The Axis rollers encase a set of HP Racing brakes. A good choice, but this S2 clamps down with HP's eight-piston caliper setup of which Bly says, "really do sling snot on the windshield when used properly." Well put. For those of you who noticed that HP doesn't make a mucus-flinging eight-pot with 14.5-inch rotors for the S2, give yourselves a gold star. Bly wanted these big boys for his car, which are normally reserved for something larger like a BMW application. In order to make the brakes fit, machined spindles, Heim joints, and caliper bridges had to be fabricated. Pure madness!
The pleasing paint color is called Goolsby Orange, and while you may remember the name as that of the cemetery caretaker who would have completed his scheme if it weren't for those meddling kids, it also belongs to Jonathan Goolsby. Jonathan owns the super-duper CRX we featured in our July 2002 issue and he's also a supreme paint-and-body artisan. Bly didn't want to take away from Jonathan's masterful work, which is why there are absolutely no graphics on the car, save for a discreet Next Level windshield banner. Which brings us beneath the Mugen carbon-fiber hood.
Next Level Performance builds some of the wildest cars to come outta 'Bama, and Bly's twisted S2K is one more notch on this tuner's well-worn gun belt. At first glance, the engine bay on this car seems clean. Very clean. Too clean. In fact, something seems amiss. It looks a little spartan and unfinished like a race motor without wiring. Bly can probably explain it better since this kind of stuff makes our heads hurt.
"The relocated battery, fuses, and wiring harnesses were cut and moved out of view of the engine bay because the S2K is jam-packed with stuff that looks bad on a show vehicle. I wanted to hear, 'That thing doesn't run,' and 'It's just a trailer queen,' from people who think they know everything about nothing. The A/C has also been killed for show. Basically, I went for sharp but clean lines instead of the more common rice look with lots of polish and bright colors." Bly continues, "Another reason for the removal of that equipment is to keep the turbo as cool as possible while still looking clean and not gaudy."
Ah, yes, the turbo. The custom equal-length manifold is so fine that velvet ropes in an environmentally controlled gallery should surround it. But the F20C's hyperactive 11.7:1 compression ratio probably wouldn't react too well to the high boost hijinks of a Turbonetics 60-1 ball bearing turbo. For this reason, the block has been fortified with Darton sleeves and the compression has been lowered with J&E pistons, Crower rods, and a Spoon head gasket. We mentioned the two NX bottles earlier and each of those serves a purpose as one feeds the custom direct-port nitrous system and the other services the N-Ter Cooler chiller. Finally, a Clutch Masters Stage IV clutch brings all of this violence to the back end via a carbon-fiber driveshaft.
Bly's S2000 rocks! Do you hate him yet? We sure do. Here's even more fuel for the fire. His sexy American girlfriend, Rachel Britt, has an Accord that's tighter than anything we could ever build. It's all too depressing to think about. We're going back to hang out on the A1A with our beads.
Fast FactsOwner Bly GravleeHometown Vestavia, AlabamaDaily Grind StudentRide '01 Honda S2000
Under The Hood Darton Sleeves, J&E pistons, Crower rods, Spoon head gasket, mild head port, Turbonetics 60-1 ball bearing turbo (65mm turbine wheel clipped and cut 10 degrees), custom equal-length manifold, TiAL blow-off valve and wastegate, custom intercooler and piping, Nitrous Express N-Ter Cooler chiller and custom direct-port nitrous system, custom 5-inch ported aluminum fuel rail, 715cc fuel injectors, custom wiring harness, relocated fuse boxes and battery, C&R radiator, Clutch Masters FX400 (Stage IV) clutch, lightened flywheel, carbon-fiber driveshaft, custom 3-inch exhaust system with dual HKS mufflers