Selling my AP2 S2000 to buy a GR Corolla? Have I lost my mind?

gunner (Forum Supporter) said:

So cool to see that you watch Everyday Driver videos. They have a podcast as well and a couple years ago they made an episode about how to get rid of a car that has become too precious to drive. I was in a similar situation to you with my E28 M5. They went way up in value and it was sitting in my garage not being driven since early 2017. it got maybe 3000 miles that year then less than a 1000 miles a year after that. I went through a similar crisis to yours. I loved the car, not a collector but didn't want to drive it. Even though it was amazing and I loved to drive it. Paul (from Everyday Driver) suggested that you take a bunch of photos and videos to remember the car, take it out to some cool places in your area and take photos, make those memories. Then sell it and you still have those pics to look back on but its no longer your problem. I owned the M5 for a decade and by the time it got sold, I was not glad to see it go, but not sad at all. I knew the next owner was going to enjoy it as much as I had. He owned a E28 535is and an E34 M5 already so I knew it would be taken care of. It allowed me to go onto my next adventure. I hope it can help you do the same.

I've been watching Everyday Driver for years! That's not a bad idea, although with winter coming early this year, I may not get too many opportunities to take the car out. I've actually taken quite a few photos of it over the years, so I suppose it's probably fine either way. 

Did you have any sellers remorse later down the line? Or thoughts of buying another one? 

Fupdiggity (Forum Supporter) said:

Man, that's a lot of variables you're trying to nail down at once, between the S2000, 128i, BRZ, xterra, & maverick. I can relate, as I do the same thing (if i sell x & y, i can buy z & w). It sounds like you've decided the S2000 is headed down the road, which I think is a good call. It also sounds like you really enjoy the 128i, it's paid off, and it occupies a pretty similar area as a BRZ (even if they're on different ends of the sporty coupe segment).

If it was me, I'd sell the S2000 (in the spring when the market is strongest), put in the X5 manifold and an LSD, drive the pants off the 128i, then re-evaluate 6-12 months later if you're feeling like there's a hole in your lineup or you're really itching to replace the xterra.

That might be what I actually end up doing. That's a great idea. 

If I sell the S2000, it's not like I need anything to take its place. Since I don't really even drive it, the only thing selling it will do is free up a space in my garage, which, the BMW currently sleeps outside, so that would just mean I could bring it inside. We only have a 3 car garage, so choices have to be made. Currently the S2000, my Integra and my wife's Challenger Scat Pack are the only 3 that get to sleep inside: 

I've considered parking the Integra outside a few times, but Integra's are commonly stolen- E82 BMW's are not. Plus the Germans seem to do a much better job of rust proofing things- my Integra is essentially rust-free and I would like to keep it that way. With all of our other cars parked outside, I'm pretty sure our neighbors hate us lol. 

If the BRZ doesn't sell, we'll be back on Friday to drive it again when the weather is nice. At this point, I like it, but if I don't love it, I think I'll likely pass on it. Not much of a point in buying a new BRZ if I don't enjoy driving it more than my 128i, as they occupy the same space. If I was going to track it and was buying it for XYZ class, that would be different, but for a fun street car, the 128i is tough to beat. 

Our 2010 128i M-Sport 6 speed has just about everything you can bolt on, short of some sort of forced induction. Intake, headers, exhaust, 3-stage manifold conversion, tune, coilovers, e9x M3 front control arms & M3 rear subframe bushings, better wheels and great tires. It is an absolute blast. I've owned something like 15 BMWs over the years and it's one of my favorites!

You could do all of that to your 128 for $3k to $5k and probably fall in love with it. That takes 1 car out of your fleet (lowering parking hassles, insurance, etc) while being MUCH cheaper than buying a new (or nearly new) car.

dyintorace said:

Our 2010 128i M-Sport 6 speed has just about everything you can bolt on, short of some sort of forced induction. Intake, headers, exhaust, 3-stage manifold conversion, tune, coilovers, e9x M3 front control arms & M3 rear subframe bushings, better wheels and great tires. It is an absolute blast. I've owned something like 15 BMWs over the years and it's one of my favorites!

