where did you get this info from?

 

I've always been a honda/acura guy. Wanted a Enthusiast Z or an S2K.

Nissan dealer is right next to the Honda dealer in my town also. Went to Nissan, the sales guy was busy (I got there earlier than I told him I would be), so I went over to Honda. Was treated like crap. Had to wait for ever for someone to notice me. Then when they did the guy ended up ditching me and said someone else would help me. The cars they had included all this other crap that brougt the price from 32K up to 36-37K. Wasn't offered a test drive.

Went back to Nissan. Got attended to immediately by the sales rep at the original time I told him I would be there. Got 1500 off MSRP on the Entusiast SS. I love the car.

So sad for Honda, they lost my business on this one.

 

You should have waited for the new S2200 version... Will be announced shortly... More HP, torque and other upgrades.
Not my thing but will be a big improvement over the S2000...

R

 

Hey I didn't test the 2003 S2000 for Car & Driver don't blame me for it running high 14's go write them and ***** at them. As for the magazine racing gigs you guys all try to pull, well let me just say WAKE UP!!!!

We are on the freaking internet exactly what numbers should I use what base should I start from. Should I go look up what some S2000's ran at the track or consult the my DVD footage I have taken at the track, oh wait no way to tell if they are stock. Or maybe I should go to an S2000 forum and ask them, not than anyone there would lie or anything or not than any of them might have modded engines or not that any of them probably are not as good of drivers as the people testing for mags. Or maybe I should just challenge a S2000 poster here and we can drive 1000's of miles to race each other then I will have some more accurate numbers right? Wait I've had a revelation, instead of using magazines to make a point about a specific cars speed I'll just fire up my PS2 and play some Gran Turismo 3 and see what they run in the 1000m.

The magazines are a base we can all draw from because we all can pick up these same magazines and check to see if the person posting this stuff is full of crap or not. You can tell me a S2000 runs 12's stock, but I'm not gonna believe you. You show me proof of this in a well known and highly respected magazine and I'll be much more likely to believe that than any tall tale based on some anonymous guy on the internet that I'll never meet in real life. Sorry man but magazine tests are generally the most accurate base for these type of discussions, almost all the magazines testing the same car will hit around .5 of each other no matter what the conditions are.

Also based on the original's poster's post It's pretty obvious to me that he bought the S2000 over the 350z because it was a convertible and no other reason than that. I don't hate the S2000, but I do know the interior is way too small for me. The guy may have actually gotten the 350z Roadster instead if it was available when he bought his S2000.

 

I've never driven an S2K, but I want too. I sat in one a few times (stationary) and was really struck by how cramped it felt. It didn't seem like I could get used to it, but who knows.

Someday, I'll drive into a Honda dealer and ask for a test drive.

Definitely a sweet looking car, I semi-seriously considered buying it instead of the Z, but I couldn't justify having a convertible in the Northeast.

 

thats actually not a bad idea. i actually did this this aftenoon just cuz i was bored. since the production Z isnt in GT3, i had to do my tests in Gran Turismo Concept for JPS2 (which has both the production S2000 and production 350Z). i raced them both on Tokyo R246 and Midfield Raceway, MT, free run, TCS off, VSM off, and using the GT Force v.2 racing wheel/pedals, and raced 5 laps on each course with each car and took the top time after those 5 laps. the best time i could pull with the s2000 on Tokyo R246 was 1'57.964, the best with the z was 1'51.709. on midfield raceway, the best i got with the s2000 was 1'23.913, and with the z: 1'19:604. i am in no way a perfect driver, but i know the game well enough to say that in the game the z feels more powerful and the s feels slugish and slow at anything below 7000 rpms. plus, something i notices was the z could take corners a bit faster whereas the s2000's lightweight and aparent bad traction caused it to slide outward in turns. i'dhave to take a corner at a lower speed in the s2000 to stay on the inside of the curve. of course this isnt 100% accurate, but its something to think about at least. i could prolly go into more detail of both, as im pretty avid in the gran turismo series and racing games in general

