Tell me about the Mk2 Toyota MR2
Discussion
I'm considering one of these for a daily driver and for some weekend fun but I know sweet f.a. about them. I'll list what I know below and anyone who wants to can add info:
The are mid engined and rear wheel drive
They are available as a turbo or N/A (I would hope to get a turbo)
The can be had in T-Bar or coupe form (T-Bar appeals)
The have a reputation for slightly dodgey handling on the limit, snapping back from sudden direction changes etc..I'm assuming this just means they are not idiot proof and you need to know a bit about the dynamics of a mid engined car)
They aren't too bad on fuel.
They are Toyota's so I'm assuming they will never break down.
They seem excellent value for money at the moment.
Thats about it as my knowledge goes anyone care to enlighten me further or even point me in the direction of a website with excellent info on these cars.
ETA: I'm not really into modding, I'd be looking for as original a car as I can get.
Something like this:
The are mid engined and rear wheel drive
They are available as a turbo or N/A (I would hope to get a turbo)
The can be had in T-Bar or coupe form (T-Bar appeals)
The have a reputation for slightly dodgey handling on the limit, snapping back from sudden direction changes etc..I'm assuming this just means they are not idiot proof and you need to know a bit about the dynamics of a mid engined car)
They aren't too bad on fuel.
They are Toyota's so I'm assuming they will never break down.
They seem excellent value for money at the moment.
Thats about it as my knowledge goes anyone care to enlighten me further or even point me in the direction of a website with excellent info on these cars.
ETA: I'm not really into modding, I'd be looking for as original a car as I can get.
Something like this:
Edited by patmahe on Wednesday 20th August 11:28
I've owned a Revision 3 1995 GT-S Turbo for about 4 months now and I love it. Paid £3300 and it had 56k on the clock.
Everything you say is ostensibly true, however the Revision 3 onwards have less snappy handling, more prone to understeer thanks to revised suspension and geometry. My MR2 is the first rear wheel drive car I've driven, and I've not been caught out by the back end yet.
You just need to respect the fact you will have reduced traction in the wet, and should you get into a tank slapper you need to be quick to correct it, as having the engine at the back kind of makes for a pendulum effect should the back end lose traction and you over correct.
Rev3+ also have more power, stronger engines, different turbo, larger injectors, no AFM, and different rear lights.
Fuel usage isnt terrible, commuting and with the weekend hoon I get 260 miles to a tank, which is around £60. The most I have ever got to a tank is 320 miles driving to and from Japfest in May on the motorway, cruising between 70-90 on the Mway with the odd squirt of turbo once I got off the motorway.
Get yourself over to MR2OC.co.uk and check out the "know your 2" section. Almost everything you'll need to know is there, from buying guides to how to's.
Re: reliability, mine needed a new alternator the week after I bought it, and its had suspension knock on the rear offside since I bought it, which has been diagnosed as a duff shock. Picked up a replacement bilstein shock, spring and top mount from eBay for £10.50
Other than that its been perfect, I'm going to service it shortly, and its coming up for a cambelt change soon.
Feel free to ask any more questions
ETA: heres mine
In Mica Emerald Pearl, which is blatantly the best colour
Everything you say is ostensibly true, however the Revision 3 onwards have less snappy handling, more prone to understeer thanks to revised suspension and geometry. My MR2 is the first rear wheel drive car I've driven, and I've not been caught out by the back end yet.
You just need to respect the fact you will have reduced traction in the wet, and should you get into a tank slapper you need to be quick to correct it, as having the engine at the back kind of makes for a pendulum effect should the back end lose traction and you over correct.
Rev3+ also have more power, stronger engines, different turbo, larger injectors, no AFM, and different rear lights.
Fuel usage isnt terrible, commuting and with the weekend hoon I get 260 miles to a tank, which is around £60. The most I have ever got to a tank is 320 miles driving to and from Japfest in May on the motorway, cruising between 70-90 on the Mway with the odd squirt of turbo once I got off the motorway.
Get yourself over to MR2OC.co.uk and check out the "know your 2" section. Almost everything you'll need to know is there, from buying guides to how to's.
Re: reliability, mine needed a new alternator the week after I bought it, and its had suspension knock on the rear offside since I bought it, which has been diagnosed as a duff shock. Picked up a replacement bilstein shock, spring and top mount from eBay for £10.50
Other than that its been perfect, I'm going to service it shortly, and its coming up for a cambelt change soon.