You could do all of that to your 128 for $3k to $5k and probably fall in love with it. That takes 1 car out of your fleet (lowering parking hassles, insurance, etc) while being MUCH cheaper than buying a new (or nearly new) car.

The 128i really is a well-kept secret that I didn't know about until recently! I honestly already love the car! It's became my car of choice for a while now. I bought it as a dirt cheap track car, with intentions of running either SCCA TT Tuner 4 or NASA TT5... it had a lot of problems that I fixed over the first few months of ownership: 

http://​ https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/e82-128i-when-your-projected-track-car-turns-into-your-daily/258441/page1/ ​

When I got done fixing it, something unexpected happened: I loved the car so much I didn't want to turn it into a track car! Right now the car is pretty close to stock with only mods being the M3 control arms (front and rear), Turner Motorsports intake elbow (getting rid of the OEM resonator), removed charcoal filter, an all aluminum CSF racing radiator and a "tall" BMW M shift knob (I had the Condor Speed knob on for a while, but didn't care for it). I did all the deferred and preventative maintenance that the car will likely need for quite some time (hopefully- I went a little overboard). 

I put a pause on modding the 128i a while ago so I could invest more into the Integra, which has drained my wallet for at least a couple months and taken up way too much of my time in the garage: 

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/the-teg-a-dc2-road-to-all-the-hondas-story/258401/page1/

I have a 3-stage manifold and OEM oil cooler/warmer sitting in my garage (they were both on a rear-ended X5 in a local junkyard!) that I just haven't gotten around to installing. My plan for the 128i is to install the 3SIM and oil cooler/warmer, tune it, put in M3 rear subframe bushings, find an auto 3.73 diff and install some flavor of Torsen LSD into it (likely a Wavetrac). Depending on how I feel after the rear subframe bushings, I might pick up a set of Koni's- I actually like the ride height of the OEM Sport suspension and enjoy the ride, but would like to get rid of some of the floaty feeling the car has when pitching it around. I was thinking if the rear subframe bushings didn't eliminate it, I would try dialing in a set of Koni's before I invested in a set of full coilovers.

If I didn't live in an area that mandated emissions, I would likely add headers to that list, but I don't want to have to swap them in and out every time I have to get emissions tested. 

Obviously I'm a big proponent of the 2nd gen BRZ. But I also love the E82, I'd still have my 135i DCT if it hadn't just done unspeakable, non-consensual things to my wallet. 

If you can get a used LSD from an M3 and the half shafts and everything, great. But from the reliable purveyors, an LSD for that car is in the $3-4k range.

z31maniac said:

Obviously I'm a big proponent of the 2nd gen BRZ. But I also love the E82, I'd still have my 135i DCT if it hadn't just done unspeakable, non-consensual things to my wallet. 

If you can get a used LSD from an M3 and the half shafts and everything, great. But from the reliable purveyors, an LSD for that car is in the $3-4k range.

I won't lie, I've avoided buying a 135i for years for the exact issue you're describing. I owned an E90 335i about ~12-13 years ago, but was only comfortable owning it because it was still under a CPO warranty. I've read all of the N54 and even N55 horror stories (I know the N55 is better, but still not as reliable as the newer B58's). The N52 is considered to be a far more reliable motor- some folks on the boards have over 300k on stock N52 motors. I'm sure I would love the boost of the N54/N55, but it's not worth the amount of pain it would likely put my wallet through. 

The LSD for these cars is a mixed bag. BimmerWorld partners with DiffsOnline and will send you a fully rebuild OEM diff for around $1600. If you throw in an LSD, the price goes up. For a WaveTrac LSD installed into a fully rebuilt diff you're looking at $3000 from BimmerWorld (you can order directly from DiffsOnline if you want to skip the middle-man, although I think BimmerWorld might be ever-so-slightly cheaper). 

If you don't mind doing the work yourself, you can order a Wavetrac LSD from ECS for around $1200. There are other torsens you can get for a bit less money (I think the M-Factory torsen is $1000). Obviously it will cost you more if you have a local shop install it. Most of the cost of the LSD from BimmerWorld/DiffsOnline comes from having a fully rebuilt diff (before the LSD is even brought into the equation). Doing the work yourself will get you out of the door for a lot less money. 

