RE: PH Fleet: Toyota MR2
Discussion
Adam205 said:
I also had an AX GT before my Mk1. We're obviously all attracted to rust!
Ha ha, your right, my mr2 has some early rust starting when I sold it at 7 years old, in 1997. No idea if its still around. I bought it from the Lotus dealer in Norwich and can remember the test drive in 1993 I had like if was yesterday. The only problem I had in my ownership was a new alternator and I got a hole in the radiator. It did like its tyres though. I was doing a lot of miles in mine on some great east anglian roads, I don't think I managed more than 12k miles from a set of rears. I towed a decent sized racing dinghy around most of the country with it for a couple of years, which might have contributed to the tyre wear!
both of my current cars have some tinworm issues too.....
pSyCoSiS said:
Sounds good.
Thanks for that.
Are certain parts not shared with other Toyota models, or are they bespoke?
Owned 3 mr2mk1's and a 1990 corolla Gti 16 the 4age engine went in various things so basic engines easy to maintain its the bodywork and interiors that are now difficult to obtain.Thanks for that.
Are certain parts not shared with other Toyota models, or are they bespoke?
Great reading this. My AW11 1986 MR2, (Mk1a), dearly missed. A Mk 1 MX-5 followed & whilst that was a good car I far prefered the MR2 as a driving experience. Quite simply a very good car car all good for being absent of driver aids...........Very much a case of having to develop skills when making twisty progress in damp or simply risk losing the car.
Comments on performance are relative depending on what folk are used to &/or desire. Personally I feel one of these in good health can be driven with some respectable progress on twisty roads.
Things to look for have been discussed. Memory, (sadly like many of these cars) is a little rusty but I think the alternator failures are associated with poor design to bonnet/engine access hatch or whatever it's called on these..Unsure if there is diy fix to prevent this. IIRC there can be a 2nd gear can grind or pop out of gear issue. Decent gearbox oil and even double de-clutching when cold may be sensible in helping prolong box/syncro life.
Glad to see so many still keen to enjoy & keep these great little cars running.
Oh and loving the pics here...especially the rare grey and supercharged JDM car.
Comments on performance are relative depending on what folk are used to &/or desire. Personally I feel one of these in good health can be driven with some respectable progress on twisty roads.
Things to look for have been discussed. Memory, (sadly like many of these cars) is a little rusty but I think the alternator failures are associated with poor design to bonnet/engine access hatch or whatever it's called on these..Unsure if there is diy fix to prevent this. IIRC there can be a 2nd gear can grind or pop out of gear issue. Decent gearbox oil and even double de-clutching when cold may be sensible in helping prolong box/syncro life.
Glad to see so many still keen to enjoy & keep these great little cars running.
Oh and loving the pics here...especially the rare grey and supercharged JDM car.
Edited by AW8 on Wednesday 2nd January 17:48
I've had 3 of these over the past 8 years and used them as daily drivers.
For cars that are between 22-27 years old I have found them 95% as reliable as a modern car. I work around the country and have no hesitation in just getting in and driving 200+ miles.
Rust is a b
d and if you've had the rear arches sorted this can come back as mine are breaking out in rust again. Handling on the limit was surprising as I was unused to mid engined cars but you learn to read the warnings (a twitch) and how to drive a mid engine car i.e. don't back off the throttle in mid corner 
For cars that are between 22-27 years old I have found them 95% as reliable as a modern car. I work around the country and have no hesitation in just getting in and driving 200+ miles.
Rust is a b
d and if you've had the rear arches sorted this can come back as mine are breaking out in rust again. Handling on the limit was surprising as I was unused to mid engined cars but you learn to read the warnings (a twitch) and how to drive a mid engine car i.e. don't back off the throttle in mid corner pSyCoSiS said:
Thanks for the responses everyone.
I genuinely didn't realise they were RWD! Always had a soft spot for one, so intrigued to find out more about them.
Seems like a very fun car, and a good chassis in which to improve driving skills.
What are these like to live with as a daily hack? Generally pretty reliable from what others have said here?
