"Thebiggest problem has been getting everything to work together inharmony," says Tommy Ha of his S2000 project. Understatement of theyear? Honda's amazing roadster has an unusual trait: it's really hardto make better without a serious investment of time and money. Sofinely honed and balanced are all the OEM components that quite often amodification will result in less power; it's an area where engineersfear to tread. But Tommy Ha doesn't do fear.
Boughtnew, his is one of the early models: 2001, AP1 chassis, F20C engine,1,997 cc. He's had Hondas before--a '96 Accord auto, then a '95 Accordmanual. But he didn't get the modding bug until he bought a '91 ToyotaMR2. "I got into cars around 1995," says Tommy. "I remember riding withmy older brother's friend in his lowered GSR with clear corners--thatwas the `in thing' back in the day.
"Itold myself I would never buy a Honda after owning them for years, butwhen the S2000 came out, I was--and still am--very impressed with theperformance, handling and reliability. You can't base it simply on theappearance. It goes beyond that."
It allstarted with some mild changes, paint and some high-end JDM mods.Recognize this slippery slope? Before long, there was a completeframe-up repaint, full body kit, turbocharging . . . two years and$80,000 later, Tommy is still making refinements. "It's a never-endingprocess," he says. Oh yes, we know.
Let'sstart with the forced induction system, perhaps Tommy's biggest change,since the car was born naturally aspirated. It's more or less theGReddy S2000 turbo kit with a T518 snail and a Type 28 intercooler.Also included are 550cc/min fuel injectors (in this instance, linked toa BDL Industries billet aluminum fuel rail) and an oil filterrelocation kit. Ha now claims a perfectly feasible 289.9 whp and 197lbs-ft of torque, with boost averaging around 7 psi.
Breathingis facilitated through a hacked-apart Mugen dry carbon air intake(gangster), augmented by two A'PEXi products: a dry intake filter and aheat shield. The stock throttle body has been changed out to a large,68mm Skunk2 unit, and the Skunks were also tapped for a Stage Two turbocamshaft, valve springs and titanium valve retainers.
Coolingtakes place with an aluminum radiator, titanium radiator panel(laser-cut to clear the Mugen intake) breather tank and radiator cap,all from ARC. A Spoon Sports Radiator Stay set helps the radiator stay,um, set. A Mugen thermostat and fan switch kick on the Flex-a-lite fan,while the first of many ASM pieces now breaks cover in the form of aradiator overflow tank.
The engine bayplays host to another ASM item: the oil catch tank. And there are twomore ARC items here: a heat shield (customized to fit the turbosystem's plumbing) and an Allen head silver oil cap. Things get sparkywith a Braille battery and mounting kit, along with a Sun Auto hypervoltage system and grounding kit. An AEM ECU gets in touch with thespark plugs (under Mugen dry carbon plug covers) and the VTEC solenoidunder a Skunk2 cover, then it's off to the exhaust side before you cansay "internal combustion."
Spinningbeneath a custom-painted candy gold valve cover, a Toda adjustableexhaust cam gear joins the already impressively complex factory VTECsystem. Spent gases recycled through the turbo system head out of a70mm test pipe and on to an ASM SPL 70mm single exhaust (fashioned fromtitanium) with a carbon fiber cap. And elsewhere under the hood, it'spossible to find the following: 21 Mugen bolts, Top Secret hooddampers, Skunk2 brake reservoir covers and a ZTEC carbon/Kevlar heatshield. Transmission modifications have been much simpler: aPerformance Street Clutch, pressure plate and Prolite flywheel, allfrom ACT.
It'spretty much a Cusco party in the suspension department. At the front isa Type II lower bar and 30mm anti-roll bar. There's a lower subframecenter bar, and out back is a Type I lower bar, a Type ALC OS strutbar, and a 32mm rear anti-roll bar. The only gatecrashers are a pair ofJ's Racing aluminum front inner fender braces and Zeal Function B6coilovers. Tommy tuned the suspension to be somewhat on the soft side,six kg/mm at each end.
