Sean’s Little Monster
Thursday 24 January, 2013 | By Evan Kaston
In today’s car scene, where it’s more competitive than ever so see who can go lower or who can go faster or who can go wider and with some immaculate builds out there, it’s nice to be witness to one that has all these qualities tastefully mixed together in one little car. Sean’s Ap1 s2000 is an excellent example of how simplicity can be your best friend while building a car.
Now don’t let the word simple fool you, because the car is anything but. Between the Precision 58/57 turbo, the rare work wheels, and the earthquake feeling you get from the sound of the waste gate opening up, the car is a head turner for sure. The s2000 itself is beautiful car right out of the factory. The drop top, the long angled nose, and the overall look of a sporty two seater rwd gives the little Honda an upper hand among most cars. Sean took full advantage of this upper hand and pretty much kept the body stock, besides the addition of a front lip, and focused on perfecting the small motor that Honda has provided him with.
Starting off with the exterior of the vehicle, besides the already mentioned front lip, the only other modifications were the ap2 tail lights. As for the suspension and wheel choice, he went with Buddy Club coilovers and a set of rare Work VS-MD wheels sized at 18×9 +38 18×10.5 +32. Also because the stock camber adjustment of the s2000 can max out at about -8 degrees, he was able to tuck these wide beauties right under his fenders giving him the perfect stance.
The modifications that I named so far are so simple that some people would have finished their build at that; wheels and a drop. Sean wasn’t done there though. His mind was set ever since he purchased the tiny sports car that he was going to turbo it. How would I know you ask? Well, he never shut up about it from the day that he got the car to the day that he turbo’ed it.
Sean is part of a car club called Garagewerks, which pretty much got the name from a bunch of kids working on their cars in this small garage and creating a family from that. We would always tease Sean and tell him it would never happen and that he would never complete it or it would just be another project that had to be sold before it was finished because he ran out of money. It was all out of love and fun because he knew that he could rely on any of us to help him, which we did, or let him borrow money, which we also did, in order for him to finish what he started. And once the car started on that first nerve-wracking turn of the key, we all let out a big gasp of relief the car let out 350 hp to its wheels at 12lbs of boost. I always admired the dedication he put into this car and I honestly believe that’s why it came out the way it did. The wheels fit so well, which gave him an awesome stance. The four pro sport gages he chose (air to fuel, boost, water temperature, and oil pressure) were placed perfectly on the dash and A-pillar and complemented the Nardi quick release to give it a nice race car look. And the turbo kit (intercooler piping and turbo) were powder coated a beautiful teal green that just flowed with the deep black paint of the s2000.
I have been right next to Sean throughout the whole life of the s2k, from the stock rock crawler it was to the slammed street sweeper it has become. Its crazy looking back at the build, while I type these words to you to think that he did it all himself. Everything but resurfacing the flywheel to go along with his ACT pressure plate and OEM disk clutch, was all done by Sean. Not saying that he is the only one to ever do this but it does give you a whole new prospective of the game, being on the outside looking in on someone pouring their heart and hard work and making this one possession their passion. Builds like these remind us why we do what we do; why we spend hours slaving over an engine bay and spending all our hard earned money on a project that honestly is never done in the eyes of the owner. Sean’s s2k build definitely helps us appreciate the scene a little more.
Photos by: P R A V A N Photography | Chris Mallari | Kenny Bascon
PFab log manifold | Precision 5857 | PFab Fmic | Tial bov | Tial Wastegate with dumptube | 3inch downpipe | 3 inch HKS single exhaust | Teal Powdercoated Valvecover, Turbo and Piping | ID1000cc injectors | Walbro 255 fuel pump | AP2 banjo bolts
Buddy Club N+ coilovers | Work VS-MD wheels (Front – 18×9 +38 and Rear – 18×10.5 +32)
Short throw shifter | AP2 tailights | AP1 OEM Lip | NRG Hub and Quick Realese | Nardi 330mm Deep Corn Suede Wheel | Prosport Gauges (A/F, Oil Pressure, Water Temp, Boost)
About the author
A home grown boy straight out of Queens, New York, Evan fell in love with the scene at an early age. With a passion for creative writing, he's all about giving the people what they want, the way they want to see it.
