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For 2008, Honda has introduced a lightweight version of the S2000 called the CR ("Club Racier"). They've chucked the air conditioner and stereo and replaced the folding power top with a removable aluminum roof, shaving 51 lbs with the top on, 99 with it off. They've also added big, functional aerodynamic bits to the nose and tail, beefed up the suspension, steering and brakes, and added $2,000 to the price. Does all this make the Honda S2000 a better car? Read on. $36,935 base/as tested, EPA fuel economy 18 MPG city/25 MPG highway.
First Glance: Honda's street-legal race car
Larger photos: Front - rear - top on
If you're thinking of buying an S2000 CR as your daily driver, I'd advise you to reconsider. The CR has no A/C and no stereo (you can add them back in for $1,000, but that sort of defeats the purpose), it takes two people to get the roof off, and it's styled like something a nine-year-old would draw. The S2000 CR was designed to give people who race (legally, on the track) a better platform with which to work. Better to buy yourself a regular S2000, upgrade the suspension, and maybe even remove the air conditioner if you're so inclined. Fact is, you'd have to be a little nuts to buy an S2000 CR to use as anything but a dedicated race car.
But what if you are, in fact, a little nuts? Then you should totally, totally buy an S2000 CR. Because once you've made all the preparations necessary to drive it -- once you've triple-checked the weather to make sure it's not going to rain, once you've convinced someone to help you get the roof off and then convinced them not to go with you (this car is, after all, all about light weight), once you've talked yourself into not minding the fact that the big wing on the trunk (link goes to photo) makes you look like a dork -- once you're out on a wide-open twisty road, engine screaming past 7,000 RPM, quick-ratio steering whipping you around the bends with the slightest twist of the wheel, Bridgestone tires sticking to the pavement like old gum -- the S2000 CR is fantastic. No, I take that back -- it's not fantastic. It's electrifying.
In the Driver's Seat: Intimate and well-built
Aside from yellow stitching and a bunch of blanked-out knobs and switches, the CR's interior is virtually identical to the regular S2000. The cabin is a tight fit, and the non-adjustable steering column doesn't make getting in and out any easier or more graceful. That said, once settled inside, I found the driver's seat quite comfortable. And the S2000 accommodates tall folks, too -- SUVs guide Jason Fogelson, who towers over me at 6'2", found the S2000 CR just as inviting.
I'm constantly complaining about cheap interior plastics, and I'd like to point out that the Honda S2000 is a prime example of how things should be done. The dash is covered in a soft plastic that could almost, if your glasses were dirty and your fingers a bit numb, be mistaken for leather. It's soft and features a dull, matte finish. Excellent stuff. Even the removable roof has a nicely trimmed headliner, and blocks out way more noise than I expected -- not bad for a piece that was designed to be left home.
And speaking of the roof -- removing it is fairly easy, a matter of releasing four catches and lifting straight up and back. Most of its 48-or-so lb weight is due to the all-glass back window, and while I'm sure one person could lift it (one in better shape than me, that is), positioning it back on the car is a job for two.
Passive safety is not a particular strong point; the S2000 has two front airbags, and that's pretty much it. That said, the CRs target customer is most likely going to add a roll cage and five-point safety belts. Side airbags would just be wasted weight.
On the Road: Experts welcome, novices beware
The S2000 CR's engine is the same brilliant 237 horsepower four-cylinder unit from the regular S2000. It's very fast (0-60 in around 5½ seconds) and sounds phenomenal. The CR's gauge cluster features a green light that flashes merrily when the engine is in its sweet spot -- basically anywhere above 7,000 RPM -- then goes solid as the engine approaches its 8,000 RPM redline. As with the regular S2000, a 6-speed manual is the only transmission offered.
The S2000 CR comes with an electronic stability control system (Honda calls it VSA, for Vehicle Stability Assist). It's quite obtrusive, cutting in with a series of stabs that seem to poke the car back into line. You can turn it off, but doing so is a dodgy proposition; the CR's suspension is set up with the assumption that the driver knows what she is doing, and there's little protection against bad behavior. Do something dumb, like jump on the brakes in the middle of a fast turn, and the CR may well reward you by spinning out. After some experimentation, I elected to leave VSA on -- a decision that soon proved wise when the CR slid on a patch of dirt (honestly, the dirt was in the road, I wasn't off the road on the dirt). VSA saved me from a chance meeting with the guardrail. Whoa.
I expected the CR's ride to be abusive, but it wasn't. Actually, it was quite comfortable. The S2000 CR follows the road surface like it's reading Braille, but it takes the hard edges off the bumps; there's never a jounce, a jolt or a clunk. Amazing. Overall, I found the S2000 CR huge fun to drive -- provided I treated it with respect.
Journey's End: Is this much fun really necessary?
One can't judge a car like the S2000 CR too harshly for things like its impracticality and lack of passive safety features. It is, after all, made for track racing. I've never raced an S2000, but I have watched several of them in action, and I'm sure many of the CR's extra bits -- particularly that wing on the back, which, silly looking as it is, really does help keep the tail planted at high speed -- will be welcome.
But what about the rest of us? A friend and fellow journalist who owns an S2000 took the CR for a quick spin and opined that at somewhat legal speeds on public roads, there wasn't a noticeable difference. As thrilling as the S2000 CR is to drive -- and once you crank it up, it truly is thrilling -- the chances are that most of us won't benefit from its quicker steering, lighter weight and awesome chassis setup. And if words like "understeer", "oversteer" and "holy crap I'm about to slide into that juniper bush" aren't in your vocabulary, you'll probably have just as much fun in the less-expensive Mazda Miata.
Now, if you're a hobbyist who is considering buying an old European roadster, then the S2000 CR actually does make sense -- it's just as small, just as light, and much more reliable (and if your chosen car is British or Italian, the top and the radio aren't going to work anyway, so it's no less convenient). Aside from that, however, it's probably best to go with a regular Honda S2000 and leave the CR to the racers. -- Aaron Gold
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