348 Considering a 348 to replace Honda s2000 AP1 – advice needed

Let’s keep the mods simple and compare the cars apples to apples, so we don’t open up a pandora’s box of discussing limitless modified cars.


What do most 355’s owners do? Headers, exhaust, challenge wheels and maybe stiffer springs. Stock brakes, upgrade pads and fluids. Stock body and interior.


Take an S2000, put headers, light-weight exhaust, light-weight wheels, and adjustable dampers (because a 355 has adjustable dampers). Stock brakes, upgrade pads and fluids. Stock body and interior. *Although I think you’ll be hard-pressed to find an S2000 tracking without at least a bucket seat.


Give them both the same tires, but 225/265 for 355 and 255’s all around for S2000.


Very few cars are going to see these tracks 100% stock, so you might as well allow some modest mods if you want a true apples to apples comparison.

I’d argue the S2000 above is a faster car on Tsukuba and Suzuka Circuit, which has a few long straights. Suzuka is an F1 track. It’s well balanced. Nurburgring has super long straight away speeds where high powered cars simply make up a ton of time on the last stretch.


F355 will be faster on the straights, but S2000 will make it up with cornering speed, but the S2000 will edge out at the end.

 

Suzuka Circuit

F355 Challenge Evo. Has uprated steering rack and sway bars. Upgraded dampers. 235/295 A052 tires. Stock motor. Clocked 2’25”









AP1 S2000. Modded. Stock engine. 255 A052 tires all around. Clocked 2’23”76


Same tires, same period.









You be the judge. If an S2000 were truly that inferior, it wouldn’t be able to clock these times with a stock motor. There’s only so many mods one can do around the car while keeping the motor stock NA. It’s not half the weight of a 355 challenge either. I bet this car actually has less mods than a 355 challenge.


It’s under powered by 100 hp to the 355. How’s it clocking similar times or less? Natural agility.

 

The AP1 S2000 debuted in 2000 with 205/225 tires in 16 inch wheels. That’s not gonna cut it. All the period reviews of it should be taken with a grain of salt on tire sizes alone.

 

Same driver?

 

355 Challenge driver I believe is a driving instructor. S2000 driver isn’t a pro or instructor.

 

His YT channel would suggest otherwise (at least he participated in multiple endurance races). There isn't a good overview of what was done to his car other than a dyno of it showing 240rwhp, though I'll say the driver of the 355 challenge in his own YT comments states he was on a quicker lap when he ran into a slower car and had to bail out (it was the 2nd lap in the video). He lost almost all of his time to the s2000 in t1 and also bobbled 130r where the s2000 lap looked pretty clean. That said I'd agree those two cars are pretty similar looking in speed, though I'd put money on the 355 with the same driver.

 

I have 5,000 race track miles on my F355; 3,000 of them with Ferodo pads in place of stock pads.
Everything else is stock right down to the air cleaners.

 

I looked into the driver of the F355 Challenge, Takashi Oi. Apparently he has another YT Channel with 125k subscribers. The S2000 driver, Ken Colo, only has 2k subscribers. Not taking away from his skill, but chances are he’s not a pro. Takashi Oi might actually be a pro.


Here’s the description on his YT Channel:

“I longed for the overseas rally scene where people drift while raising dust clouds, and I tried my first dirt trial in 1980. I crashed.
Hospitalized for 2 months
From then on, life was full of running. I would like to talk about my experience of failure and tell you about motor sports, sports driving, and car life that can be enjoyed safely! is the concept of this channel.
We are also planning and holding a driving school for members!
[Profile of Takayuki Oi]
Competed for Best Motoring from 1988 to 1997, and then raced (participated in many races such as SGT, S Taikyu, Nur24h, etc.) In SGT, he competed in Silvia, Ferrari F355,
RX7, Porsche 968, Porsche 911, Porsche
Participating in BOXSTER, the best result was 3rd place. He won the Super Taikyu series championship three times.
Porsche 993, 996, RX7, BMW M3, S2000, Swift
Participated in the race and won the class once. He also has some experience with formula) and has produced REVSPEED DVDs (until 2017).
The concept has always been to spread the word about safe and enjoyable sports driving.
He is also an advisory staff member for the driving simulator Gran Turismo.
A person who enjoys driving the car that Takayuki Oi himself creates.
Cars and parts that you would like to test
From time to time, please send us a message on the Sports Driving Labo. group on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.
https://twitter.com/Ohisan
https://www.facebook.com/takashi.oi.1
link
FB Group Sports Driving Lab.
facebook.com/groups/150570006184161”





