The Honda S2000 is a 2-door roadster / Detachable hardtop from Honda, built from 1999 to 2009, when airbags, anti-lock brakes and Japanese build quality became the world standard. Under the bonnet: 2.0 . Shigeru Uehara (1995) drew it.
The story
The Honda S2000 is a front-mid engine open top sports car that was manufactured by Japanese automobile manufacturer Honda, from 1999 until 2009. First shown as a concept car called the SSM at the Tokyo Motor Show in 1995, the production version was launched on April 15, 1999, to celebrate the company's 50th anniversary. The S2000 is named for its engine displacement of two liters, while "S" stood for "sports" carrying on in the tradition of the S500, S600, and S800 roadsters of the 1960s.
Several revisions were made throughout the car's production life, including changes to the engine, gearbox, suspension, interior and exterior. Officially two variants exist: the initial launch model was given the chassis code AP1; though cosmetically similar, the facelifted version, known as the AP2 in North America and Japan, incorporated significant changes to the drivetrain and suspension. Production of the S2000 ceased on August 19, 2009. The Honda S2000 was notable for its exceptional specific power output of about 92 kW (124 hp) per liter, or about two horsepower per cubic inch, the highest of any mass production, naturally aspirated car, until 2010.
What is underneath
Power comes from 2.0 . It weighs 1260 kg. It shifts through a 6-speed manual. The layout matters: the engine sits behind the driver and ahead of the rear axle, which puts the mass in the middle of the car and is why mid-engined cars change direction the way they do. The wheelbase is 94.5 in. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Its place in the line
Its family tree is legible: it took over from the Honda S800; assembly was at Takanezawa R&D Plant, Takanezawa, Tochigi, Japan. Its contemporaries in the catalogue — the Toyota Yaris, the SEAT León, the Škoda Auto Škoda Fabia — show what else the money bought that year. Nearby in the Honda catalogue sit the Honda Envix and the Honda Crider.