"The biggest problem has been getting everything to work together in harmony," says Tommy Ha of his S2000 project. Understatement of the year? Honda's amazing roadster has an unusual trait: it's really hard to make better without a serious investment of time and money. So finely honed and balanced are all the OEM components that quite often a modification will result in less power; it's an area where engineers fear to tread. But Tommy Ha doesn't do fear.
Bought new, 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 Accord manual. But he didn't get the modding bug until he bought a '91 Toyota MR2. "I got into cars around 1995," says Tommy. "I remember riding with my older brother's friend in his lowered GSR with clear corners--that was the `in thing' back in the day.
"I told myself I would never buy a Honda after owning them for years, but when the S2000 came out, I was--and still am--very impressed with the performance, handling and reliability. You can't base it simply on the appearance. It goes beyond that."
It all started with some mild changes, paint and some high-end JDM mods. Recognize this slippery slope? Before long, there was a complete frame-up repaint, full body kit, turbocharging . . . two years and $80,000 later, Tommy is still making refinements. "It's a never-ending process," he says. Oh yes, we know.
Let's start with the forced induction system, perhaps Tommy's biggest change, since the car was born naturally aspirated. It's more or less the GReddy S2000 turbo kit with a T518 snail and a Type 28 intercooler. Also included are 550cc/min fuel injectors (in this instance, linked to a BDL Industries billet aluminum fuel rail) and an oil filter relocation kit. Ha now claims a perfectly feasible 289.9 whp and 197 lbs-ft of torque, with boost averaging around 7 psi.
Breathing is facilitated through a hacked-apart Mugen dry carbon air intake (gangster), augmented by two A'PEXi products: a dry intake filter and a heat 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 turbo camshaft, valve springs and titanium valve retainers.
Cooling takes 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 a radiator overflow tank.
The engine bay plays host to another ASM item: the oil catch tank. And there are two more ARC items here: a heat shield (customized to fit the turbo system's plumbing) and an Allen head silver oil cap. Things get sparky with a Braille battery and mounting kit, along with a Sun Auto hyper voltage system and grounding kit. An AEM ECU gets in touch with the spark plugs (under Mugen dry carbon plug covers) and the VTEC solenoid under a Skunk2 cover, then it's off to the exhaust side before you can say "internal combustion."
Spinning beneath a custom-painted candy gold valve cover, a Toda adjustable exhaust cam gear joins the already impressively complex factory VTEC system. Spent gases recycled through the turbo system head out of a 70mm test pipe and on to an ASM SPL 70mm single exhaust (fashioned from titanium) with a carbon fiber cap. And elsewhere under the hood, it's possible to find the following: 21 Mugen bolts, Top Secret hood dampers, Skunk2 brake reservoir covers and a ZTEC carbon/Kevlar heat shield. Transmission modifications have been much simpler: a Performance Street Clutch, pressure plate and Prolite flywheel, all from ACT.