Why We're Desperately Excited About A New Honda S2000

1. We've been waiting for this for ages!

Over the years, the Honda S2000 has remained a respected, high-revving icon that’s tough to beat for fun. When production of the AP2 ceased back in 2009 we all shed a collective tear. Over the years, Honda has teased us with various concepts of new performance cars, but most of these have fizzled out leading to yet more disappointment. The closest we have come to a replacement is the S660 which is unfortunately restricted to the Japanese market only.

Now, however, a report by Autocar reveals that a new S2000 is on the cards, and when it’s released, it’ll be aimed squarely at the ND Mazda MX-5 and its Fiat 124 brother.

2. It'll be faster than the MX-5

The new MX-5 has been dominating group tests since it was released earlier this year, but not because of its straight line speed (of which there isn’t a lot). The MX-5 is hailed as a genuine successor to the Mk1 MX-5, meaning that it’s super-responsive and great fun to drive. Next to the Fiat 124 Spider, there isn’t a lot else to keep petrolheads on a relatively modest budget happy, which is why Honda wants in on the action. Only its new S2000 will be pitched as a faster alternative…

The base car will most likely use Honda’s 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine with VTEC, which should produce in the region of 180bhp. This easily eclipses the power figure of the strongest MX-5 which packs 158bhp, and which launches the car from 0-62mph in 7.3 seconds. With 20 extra horses under the S2000’s bonnet, therefore, we’d expect a 0-62mph time of around 6.8 seconds to be realistic.

With Yamaha also poised to enter the sports car market with its Sports Ride model, we really are going to be spoilt for choice.

3. Honda could become an exciting brand again

It’s all too easy to forget that Honda has produced some of the most exciting and game-changing road cars of all time. The 1964 S600 showed us that sports cars could be fun and reliable. The Honda DC2 Type R won numerous awards upon its launch back in 1995 and it’s now widely considered to be one the best handling front-wheel drive cars in existence. And the NSX was arguably the first usable supercar with a chassis that was so good it stayed competitive for over a decade.

But in the last few years, Honda lost its way. The CR-V, HR-V and Jazz aren’t cars that petrolhead dreams are made of and the previous-generation Civic Type R was a let down. That’s why Honda has been desperately re-branding itself; with the new Civic Type R and NSX leading the way, an affordable halo car could complete the picture.

4. A Type R S2000 could be a thing!

According to the Autocar report, Honda has also hinted that a Type R S2000 could be a very real possibility. Using a detuned version of the Civic Type R’s 306bhp 2.0-litre turbocharged engine, the car would feature a limited-slip differential, revisions to the suspension and chassis setup and a short-throw six-speed manual gearbox.

We can expect a chassis which is all new from the ground up as Honda currently lacks a suitable rear-wheel drive platform. However, developning a new chassis is not cheap and will most likely have the effect of pushing the S2000’s price up well north of £20,000.

The Type R would be a direct rival for Fiat’s Abarth 124 and it might even have the effect of forcing Subaru into building its gorgeous BRZ STI. That really would be a win win for us.