"Only have a 3 car garage", I miss having one of those. 

yupididit said:

"Only have a 3 car garage", I miss having one of those. 

"Only" as in we have 6 vehicles, so we can only fit 3 of them in the garage. If you count my work car, we have 7 vehicles. 8 if you count our oldest daughter's car. If we didn't live on a corner lot with a long wrap-around side yard (enough space to park the outside cars without parking in front of other houses), our neighbors would hate us even more 

Once we get these teenagers graduated and moved out, I would like to sell this house and buy something smaller with just enough land to build a shop/place to actually park this small fleet. 

I'd love more space and a shop.  Sadly the market being what it is here, that costs at least 50-100% more than what our current house is worth.  So that's not happening anytime soon.

docwyte said:

I'd love more space and a shop.  Sadly the market being what it is here, that costs at least 50-100% more than what our current house is worth.  So that's not happening anytime soon.

That's a true statement. Unless we move somewhere far out east, there's a possibility we'll end up leaving this state after the teenagers graduate and move out. 

In reply to roninsoldier83 :

When I lived in SoCal I had a real 3 car garage and loved it. Then moved to Texas and had a "2" car garage that could only fit 1.5 cars. Now I'm in the DC area I have a real 2 car garage. Wanted 3 again but I don't want a million dollar mortgage at these 7% rates lol. I have 6 cars as well 

In reply to roninsoldier83 :

Without an infusion of cash, we're not moving ("upgrading") anytime soon.  I don't care to reset the mortgage and/or have a higher mortgage payment.  The neighborhoods that we'd like to move to have all appreciated quite a bit, seemingly more than ours has, plus they were more expensive to begin with

In reply to docwyte :

Our house suits our current needs just fine, but once the kids leave, it's a lot more house than we'll need/want. We're in a position that if we downsized, we could pay cash and no longer have a mortgage, which is the goal. I don't want a ton of land, just enough to have some semblance of a shop. I'm not a big fan of keeping up with the Jones'es, I would just like enough space to put in a real 2-post lift to avoid hurting my back/hip wrenching with a car on jack stands and maybe enough room to park an extra car or 2. I would also like to move away from having an HOA so I can get a trailer that I wouldn't have to park remotely and pay for storage. 

My wife is normally a bit of an enabler when it comes to my asinine hobbies, but she's not keen on putting a 2-post lift in our current garage. She isn't sold on the idea of not being able to open the passenger door to her Challenger in the garage lol. I've considered a 4-post (to make it easier to open doors in the garage), but I do so much wheels-off suspension work that a 2-post makes a whole lot more sense. I guess we'll see what the market looks like when the time comes- if it comes down to not having a mortgage vs having a shop, I'll defer to the side of being completely debt-free, but I'm hoping maybe we can accomplish both. We'll see. 

In reply to roninsoldier83 :

You can solve for that in your current house. A 4 post lift plus a set of quick jacks. That is many 10s of thousands of dollars cheaper than buying a new house.

Bend Pak article on how to use both together

In reply to dyintorace :

that's a great idea! Probably a bit costly, but brilliant nonetheless! I'm going to look into that! 

With that said, we'll still be buying a different house in the future. Our current house is ~6000 square feet- we really won't need/want this sized house when the kids move out. The primary motivation behind downsizing would be to eliminate a mortgage. We have enough equity in our house that we should be able to downsize and be completely debt free in a few years (fingers crossed). But that doesn't mean I can't add a setup like this at our current house! 

Thanks for the idea! 

You can do a 4 post with the quick jacks but I have the bridge jacks.  Plusses are they're always installed, ready to use, air powered and can easily lift my Land Cruiser.  Minuses are they definitely block that area of the car, although if that's going to be an issue, I use them to lift the car, then put jack stands on the lift deck, lower the bridge jack and slide it out of the way.

A 2 post is much better for doing work but I use the 4 post for storage too and it's WAY better than a 2 post for that.  Also didn't need to change the depth of the concrete and it doesn't get in the way like a 2 post does.

