Honda S2000 Drift Build, AI Render

The Honda S2000 Drift Build, Explained

Ask whether an S2000 is a good drift car and the internet answers with a warning. The top Reddit post for the search calls it by far the hardest car the owner has ever tried to drift. r/Drifting has a thread on why it is not ideal, and the Driftworks and S2KI forums have long threads asking how hard it really is. The reasons are built into the car. The wheelbase is short at 2,400 mm, so the S2000 rotates quickly and snaps back just as quickly. The original AP1 engine, the 2.0-litre F20C, makes its 240 hp at 8,300 rpm and revs to about 9,000. That is wonderful on a road and hard work in a slide, because there is little torque low down to hold the car sideways when the revs drop. The factory Torsen limited-slip differential is excellent for grip driving but is not the locked rear end most drift cars use. Yet people do drift them, and well. The car has 50:50 weight balance, rear-wheel drive and a stiff chassis, and the owners who stick with it say it rewards practice. S3 Magazine's Drag to Drift feature shows one Detroit-area 2005 S2000 built for the job: a BeSpoke Motorsports angle kit, a turbocharged F20C, a BMW ZF5 gearbox, BC Racing coilovers and staggered 18-inch wheels. The owner said he chose it partly because everybody says S2000s are not good drift cars. The later AP2, with its 2.2-litre engine and more mid-range torque, is a little easier to keep sliding, and it has its own page here.

S2000 Drift Build: The Cost Breakdown

An S2000 drift build costs more than a Nissan one because the parts market is smaller. Start with the differential: most builders replace or lock the Torsen so both rear wheels drive together in a slide, and the gearbox and clutch need to handle repeated clutch kicks. Steering angle is the big line. Wisefab's rear suspension drop knuckle kit for the S2000 lists at $4,250–$4,450 before VAT, with knuckles, control arms, tie rods and spacers for both AP1 and AP2, and Evasive Motorsports sells Wisefab's front and rear kits together for $8,900. BeSpoke Motorsports makes the angle kit used on the S3 Magazine car, and cheaper modified-knuckle options exist. Coilovers come next; the S3 Magazine car uses BC Racing's DS series. Add a hydraulic handbrake, a bucket seat and harness, and staggered wheels. The S3 Magazine car runs 18x8 +30 at the front and 18x9.5 +43 at the rear, and Jimmy Oakes' staggered drift-spec S2000 shows the same idea. Power is the last decision. Many S2000 drifters add a turbo to the F20C, like the S3 Magazine car, so it has torque in the middle of the rev range. Add it up as an estimate: a starter build with a locked diff, coilovers, a handbrake and a modest angle kit is roughly $4,000–$8,000 on top of the car; a full Wisefab and turbo build is $20,000 or more. Budget for spare rear wheels and tyres too, because drift practice eats them.

See Your S2000 With a Drift Build in 30 Seconds

1. 1
   Upload a photo of your S2000. One good frame is enough; a side or three-quarter view suits stance and aero changes. JPG or PNG, up to 10MB.
2. 2
   Select Drift Build as your style. The AI maps your S2000's panels and stance before rendering, so the result fits your exact car rather than a stand-in.
3. 3
   Download your render. About half a minute later it's ready. Free renders carry a watermark; Pro ($14/mo or $69/yr) delivers 250 clean HD renders a month, great to hand an installer.