Filed under: Convertibles, Japan, Acura, Honda
Honda S2000 successor: the apple falls far from the tree
When we reported a month ago that Honda was working on a replacement for the S2000 roadster, we speculated that the new convertible could be positioned as an Acura. Such rumors are gaining credence as the S2000 replacement isn't shaping up to be much like the S2000 at all.
Emerging reports suggest that the new convertible could be badged as an Acura, which will likely mean it'll get a completely different name to fit into the premium brand's nomenclature – probably matching the "_SX" formula. (The brand issue is really only a consideration for the North American market – overseas Acuras are sold as Hondas, anyway.) It's also tipped to include four seats, whereas the S2000 is a strict two-seater. Rear drive remains a question mark, as the new convertible could shift to front-wheel-drive. Apparently a retractable hard-top is also being considered.
When all's said and done, a front-drive, four-seat, hard-top Acura doesn't sound like it would be much like the lightweight, rear-drive, two-seat, rag-top Honda at all. The S2000 was never a mass-market automobile, always consigned to the niche, but a luxury coupe-cabrio might be just what Acura needs to bolster its line-up. At that point, however, can you really call it an S2000 successor?
[Source: Winding Road]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
ruggels 5:44PM (2/01/2007)
"When all's said and done, a front-drive, four-seat, hard-top Acura doesn't sound like it would be much like the lightweight, rear-drive, two-seat, rag-top Honda at all."
No, it sounds very much like a VW EOS.
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TheIndustryWIll 5:59PM (2/01/2007)
As an S2000 owner this news is pretty disappointing. For the next iteration of the S2000 I was hoping for a similar model with forced induction or a larger bore 4 cylinder with power closer to the Nissan 350Z.
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Fabulo 6:13PM (2/01/2007)
Sound like a Sebring convertible to me. mmm... Sebring...
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hondacura 6:13PM (2/01/2007)
Acura is sold in China. Get your information correct!
Also Acura is making it's debut in Japan.
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Jason 6:26PM (2/01/2007)
Acura needed a TSX coupe, not this convertible. Honda/Acura misses the market trends often. A full-boat convertible to compete with the Lexus SC would make more sense and stick with Acura's pretensions.
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ruggels 6:31PM (2/01/2007)
"A full-boat convertible to compete with the Lexus SC would make more sense and stick with Acura's pretensions."
Or perhaps a more clear market strategy. Is it honda's clear intention for Acura to be 'that other japanese luxury brand' that rounds out sentences already sprinkled with lexus and infinity. I'm still unclear, after a few decades, what Honda is trying to do with Acura. Lexus has already achieved the epitome of the luxury car heap, infinity consistently provides fantastic alternatives to BMW/Audi products, yet Acrua.. What. Why.
I really wish Honda would find a solid direction for the company and release a few breathtaking halo cars. I've never seen a stand at an autoshow swamped the way the S2000 stand was, the first year it appeared in LA. Throngs of people 20 deep.
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far jr 6:37PM (2/01/2007)
Does Honda use the S2000 platform for any other cars? If not, it makes perfect economic sense to get rid of an expensive platform re-do for a low unit vehicle. It may upset enthusiasts, but makes good efficient use of Honda resources.
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SSBR 6:53PM (2/01/2007)
I agree the comment of Acura is generally.. boring.. Not only is Acura boring (for the exception of the NSX) but the brand is taking a slight dive (current generation RL.. Zzzzzz...).
Acura needs to bring back the NSX ASAP, and leave the S2000 alone to Honda, as Honda is even more boring without it.
http://www.rolesor.com
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Hondaacura 6:56PM (2/01/2007)
Japan 2008
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Peter 6:58PM (2/01/2007)
> At that point, however, can you really call it an
> S2000 successor?
Uhm, no, but then you seem to be the only one who tries...
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Derek Kreindler 7:07PM (2/01/2007)
That would be an abomination of such incredible proportions that God himself would decree against it in the book of Leviticus.
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chuck goolsbee 7:08PM (2/01/2007)
An S2000 is the ONLY Honda I'd have any compulsion to purchase. At all. Why futz with a clearly well-designed machine? It baffles my mind why they would want to transform this gorgeous machine into a 2+2 or a true 4-seater.