Dude, the engines mid/rear mounted, how could it be anything other than Rwd lol. I genuinely didn't realise they were RWD! Always had a soft spot for one, so intrigued to find out more about them.
Seems like a very fun car, and a good chassis in which to improve driving skills.
What are these like to live with as a daily hack? Generally pretty reliable from what others have said here?
MR2 in Japanese is midship roundabout 2 seater. Everywhere else knows it as Mid-engined Rwd 2 seater.
TinyCappo said:
Rear became a real handful on poo tyres. Pirelli P6000s should be avoided at all costs.
If the wife would allow it i would be back in a MK1 in a heart beat. Not a tbar though.
Get a jimmy bracket and enjoy the revs
Got to agree about P6000s on the front or the rear can seriously impede the handling of an AW11.If the wife would allow it i would be back in a MK1 in a heart beat. Not a tbar though.
Get a jimmy bracket and enjoy the revs
I owned mine for almost 7 years and did almost 70k miles over that time. We loved that car and drove through most of Europe in it. It was my first 'real' sports car and did bite once in the early days (wet roundabout, too heavy on the gas!!) but luckily spun and hit nothing. From then on I was super cautious and 'learnt' to drive properly....
Never had any serious reliability problems (battery died once and expansion tank dropped and spat loads of water out in Italy - that panicked me!!). Finding a decent exhaust in the mid 90s created some minor issues too (before I could ask on the interweb for advice!!)
I do still miss it and only sold due to some fairly terminal rust on arches, sills and front radiator mounts (thats what I could see) plus the attraction of a VX220 was too much to ignore....
Mike
I'd love a Mk1 with the Woodsport Camry engine upgrade, fine chassis and 3.0 which is only 100kg heavier than the 16v. From what I've read the guy seems like a real Mr2 geek/yoda type, one of the best in the world at this conversion and a converted turnkey car with warranty is around £4k.
I want one of these so bad!!
I want one of these so bad!!
Have a look at Woodsport Paul does a six speed gearbox with LSD for a reasonable price that's plug and play for the 4age engine, plus he's also in my opinion the best mr2 guru and engine swop specialist going.
I have a bit more umph in my mk1a as it has a 2gr woodsport conversion v6 fitted 325bhp 317ftlb of torque it's easier to say some of the body hasn't been touched or modified as most has been uprated, have a look on www.twobrutal.co.uk, Paul has an Audi v8 mk1 mr2 that's just insane and other weird and wacky projects, also gouky in the states has a mk2 that's had a 1930s radial airplane engine in it, which has been changed for a 2gr plus two helicopter gas turbine engines for overtaking.
Your T bar seals need some eccentric adjusters and some rubber revitalizing compound, I've heard people use washing up liquid then boot polish as well.
Pop in to the forum we like to help, and it's not rust it's character that is personaly I cut all my arches of and Paul built special bolt over arches, he had to fit my 9.5 inch wide rears on some how lol.
I have a bit more umph in my mk1a as it has a 2gr woodsport conversion v6 fitted 325bhp 317ftlb of torque it's easier to say some of the body hasn't been touched or modified as most has been uprated, have a look on www.twobrutal.co.uk, Paul has an Audi v8 mk1 mr2 that's just insane and other weird and wacky projects, also gouky in the states has a mk2 that's had a 1930s radial airplane engine in it, which has been changed for a 2gr plus two helicopter gas turbine engines for overtaking.
Your T bar seals need some eccentric adjusters and some rubber revitalizing compound, I've heard people use washing up liquid then boot polish as well.
Pop in to the forum we like to help, and it's not rust it's character that is personaly I cut all my arches of and Paul built special bolt over arches, he had to fit my 9.5 inch wide rears on some how lol.
I just have to don my rose-tinted specs and write about the mk1 I had 5 years ago. Bought for less than shed money even back then, so it wasn't the best, but the most smiles per pound of any car I've had. Mine was a mk1b sunroof model with a no-name induction kit, Magnex exhaust, slightly wider wheels, Goodyear Eagle F1s, poly bushes, and a very rough and ready bucket seat practically on the floor (I'm 6'4").
