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In other news...starting next week the average temp is going to be above 40 so it's time for the S to hit the road again. Thank you global warming! Going to permanently take it out of storage on Sunday!
I was trying to see what kind of damage was to the front. It still had an OEM headlight so there's that.. There are some scratches where it looked like someone tried reinstalling the bumper incorrectly. Top is in decent condition and sinus paint. A few minor chips here in there. Back is pristine, tai lights look brand new. No one came out to talk to me so I didn't bother going in and asking to see/ check VIN on panels.
Still a gorgeous car though, in curious as to whether there was frame damage from the frontal collisions though..
Oh and it was parked right up in front of the lot, next to an S class, an E class, and an. IS F
Honestly, if it was fixed correctly, with oem parts, I'd consider it. It just gets so frustrating sometimes, waiting for the perfect car to show up while prices continue to climb
Those scratches, at least from the pictures, look like they could easily be buffed out.
Car fax reported an accident front passenger side so I was scrutinizing that side and mentioned that it had an OEM headlight but can't tell about panel.
From my experience, if it's an aftermarket fender, you'll be able to tell by opening the hood. The two panels will look ever so slightly different from one another. Very subtle, but noticeable to the discerning eye. I remember on a friend's Integra, where the quarter panel bolted to the frame, there was like an additional crease in the area (done on purpose, from manufacturing). I think it may have even had a code stamped into it, but I can't fully remember.
Too bad it doesn't say the value of the accident. Coulda been $1500 or 10,000. I'd also look to see how many of the original VIN stickers you can find. See how much of the car has been replaced. If it's not easily visible on the inside of the hood, top of the front bumper, top of the fenders, or somewhere on the edge of the doors, they've likely been replaced. They do sometimes come off when pressure washing, but I don't think it happens too often.
From my experience, if it's an aftermarket fender, you'll be able to tell by opening the hood. The two panels will look ever so slightly different from one another. Very subtle, but noticeable to the discerning eye. I remember on a friend's Integra, where the quarter panel bolted to the frame, there was like an additional crease in the area (done on purpose, from manufacturing). I think it may have even had a code stamped into it, but I can't fully remember.
Too bad it doesn't say the value of the accident. Coulda been $1500 or 10,000. I'd also look to see how many of the original VIN stickers you can find. See how much of the car has been replaced. If it's not easily visible on the inside of the hood, top of the front bumper, top of the fenders, or somewhere on the edge of the doors, you ow they've likely been replaced. They do sometimes come off when pressure washing, but I don't think it happens too often.
Funny enough, I saw a LBP on the way home today. It was being driven by an older woman! She was probably 60 years old. I waved but she didn't see me...not surprising.
Funny enough, I saw a LBP on the way home today. It was being driven by an older woman! She was probably 60 years old. I waved but she didn't see me...not surprising.
Follow her, let me know when she kicks the bucket so I can inherit
To inherit, you'll have to do 'things', bruh...things you don't wanna do.
Dude, have a honda PPI done on that bitch, compression test on the motor...or if you have a good ear, listen to it and drive it. If you stand back and all the orange peel matches and there isn't paint all over rubber moldings and trim and overspray on everything...then make it happen. If price is fair or they're willing to play ball...replace what you have to with oem parts...clean her up, enjoy the living fuck out of her for the next few years...then sell to one of these morose yahoos on this sight that keep on blatantly sucking that laguna cock.
I don't see passing on this...I just don't. Yes...we all want a one owner car with 40K miles on it and all maintenance done on schedule at one dealership for $12,000...but be real. You go settle on another color/condition S2000 and save yourself 3K on the price that you can afford...what does that REALLY do for you? Nothing...that's what. If you have 20K in savings, and then you'll have 23K in savings and you're not paying attention to when you get paid cause you're good and your bills are paid and you can afford a prosthetic man bun and some dark obscure lager...what does that extra money really do for you? Now...when you park, take pictures, look back at your car, get compliments on it and are in absolute love with your car and it's color...what is the price of that for you? It's priceless...that's what...
Fucking buy it, if it checks out. You can only be frugal to a certain extent.
To inherit, you'll have to do 'things', bruh...things you don't wanna do.
Dude, have a honda PPI done on that bitch, compression test on the motor...or if you have a good ear, listen to it and drive it. If you stand back and all the orange peel matches and there isn't paint all over rubber moldings and trim and overspray on everything...then make it happen. If price is fair or they're willing to play ball...replace what you have to with oem parts...clean her up, enjoy the living fuck out of her for the next few years...then sell to one of these morose yahoos on this sight that keep on blatantly sucking that laguna cock.
I don't see passing on this...I just don't. Yes...we all want a one owner car with 40K miles on it and all maintenance done on schedule at one dealership for $12,000...but be real. You go settle on another color/condition S2000 and save yourself 3K on the price that you can afford...what does that REALLY do for you? Nothing...that's what. If you have 20K in savings, and then you'll have 23K in savings and you're not paying attention to when you get paid cause you're good and your bills are paid and you can afford a prosthetic man bun and some dark obscure lager...what does that extra money really do for you? Now...when you park, take pictures, look back at your car, get compliments on it and are in absolute love with your car and it's color...what is the price of that for you? It's priceless...that's what...