Neither my wife nor I want a larger house.  She wants a more "custom" house, I want a larger yard so I can play ball with my son and a bigger lot to accomadate a shop and have room for a trailer.

In reply to docwyte :

I honestly didn't even know about bridge jacks! Learn something new every day! That's a very cool setup I'll need to look into. 

Also, is that a VW Corrado in the background? Beautiful! Very nice, sir! 

In reply to roninsoldier83 :

Yes, had a corrado vr6 for about a year.  It was a nostalgia purchase but then I realized it basically did the same thing as the 911 (and I'd rather drive the 911) and nostalgia was stronger than reality.  I also didn't like having to be a parts depot for it, so many parts for that car are no longer available, so I had a huge horde of parts in my basement

In reply to docwyte :

Ahhh, that makes sense. I had a buddy years ago with the supercharged version- cool cars but I can see it being difficult to find parts with them being so rare. I'm assuming you sold it? 

In reply to roninsoldier83 :

Yes, about a year ago.  When I sold the parts out of my basement for it, I got as much for them as I did for the car

Well, my wife and I went back to the dealership today to take a 2nd spin in the BRZ (she wasn't with me the first time). This time I drove my 128i there so I could literally drive them both back to back. There's no getting around it: I prefer driving my 128i and my wife also prefers my 128i. 

Temps were in the 60's today, so a good bit warmer. I did take it to a twisty road (the car is in Golden, which borders the mountains) to get a better feel for it. My mind didn't really change on pretty much anything from last time. A few notes: 

-The steering is a bit too light for my tastes. 

-The car seems like it wants to be tail happy, almost on turn-in, which is something I'm likely not used to. On a track or at an autoX, I'm sure it would be fun. On a mountain road that I'm not familiar with in a car I'm not used to driving, it didn't inspire a lot of confidence in driving it a bit harder. 

-The traction control is not obtrusive at all. I imagine that was done intentionally for the purpose of allowing the driver to get the tail out at will. 

-Unfortunately, the little BRZ makes my wife car-sick. 

-My knee feels some kind of way after driving it- not pain per se, but definitely some odd discomfort. 

-The blindspot in the BRZ is more obtrusive than in the 128i or even my Integra. The more closed in feeling likely contributed to my wife getting car sick- the same thing happened a year or 2 ago when we drove a new Supra. 

-Other than those things, this just reaffirmed my previous thoughts about preferring my 128i over the BRZ. 

When we hopped back into the 128i, we both preferred driving/riding in it. My wife swore up and down that the 128i feels quicker than the BRZ. Which, the 128i is pretty close to stock, with just a removed resonator and removed charcoal filter. Maybe our elevation has something to do with it? Or maybe it just feels that way because the low and mid-range of the 128i feels substantially stronger? I think the BRZ likely pulls a bit harder above 6000rpm, but the 128i seems to pull harder everywhere below 6000rpm. I honestly preferred just about everything in the 128i over the BRZ- engine, seats, noise, steering (that's the biggest one!), pedal placement (easier to heel/toe), you name it.

I think the only things I prefer about the BRZ over the 128i is the aesthetics (they're good looking cars!), the lack of leather seats (I've never been a big fan of leather), Carplay/more modern amenities and that fact that it's still under warranty/likely won't require much maintenance for years to come. 

When I got back to the house, temps were in the mid 60's, the sun came out and it was perfect for driving a roadster. So, I took the S2000 out for a spin with the thoughts of the BRZ fresh in my mind. My thoughts: 

-The BRZ is definitely more usable than the S2000, but the S2000 is more fun. While pitching the BRZ around, my wife randomly said "the S2000 is more fun than this". She's right. 

-I think the BRZ has a bit more low/mid-range torque, but honestly, the S2000 feels faster. I know by the numbers, they're comparable with the edge going to the BRZ, but the shorter wheelbase of the S2000 combined with having the top down make it feel substantially faster. 

-The S2000 is substantially sharper. The BRZ is no slouch, but the S2000 feels much more eager to change direction. Granted, I don't know how fair that is- the S2000 is on a set of older summer tires (Michelin Pilot Super Sports), whereas the BRZ had the primacy tires on it (I'm pretty sure they're all-seasons?). 