In the two years I had it I did everything with it. It was all I could afford at the time, so it was out of necessity really! I went hooning in the countryside, drove 45 mins each way to work everyday, did 400 mile round trips up the motorway every few weekends, carted a mountain bike around on a rack a lot of the time, did a track day at Oulton, and even drove through 3 feet of floodwater once, although the cabin did start to fill with water!
Funnily enough at the time I didn't appreciate how good it was. It's only since then, after driving much more expensive and faster cars, that I've realised how much fun and great value it was. I'm tempted to get another one once I have some space for a second car.
In the two years I had it I did everything with it. It was all I could afford at the time, so it was out of necessity really! I went hooning in the countryside, drove 45 mins each way to work everyday, did 400 mile round trips up the motorway every few weekends, carted a mountain bike around on a rack a lot of the time, did a track day at Oulton, and even drove through 3 feet of floodwater once, although the cabin did start to fill with water!
Funnily enough at the time I didn't appreciate how good it was. It's only since then, after driving much more expensive and faster cars, that I've realised how much fun and great value it was. I'm tempted to get another one once I have some space for a second car.
http://thumbsnap.com/8YRbueR5
its even changed a bit more from this shot that a photo artist did for me.
its even changed a bit more from this shot that a photo artist did for me.
Alex, how long will you need to spend with Garlick before you sell it to me for £600?
Aren't these non-interference?
s_m, thanks for the magazine upload. I had a supermarket loyalty voucher to use before expiry so bought Autocar, there's some pretty lightweight stuff in there and stuff missing from their used coupes feature we'd all know or find within 5 minutes of surfing so seeing such an article has taken me back decades. Look at the stuff at the bottom of the last column on page 69.
Thanks s_m, much appreciated.
Aren't these non-interference?
s_m, thanks for the magazine upload. I had a supermarket loyalty voucher to use before expiry so bought Autocar, there's some pretty lightweight stuff in there and stuff missing from their used coupes feature we'd all know or find within 5 minutes of surfing so seeing such an article has taken me back decades. Look at the stuff at the bottom of the last column on page 69.
Thanks s_m, much appreciated.
Adam205 said:
It actually quelled the mk1as tendancy to push out in some very wild understeer mid corner if you get on the throttle early.
However it also had the strange effect of reducing the lift off oversteer tendancy by reducing the camber change that occurred due to the mr2s pretty poor dynamic suspension geometry. The mk1b still suffers with this, but to a lesser extent.
[b]If you want to solve it and are willing to put up with slightly reduced ride comfort, Whiteline ARBs (£300 from Camskill) and KYB dampers (£200 from Camskill) with standard springs (or Apex if you want to go a little lower) make the car exactly what it should have been.
The other problem is that there are no good road tyres made in 185/60 R14 anymore. The best option is to move to a 15" wheel with a 195/50 R15 and go for something like a Michelin Pilot Exalto 2 or Continental PremiumContact 2.[/b]
With the above changes the MR2 goes from being an 'entertaining' car to drive to being a really good handling, fun piece of kit.
Unfortunately it will always rust and always leak though
Exactly what I'm planning with mine. Only had it a week but already know what needs doing.However it also had the strange effect of reducing the lift off oversteer tendancy by reducing the camber change that occurred due to the mr2s pretty poor dynamic suspension geometry. The mk1b still suffers with this, but to a lesser extent.
[b]If you want to solve it and are willing to put up with slightly reduced ride comfort, Whiteline ARBs (£300 from Camskill) and KYB dampers (£200 from Camskill) with standard springs (or Apex if you want to go a little lower) make the car exactly what it should have been.
The other problem is that there are no good road tyres made in 185/60 R14 anymore. The best option is to move to a 15" wheel with a 195/50 R15 and go for something like a Michelin Pilot Exalto 2 or Continental PremiumContact 2.[/b]
With the above changes the MR2 goes from being an 'entertaining' car to drive to being a really good handling, fun piece of kit.
Unfortunately it will always rust and always leak though
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