On My Ragtops: Part 2

A second blizzard. A second post about my convertibles. 

After the first blast of 32 cm of the white stuff, we are now into our second day of a second blizzard. As of writing this, there's now another 24 cm on the ground and it's still falling.

Still, if you can't (or won't) drive your sports car in this kind of weather, then amusing oneself by writing about your sports car is a second-best activity.

Where was I? Oh yes, my second S2000. The lure of the open-top returned, and in 2017 I was lucky enough to be able to buy Andrew's well-cared-for and meticulously upgraded Honda icon. This time an AP2 chassis, complete with Comptech supercharger. I'd helped with the  testing years ago, but now this little screamer was all mine.

No one could complain this version was underpowered. And a smooth delivery of those extra horses across the rev range meant more torque down low as well. It was even more of a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde car as the revs rose, and that seat-of-the-pants surge above 6000 RPM was intoxicating. Couple that with the fact the car also had the upgraded transmission with better synchros and slightly different gear ratios from a 2004 model, and it really was the S2000 Honda could have built all along.

In 2019, we reprised our Applalachian Adventure, this time with Andrew's new M2 as the lead car, and me in my v2 S2000. Once again, the car shone in the tight twisties of that part of the USA - if only such roads were closer to Ottawa! It didn't seem to matter that the car was almost 20 years old, with over 140,000 kms on it; it carved the corners without drama, and was as comfortable as ever for those long hours in the driver's seat.

Truth be told, I have an email to my dad that says "this might be the last sports car I ever own". As you can tell, the idea of a replacement was furthest from my mind. Over the next three years I continued to drive the S2000 a lot; trips out to NB, Calabogie track days, commutes to work in the summers, you name it. By the time the end came in 2023, the odometer read 164,000 kms - many, many of them enjoyable drives for which cars like it were designed for.

Of course this all changed in the summer of 2020 when the seed of an idea for a new convertible was planted in my brain. Once there, I began thinking about all the nice upgrades a car designed long after 1999 would contain. Automotive technology and engineering has moved on from those early days of Honda's roadster, and the thought of those improvements started to creep into my thinking.

Don't get me wrong, I felt (and still feel) that the S2000 was about as close as you could get to a go-kart and still cross several provinces in reasonable comfort. It ran flawlessly, was decent on gas unless you really hooned it, the top buttoned up fast and didn't leak, and the ergonomics were just excellent. Sure, the digital rev counter became a bit dated (the link to F1 dashes notwithstanding), and the start button was a gimmick. The suspension was firm, and a bit less composed over sharp-edged bumps than I'd like, but I had a hard time faulting the driving experience overall. I also think it looked great - free from fussy styling - with a great profile and that super low hoodline. Nice!

So there I was, still driving, and enjoying the Honda, but now looking ahead...who knew it was going to take three more years to make the change?

The Porsche configurator beckoned, and I began planning out the replacement for the S2000. How good would it be? How much better than the Honda? Did I really need 'more' car?

The hook was set though, and the thought of a twin European Delivery, and a brand new car custom ordered just the way I wanted it was just too strong a temptation.

Boxster it would be!

~ Luke