 

LOL that is too funny, well you could run'em against each other head to head in the 1/4 mile in Sega GT 2002 for X-box it has both cars and a 1/4 mile drag track

 

tell ya what , ive had the S since 2000 and just quickly traded for the 350zr this summer. (you do know the Z comes in a con-vert ? ) after driving the S 4 3 years compared 2 the 350 for only 4 weeks i think your wrong ! The S is great tech dont get me wrong. but it is nothing more than a motorcycle on 4 wheels. Just watch the look of your pasenger as you rev the sh-- out of her white knuckled at 8999 RPM .I beleive the 350ZR is by far the BEST BANG FOR THE BUCK in its catagory . and i dont think the S really belongs in its catagory. put it in with croch rockets. 350ZR better why?

1- sound ,starting idle rev and power as ya go through the gears
2- CABIN COMFORT ie sound system,heated seats,leg room,just overall smart!
3- handling and performance is much more mature the car sticks to the road just as well and with the totally diff power package it performs in its way ,far better!
well its late i could go on but so long

 

Wow, I've never read so much misinformation about the S2000 in such a short period of time!

- Acceleration - in my experience, they're pretty damn close, but the Z is easier to keep in the powerband
- Handling - this is subjective, but the S2000 outhandles every other car I've ever driven
- "They say the Z is more for the track and the s2000 is more for the street. Also the interior of the S2000 is so cheap looking, like most of the hondas." If anything, it's the other way around. I'd prefer an S2000 on the track anyday, while the Z is clearly a better daily driver. The S2000's interior is simple, but you can't deny that the quality of materials is significantly higher than the Z's.
- comparos - the S2000 has won at least 2 in the last 2-3 months vs. the Z roadster

I'm not saying the S2000 is better, just trying to clear some misconceptions. I LOVE the 350Z, have thought about buying one on more than one occassion, and may just end up w/ one at some point in the future...though the '04 S2000 w/ the 2.2L engine looks pretty tempting right now.

 

this sound more like your opinions than actual facts.
I find it hard to believe a convertable makes a better track car than a coupe or that the S2000 outhands most cars.
S2000 won 2 what? in the last 2-3 months

Actually, a bit of digging. For all that thinks the S2000's interior/seating is smaller than the Z, you might be surprise. The S2000 acutally has 1.3 inches MORE than the Z in Legroom. But you lose a lil more than 3 inches in headroom and shoulder room. (but its a convertable, have infinite headroom) And the base price is more than the Z (up to performance model)

 

We're living in a very special time as far as sport car availability. I think there are more really well designed cars now than at most other periods of history. Rx7, supra, 300ZX tt, were great cars in the 90's.
Now we have 350Z, S2000, Boxter, Z4, M3, Mustang, TT, S4...the list goes on. They handle quite well in stock form. When mods are added they all do very well.

S2000 has basically owned BS Solo2 for the past few years. The rest do well in Solo events.

 

Yes but it doesn't have the room the Z has where I need it the most in the waistline

Trust me the Z has much more room than the S2000 in this department lol.

 

Congrats. S2k's are very nice cars.

 

Lincoln Mark VIII is a coupe.

Lotus Elise is a convertible.

Care to guess which one is a better track car?

Just because a certain car is a coupe (350Z) doesn't automatically mean that it's a better car for the track than another car which is a convertible (S2000).

Now, a coupe 350Z is certainly better for the track than a convertible 350Z, but we are talking about different cars here.

As for the S2000's handling, it definitely handles extremely well, and better than most of the cars on the road. S2000 OWNS the BS class in autocross (in which the Z competes as well), and it actually competes in T2 road racing class in SCCA, along with LS1 Camaros/Firebirds and Mustang Cobras. Since those cars have MUCH more horsepower and are a lot faster in the straightline than the S, the only conclusion is that the S stays competitive by having superior handling.