Feel free to ask any more questions
ETA: heres mine
In Mica Emerald Pearl, which is blatantly the best colour
Edited by Marf on Wednesday 20th August 11:38
patmahe said:
Cool thanks guys, are the turbo's difficult to get parts for, would I be better off sticking to N/A? What's the performance difference like between the two?
Not really. They are very well supported by specialists around the country. The fact there are so many of them around means that there is enough demand.Nah parts are fairly easy to get for the Turbo, there are a few companies in the UK who supply all the wear and tear/service items, and some in the states. i.e. TwosRUs.com in the US supply ignition leads, rotor arm, dizzy cap and new plugs for $105, which is a bargain.
Bear in mind the engines in the turbos are basically the same units as in the Celica GT4's, which were UK supplied.
Performance between the turbo and nasp are like night and day, nasp is around 8seconds to 60mph, turbo is mid to low 5s.
Rev1/2 Turbo has around 220hp, Rev3+ is 245hp.
My advice, get a turbo, otherwise you'll always be left wondering what you could have had
Bear in mind the engines in the turbos are basically the same units as in the Celica GT4's, which were UK supplied.
Performance between the turbo and nasp are like night and day, nasp is around 8seconds to 60mph, turbo is mid to low 5s.
Rev1/2 Turbo has around 220hp, Rev3+ is 245hp.
My advice, get a turbo, otherwise you'll always be left wondering what you could have had
I've owned my MR2 Turbo for 3 and a bit years now and most of what you said is true.
The MK2 is available in several variations, firstly though its important to point out that there were a total of 5 revisions, basically the evolution of the mk2.
The original mk2 was the Revision 1 N/A, this model was widely criticised by the motoring press for its unforgiving handling however Revision 2 onwards MR2's are noticebly more forgiving thanks to significant suspension tweaks.
The turbo models are import only. They were sold only in Japan and America (the US model was less powerfull due to emissions legislation iirc).
There were 2 different turbo models the GT-S and the GT.
Both cars had exactly the same engine however the GT was the fully loaded top of the range model with all of the options as standard such as; Leather/alcantara seats, AC, Climate control, steering fog lights, electric wing mirrors, LSD, and a superior sound system.
All of these were options on the GT-S however.
Purists tend to go for the GT-S Coupe due to their potentially lighter weight and greater rigidity than the T-Bar.
The UK market only received N/A models most badged as 'MR2 GTi 2.0' these are often incorrectly referred to as the 'MR2 GT'.
UK Market
Rev 1 + 2, coupe and T-Bar.
3SGE engined N/A (GTi 2.0) 158bhp, 0-60 7.5, 140mph
3SFE engined N/A 119bhp, very slow!
Rev 3, 4 + 5
3SGE engined N/A 173bhp, 0-60 7.5, 140mph
Rev 5
BEAMS engined N/A approx 190bhp 0-60 6.5 (quite rare and sought after)
Jap Market
Rev 1 + 2 (coupe and t-bar)
3SGE engined N/A (G-Limited) 158bhp, 0-60 7.5, 140mph
3SFE engined N/A 119bhp, very slow!
3SGTE engined Turbo (GT+GT-S) 220bhp 0-60 5.7, 155-160mph
Rev 3, 4 + 5
3SGE engined N/A (G-Limited) 173bhp, 0-60 7.5, 140mph
3SGTE engined Turbo (GT+GT-S) 241bhp 0-60 5.2, 155-160mph
Rev 5
BEAMS engined N/A approx 190bhp 0-60 6.5
There was also a N/A MR2 Spyder produced, only about 91 made, 6 in the UK.
Rev 3+ Turbo models received a number of upgrades over the previous revisions,
The Garret CT26 turbo was replaced by the Garret C20b, the air-flow meter was replaced with a MAP sensor and larger fuel injectors were fitted resulting in a power hike of 21bhp.
Get yourself over to IMOC.CO.UK for more info, it's a brilliant resource.
The MK2 is available in several variations, firstly though its important to point out that there were a total of 5 revisions, basically the evolution of the mk2.
The original mk2 was the Revision 1 N/A, this model was widely criticised by the motoring press for its unforgiving handling however Revision 2 onwards MR2's are noticebly more forgiving thanks to significant suspension tweaks.
The turbo models are import only. They were sold only in Japan and America (the US model was less powerfull due to emissions legislation iirc).
There were 2 different turbo models the GT-S and the GT.
Both cars had exactly the same engine however the GT was the fully loaded top of the range model with all of the options as standard such as; Leather/alcantara seats, AC, Climate control, steering fog lights, electric wing mirrors, LSD, and a superior sound system.
