I've been thinking about doing this for a long time and I figured it's finally time to get the ball rolling. I think this could be a fantastic way to share what I've been up to with my friends and family back home but to anybody else who might be interested in some of the same things that I am, specifically S2000s. I relocated from the Bay Area to Arizona about five years ago. In that time I've purchased another S2000 and started down the never ending path of modifying the car. I would like to share some of the adventures, introduce you to some friends that I've met along the way, and hopefully show you guys what the S2000 scene looks like out here in Arizona. So, without further procrastination on my part let get this started.
I sold my previous S2000 about 8 years ago and I have regretted it everyday since. I started hunting for an S2000 a few years back but I just couldn't find one with the right combination of year/mileage/color/options that I wanted. I knew I wouldn't be happy with anything other than what I was specifically after, and after several close calls (One of which I was holding my pen on the papers for an 08 Apex Blue CR when my buddy called and talked me down) I ended up scoring exactly what I was after.
I have always had this vision of what I thought an S2000 should look like. The hardest part for me has always been wheels, specifically on New Formula Red. Wheels either make of break the color. So as I started the hunt for the car I decided I would eventually end up with a set of Blitz 01's... until I saw another members car here on a forum that I frequent. A guy posted pictures of his NFR S2000 with a set of wheels I had never seen before and I was instantly in love. I pretty much decided at that point I was going to land me a set of those wheels and save them for the day I managed to find another S2000.
Fast forward a few months, I'm browsing Autotrader. I click a link and to my surprise the member from S2KI had his car listed. After speaking with him for quite some time he offered me a deal I couldn't refuse. Ironically enough not only did the car have the wheels that I had set my mind on, it met ever single other criteria that I had been searching for. 02-03, NFR, no rear wing, no side strakes, no paintwork, no accidents, around 40k or less miles, ect. Only problem was he lives in Indiana and I live in Arizona. After some thinking I decided it was time to finally pull the trigger on another S2000.
I flew out to Indiana to purchase the car and drive it home. I have a close buddy who lives in Lexington, KY so after picking up the car I drove down there, crashed for a few days, and then proceeded to make the drive home. The first day was pretty rough, I was on the plane in Phoenix by 3:30am which took me to North Carolina. I then boarded a charter jet which took me to Dayton, OH and was picked up by the owner of the car who then drove me to his house in Richmond, IN. After purchasing the vehicle and signing all of the paperwork I headed east back to Dayton, OH and went south to Lexington, KY. That day was a little rough. Thankfully as I mentioned earlier one of my bestest buddies in the whole wide world and his family live out in Lexington. I had dinner with his family and afterwards his parents offered to throw a BBQ the next night if I would stay another day. I had full intentions of leaving the next morning, but how could I say no to that?! I stayed in KY for a few days and then work up on Saturday morning and took off.
I drove straight through to Albuquerque, NM, with the top down... like an idiot. That portion of the drive took me approximately 22 hours. I didn't think anything of it until I checked into the hotel and noticed my face was a brighter shade of red than my car was, well not the part that the Blueblockers were covering of course. The rest of the trip was fairly painless, it was a quick 10 hour drive back to Arizona. I will say I am disappointed I didn't take someone along with me. A cross country road trip in a convertible is one of the best experiences I've ever had. I remember hitting St. Louis, IL before the sun came up. Driving through the city, the only car on the road, over the bridge with the entire city lit up is an image that I have burned in my memory. I just kept thinking to my self, "I should have brought a friend... or a camera!". Oh well, I guess there is always next time.
These pictures are of the car several months after I got home. I don't remember making any major changes at this point other than the license plate. Remember, I basically bought the wheels with an attached car. Yes, I wanted the wheels that bad, and yes, it was totally worth it.
Here is how the car sat once I got it home:
I also want to give a big thank you to Adam - Adrs2k. It's because of him that I have all of these fantastic photos of my car. If your in the area and thinking about getting some photos of your car I would recommend getting in contact with him.
That's pretty much it for now it for now. I've got a lot of catching up to do. As I write this I have had the car for over 7+ years now and lot of extra parts and projects that I would like to document.
-Feezy