A six-pot mini bigbrake kit sounds like a double paradoxical whammy, but it all makesperfect sense on Planet Tuner, where Endless calipers and CCRGcarbon/ceramic racing pads bite down on 12.9-inch slotted two-piecerotors, with stainless lines on the assist. In front of the brakes arewhite Prodrive GC-06H forged monoblock wheels for track duty, andbronze Advan RZs for the street. Tires are Nitto NT-01s at all times.And the proverbial cherries on top--titanium lug nuts from Go TuningUnlimited, Tommy's company and, conveniently, the U.S. distributor forASM; the manufacturer of high-performance goods like Tommy's frontbumper and fenders, rear over-fenders, dry carbon hood, carbon fibercanards, dry carbon front splitter, short antenna, and intake duct. Theside skirts and door caps are from GP Sports, the carbon fiber reardiffuser and vortex generators come from Top Secret, and there's also apainted Veilside carbon fiber rear spoiler.
Seton custom-made mounts are C-West mirrors in carbon fiber housings, andif those side markers look like they came from a Ferrari F430, that'sbecause they did. The head- and taillights are from the AP2 model andif any S2000 owners want the same rear bumper, they'd better call GoTuning, since this is a TSD (Tommy's Signature Design) special.Backyard Creations of South El Monte, CA, did the bodywork, which alsoincludes a shaved trunk keyhole and a Clear Bra. BC's Joe Ortiz-Luisapplied the Long Beach Blue Pearl paintwork.
It'stime to climb inside, sit on the ASM Limited Recaro seats (mounted onmatching seat rails and with seat side protectors), luxuriate in theBride custom carpet and floor mats, secure ourselves with the Prodrivefour-point harnesses, grab the Prodrive racing steering wheel (fixed toa Rapix quick-release assembly and Works Bell short boss hub) and smackthe horn button that comes straight from a Honda NSX-R.
Forsuch a small cabin, there's a whole bunch of stuff crammed in here. Acustom-made carbon fiber gauge cluster houses most of the Defi catalog:BF boost, oil pressure, oil temp, water temp, EGT, plus a BF Link UnitII and Link Display VSD, visor shades, and fitting kit. Throw in anAPEX'i turbo timer, a Prodrive Rapix key lock, and a JDM FD2 Type Rshift knob, and watch cars disappear in the Zoom Japan carbon/Kevlarrear-view mirror.
Can there ever be toomuch red stitching? Not according to Tommy, who has it served up withthe carbon fiber/leather elbow pad, the Alcantara/leather knee pad,plus Alcantara door inserts, sun visors, e-brake handle, shift boot andfalse glove box cover--all custom made.
Eventhe Honda factory has been tapped for some upgrades. The center consoleand leather cover is from an '07 S2000, as are the door panels. Theradio lid is of the 2004 vintage and the navigation bezel is Honda JDM.
Trackrats might wonder what an Icon DVD player with a 6.5-inch screen,Memphis Audio 6.5-inch carbon speakers and Kenwood 6.5-inch rearspeakers are doing in a car that also sports a Cusco seven-pointchromoly roll cage with a harness bar, but hey, it's all about freedomof expression. "I keep just the roll bar in for the daily commute, butthe full cage goes in at the track," says Tommy. "I wanted to buildsomething that reflected my own taste and style, that I could driveeveryday and still beat on at the track."
Sohow did he get everything pulling together as one harmonious whole?"Trial and error. Working on the car, researching, troubleshooting. Ithelps me learn more." He knows enough to have won the title of JDMShowoff King 2004 and Nisei Best of Show 2008, plus several otherawards. But is Tommy happy? "Always," he confirms, "Every time I thinkI can get rid of this car, I find new reasons to hold onto it." Tommy'snext pursuit involves beating the S2K around a track, chasing down sometime-attack records. Let's hope, for the car's sake, he app roachesdriving it with the same care and patience as he has in building it.