All of these were options on the GT-S however.
Purists tend to go for the GT-S Coupe due to their potentially lighter weight and greater rigidity than the T-Bar.
The UK market only received N/A models most badged as 'MR2 GTi 2.0' these are often incorrectly referred to as the 'MR2 GT'.
UK Market
Rev 1 + 2, coupe and T-Bar.
3SGE engined N/A (GTi 2.0) 158bhp, 0-60 7.5, 140mph
3SFE engined N/A 119bhp, very slow!
Rev 3, 4 + 5
3SGE engined N/A 173bhp, 0-60 7.5, 140mph
Rev 5
BEAMS engined N/A approx 190bhp 0-60 6.5 (quite rare and sought after)
Jap Market
Rev 1 + 2 (coupe and t-bar)
3SGE engined N/A (G-Limited) 158bhp, 0-60 7.5, 140mph
3SFE engined N/A 119bhp, very slow!
3SGTE engined Turbo (GT+GT-S) 220bhp 0-60 5.7, 155-160mph
Rev 3, 4 + 5
3SGE engined N/A (G-Limited) 173bhp, 0-60 7.5, 140mph
3SGTE engined Turbo (GT+GT-S) 241bhp 0-60 5.2, 155-160mph
Rev 5
BEAMS engined N/A approx 190bhp 0-60 6.5
There was also a N/A MR2 Spyder produced, only about 91 made, 6 in the UK.
Rev 3+ Turbo models received a number of upgrades over the previous revisions,
The Garret CT26 turbo was replaced by the Garret C20b, the air-flow meter was replaced with a MAP sensor and larger fuel injectors were fitted resulting in a power hike of 21bhp.
Get yourself over to IMOC.CO.UK for more info, it's a brilliant resource.
Edited by MikeyMike on Wednesday 20th August 13:08
Edited by MikeyMike on Wednesday 20th August 14:46
MikeyMike said:
Leather/alcantara seats, AC, Climate control, steering fog lights, electric wing mirrors, LSD, and a superior sound system.
Alot of that stuff was optional on both the GT and GT-S. Both models have LSD and climate as standard, I think the only guaranteed extras on the GT are the half leather interior, the electric folding mirrors and steering fogs. Othwer stuff was optional on both models, inluding cruise control and traction control.patmahe said:
Cool thanks guys, are the turbo's difficult to get parts for, would I be better off sticking to N/A? What's the performance difference like between the two?
Parts are no problems. Plenty of them about. I have the same engine in the celica, which is also imported and the only issues I've ever had are garages trying it on (it'll cost more because it's an import). They get told to get knotted.Performance? The N/A is brisk. The tubby is properly fast.
Marf said:
_Batty_ said:
also worth a note that the Rev 1 and 2's are a good 200kgs lighter than the rev 3- due to no SIDS etc
200kgs? Are you sure about that? 200kg's seems a hell of alot of weight for 4 bars in the doors.1145 for a Rev 1, 1310 for a Rev3... open for correction
http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/...
http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/...
5kg difference on the NA versions.
If the Rev1/2 was that much lighter they would be significantly faster than the Rev3+, even with the extra power the later cars had.
http://www.carfolio.com/specifications/models/car/...
5kg difference on the NA versions.
If the Rev1/2 was that much lighter they would be significantly faster than the Rev3+, even with the extra power the later cars had.
Marf, I noticed you mentioned needing to get the cambelt changed, I had mine done about 8 months ago, Toyota claim its an engine out job and charge about £450, I got mine done elsewhere for £350 and it took them 10hrs! I've just discovered that Rogue will do the job for £250! Definitly the place to go if you're anywhere near the midlands.
MikeyMike said:
Marf, I noticed you mentioned needing to get the cambelt changed, I had mine done about 8 months ago, Toyota claim its an engine out job and charge about £450, I got mine done elsewhere for £350 and it took them 10hrs! I've just discovered that Rogue will do the job for £250! Definitly the place to go if you're anywhere near the midlands.
Toyota are having a giraffe. I wouldnt take it to Mr T for anything.I was considering taking to Rogue but its 120 miles from me, I'm way daaan sarf near Gatwick.
I think I'll just take it to my usual garage, who are cheap as chips. They only charged me £60 to fit my new alternator. Theres a good guide on MR2OC on how to change the camblet engine in situe so I'll just print that out and take it with me when I book it in.
Thanks for the thought though
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