EPS system (LHD)

Honda pioneered EPS and first introduced it on the NSX followed by Japanese-market Accord variants, but the HONDA S2000 design is new, with the motor and steering rack mounted coaxially. A speed sensor in the system's electronic control unit registers road speed and, coupled with a torque sensing system, feeds a signal to the electric motor to provide varying levels of assistance. In the unlikely event of EPS failure, the car can still be driven and an EPS warning light illuminates in the instrument binnacle.

The HONDA S2000 also features Variable Gear Ratio steering (VGR), which provides a progressively quicker ratio as the steering wheel is turned farther off centre. This is accomplished by changing the pitch of the teeth in the steering rack. VGR has more on-centre feel when driving straight ahead and enhances manoeuvrability when parking.


Powerful braking

The HONDA S2000 has a braking performance to more than match the prodigious engine output and 11.8 in ventilated front discs and 11.0 in solid rear discs plus four-sensor, three channel ABS anti-lock braking result in a powerful, linear pedal action for precise and balanced braking.


HONDA S2000 - Exterior

- SSM concept car provided styling basis
- Compact external dimensions
- Taut, muscular styling conveys performance potential
- High-performance HID headlamps

Starting with the SSM concept car, the HONDA S2000 passed through three distinct design stages, each immediately recognisable as a sibling to SSM, yet differing slightly in proportion and the layout of headlamps, air intakes and vents. While the HONDA S2000 does not share the SSM concept car's split cockpit, which saw driver and passenger seats separated by a fixed spar linking the scuttle to the rear deck, Honda's designers have nevertheless retained each of the major design cues including the angular nose. The final production model includes a larger front air intake, a raised headlamp location, more pronounced rear bumper and a centre rear brake light located on the upper lip of the boot lid, where it also performs an aerodynamic function.

Honda aimed for compact external dimensions both to minimise weight and to enhance agility and the HONDA S2000 is 4135 mm long, 1750 mm wide and 1285 mm tall (with the top raised). Kerb weight is just 1260 kg. The body is all steel with the exception of an aluminium bonnet.

Beautifully proportioned, the HONDA S2000 has both an elegant and sporty appeal. From arrow-head nose and fared in headlamps to short, rounded tail, its styling manages to be distinctive without resort to retro styling cues. The chiselled, angular lines are purposeful and there is a dynamic tension about the whole car. The short front overhang, the ultra-low bonnet line (aided by canting the engine over by 15 degrees) and wheels pushed out to the very edges of the body give the frontal aspect an aggressive feel. Deep scallops carved out of the length of the sills and the base of the doors reduce the visual depth of the doors and accentuate the taut body sides and pinched waistline effect produced by the flared wheel arches.

A delicate crease line that runs from the front wheel arch through the door handle to the taillights and which is perfectly replicated in the fuel filler cover panel with pin-point alignment produces subtle lighting and shading effects and added definition.

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