Output 289.9 whp
EngineAEM ECU; A'PEXi dry intake filter, heat shield; ARC heat shield, Allenhead silver oil cap, aluminum radiator, titanium radiator panel,radiator cap, breather tank; ASM oil catch tank, radiator overflowtank; SPL 70mm titanium single exhaust; BDL Industries fuel rail;Braille battery, mounting kit; Earl's fittings, hose separator;Flex-a-lite fan; GReddy T518 turbo, Type 28 intercooler, 550cc/min.fuel injectors, oil filter relocation kit; Mugen fan switch,thermostat, dry carbon spark plug cover, dry carbon air intake, bolts;anodized blue aluminum pulleys; Samco radiator hoses, vacuum hoses,intercooler race coupler; Skunk2 Stage Two turbo camshaft, titaniumretainers, valve springs, brake reservoir covers, 68mm throttle body,VTEC solenoid cover; Spoon Sports Radiator Stay set; Sun Auto groundingkit, hyper voltage system; 70mm test pipe; Toda adjustable exhaust camgear; Top Secret hood dampers; custom-painted Candy Gold valve cover;ZTEC carbon/Kevlar heat shield
Drivetrain Act performance street clutch, pressure plate, Prolite flywheel
SuspensionZeal Function B6 coilovers; Cusco Type II front lower bar, subframecenter lower bar, Type I rear lower bar, Type ALC OS rear strut bar,30mm front anti-roll bar, 32mm rear anti-roll bar; J's Racing aluminumfront inner fender braces
Wheels/Tires Advan RZ wheels, 17x9 +45 (front), 17x9 +35 (rear); Nitto NT01 tires, 255/40-17; Go Tuning titanium lug nuts
BrakesEndless six-pot mini big brake kit, CCRG carbon ceramic racing pads,stainless steel lines; Zeal 12.9-inch slotted two-piece rotors
ExteriorASM I.S. Design -04 front bumper, -04 front fenders, rear over-fenders,dry carbon hood, carbon fiber canards, dry carbon front spoiler, shortantenna, intake duct; GP Sports side skirts, door caps; Top Secretcarbon fiber rear diffuser, carbon/Kevlar vortex generators; TSD(Tommy's Signature Design) custom rear bumper; Veilside carbon fiberrear spoiler; C-West carbon fiber mirrors w/custom base mounts; FerrariF430 side markers; Honda AP2 headlight conversion, AP2 taillightconversion, JDM black emblems; Long Beach Blue Pearl paint; shavedtrunk keyhole; Clear Bra
InteriorCusco seven-point chromoly roll cage w/harness bar; A'PEXi turbo timer;ASM Recaro RS-G limited seats, seat rails, seat side protectors; Bridecarpet, floor mats; Defi BF Link Unit II, BF boost gauge, BF Link: oilpressure, exhaust temperature, fuel pressure, oil temperature, andwater temperature gauges, Link Display VSD Concept (HUD), visor shades,fitting kit; Honda '07 OEM center console and leather cover, doorpanels, '04 radio door/lid, JDM OEM navigation bezel, NSX-R hornbutton, JDM FD2 Type R shift knob; Prodrive steering wheel; Rapix quickrelease, key lock; Recaro four-point harnesses, harness gel pads; WorksBell short boss hub; Zoom Japan carbon Kevlar rear-view mirror; Icon TVMT-6500w 6.5-inch widescreen, DVD100 player; Memphis Audio 6.5-inchcarbon speakers, Kenwood 6.5-inch rear speakers; custom carbon fibergauge cluster trim, carbon fiber/leather elbow pad, Alcantara/leatherknee pad, door inserts, shift boot, sun visors, e-brake handle, falseglovebox cover
GratitudeDaryl, Dean, Mike and the ACT staff; Terrence from Nitto Tires; Francisfrom Works Bell; Kent and Dominic from Endless USA; Carlos from BDLIndustries; Chris, Quincy, Mitch and Doug from GReddy; Meguiar's;Valvoline; Prodrive USA; A'pexi; Jon and the crew from HB Speed; ASM;Yukio, Tony Shagday and Tony Nguyen from Skunk2; Mike Ma from MemphisAudio; Joe from Backyard Creations; Luke for the awesome shots!!
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發表於 2009-6-28 01:13 PM
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