-The S2000 is more confidence inspiring in the corners. The BRZ feels like it wants to party with the tail out- whereas the S2000 tightens its line if you ease into the throttle. If you lift in the S2000 or come in too hot, the rear will toe-out and the car will quickly rotate- which can be fairly unnerving if you're not used to it. Otherwise, the S2000 definitely feels more serious about attacking corners. 

-They both have EPS racks. I know the BRZ is supposed to have more feel, and maybe it does- I'm not sure if the Primacy tires are playing a role there? All I know is I've always enjoyed the weight of the S2000's steering and wished the BRZ had more weight to it. 

This sounds like a very harsh review for the BRZ, which, I actually like the little BRZ, but I definitely didn't fall in love with it. My wife commented about how much quicker the new 2.4L is vs the old 2.0L. We both agreed this is the motor it should have gotten from the start. But even with the newfound torque of the 2.4L, the motor lacks character. My VTEC machines feel manic and more exciting to rev out. My 128i sounds much better, feels smoother and has a powerband that is more street-friendly. The BRZ's new motor gets the job done, but it's not a whole lot of fun. 

I will admit, I've never been into drifting. When I used to autoX my S2000 (and track the one before it), I set it up to be more neutral/less over-steer prone (giant front sway bar and extra camber in the rear). Same with my old Miata's. So, maybe my lack of comfort with hanging the tail out is part of the issue here? I can get the tail on the BMW to come out for a split second, but when it does, it feels very easy to control. I think I would have to become more adept at driving with the tail out, or get used to what the BRZ wants before I would feel more comfortable driving it as hard as any of the other cars in my fleet. 

I like the BRZ. I respect the BRZ. I can't believe how much value this car has brand new for $30k! I have to remind myself that the S2000's MSRP in 2008 was $34,935, which, with inflation would be over $47,000 today! The fact that you get SOOO much car for so little money with the BRZ is impressive. If all I wanted was a brand new sports car that I could use as a daily, it would be tough to beat the BRZ. But unfortunately, I already own a car that I prefer to drive over the BRZ in almost every way: my old E36 M3box E82 128i. So, I think I'm going to pass on the little Toyobaru. 

In reply to roninsoldier83 :

I never looked back. I had my time with it and it was a great time. I was ready to move on and chose motorcycles and I also installed a squat rack in my garage with some of the funds. Funnily enough today I sold a 1978 Chevy pickup with 45,000 miles on it that my grandpa bought brand new. I did basically the same with it. Once it's time, it is definitely time and that's ok. The truck looks like it drove straight out of 1978, completely stock. The guy buying it is going to leave it just like it is and enjoy the heck out of it. Im going to sock away that money and next year Im selling the Corolla and buying a new Civic Si and keep that 20 years or so.

My wife and I went to have lunch with an old friend today and decided with the sunny 65 degree weather, I should take the S2000. Afterwards, I decided to stop at a local dealership and take an ND1 2018 Miata Grand Touring 6MT for a spin: 

My wife is extraordinarily patient, but with all the test drives in the past couple of weeks, I think she's getting a bit burnt out. In truth, so am I. 

My rationale for taking the ND for a spin: I loved my NC. I also loved my old NA's- for slightly different reasons. I've never owned an ND, but I did enjoy driving my wife's old ND1 on occasion (I tried to talk her out of trading it in on a Camaro SS, but she had her mind made up). I look at the ND as more of a mix between the NC and NA. I also looked at national pricing for used ND's and saw they're starting to get reasonably priced (read: some used ND2's are going for considerably less than I can likely sell my S2000 for). 

My thoughts:

-The ND is a barrel of monkeys fun to drive on the street! With the S2000, you really have to be pushing the car to have a good time, whereas the Miata is always having a good time! 

-Even in softtop form, the ND lacks headroom if you leave the top up. My hair is touching the roof in the car... I think a couple of companies now make seat rails that lower the stock seats by over an inch... if I ever buy one of these cars, the aftermarket lower seat rails would be installed the first weekend after bringing it home. 