Just saw the dyno vid as well. “PS” is about 10 rwhp more than ours, so the S2000 dyno’d at roughly 227 rwhp, which is about right for a stock motor with headers.

I can tell what was modded on the S2000 exterior and interior wise just from his profile pic. Still has a stock front bumper and fenders. Has vented hood, after-market rear bumper, and wing. Still has stock soft top although looks like he has a hardtop in the vid.

His interior door panels and carpets are intact. His dash and center console is intact. He has 2 bucket seats, that’s about it. His car isn’t stripped to the bone. If I had to guess, his car is around 2600 lbs.

Other mods? …

I’ll take a shot.

Clutch, light-weight flywheel, after-market LSD, after-market dampers, upgraded brakes/pads, headers, exhaust, intake. Maybe poly bushings, adjustable drop links, sway bars.

That’s probably 90% of it. What else more can he do while keeping the motor stock? If there is, I need to know about it.


Keep in mind there was another S2000 ahead of him in the vid that was maybe half a sec to a sec slower indicating there’s nothing super special about his setup. The super fast S2000’s are the ones gutted with built NA motors from Toda, Spoon, or J’s Racing. This was stock. Most leave it stock until it blows. Then they throw everything at it.



S2000’s have a tendency to help drivers look like pros .



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As a background, I have never had S2000, only few test drives and never on the track but there has been several Boxsters/Caymans in my garage over the years. Currently I am driving (summer) and wrenching (winter) both 348 TS and 360 Spider manual.

Given your description of your desires, I would agree that 360 is way to go.

 

I believe that, as the owner of a 2002 Honda S2000 (this is my second S2000) and a 1994 Ferrari 348 GTB (320 HP), I can give you the best answer in this thread so far. Comparisons are absurd. I also own a 2013 Aston Martin V8 Vantage, and I would never think of comparing them.

The Honda S2000 and the Ferrari 348 are two completely different cars. That’s why I have both and wouldn’t want to part with either. I don’t compare them to each other, nor to the Aston Martin. I enjoy each one for what it is, with its differences and charms.

The answer is as simple as this: If you like the 348, buy it.

That said, find the best unit possible. Don't skimp. I was lucky to find my 348 GTB with 50k km back in the day, and contrary to what people say, it's an incredible car. I’m absolutely delighted with it.

In terms of speed, an S2000 will never be faster than a 348, at least in a straight line. Sensations, however, are another matter… The S2000 is light, agile, and revs up like a motorcycle, especially from 6000 to 9000 rpm. The S2000's gearbox is, honestly, THE BEST MANUAL TRANSMISSION IN THE WORLD. The Ferrari 348’s gearbox, once the oil is warmed up, is also a joy to use. Shifting gears through the metal gate is an authentic experience… The 348 feels stable, like it’s on rails, and you can feel the power in any gear. The 348’s V8 also sounds fantastic. The S2000 at 9000 rpm has an unmatched sound, but the 348 at high rpm is absolutely brutal—if you install a Tubi, Nuvolari, or something similar, it has nothing to envy from the sound of an F355.

I bought the 348 simply because I find it beautiful, it defined my childhood, and I always wanted one. I didn’t buy it for performance or as an upgrade—I wanted to fulfill a dream. When you approach the Ferrari and are about to open it, your heart is already racing. The startup process feels like a ritual worth experiencing. Seeing the prancing horse in front of you makes you feel special. Watching little kids, even as young as three years old, turn their heads and point at the car as you drive by is priceless.

