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IS THIS BS TOO? "The S2000R is the first car to use a new composite chassis manufacturing technique being pioneered at the Takanezawa assembly plant in Japan. Although carbon fiber composites have been used for many years in race cars, the molding and baking process has been historically slow and labor-intensive and therefore unsuitable for mass production. The new machine uses just seven baked composite pieces, the most massive of which is the central tub. This piece, which holds the driver and passenger, and to which the front and rear suspensions bolt, is baked as a unit from carbon and aramid fibers, balsa wood, and honeycomb aluminum. Where a Formula One chassis might take days to build and hours to bake, the S2000R tub is assembled and baked from somewhat sticky pre-impregnated fiber mats in a vacuum mold in about five minutes. The inner surface of each door, including the side-impact beam, and the seat pans and backrests round out the short list of composite pieces. Honda is stepping carefully into the composite manufacturing world: The R is expected to be a low-volume production run, none of the composite surfaces are painted or have exposed precision surfaces, and none have to collapse in predictable ways during a collision. Instead, the outer door panels are aluminum, the front and rear fenders and crush zones are built of steel, and the rollover hoops are steel tubes. It will be interesting to see the new technology migrate into other areas of Honda's cars over the next few years. The composite chassis transmits sound a little differently than we're accustomed to, which leads to an interesting effect: road noise in the R is higher pitched, which makes the cabin sound smaller than it actually is. And while the stereo has not been upgraded from the base model, it's noticeably easier to make out the words of people talking on the radio while driving too fast on the freeway. The doors are oddly light; you almost expect a tinny rattle, but get nothing but a dull whump when the door closes. The hood and trunk lid are both aluminum. Honda has apparently taken the Kyoto protocol to heart, and thrown a huge amount of R&D into the challenge of building more fuel efficient cars that consumers will actually like. Part of that challenge is technical: cars must become lighter, easier to recycle, and recover more of the energy expended decelerating. Part of the challenge is emotional: Honda wants to teach consumers to desire lighter and more fuel-efficient cars. The S2000R is Honda's first step along this path. Do you want to spend more money for a lighter car with more horsepower and better fuel economy? Of course you do. But automakers need to know how much more you are willing to spend, and that answer is going to change as consumers gain exposure to newer, more efficient designs."
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