Fucking buy it, if it checks out. You can only be frugal to a certain extent.
Fucking wise ass words though J.. It's funny... It's a very recent thing for me to be 'frugal'. I'm a pretty stereotypical Millennial. Instant gratification, bratty, blah blah you name it. This whole 'be smart about your money' thing is quite a recent paradigm shift in my life due to events to transpired and a forced maturation if you will. Like I told you via text, I definitely truly, deeply appreciate your advice and am taking it to heart. You're 100% right on not settling on another color. I saw LBP and it was love at first sight. My personality is I don't settle, hell I was a shit ass negotiator when I bought my TL, but it was through a stealership, it was in the color combo I wanted and the price although a bit higher, was extremely fair.
It's so ironic that you're giving me this speech because if it wasn't for the last two years of trials and tribulations, I would be all over that car. Now I've learned to tone it down a bit and take a breath and consider my options. I do believe I can find a middle ground where the condition is great, no accidents and price is fair. Price is less of my deterrent to this particular one more so than 1. Iffy dealer 2. Not necessarily having all my ducks aligned yet 3. Accident.
But again, thank you Jeremy for the spiel, it was a nice wake up call that said "hey, you took a 180 in your life and now you gotta go back towards equilibrium to make yourself happy"
Damn, J dropping knowledge on everybody with that post. I'm with him, can't take money to the grave. Enjoy it and spend within reason, that LBP is gorgeous and waiting for you to pick her up..
Well, I didn't mean to get all soap boxy but y'all...
that advice applies to me and makes sense based on my experiences in life.
I'm the opposite...I used to get a knot in my stomach if I spent money on myself...if I bought a CD and only like 6 out of the 14 songs (thanks Hanson! ) I'd be so fkng upset with myself. It was really bad...go out with friends to eat, I'd be so stressed if we were splitting the bill because I would order water and something small to keep my costs down.
Then I put my ex's name on my old house...and lost $55K in the form of a payment to her. That's when I realized that money comes and money goes...if you spend it, make more, keep enough for weed puss-e and alcohol and maybe even a 401K and college fund for your kid (yes, Z already has a Florida prepaid account, keep the kid off the pole!) and then live a little. Don't be complacent and not sell things when you are done with them...sure, you lose a couple of bucks, break even, or maybe even make some when you sell it but in the mean time, those things gave you joy and gave you a hobby and made you feel fulfilled.
So, the bills will come...so only you have control of whether or not you ALSO spend it on stuff you really want. I'm not saying you're not being very wise and smart here, Johnny...you're the only one that saw it in person. Remember, I walked away from a LGBT also and don't regret it one bit because it was in such terrible condition and I love my Rio. But, if you MUST have LBP, just remember...if you find one that fits what you're looking for...1) it probably won't be soon 2) it probably will be listed at $32K OBO...
My famous line when I deal with selling/buying is that it's not about the lowest price for me or getting the most money for an item. I want us (in a transaction) to both walk away happy. I always ask, when buying something...what would make you happy...XXX amount of dollars...well, I can't afford that or it's not worth that much to me but no hard feelings and best of luck. But I'm also a terrible negotiator because if someone says a number and the item I'm buying is WORTH that to me (not KBB...to ME) then I'll just figure out a way to pay for it. All of this assumes that it's a good time to buy and I have the financial means.
Honestly, if it was fixed correctly, with oem parts, I'd consider it. It just gets so frustrating sometimes, waiting for the perfect car to show up while prices continue to climb
Those scratches, at least from the pictures, look like they could easily be buffed out.
Having been through exactly this, I can promise it's all worth it. The price isn't quite as important when finding exactly what you're looking for.
Are you waiting for someone else to buy it before you do?
yes
gotta get my finances in a row, i'll be taking out a CU loan for this so gotta check that too.
I do deeply appreciate each and every one of your advices. I'm taking it all to heart and learning a lot about myself and the S2000 and why everyone is in love with it. I'll stop making excuses now and just work towards getting everything in line such that when I do find a clean one that fits the bill, I can snap it right up.
In other news...starting next week the average temp is going to be above 40 so it's time for the S to hit the road again. Thank you global warming! Going to permanently take it out of storage on Sunday!
I wouldn't get quite excited... I know it's an El Niño year but at least around here snow is not uncommon in March. I think last year we had snow on March 23rd. Anyway, I'd like to be pleasantly surprised. I can't wait to put the PSS tires back on, but I'll wait until April as usual.
you're welcome, bud.
You won't know why until you have one, but once you have one, you'll find it hard AF to ever be without one again.
This.
And totally agree on J's soapbox post
Upon purchase, my 10 year old 115,000 mile S2000 wasn't perfect by any means.
