Thumping sound when accelerating on S2000

[2MPRSS]

hey boys my car makes loud thumping sounds when i accelerate, i went to pedders and got a inspection they said everything looks good like suspension, shocks, bushes etc but they saying it might be the tailshaft? anyone had experience with these thumps? lol

[V73C]

Sounds like tailshaft to me. Uni joints are probably shagged.

[zhong]

You have three options:

- FREE but semi-ghetto (hope that it wasn't done before)
- Cheap and quick
- Buy new and have it fixed forever

OPTION ONE:
Replace your INNER CV CUPS from left to right (not the entire axles, just the cups). Usually the cup's walls get pitted possibly because your car has been lowered... It's a very common thing on the S2K's. Give it a go. It's easy to do, do a search on S2ki.com/forums "CV Cup replacement".

OPTION TWO:
Purchase driveshaft spacers, plenty on ebay for about $120 delivered. Install them to the cups, basically unbolt the drive shafts (from the diff to the axle) and slot them in accordingly.

OPTION THREE:
Replace complete axles to know that you have brand new cups and start fresh.. Generally Pitting becomes evident when lowered for about 50,000kms per side. If you use option one method, you have 100,000km free of vibration.

Generally this is the culprit for the thudding vibration on acceleration. Otherwise check all your mounts, DIFF MOUNTS, TRANSMISSION MOUNTS and ENGINE MOUNTS. Let us know how you go!

Peace.

[2MPRSS]

thanks for the replies, yeah i had a read about the cup swaps i would go for that option if that would fix the problem, im putting a brand new clutch in soon so might aswell ask them to swap the cv cups over and yeah i will let yous know how it goes the s2000s are geting old these days more porblems will be posted up on the site with solutions aswell we hope :)

[tamay_s2k]

ive changed my driveshafts about 4 months ago AND i now have driveshaft spacers which have been installed for over 2 months now
but i notice that with the top UP i still get a lot of diff noise. all my rear soundeading such as the carpet and the parcel shelf has been removed and maybe this is wats making everything sound louder?
wen i shift gears and i put my foot on the accelerator at any point..usually in 3rd or 4th gear
i get a liddle DUNK from the rear. if i press really slowely i dont get it but normally i do
what could this be? bad diff? something out of balance?
does the same wen i shift at low rpm..ubt wen i do like 5k + shifts..i dont get it at all
is it maybe how im getting on the throttle?
sorry but this thread has just got me paranoid now since i snapped 2 driveshafts in the past and am now very worried about my diff

[zhong]

I kind of get a slight donk.. Check your diff mounts, I changed 2 of them, and i was amazed. Mounts were full cracked right through... lol But I also do think that generally S2K's are kind of rough from factory because your much closer to the box etc etc.. My clonking is less noticeable after all of these changes, I do suspect that my diff is probably on its way though.

How did you manage to break your drive shafts?

[tamay_s2k]

well
1st was a rev dump (the right 1 snapped)
second time was whilst i was in a slide. ( the left 1 snapped)
all in a course of 1 month exactly after lowering my car
both from being stupid so i guess im the blame and not there car
plus my car was on 125,000kms on the factory driveshafts and had been lowered about a good 2 inches on the back...so the driveshafts were on there way out already

[2MPRSS]

i use to get a big thump when i changed to 1st gear or reverse, it went away when i changed the diff oil

[zhong]

^^^ I might just do that actually, that's the only fluid I haven't changed yet... What oil did you use? Honda OEM? I heard good things about REDLINE. Might do the transmission/diff fluid change see if it eliminates the rest of my worries... lol

tamay, you gotta take it easy man.. although i really think s2k's lack the torque, it suprises me that the shafts are so weak! ):

[tamay_s2k]

yea i no man, it gets kind of annoying.
well the drivers are usual half the blame aswell
ay i can admit it. im young, i drive a nice car and i love the rush. i can admit that i am stupid sometimes..unlike sum people who claim 2 always b doing the right thing wen they r actually not lol
they way i c it..the car is a weak as the driver.
if u cant stop urself from being an idiot, then the car will pay the consequences.
im learning to really re-think my habits and am really putting in the effort to enjoy cruising and not so much "being a hoon" as wat most are labelled as who have an interest in cars and motorsport..
might end up going to a track day end of the year or will be buying a s13 i want so badly just so i can start going to drift days at winton and keep it off the street period.
all in good time :). for now...im just gonna focus on getting my act together becuase i will most likely be on a new diff and forced induction possibly end of the year

[jmdjmaria]

it seems like lowering an s2k isnt a good idea. do most of these problems come up when u lower the s2k no matter at what height? just wondering cause im buying coilovers next week =]

[2MPRSS]

used OEM oil, lowering my car has caused damage to only scrapes and the tailshaft after almost 2 years with 20 inch rims, i got a full under the car inspection done at pedders for only $14 best money spent they said under the car there is nothing wrong with anything like bushes suspension shocks etc these things are preety tough but not much i can say about the diff i hear some bad stories

[foowoei69]

The diff is pretty weak compared to the type r. Used so be able to be a complete idiot with that and never broke a thing(sighh. Oh how i miss my little eg....) anyways. I hear u need to get drive shaft spacers for the s2k when u lower it more than an inch or so.

