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Coupes & Convertibles Honda S2000 Honda S2000 vs. Nissan 350Z
183 messages, Last post on Sep 08, 2007 at 11:04 AM
You are in the Honda S2000 Forum. Your Host is claires
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Replying to: tnjrobi1 (Apr 22, 2006 7:49 am) BTW - I am no longer in the market as of yesterday - a 2005 350Z roadster is in my garage. The S2000 was a bit tight for my frame size. Steve
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Replying to: srowe (Apr 22, 2006 9:58 pm) What trim line, color, options, etc. did you get? The deals on any 2005's are great, aren't they. And I'm glad I got it - the new 2006's sacrifice some torque to improve the horsepower by just a little bit. I like having that low-end torque, that comes in handy more than 13 extra horses ever will. |
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Replying to: dat2 (Mar 22, 2006 10:17 pm) I live in a northern state, so will garage my S2000 when I buy it, but not until Spring of 2008. Will drive my 1980 280ZX (MT) - have all weather tires on it & have no problem in ice or snow. However, have to put 70 lb sandbag on each side in hatchback. Hope I can handle the S2000. |
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Replying to: tnjrobi1 (Mar 19, 2006 5:54 pm)
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Replying to: tnjrobi1 (Apr 13, 2006 4:19 pm)  The Honda dealer actually pulled the S2 out of the showroom, since they had none in the lot, and let me and my friend both romp on it on the highway. The next day at the Nissan dealership, I was unable to test drive the Z until I signed on the dotted line, but I was guaranteed that I would be able to reneg. if I didn't want the car after the test drive. Still bought the Z and won't own anything else (well, maybe a Ferrari when I hit Lotto.)
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Replying to: zeeya (Jan 04, 2007 6:12 pm) - The S2000 is a limited production 2,850 lb groud up "roadster" that is all about precision. For some, fun begins at 6,500+ rpm, but I found it fun to drive at 30 mph through tight turns in Rock Creek Park. There isn't an ounce of body fat on that car. - The 350Z Roadster is a mass production 3,600 lb "convertible" (in spite of name) that is mostly about power (torque). Take it past 6,500 rpm and you'll need a tow truck. It definitely is in its element at a stoplight drag race with a Mustang on one side and a Camero on the other. And, in fairness, it would be a more comfortable, quiet ride on a 350 mile highway jaunt. I guess "agility" is in the eye of the beholder. But given that the 350Z Roadster's 3,600 lb weight is 750 lbs (nearly 30%) more than that of an S2000 and Boxster, it certainly doesn't meet my definition for sports car nimbleness. That's even 600 lbs more than my 5 passenger Nissan Maxima SE and only 450 lbs less than our former Isuzu Trooper. So compared to the S2000's 6-pack flat stomach, the 350Z has a big spare tire around the middle. A very big one. If you do win that lottery, you might want to reconsider your choice of a Ferrari. The 430 is 400 lbs lighter than the 350Z, has a 8,500 rpm redline similar to the S2000, and a horsepower (high) to torque (low) ratio that is almost exactly the same as the S2000's. You would just be getting more of what you aparently don't like about the S2000. I've driven the Ferrari 360 and you need to run it up to redline to extract maximum performance as well. Which I consider just dandy. I suggest that, en-route to the Ferrari dealership, you might stop in the Ford dealership and find a Shelby GT 500 more to your liking. Weight (3,900 lbs)redline (6,200 prm), and gobs of torque to give even the Ferrari a run for the money at that stop light. Plus about $140k cheaper. Yes, it's darn near two tons, who cares, right? |
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Replying to: habitat1 (Jan 06, 2007 6:35 am) 
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Replying to: habitat1 (Jan 06, 2007 6:35 am) For another comparison take a close look at the C&D issue from a couple months ago where the 350Z takes the honors in their new Nuremborg-style track comparison at VIR. The 350 took top honors in the sub-40 grand bracket, just slipping above the mega-hyped EVO MR. I don't even recall if the S2000 was even in the comparison. C&D is using this new method to compare all sporty cars. In a couple weeks the updated 07 model will be out with the screaming VQ35HR (306hp SAE rated with 7600 redline). We may see 0-60 in under 5 flat with that car.
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Replying to: zeeya (Jan 06, 2007 3:00 pm) |
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Replying to: dat2 (Jan 11, 2007 9:54 pm) "Clouded Honda snobbery"? That's pretty funny. As it turns out, my first new car was a 1978 Datsun B210GX which, as I was buying, was salivating over the 240Z in the showroom. I put 100,000 miles on that car. And have 155,000 miles on a 1995 Maxima SE which I refuse to sell and we keep at our second home, that's how much I like it. I had the S2000 for 2.5 years and 19,000 miles, so my Nissan loyalties are about 235,000 miles ahead of my Honda loyalties. And I continue to recommend the S2000 as the best ground up roadster one can buy under $50k, period. The fact that I now own a 911S Cabriolet does not cause me to think any less of the S2000 or any more of the base Boxster. No Porsche snobbery here, that I can tell. The Lotus Elise is a one trick pony (and a good one). The S2000 was a very decent daily driver and accomodated one full size or two travel bag size sets of golf clubs in the trunk. As "comfortable" as the 350Z, no. But therein lies the distinction. The S2000 is a sports car. The 350Z is a GT car without the back seat. Even in coupe form, it weighs 300 lbs more than my 1995 Maxima. If you do ever get a chance to drive the S2000, the crisp handling, tight steering, flick of the wrist gearbox, and overall driving dynamics will tell you, IMO, what a sports car should aspire to. I don't have any issue with someone who would say the S2000 is too hard edged and they prefer more of a compromise between a sports car and a GT. I also owned a 1984 Toyota Supra that fit that bill. But, just to put it in perspective, it seated 4 adults and their luggage in reasonable comfort and weighed 2,980 lbs. In this regard, I actually think the G35 Coupe makes more sense than a 350Z coupe. The performance is virtually identical, with the G35 offering more utility and comfort. I admit that perhaps my disspointment with the 350Z is that, when it was being developed, it was being touted as the "return of the Z" referring to that original 240Z that I admired nearly 30 years ago. They created a false expectation and pretty much developed the 350Z with a lot of spare parts and not a lot of innovative ground up technology as is found in the S2000. Otherwise, the would have had a 2,850 lb coupe with a sports car like 7,500 rpm engine that would have been capable of competing with the Cayman in the same way the S2000 competes with the Boxster. That's not to say the 350Z is a bad car, just not what I had hoped for from the company that I have logged a quarter million miles with.
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