-For an EPS rack, it's actually pretty decent. Overall, I didn't have a problem with the weight or feel of the ND's steering compared to my S2000. I preferred it over the BRZ's rack (even if none of them come close to an actual hydraulic rack). 

-I know the ND2 revs higher and makes more power up top. To be clear, I would just buy an ND2 over an ND1. With that said, the ND1's little econobox powerplant is a punchy little thing! It's not fast, but it's peppy and has a stronger feeling mid-range than my S2000. Driving around light to light, I actually think I prefer the little Miata over my S2000. 

-The clutch and shifter are great! Easy to work and very intuitive. Shifting is a joy in this car! 

-The ND is 500 lbs lighter than the S2000... and it feels 500 lbs lighter than the S2000. It's hard to find a car that makes the S2000 feel labored and heavy... the ND is that car. It just feels so nimble and playful! It truly feels like a toy that was created for the sole purpose of having fun. 

-The ride is extremely smooth... but the trade-off is the body roll. During more steady-state cornering, I didn't have much of a problem with it- the car seems to set on it's bump stops and holds a line... during quicker transitions, the car feels all over the place. I know its supposed to add to the drama and be more fun at low speeds, but in my opinion, this car could use a set of thicker sway bars. 

-The beautiful thing about the ND is the same thing that made the NA so wonderful: it's fun at any speed. It has that party trick where you constantly feel like you're going faster than you actually are. 

-The trunk might actually be smaller than the S2000's... both have terrible interior storage space- I can't decide which is worse, for different reasons. 

-I fit in the ND, but it's tight. Not many cars make the S2000's interior seem spacious. With the seat all the way back, I have enough leg room- although is bit more room under the steering wheel for my legs might make heel-toe downshifting a bit easier; which again, those lower seat rails are likely a good idea for folks around my size. 

-I find the S2000 to have beautful, classic lines that have aged well... but I would be lying if I didn't admit I prefer the aggressive looks of the ND. 

Having driven the new BRZ and ND on back to back days, the BRZ is undoubtedly the more usable car that a lot of folks could use as their only car... but there's no question, the ND is the more fun. On the street, at lower speeds, I would say the ND is more fun than my S2000. 

So, while I was wanting to find a vehicle that was more practical than the S2000 that I could drive more of the year, the only car I found to be more fun was the ND that is smaller and even less practical than the S2000. I guess I just enjoy a lightweight roadster. 

Now I have some real thinking to do: namely I need to be honest with myself and ask myself: would I actually get more use out of an ND vs my S2000? For practical purposes? Absolutely not- it's just as useless for doing real-world things. Would I drive it more? That's a tough question. My initial instincts are: yes. It doesn't feel nearly as collectable- it's not an appreciating JDM legend. Mazda still makes brand new motors (and parts) for them and I suspect that will continue for many years to come. The ND doesn't have to be prodded hard on a twisty road to be fun- it's fun just plodding along at normal traffic speeds. So long as I didn't stiffen the suspension much, the ND has a much smoother/less twitchy ride on the freeway. With the proper set of tires, I could see testing the ND out in the winter lol... if something happened to the ND, it feels like it would be much easier to replace due to the fact the Mazda is still making them brand new. 

Do I think I would use an ND more often than an S2000? Yes. How much more? Well, I'm going to have quite a bit to think about between now and next spring. 

So many options that its starting to hurt my feeble little brain. I may need to take a break for the next few months. 

roninsoldier83 said:

My wife and I went to have lunch with an old friend today and decided with the sunny 65 degree weather, I should take the S2000. Afterwards, I decided to stop at a local dealership and take an ND1 2018 Miata Grand Touring 6MT for a spin: 

My wife is extraordinarily patient, but with all the test drives in the past couple of weeks, I think she's getting a bit burnt out. In truth, so am I. 

My rationale for taking the ND for a spin: I loved my NC. I also loved my old NA's- for slightly different reasons. I've never owned an ND, but I did enjoy driving my wife's old ND1 on occasion (I tried to talk her out of trading it in on a Camaro SS, but she had her mind made up). I look at the ND as more of a mix between the NC and NA. I also looked at national pricing for used ND's and saw they're starting to get reasonably priced (read: some used ND2's are going for considerably less than I can likely sell my S2000 for). 

