I'll add to this necro-thread since I have owned two S2000( both an AP1 and AP2) and a 2013 FRS. I can't compare the Miatas and Fiats as I have no experience with either nor do I plan to ever own one. The truth is, I HATE convertibles with a passion so the fact I have now owned two S2Ks ought to say something about how "special" that car is (at least for a lot of people who have owned them and/or driven them).
I owned a 2004 S2K back in 2004-05. I bought it "used" at the time, but it only had 3K miles on it and had the OEM hardtop. I bought the car for 23K, yes, you read that right. I'm a fool for trading it in but alas, sometimes we all do dumb things.
Fast forward 8 years and I was on the hype train for the Twins. To me, at the time, it seemed liked the S2K we never got from Honda. A small, light, RWD, sports car that was not a convertible. I owned my FRS for about the same length of time as my S2K, both were DD, and both were fun cars but the FRS never felt "special" to me and my biggest let down was the FA20.
I know Dezoris/Savagegeese was brought up earlier in this thread and like him or hate him, he recent;y did another review of the 86 as this is the last MY for the Twins. I think he was pretty honest in his review and he actually spoke pretty highly of what the chassis has evolved into. His biggest complaint, with which I agree, is that the car came with the wrong engine from the start.
I know this is subjective and I understand the economics of it, but when you actually compare what the S2K and Twins came with from the factory, you have to give the nod to the S2K. I understand that if you compare real world dollars factoring in inflation and initial cost, the S2K is a more expensive car however when you actually consider what that car came with from the factory, it seems like a real bargain compared to the Twins.
Toyota/Subaru jointly developed this car and yet the cost cutting was so extreme on every part of the car, it makes you wonder why they didn't at least spend the money on giving us a better engine. Kind of like a new Mustang, you get a great engine (at least with the 5.0 Coyote) but there's a lot left to be desired with the rest of the car.
I guess my final thoughts are this: if you want a newer car, with more modern creature comforts and more room to carry equipment and you don't want a convertible, then the Twins are probably the best option between the two.
However, if you want a car that is more raw, is the result of a Honda company that was at its prime in engineering and vision, and a superb chassis with a spectacular engine, then the S2K is probably a great choice. The other good news is that the S2K has hit the bottom of the depreciation curve and is only going up now. The downside is the S2K tax if you want to modify/tune the chassis.
I picked up my 2002 S2K 3 years ago now, 107,000 miles on it, bone stock, never modified, no accidents, and that's how I have been driving it for the last 3 years while I purchase parts to make a truly memorable S2K build (thanks @
CounterSpace Garage I hate you and so does my bank account...i.e. my wife). I still enjoy driving the car in stock form, all these years later (I never modified my 2004 S2K) but I am really looking to push this car by making it an extreme version of what came from the factory. Now I'm just praying Honda will start making the hardtops again so I can buy one at a "reasonable" price point because the used market is absolutely insane on OEM hardtops.