Personally, I think the 348 is much better designed than the Testarossa (even though the Testarossa is a Ferrari icon, its design is disproportionate) and offers better sensations than the F355 (the F355’s power steering is a joke… The 348’s steering is perfect, like a go-kart). Also, if you check my other posts, you’ll see I’m tired of debunking the 348’s bad reputation and the constant comparisons with the F355. Why don’t people compare the 348 to the 328 and mention the huge differences between them? Why compare the 348 to the Porsche 993 or F355 instead of the 964? Do people even know when each model was released?

Honestly, many of those who criticize it haven’t even driven one. The difference from an F355 isn’t as big as people claim. To each their own, but the 348’s design is more aggressive, more ’80s (Miami Vice-Testarossa style). And the interior? Please, the 348’s is far more beautiful than the F355’s. Have you seen that floating van-style center console in the F355? Or that four-spoke airbag steering wheel? Are we crazy? How can anyone claim that the 348 is the worst Ferrari ever while also saying the F355 is the best? They’re based on the same car! How can someone praise the F355’s design while dismissing the 348’s? It’s laughable… The F355 is basically a restyling of the 348! Can someone explain why the F355 has those round fog lights or that fake, soft-looking front grille? Not to mention the F355’s maintenance costs, which are much higher than the 348’s, or the valve seat issues…

This all stems from Luca di Montezemolo, who wanted to make himself look good when he arrived at Ferrari by saying that everything before him was garbage, and suddenly, the first car released under his watch was "the best ever." By the way, he also introduced the 348 Spider in Las Vegas. Let’s not forget that the 348 is the last Ferrari Enzo Ferrari personally approved, so Montezemolo’s words were just marketing.

One more thing: The Ferrari 348 is a CLASSIC. We shouldn’t compare semi-modern cars (the S2000 still is one) to classics. A CLASSIC is not meant for outright speed anymore but for enjoying it AS IT WAS DESIGNED. Appreciating its design, its place in history, etc.

My advice: BUY THE BEST 348 YOU CAN. Life is too short not to. You only posted here to get confirmation of what you already want.

 

No one in this thread commented/critiqued the looks of the 348. The 348 is a great looking car in its own right. More masculine lines while the 355 has more feminine lines, but most correlate femininity with beauty. To each their own. I first learned about the 355 after falling in love with seeing a 348 on the road.

I co-own a track S2000, so I too speak from experience, but I’ve only driven the car a few times on the public streets and it was handful each time. Just too ridiculous looking in public, otherwise I’d take it out more often.


The differences between the 348 and 355 are mechanical. The visual differences are not as important. My view is the difference between a 360 and F430 is far less than the difference a 348 and 355. You don’t see 360 guys claiming, “oh, its all the same sh*t. They just look a lil different.”


The 348 was quickly overshadowed by the NSX in 1991. Had nothing to do with LDM. Feel free to pull up in period comparison articles. My pops chose an NSX over the 348 in 91 and he was a Ferrari guy. NSX was miles ahead. Ferrari was going to tank if LDM didn’t do something about it.


Is the 348 better than a 1991 NSX? Let’s start there.


It’s ok if one prefers a 348 just the same as if a person prefers a 360 over an F430. Many choose a car just based on looks. Just don’t be in denial it’s all the same mechanically with some visual touch ups because underneath the skin is a myriad of changes. That is my impression of the OP’s post understandably due to his inexperience with the marque. At the end of the day, he can test drive both cars and see if they’re the same or not. Don’t take my word for it .

 

Not all media thought that way, far from it...

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That being said, I love the NSX and would love to have one.

 

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https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/comparison-test/a15140663/porsche-911-carrera-4-cabriolet-vs-acura-nsx-chevrolet-corvette-zr-1-ferrari-348ts-lotus-esprit-turbo-se-archived-comparison-test/

 

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I didn’t even know JayEmm owns an S2000. Interesting.

 

Sometimes I stop by Honda shops to get a whiff of VTEC. Let them work on my Ferrari?? Hell no. They’re great mechanics, but they don’t know Ferraris. Not a knock on them. Simply different spheres of knowledge. I wouldn’t take my car to a Porsche mechanic either.







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That price is pretty high for the NSX. I guess different markets.