Honda’s Sorely Missed Sports Car Could Be Making a Grand Return

Hell could be on the brink of freezing over. Word from down under says Honda may be dusting off plans to revive the S2000.

Sadly, there’s no confirmation or hard indicator that it’s happening. Nevertheless, in speaking with Australia’s Drive, the Prelude’s chief engineer, Tomoyuki Yamagami, said everyone at Honda supposedly wants to build one.

Drive had a chance to sit down with Yamagami at the Prelude’s international media drive recently.

Honda

This is the first time Honda’s upper management even mentioned the idea of reviving the S2000. While there aren’t any concrete plans, the fact that it’s even being entertained is a big deal in itself.

DNA and business matters

Honda

When speaking with Yamagami, he openly acknowledged that pretty much everyone at Honda dreams of reviving the S2000. But, as is the case with any sports car, it’s a matter of whether the proposition makes sense from a business standpoint.

“Of course, everybody thinks so,” Yamagami-san said in Japanese when Drive dropped the magic question regarding Honda’s desire to revive the S2K. “Every Honda employee loves S2000, someday, I’d like to [build another one].”

Honda

Despite the want, however, Yamagami said that a lot of pressure would ride on its back. And that’s because the S2000 set really high bars in terms of handling and performance in an affordable package.

It was basically Honda’s last direct rival to the iconic and legendary Mazda MX-5 Miata. Thus, with such high expectations, Honda’s team would tread incredibly carefully, as if they were on thin-ice, regarding its planning and execution.

Honda

“We know what is expected from Honda [S2000], so what is important for us to keep Honda’s DNA,” Yamagami-san continued telling Drive.

There’s also the business aspect. While the S2000 is highly desirable as one of Honda’s halo sports cars, it’s not exactly a volume seller. At least, when compared to something like the CR-V or the Civic.

Honda

Although Honda sold over 110,000 S2000s globally over the course of its 10+ year production run, the company sells over two to three times more CR-Vs annually.

Additionally, because sports cars aren’t big sellers, they don’t generate a ton of profit. But the reason why automakers build these halo cars is to build equitable brand value, as a statement and representation of the company’s best efforts.

Building a new S2K and making it affordable wouldn’t easy

Honda

While the motivation for a new S2000 might exist, Yamagami-san noted the inevitable, if not the obvious. Developing and engineering a new S2000, especially today, would be expensive.

And sadly, that expense wouldn’t necessarily just cost Honda. It would cost the buyer as well. According to Yamagami-san, the cost wouldn’t justify the means and the S2000 would be unfathomably expensive, especially in today’s economic climate.

Honda

“I think you have the right understanding that the conventional sports car is very expensive [to design, develop, and build], and the younger generation cannot afford [to buy them],” Yamagami-san continued,

The odds stacking up against a new S2000 and keeping it affordable like the previous model get even greater. Particularly when it comes to Honda’s current focus on electrification and hybrid powertrains.

Honda

“[A] sports car, which has fewer quantity of production, that causes [high] prices. As you know, Type R is produced based on the Civic,” Yamagami-san told Drive.

“This new Prelude is created and produced and developed as a combination of the Civic, Civic Type R, and HEV, so we can decrease the price. And still we received the feedback from buyers that it’s still too expensive.”

A fan favorite since 1999

Honda

It’s been over 16 years since Honda last gave us the S2000. Built from 1999 up through 2009, it became one of the definitive sports cars of the decade.

But more so, it gave Honda fans a chance to compete with their Miata rivals for the first time since the S800 in the 1960s and 1970s. Since its discontinuation, fans have been clamoring for its return.

Honda

The S2000 arrived in 1999 as the “AP1” before undergoing significant mid-cycle revisions in 2003. Then, it became the “AP2.”

Its picture-perfect formula was an instant hit. Being a lightweight, front-engine, rear-wheel-drive convertible with strictly a six-speed manual and a naturally-aspirated four-cylinder with a redline high enough to generate its own gravitational field meant it was an absolute driver’s delight. Regardless of pre- or post-facelift, the S2000 in general also became a cult favorite.

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