S2000 Engine Crisis: Metal Shavings & Overheating Alert

Hey there! I had a pretty similar situation with my '01 Honda Prelude (I also love the NSX btw). While I've got some experience working on cars, this was definitely beyond my DIY comfort zone. Those symptoms you're describing sound awfully familiar, my car had the same warning lights and noises. Turned out my oil pump was failing, which caused metal debris in the oil and the overheating issues. Took it to my trusted mechanic who confirmed it was wreaking havoc on the engine bearings too. The repair set me back about 625 Euro, but it was worth every penny to prevent complete engine failure. My mechanic replaced the oil pump and did a thorough oil system flush to clear out all the metal particles. Before I can give more specific advice though, How many miles/kilometers are on your S2000? When was your last oil change? Is the noise more prominent at idle or when revving? Let me know these details and I can share more about what to look out for!

Thx for the detailed response! My S2000 has 91,638 KM and just had its service last month. The noise is definitely louder when revving, sounds like a grinding/knocking, especially above 4k RPM. Your oil pump theory makes a lot of sense given my symptoms. Really hoping it's not bearing damage, but I'm preparing for the worst. Did your mechanic have to remove the engine to fix the oil pump? I might need to start looking for a reliable shop that knows their way around these engines.

Hey again! Thanks for those details about your S2000. when you mentioned that grinding/knocking noise above 4k RPM, it's giving me flashbacks to my Prelude situation. In my case, yeah, the engine had to come out to properly fix the oil pump and check the bearings. My mechanic found that the bearings were starting to go bad too, which explains why my car was making similar noises to what you're describing. The metal shavings in my oil were actually coming from the worn bearings. The good news is that you caught it early, I can tell because your mileage is pretty reasonable, and you're on top of your maintenance. My Prelude had a lot more miles when this happened, which made the damage worse. Just a heads up though, while the oil pump was the main culprit in my case, the total repair ended up being more extensive than initially thought. The bearing replacement added to the cost, but it was definitely better than having to swap the entire engine later. Quick tip: while you're looking for a shop, try to find one that specializes in Honda performance cars. They'll be more familiar with the S2000's F20C engine. That's what made a huge difference in my case, my mechanic had worked on plenty of similar VTEC engines before. Keep me posted on what your mechanic finds! I'm really curious to know if it's the same issue I had.

Thanks so much for all this info, it's definitely making me more confident about what I'm dealing with. The parallels between your Prelude situation and my S2000's symptoms are pretty spot on. I've already started calling around to find shops that know these engines well, and I'm mentally preparing for the engine removal and possible bearing work. Found a couple of specialist shops that have good experience with Honda performance engines, so that's promising. Honestly, while it's not great news about potentially needing extensive repairs, I'm just glad I asked here and caught this before the engine completely failed. Better to deal with it now than end up with a paperweight, right? I'll save your advice about the bearings too, definitely going to have them thoroughly checked while they're in there. Will make sure to post an update once I get it diagnosed and fixed. Really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience. It's made this whole situation a lot less stressful!