My thoughts:

-The ND is a barrel of monkeys fun to drive on the street! With the S2000, you really have to be pushing the car to have a good time, whereas the Miata is always having a good time! 

-Even in softtop form, the ND lacks headroom if you leave the top up. My hair is touching the roof in the car... I think a couple of companies now make seat rails that lower the stock seats by over an inch... if I ever buy one of these cars, the aftermarket lower seat rails would be installed the first weekend after bringing it home. 

-For an EPS rack, it's actually pretty decent. Overall, I didn't have a problem with the weight or feel of the ND's steering compared to my S2000. I preferred it over the BRZ's rack (even if none of them come close to an actual hydraulic rack). 

-I know the ND2 revs higher and makes more power up top. To be clear, I would just buy an ND2 over an ND1. With that said, the ND1's little econobox powerplant is a punchy little thing! It's not fast, but it's peppy and has a stronger feeling mid-range than my S2000. Driving around light to light, I actually think I prefer the little Miata over my S2000. 

-The clutch and shifter are great! Easy to work and very intuitive. Shifting is a joy in this car! 

-The ND is 500 lbs lighter than the S2000... and it feels 500 lbs lighter than the S2000. It's hard to find a car that makes the S2000 feel labored and heavy... the ND is that car. It just feels so nimble and playful! It truly feels like a toy that was created for the sole purpose of having fun. 

-The ride is extremely smooth... but the trade-off is the body roll. During more steady-state cornering, I didn't have much of a problem with it- the car seems to set on it's bump stops and holds a line... during quicker transitions, the car feels all over the place. I know its supposed to add to the drama and be more fun at low speeds, but in my opinion, this car could use a set of thicker sway bars. 

-The beautiful thing about the ND is the same thing that made the NA so wonderful: it's fun at any speed. It has that party trick where you constantly feel like you're going faster than you actually are. 

-The trunk might actually be smaller than the S2000's... both have terrible interior storage space- I can't decide which is worse, for different reasons. 

-I fit in the ND, but it's tight. Not many cars make the S2000's interior seem spacious. With the seat all the way back, I have enough leg room- although is bit more room under the steering wheel for my legs might make heel-toe downshifting a bit easier; which again, those lower seat rails are likely a good idea for folks around my size. 

-I find the S2000 to have beautful, classic lines that have aged well... but I would be lying if I didn't admit I prefer the aggressive looks of the ND. 

 

Having driven the new BRZ and ND on back to back days, the BRZ is undoubtedly the more usable car that a lot of folks could use as their only car... but there's no question, the ND is the more fun. On the street, at lower speeds, I would say the ND is more fun than my S2000. 

 

So, while I was wanting to find a vehicle that was more practical than the S2000 that I could drive more of the year, the only car I found to be more fun was the ND that is smaller and even less practical than the S2000. I guess I just enjoy a lightweight roadster. 

Now I have some real thinking to do: namely I need to be honest with myself and ask myself: would I actually get more use out of an ND vs my S2000? For practical purposes? Absolutely not- it's just as useless for doing real-world things. Would I drive it more? That's a tough question. My initial instincts are: yes. It doesn't feel nearly as collectable- it's not an appreciating JDM legend. Mazda still makes brand new motors (and parts) for them and I suspect that will continue for many years to come. The ND doesn't have to be prodded hard on a twisty road to be fun- it's fun just plodding along at normal traffic speeds. So long as I didn't stiffen the suspension much, the ND has a much smoother/less twitchy ride on the freeway. With the proper set of tires, I could see testing the ND out in the winter lol... if something happened to the ND, it feels like it would be much easier to replace due to the fact the Mazda is still making them brand new. 

Do I think I would use an ND more often than an S2000? Yes. How much more? Well, I'm going to have quite a bit to think about between now and next spring. 

So many options that its starting to hurt my feeble little brain. I may need to take a break for the next few months. 

Just a small note, if you enjoyed the ND1, try out an ND2. It's even better. Of course, there is the pending ND3 which may also be better than the ND2. It's a nice car that Mazda has slowly improved over time.

ND3? What do we know about that?