We’ve been waiting in great suspense for this array of JDM awesomeness to arrive. The day when two giant J’s Racing boxes finally arrived at the door, I knew it would be a good one. Naturally, I couldn’t resist and tore into the packaging and unraveled every piece all 26 of them! From the photo (top), you can see it’s a bit of a jigsaw puzzle, but it all comes together into one awe-inspiring aero package.
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The front splitter is a direct fit for an OE S2000; some trimming, however, was required to fit with our custom intercooler/rad support.
What makes this kit so impressive is the attention to detail in the areas that can’t be seen. The front fenders feature a three-piece inner fender that fully surrounds the wheel opening and channels all high-pressure air smoothly out the multiple exits and into the free stream air. The rear bumper features a built-in diffuser, with aerofoils within the diffuser itself, while the front splitter features diffused exits into the wheel housings. Things that can be seen include a substantially wider stance, +60mm in the front and +75mm in the rear, compared to stock. The front nose has been lengthened substantially to improve front downforce, and optional brake ducting features two inlets per side. This allows for excellent flexibility to feed fresh air to cool the intake and front brakes. The side skirts are designed to sit flush with the OEM jacking points, making it possible to still get the car on a lift for service; this also makes for a perfect mating surface for the complete flat bottom we’ll be installing soon.
The aero pieces are made primarily of glass fiber reinforced plastic, more commonly known as GFRP. We opted for the carbon-fiber version, which includes the front splitter, rear diffuser elements, side venting and optional brake ducts in CFRP, while the remainder of the kit is constructed of GFRP. Fitment is top-notch and very impressive for such an elaborate package. J’s Racing has spent countless hours designing and producing the tooling/molds to get this to fit just right.
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J’s Racing went all out on the GT kit, developing complete inner fenders and intricate ducting to help achieve maximum downforce.
Our custom intercooler/rad support required some modification of the front splitter to fit correctly; however, it worked out to plan and offers smooth flow to the intercooler/radiator combination. As shown in a previous Project S2000 tech story where we fitted the Spoon rear overfenders, you’ll definitely have to cut the rear quarter panels to take advantage of the extra rear room afforded by the rear overfenders. We took this one step further and cut an additional 1.5 inches up (total of 3.5 inches) to make the OEM outer quarter panel sit flush with the top of the inner wheelwell. We then fully welded the panels back together. The side skirts and rear overfenders are designed to rivet on to the body work and all come predrilled for the ideal mounting locations, as recommended by J’s. The attachment holes for the overfender and side skirt are hidden with the door closed, minimizing drag and giving a clean outward appearance.
In addition to the aero package, we’ve also made a tire change in search of ultimate grip and performance. We’re proud to announce Yokohama as the official tire supplier for our S2000 project, and as such, we’ll be racing on its Advan A005 competition tire. (This is a true competition slick and doesn’t meet DOT regulations.) This allows for a lighter weight tire to be produced (A005 280 650 18: 21.6 lbs versus DOT R 285/30R18: 25 lbs, resulting in a 13.6-lb total reduction) focused solely on optimal on-track performance. The A005s are available in a range of sizes and compounds, but they’re all considerably taller than a 285/30R18 (24.8-inch diameter). We’ve opted to use the 250 650 18 front and 280 650 18 rear. The measurements represent tread width in millimeters, the outer diameter in millimeters and the rim diameter in inches. The 650mm height works out to 25.6 inches tall, a substantial 0.8-inch taller than we had originally designed for with the 285/30R18. To achieve our target ride height of 2.25-inch ground clearance with 1.5 inches of bump travel (upward wheel travel from rest), we had to perform surgery on the front fenders and chassis reinforcement. With a custom marking tool set to the tire diameter, I traced the desired curve and cut a substantial 2.25 inches off the front fender lip with a steady hand on the reciprocating saw.
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Advan A005 full racing slicks in Soft compound. Lightweight and extra sticky, these are going to be fast.
Next, the headlights were trimmed, the front inner fender panels were removed and a notch was cut in the frame reinforcement leading to the shock tower. Our multi-point rollcage ties directly to the shock tower, allowing for sectioning of the OEM reinforcement without compromising chassis bending stiffness. With the modifications complete, we’re now able to achieve full steer angle at 1.5 inches of bump travel. Ideal wheel fitment for maximum track width while maintaining clearance and wheel travel is 18x10 +10 front with the 250 650 18 and 18x11 +15 rear with the 280 650 18. Fortunately, Advan has just released the new TCIII available in 11-inch sizes, so look for those in an upcoming story.
With the aero package fully test-fitted and all chassis modifications complete, it’s finally time for sandblasting, stitch/seem-welding and prep for paint to begin. Stay tuned for the next story when we assemble a rotisserie, mount up the S2000 and have the Soda Pros strip all paint and underbody coating. We’ll be sure to weigh before and after to see just how much is saved with a full stripping.
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The 2.25-inch ground clearance — a truly stunning appearance.
Sourcebox
J's Racing
Aero Package
j-sracingusa.com
310-324-0281
Yokohama Tire
A005 Competition tires
yokohamatire.com
949-589-5394