S identification

[78F350]

Originally Posted by Boxx

... Out of curiosity, how long did it take before you realized the power probably wasn't a 3.2?
Did you test drive before and thought maybe it was just out of tune?

I figured it out the day after I bought it. The car was a rehabilitation project. It was in rough shape: Oil leak, bad AOS, misfire.... As I looked over it, I was concerned with what repairs I was going to make and hadn't even considered that I was looking at a 2.5L. Once I had it home and started working on it, it became obvious.

Chrome trim ring around the windshield on the S, not on the base

That's a good one. Not likely to be changed out, yet when I put a new windshield in my S, the shop used a generic black rubber trim. ...so 95% like the 6-speed, but not always.

I am amazed that anyone would make a fake S. Am I missing something or wouldn't it cost more to do the mods on a base than to just buy an S?

From what I have seen listed, a front bumper swap, or an S on the trunk is not that uncommon. One of my 99s had a trunk lid replacement from an S due to bad paint and minor dents. It has since been de-badged.