THE BOOK OF THE HONDA S2000

Brian Long. Published 2020 by Veloce who provided the review copy. ISBN 978-1-787112-14-8.

The Honda Motor Company has produced a range of impressive and ground-breaking sports and GT cars, from the tiny S800 and Beat to the NSX supercar. The S2000 is a more conventional roadster, but this car, profiled here by Veloce, is undoubtedly greater than the sum of its parts. Prolific author Brian Long, who has more than 80 books to his name, lives in Japan, which is handy for gaining access to material and interviews with key company personnel. This book follows the familiar Long pattern, starting with a brief history of the parent company, then discussing the relevant concept car which, in this case, appeared at the 1995 Tokyo Motor Show. It was a clear forerunner of the S2000 and was constructed at a purposebuilt plant north of Tokyo. The line became operational in March 1999, and the last S2000s were built in 2009. During those 10 years, some 114,000 cars were built. The book covers every aspect of the car’s development and its marketing in Japan, Europe, USA, and Australia. Long carefully describes the year-on-year model changes that took place and the variations between cars sold in the various markets. Road tests are quoted, details are included on such matters as colour schemes and options, and some of the available performance models are covered. The end result is as clear a picture as you could want of this attractive sporting Honda. Long has a very readable style, and the 162-page book also benefits greatly from a substantial number of photos (mostly factoryprovided) plus fascinating reprints of brochures and publicity material from the various markets in which the car was sold.

It would be a valuable companion for owners and a consolation for admirers of the car, as it is rare to see a good New Zealand–new one for sale; owners tend to hang on to them. To summarise, this is how the story of a single model of car should be told.