It had been in a front-end collision, 1 headlight wasn't original, front bumper & driverside fender had been repainted, it had aftermarket exhaust & cheap coilovers, the paint needed detailing and the driverseat had the common bolster wear.
Was it perfect? No.
Was it mechanically sound & structurally straight? Yes.
Do I love the fuck out of it? Yes.
No car will ever be perfect, just as long as it has the original VIN stickers in all the right places (quarter panels, doors, hood, trunk), there are no leaks, and compression is good ... I'd say go for it
To inherit, you'll have to do 'things', bruh...things you don't wanna do.
Dude, have a honda PPI done on that bitch, compression test on the motor...or if you have a good ear, listen to it and drive it.
I want to put a bit of a disclaimer on this- I've come to realize these inspections, for the most part, can be rather useless.
I mean, what do they cost? $120-140? That's the dealership charging you for one hour of labor. How much do you think the mechanic will look at in one hour? He'll check out the suspension and brakes, look for any leaks, etc, but that is realistically stuff you can do all on your own.
If you want compression testing, etc, you'll likely have to pay extra for that.
A friend of mine recently bought a used Subaru and he did the PPI thing also... it turned up to be a clean car, save for one tie rod needing replacement. But the dealer didn't disassemble the turbo, didn't compression test the engine, didn't thoroughly assess the transmission (it's a visual, quick drive around inspection- how much will it tell you?). And then my friend started noticing some other things that he thought should have been caught... like all 4 wheels being minorly bent, or the suspension making a funny thunk sound on the passenger front side. I'm not surprised the PPI didn't catch those things.
Thoi, I don't want to turn you off from buying that car. Do you know anyone well versed in Hondas that could go take a look at the car with you? Any chance you can swing the dealer into giving you a 12-24hr test drive?
If you show true signs of interest and mention "hey, i know this thing was hit, I want to have it thoroughly checked out before signing", I don't know if they'd say no. I mean, being an s2k, they might. But it's worth a try. You're also not a 17 year old, pimply kid walking in with a flat brimmed DC hat. I think if you walk in, looking professional, you might be able to take it for that 12-24 hours.
I am all about the perfect, flawless, all oem cars when buying used.. but I do make the odd exception. Just from what I can gather, this car might just fit the bill of not being exactly perfect, but being pretty awesome nonetheless. Also, think about it. If it was clean and a week later someone hit you, would you turn around and dump the car immediately because it's no longer clean? Likely not. Just get it fixed right and move on.
I bought my S2000 back when I was just a boy....probing through life like early man would have probed to explore his surroundings. The common factor being that we were probing everything in sight with our probes. But unlike early man, suddenly while in deep, deep thought, I managed to contemplate...."what does it all mean?".
Anyway, I bought it in absolutely perfect condition in 06. It had ONE ding on it about the size of a very small probe tip. Or 1/32" if you're confined by "the man's" way of measuring. Barely visible.
Car had never seen snow. Car had barely seen rain. They put brand new floormats in it and a new Honda battery, new tires, etc. It had 18K miles on it. I was willing to pay more for a good car...but the deal on the one I bought was boner inducingly good.
I have only crashed it once. At the track. I laughed about it then (everyone was ok), and I'll laugh about it now. Only body damage...nothing structural. It didn't make me enjoy the car any less. A couple VIN stickers are missing. PFFFFFFF.
I was truly anus about the car for a few years. At this point, it still has no door dings or any real damage. It has smudges and scratches from extensive track use, loading my bike rack onto it, and general BS from pebbles and debris getting kicked up by the tyres. It has a lot of missing paint fore and aft of the tires.
Still looks great. Still puts a huge smile on my face. I plan on keeping it forever.
If I were shopping for one today...I'd be picky about colour options (want black with red interior or GPW with red or red/black or black). I'd be willing to maybe compromise and buy yellow or red.
I'd buy an AP2. Preferably a 06+...and even more preferably, a CR. I don't think I'd buy another AP1.
I'd prefer a stock, low mile one if I had the "keep it forever" mentality. If I were buying on a whim, I'd buy whatever S2000 was available. If I grew to love it, then great. If I couldn't bond with it, I'd sell it.
Mr. Dutchmaster, I enjoy reading your posts very much. Thank you for bothering to spend the energy to be witty on the internet today. It did not fall on deaf eyes ().
I like the AP1 steering rack better. And yes...the 9K rpm is nice. 8200 doesn't have the same panaché. In tangible terms, 9K RPM sounds a lot better through an exhaust.
The CR is obviously the best iteration of the S2000. AP1 steering rack. Similar sway bar rates as an OG AP1. But...AP2 goodness and a hard top...and collector item status.
I think the only car that could motivate me into selling mine would be a GPW CR. Or...maybe a NA2 NSX.
03-02-2016, 02:47 PM
) I'd be so fkng upset with myself. It was really bad...go out with friends to eat, I'd be so stressed if we were splitting the bill because I would order water and something small to keep my costs down. 
). 