Ninety Percent Of This S2K Is Straight JDM Even Though You Drive It From The Left
Contrary what your mother or father may have told you, sometimes impatience can be a virtue. It can be especially useful when it comes to scaring up rare JDM parts to put on your Japanese import, like in the case of Bay Area resident Chris Boetker and his 2001 Spa Yellow S2000. Since he purchased the 2001 model while deployed to Hawaii-Boetker is employed by the United States Coast Guard-he's been tricking it out with authentic JDM aftermarket goods.
Boetker's previous cars include a Del Sol and an Integra. He modified both, but neither to the extent of this S2000. While searching for suitable treatments for this car he did extensive research online and secured help from a number of sources, which included the standard North American distributors for the Japanese products, like King Motorsports in Wisconsin, as well as a handful of underground importers north of the border. Also, being in Hawaii and thus only half the physical distance to Japan compared to us poor landlocked bastards, Boetker was often able to get the products in only a fraction of the standard waiting period, setting up the deals through his American and Canadian contacts and having the parts shipped directly to his island home.
Boetker is the first to admit he's sort of an impatient guy, and he concedes that he could have saved a lot of money by going the standard shipping routes. However, he's also smart enough to know said standard shipping routes can take weeks and more often months to complete their circuits-and that's before you throw customs restrictions into the mix. Therefore, in most cases he opted for the absolute quickest route to satisfaction: next-day air. More often than not, he'd be down at the airport a day or two after ordering a batch of parts, dealing with customs agents and the Asian shipping companies directly. You've got to give the guy big points for effort.
The car's original configuration incorporated virtually the entire catalog of Spoon Sports goods (what was available at the time, anyway), but after running those parts for a while Boetker began to feel the all-Spoon look was becoming way too prevalent-he is an avid follower of the import press, both online and print, and likes to stay abreast of the current aftermarket trends. His focus shifted from making the car a one-marque aftermarket showcase to making it an amalgam of less common, more desirable accessories.
The exterior is telling of the car as a whole: clean and understated, yet still pointedly aggressive. It points out at once all that is good about Honda's S2000. Possibly the most impressive piece is the Mugen SS bumper. While our pictures won't show it-we normally don't have access to a hydraulic lift while shooting cars on location-the bumper incorporates a flat undertray that extends from the bumper itself all the way to the firewall, improving undercarriage aerodynamics and diverting air, through a series of vents and scoops, to strategic locations within the engine bay. To impart a slightly more intimidating look, Boetker had the bumper two-toned with a layer of factory Berlina Black. C West side skirts and rear bumper skirts extend the ground effects around the rest of the car, and a Back Yard Special rear spoiler, also detailed in black, sits on a Charge Speed carbon-fiber trunk lid. Other carbon-fiber additions include a pair of C West side mirrors and a J's Racing hood. The hardtop is an optional factory piece. Additionally, Boetker updated the front lighting assemblies on two separate occasions, first with clear 2001 JDM headlamps, then later with O.E. 2004 assemblies. The tails have also been converted with '04 assemblies.