MR2 mk2 NA - any good?

[GravelBen]

Out of casual interest, I'm idly contemplating (aka exam procrastination) picking up a cheap MR2 or something similar as a toy sometime in the next year or so (finish uni end of the year), Theres plenty of Mk2 NA's around from $3k NZ (1100 pounds) or even less which is quite tempting - How good are they? I know most people prefer the turbos but they're more like $10k which is getting out of 'cheap toy' territory (and for that money I might swing towards an S14 200SX instead). Also Mk1's often seem to be more expensive than Mk2 NA's, despite the extra 250ish kg I think I'd probably prefer to pay less for a newer, quicker car.

Having a look at the stats the NA's vary between 160-200 bhp depending on age/spec, with 1250kg I presume this should still give reasonable performance and decent fuel economy too? Not that thirst is that important in a toy but less fuel used = more driving time per $.

Just looking for some real-world experiences of performance, handling, usability etc really - any opinions?


P.S. practicality isn't a huge concern as with any coupe I think I'd have to keep the Legacy as a useful car to go with it anyway

Edited by GravelBen on Saturday 16th June 23:55

[GravelBen]

Thanks - the MR2 NA is still far cheaper than even an NA S14 which are similarly priced to a good MR2 turbo, (and MR2 NA is also about half the price of a cheap MX5), which is why I was looking at them.

If I upped the budget to $10-15k NZ it would bring in a number of options - MR2T/ S14/ STi-RA/ 944/ nice MX5 are all around that price range - but I like the idea of having much less money tied up in a toy so I wouldn't feel bad about thrashing it.


What sort of fuel economy did yours give? (and how did that compare to the turbo)

Edited by GravelBen on Saturday 16th June 23:57

[GravelBen]

Thanks for input guys, sounds like they're pretty good for what they are. For boot size its never going to compare to the Legacy but its good to know you can still fit a bit of stuff in it. I'd be looking for a hard-top rather than a T-bar I'm pretty sure.

re: prices, the only ones which seem to have a significantly higher price are the 98/99 cars and tidy turbos, I've been finding a few reasonable turbos overlapping in price with the higher end of NA cars, most of the cheaper turbos seem to have been modified without any sense of taste but theres still a chance of finding a good one.

Prices range from $2k needing significant work - $3k ok condition but high Km's - $5k nice tidy NA or rough turbo - $7k very nice later NA or reasonable turbo - $10k lots of decent turbos - $15k highest I've seen, a mint '99 Turbo with a few tweaks and low Km's.

To compare:

• MX5 maybe $7-8k rough, $10k+ for a good one
• 200SX S14 $8-12k Na, $10-15k turbo, $20k S15
• STi-RA V-ltd $12-16k
• 944 $15-20k S2, $18-25k turbo

So you can see why the MR2 looks a bit of a bargain at the moment. I'd quite like to get some experience in a mid-engined car, good training for potential ownership of Lotus/Porsche or something along those lines later in life. I'm no stranger to playing round with weight transfer & dynamics of cars but mostly in AWDs (especially on gravel) so I'm thinking an MR will require a bit more sensitivity.

[GravelBen]

Hmmm... ...After all my good ideas about keeping the Legacy and buying an MR2 or something as a toy to go with it, I'm getting very tempted by this:

CLICKY






A very tidy '96 STi-RA V-ltd, 80k Km for $14k - 280 bhp, 64R:36F DCCD, close-ratio box etc, all the good bits (actually almost identical to the one I came very very close to buying a year and a half ago when I took the 'sensible' option and got the Legacy instead). It has the advantage of being practical enough to replace the Legacy whereas a coupe would have to be a 2nd car to go with it.


Decisions, decisions...though I'll probably still try and make myself wait until I start work in November before doing anything about it.

Edited by GravelBen on Tuesday 19th June 07:22

[GravelBen]

Andy Mac said:

You might find the MR2 a little more rewarding though!

On some roads I suspect you may be right. On other roads though I think it would well and truly piss on an MR2 for fun-factor though. It all depends really, I'm a long way from making up my mind.

Got some insurance quotes and did some rough calculations, [Legacy + MR2] and [STi] work out pretty similar for cost - insuring the STi is cheaper than the other 2 together, then you have costs of Reg, WOF etc (tax, MOT to you I think) for a second car, and balancing it out the other way is the drinking habit of the STi.

I'll let you all know how things turn out when I get round to actually doing something.

[GravelBen]

Spent a while today going for a blat along some backroads in a mates AW11 - its a bit tired in some ways (216,000 km) but still good fun, I found it a very enjoyable car to drive. Still haven't found an SW20 to drive yet, but they're sounding pretty good so far.


Would it be a good idea going for a rev1 as it would be mainly just a fun car (I'd still keep the Legacy for practicality) - some people seem to think they're impossible to drive without going backwards off every corner, while others seem to love the better agility and higher outright cornering limits, and complain about the understeer of the rev 2 and 3. Hypothetical situation, $3k for a rev1 or $5k for a rev2/3, would the extra $2k be worth it for the extra power (if rev3 I think, iirv rev1&2 are both same power) and possibly more resolved issues, or would it be better to take the less powerful but more agile (maybe more entertaining) car, keeping $2k spare for fixing any age-related issues?

There also seem to be a good few more MX5's selling cheaper than last time I checked too, starting from around $5k with generally less km's than most of the MR2's I see. I guess they may be cheaper as its winter here. No doubt the market will change again by the time I get round to doing anything, so we'll see how things go.

Edited by GravelBen on Saturday 23 June 15:29

[GravelBen]

kirsty-SC said:

If you want a cheap fun toy . . the mk1 mr2's are fantastic . . I'm a little biased though!! lol

Yeah I've driven a mates Mk1, its good fun but most of the time early Mk2s are actually cheaper than Mk1s now. If I found a good Mk1 at a good price I'd still be tempted though.