HomePick of the DaySports car icon Honda S2000 defines meaning of future classic

Sports car icon Honda S2000 defines meaning of future classic

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With the Future Classics Car Show, hosted by ClassicCars.com, happening today in Scottsdale, Arizona, the Pick of the Day celebrates a sports car highlight from Japan that started the new millennium with a rush of high-tech performance.

The 2000 Honda S2000 is a pristine, low-mileage example of this brilliant compact convertible, which first arrived in showrooms in April 1999 with a name that signifies the 2.0-liter engine displacement.

Honda
The sports looks to be in immaculate condition

But the small engine is something special indeed. This mill is a real shrieker, an extreme development of Honda’s dual-overhead-cam, VTEC variable-valve-timing technology that generates 247 horsepower at 8,300 rpm, near the top of its lofty rpm limit.  Honda claimed at the time that this was the most horsepower per liter of any naturally aspirated production engine.

The rev-happy engine is also very flexible due to VTEC, able to handle slow-speed traffic with the same smooth composure that it hits the heights of its power delivery.

Honda
VTEC technology adds flexibility to the peaky engine

With its remarkable engine and balanced handling, the S2000 made its mark as an exceptional driver’s sports car for carving winding back roads, top down with the Formula 1-like engine wail in your ears.

This attractive S2000 in silver paint with a red interior has gone just 27,595 miles and is in immaculate condition, ready for a driving enthusiast to take it out for a romp, according to the Grand Rapids, Michigan, dealer advertising the Honda on ClassicCars.com. (Note that the ad incorrectly specifies the engine as having 3.6 liters.)

Honda
The S2000 puts a modern spin on the classic roadster

“Fortunately, the S2000 offered here is as affordable as it is captivating,” the dealer says in the ad. “Its Silverstone Metallic paint – in our opinion, the most appealing of the four colors in which the model was originally offered – displays a showroom shine.

“As evidenced in our dozens of photographs of the body alone, front-to-back and top-to-bottom, the painted surfaces are virtually free of wear or imperfection. The classic five-spoke alloy wheels are similarly pristine.”

Honda
The red upholstery nicely sets off the silver paint

The rear-drive roadster comes equipped with a short-throw close-ratio 6-speed manual transmission for optimum driver engagement, and powerful disc brakes on all four wheels.  The size might be considered diminutive, but the tailored styling has loads of presence.  The curb weight is just 2,756 pounds.

If any car exemplifies the definition of future classic, the S2000 is right in there as an icon for the latest generation of car collectors and sports car enthusiasts.  This nice example seems like a good deal for a lot of driving fun with an asking price of $25,900.

To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.

Bob Golfen
Bob Golfen
Bob Golfen is a longtime automotive writer and editor, focusing on new vehicles, collector cars, car culture and the automotive lifestyle. He is the former automotive writer and editor for The Arizona Republic and SPEED.com, the website for the SPEED motorsports channel. He has written free-lance articles for a number of publications, including Autoweek, The New York Times and Barrett-Jackson auction catalogs. A collector car enthusiast with a wide range of knowledge about the old cars that we all love and desire, Bob enjoys tinkering with archaic machinery. His current obsession is a 1962 Porsche 356 Super coupe.

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