[tamay_s2k]

yea man that is true
i installed 'Megan' branded driveshaft spacers on my s2000 a good 2 months ago and ever since then, my diff does not even make half the noise it use 2 and it feels as if the car is lighter on its feet. almost as if power is getting delivered smoother and the drive quality has increased quite dramatically. i highly suggest this for any s2000 driver who has touched there ride height at any level.. best 165 dollars i have spent on my car
btw guys my diff has stopped making noises.
ive been driving her very soft for the last week now and its as if the diff has relaxed itself :)
still getting diff oil change next week and mounts inspected for any cracks

[foowoei69]

I wonder if u need it with the r200 diff kit?? Im planning on doin it.
Sorry if I'm hijacking. Btw Inline pro just replied me a quote of 900 just for shipping so. Haha. Looks like ive gotta look else where.

[2MPRSS]

yea man that is true
i installed 'Megan' branded driveshaft spacers on my s2000 a good 2 months ago and ever since then, my diff does not even make half the noise it use 2 and it feels as if the car is lighter on its feet. almost as if power is getting delivered smoother and the drive quality has increased quite dramatically. i highly suggest this for any s2000 driver who has touched there ride height at any level.. best 165 dollars i have spent on my car
btw guys my diff has stopped making noises.
ive been driving her very soft for the last week now and its as if the diff has relaxed itself :)
still getting diff oil change next week and mounts inspected for any cracks

hey where do you get these driveshaft spacers and was it 165 installed?

[tamay_s2k]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MEGAN-REAR-AXLE-DRIVE-SHAFT-SPACER-S2000-00-08-AP1-AP2-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQitemZ230512522144QQptZMotorsQ5f CarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories
there u go guys
thats the buyer i brought mine off
trust me they are worth every peny.
his delivery is like 4-6 days and the parts are very good
much better then the T1R driveshaft spacers and the bolts that are included are very strong and trustable.
a mod u will never regret i gurantee it

[blackouT]

are these any differenet? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Honda-S2000-Driveshaft-Drive-Shaft-Spacers-S2k-AP1-AP2-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQitemZ350385822935QQptZMotorsQ5f CarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

and can u install before u lower the car?

[tamay_s2k]

those do the same thing but need more effort 2 fit
bcuz there a fixed spacer instead of a split, it involves removing the axels off the car, whilst the megan drive shaft spacers involve one side being untightened and pushed along so the driveshafts just slips straight in.
wen u disconnect the axels on the diff side, there is a large rod running on the inside. if u do not have the split spacers such as the megan ones i showed u, u have 2 remove this whole rod out which involves disconnecting the axels from both the diff and the hub.
trust me, go with the ones i showed you
u will understand wat i mean properly wen ur installing ;)
and u will say 2 urself...lucky i listened 2 tamay. :)
bcuz as soon as i disconnected the axels from the diff side and looked at it..i was like..THANK **** I DIDNT GET THE OTHER ONES

[euromandeluxe]

plus, with all the work involved in removing the axles you can simply swap the CV buckets from side to side and achieve the same effect as installing the one piece spacers - no more vibration (so long as they hadnt been swapped in the past) - difference being you save a good amount of $ from not needing to buy the spacers.

go with the 2 piece spacer option or spend time disconnecting the axles and swapping the CV buckets, dont get the 1 piece spacers.

[blackouT]

ok sick thanks guys will be getting the megan ones :D hehe

[JamieP]

is it easy enough for a novice to install the drive shaft spacers themself?

[tamay_s2k]

well u got 2 no the basics of wat 2 do
my mate is a drifter and is working on his car all the time so wen i took the car 2 him, we did it in an hour
if i did it by myself..itll probs have taken me like 2-3 hours but i suppost u can do it urself if really want to
best to have a second person helping u out

[zhong]

If your installing the 2pc drive shaft spacers, it shoudln't take you longer than 30mins both sides.. Because when you do loosen the nuts/bolts on the joints, you do have about 2-3cm of play (you can pull it out away from the diff to create that space for your "spacer"). Don't forget that you need to install the longer bolts, make sure the bolts don't touch or even go anywhere near the diff housing, as sometimes these ebay kits send you fail bolts.

Otherwise if you went the complete spacer, like I have, You need to undo 1 ball joint per side in order for you to slot the spacer in. Only this way, you will have enough leverage/space to remove the aligning pinion from the diff housing itself to split the spacers on (unless your axle is demented and doesn't move). No need to remove the axle completely. It took me 2 hours to do on my own, althought I did have alot of breaks... :D

Peace.

[Engin09]

make sure the bolts don't touch or even go anywhere near the diff housing, as sometimes these ebay kits send you fail bolts.

Do the megan one's you have installed do that Tamay?

[2MPRSS]

so instead of changing the cv hubs from side to side if i just buy a space kit the thumping will be gone?
IF thats the case im going to order those ones you gave the link to on ebay

[s2kjn]

Diff related problems are guaranteed with what ive seen on this forum for almost all AP1 owners

[zhong]

Who knows, but it most likely would! If it doesn't, then best bet is the swap the cups around.. The main aim is to drive as long as possible when you install the spacers, until you notice them back. When they are back, you reverse the cups without using the spacers. Then when it comes back you put the spacers on. So in effect, this combo works 4 times, given that you have brand new axles to start off with no pitting. Did i make sense? lol

[Steve695]

is it easy enough for a novice to install the drive shaft spacers themself?

Hey Jamie I replied to your inbox messages but there's nothing showing in my sent items so I don't think they are coming through.