So the Honda S2000, Gran Turismo 2’s cover car and was for quite some time, the king of HP per litre for Naturally Aspirated cars at 124hp per litre.
While the likes of Ferrari and Porsche have since built cars that surpass it, you’ll be surprised which modern performance cars don’t beat the S2000’s figure.
Lamborghini Huracan 115hp per litre
Audi R8 V10 Plus 117hp per litre
Ferrari F12tdf 122hp per litre
Heck even the upcoming Aventador SV has a lower hp per litre than the S2000.
Of course Turbos make Hp per litre almost child’s play these days, but that hasn’t stopped Mercedes making 415hp from a 2.0 4 cylinder turbo in the upcoming A45 AMG S which’ll come out to 207.5hp per ton.
Which is only beaten by (as far as i’m aware) the UK exclusive Mitsubishi Evo X FQ440.( 220hp per litre) and any Koenigsegg which runs the 1341hp 5.0 litre V8 (268hp per litre.).
The point? Just to show how efficient the S2000’s F20C engine was back then and how it stacks up by today’s standards.
Weighing under 1300kgs, packing a 6 speed gearbox and a 50-50 weight balance, the S2000 ticks all the right boxes for a 2 seater sports car.
The only weakness is the lack of torque, a side effect for a small, high revving, non turbo 4 banger, it lives at over 7500rpm on the way to its over 9000rpm redline.
To make the S2000 dance on the track, you need to keep that engine singing while keeping a rhythm through the corners.
Succeed and it’ll reward you with a fast lap time.
Also, I second the recommendation by
@RobboGTAddict to watch the Autopolis race, it was good from his view, but also from my car too, especially at the end.
Verdict: Sleeper 👍