"The only person who ever looked correct in the back seat of a convertible is Adolf Hitler" --Jeremy Clarkson.
--chuck
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naggs 7:32PM (2/01/2007)
honda is lost, all they have to do is ask their customers what they want to find their way.
new crx, new rwd coupe and new nsx are all total no brainers
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Derek 7:48PM (2/01/2007)
Well, Honda has a very rigid corporate mindset, and once they've decided, thats the gospel truth and nothing will cause them to deviate from it. This has cost them alot of money and loss of face in the marketshare, examples being:
They're convinced that a V6 offers the same performance and better economy as a V8, so the NSX and (more crucially) the RL are stuck with a wimpy-looking V8.
They held out for ages on the Minivan/SUV/Truck market. Granted they've been very sucessful, but the first Odyssey was a bit of a flop (despite the fact that it was a fantastic vehicle).
They brought the disastrous 2002-2005 Civic Si to the market
They only embraced turbocharging now, not in the late-80s/mid-90s heyday in Japan.
They rushed the Insight to the US market just so they could beat Toyota's Prius.
Honda is primarily an engineering company, so they don't just pimp an absurdly large vehicle lineup like Toyota or worse, Mercedes. But sometimes their closed mindedness is a detriment. If indeed they have decided that they're going to make an EOS type vehicle, then its set in stone, and they've shot themselves in the foot.
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a jug of Clorox 7:49PM (2/01/2007)
VTEC.net had a story scanned off a Japanese magazine reporting that the next S2000 will be a lightweight power hardtop roadster like the new 2007 Miata hardtop, only a bit heavier and w/ a 200-ish HP A-VTEC engine. It's a concept the internal designers finally settled on. It'll be out later in 2008 after the S2000 is discontinued.
I wish people would stop trumpeting every new rumored product from Honda/Acura as "The Next S2000" or "The Next NSX". If someone meant to replace the S2000 or NSX, believe me, we'll recognize it when we see it. But if the product is so conceptually divergent as to be an SH-AWD 2+2, then don't label it as such. Whoever makes that weak analogy just comes off looking like they can't seem to accept the fact that Honda might be so inclined as to head in new design directions and diversify their offerings.
If a company like Toyota can claim market dominance by expanding their truck line-up with the 4Runner and RAV4 getting siblings like Highlander, Sequoia, and FJ Cruiser, or broadening their car offerings with Matrix, Yaris, and Scions, then what's to prevent Honda from doing the same?
We all read articles lauding Hyundai for intrepidly journeying into Toyota territory with products competitive with their dominant Japanese brethren; but why must we be so close-minded when a Japanese automaker like Honda is trying to bring new ideas to its own line-up? If every car company stuck to the same concepts and niche products for which it's already garnered merit and attention, it would rest on its laurels unto a precipitous peril, such as some would argue is happening with GM.
Fresh ideas. This is how the industry moves forward. This is how companies stay alive. So stop shoehorning the new ideas into the carapaces of the old. Embrace them for what they are-- new.
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sfast 7:52PM (2/01/2007)
Civic Del Sol 2.0
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In2uition 8:39PM (2/01/2007)
The S2000 was initially an anniversary car (for the year 2000)...so I don't see why Honda would try to redesign it and retain the "S2000" nameplate.
This car they want to create sounds very weak.
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BOB 8:39PM (2/01/2007)
I was thinking that Honda does not need a direct sucessor to the niche market S2000, which related more to Honda motorcycles, in a way, than to most Honda cars. (closer to the old Acura Integra, in a way)
-- oh wait a minute! I just went to the Winding Road page and looked at the photo: those reat head restraints seem about 18 inches from the front ones. Cars like that typically have tiny backs seats in their home market, and two seats when shipped here.
From the photos, not going by the distraction of the text, the blue car is close to the same size as the S2000, looks like an updated S2000, and lacks a large enough rear deck for a metal folding top.
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jm 9:10PM (2/01/2007)
I'd love to see at least Acura's SH-AWD instead if they plan to abandon the RWD setup. It sounds like the S is going to try and compete with the Lexus SC430. Moving from the enthusiast to the rich housewife segment.
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Big jim 10:07PM (2/01/2007)
i am about to cry
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