Since the demise of the Integra, driving enthusiasts who desired a two-door Honda had just two choices: the erstwhile NSX supercar, only available as a rare second-hand ride, or the seminal S2000.Previewed at the 1995 Tokyo Motor Show as the impossibly low-slung SSM (Sport Study Model), the racy roadster was launched in 1999 as a year-2000 model. It was one of the commemorative projects marking Honda’s 50th anniversary in 1998. As an expensive niche model, the S2000 slotted just below the Legend flagship in the Honda lineup. Sales of the S2000 over its almost 10-year production run numbered over 110,000 units, some 20,000 of which were registered in Japan.
It sounds like a lot, until you find out that the S2000’s arch-rival, the Mazda MX-5 (NB and NC), sold nearly three times better in the same period of time.