MR2 Turbo under £2K ?

[sebo]

Hi all, I am after some advice regarding the purchase of an MR2 Turbo.

I have been driving around in my Vauxhall corsa for about 3 years, clocking up a bit of no claims bonus and some driving experience. My insurance is not astronomical and would be back to what it was when I started on an MR2 so its within what I am prepared to pay. I feel is is about time to upgrade to something a bit more fun to drive and I keep getting drawn to this 2 seater, mid engined beauty.

Now, looking around autotrader, you can buy a G Plate 2.0 GT Turbo for as little as £1,699. I have read a number of buyers guides so would like to think I would have half a clue as to what to look for and my father in law being a mechanic would be able to provide some advice.

My question to you guys (and gals) is: Do any of you have any experience of buying an MR2 for this type of cash? If so, did u get your fingers burnt?

Any advice appreciated

Seb

[MrFlibbles]

I think thats too cheap, but then mines up for £3200.

[timmy30]

For that money there would be a couple of worries, 1. when/if have the cam belts been replaced ( this is a pricey job on the turbo ) 2. if an older higher mielage car, you'd have to be a bit worried that the turbo itself might be due for replacement.

It does seem a little cheap. I know there's an import turbo in the classifieds for £1600, I was looking at it actually as a turbo conversion kit isn't much less than that.

You might find that going for the very cheapest is a false economy, esp if the owner hasn't cared for the car quite as he should, alothough they are generally bullet proof.

>> Edited by timmy30 on Thursday 2nd March 17:22

[sebo]

timmy30 said:

It does seem a little cheap. I know there's an import turbo in the classifieds for £1600, I was looking at it actually as a turbo conversion kit isn't much less than that.

That sounds like one of the ones i have seen

[MrFlibbles]

timmy30 said:

For that money there would be a couple of worries, 1. when/if have the cam belts been replaced ( this is a pricey job on the turbo ) 2. if an older higher mielage car, you'd have to be a bit worried that the turbo itself might be due for replacement.

Mines had the turbo done.....and a new cambelt!

[timmy30]

sebo said:

timmy30 said: It does seem a little cheap. I know there's an import turbo in the classifieds for £1600, I was looking at it actually as a turbo conversion kit isn't much less than that. That sounds like one of the ones i have seen

Here are the answers to the questions that I asked to save you a bit of time.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here are some answers to the questions.

The car is a Grey Import, these only came as an import.

I have ownership history from 2000 onwards, there is little history before that, the ownership document shows that it was imported into the Isle of Man in 1997 (But no owners up to 2000, which was then a dealership) and was first registered in Japan in March 1990.

There are two names and addresses on the ownership documents, the dealership as the first recorded. I can get in touch with the dealership to gather more information on the car.

I bought it with approximately 118,000 KILOMETERS on the odometer back in the summer of 2005. The car hasn't done many KMs since.

I purchased it back in August 2005 for £2,600.

I am selling due to the fact I was planning on modifying the car, including a new paint job, minor overhaul of things and a general tidy up, personal circumstances have changed meaning I can't pursue the project plans anymore.

During the time frame the car has been in my posesssion, I haven't had the cambelt changed. There is no history of when it was last changed.

Again, I'm unaware of the front calipers needing a change or have had a change in the previous history.

There is no rust on the car.

[timmy30]

MrFlibbles said:

timmy30 said: For that money there would be a couple of worries, 1. when/if have the cam belts been replaced ( this is a pricey job on the turbo ) 2. if an older higher mielage car, you'd have to be a bit worried that the turbo itself might be due for replacement. Mines had the turbo done.....and a new cambelt!

And it's got nice wheels

Mate why are you selling him?

[MrFlibbles]

I need to fund a stupidly mad insane car purchase.

(Not disclosing any details until its done though)

[sebo]

Cheers for the heads up Timmy

[timmy30]

sebo said:

Cheers for the heads up Timmy

Not problem.

To be honest you might want to look at the economics of it, paying a bit more for a car where you know that recently the cam belt, turbo and clutch have all been replaced ( typically around 70,000-90,000 ) means that you're unlikely to face a large garage bill within the first few years.

The only other thing that goes on these cars is the front brake calipers, though often these can be greased loose, or even reconditioned to avoid replacement.

Otherwise they are, just such well built cars that they generally seem to keen humming on with little trouble.

Have you checked out the MR2 International Owners club and UK MR2 Drivers club, you can see them for sale on both of these sites and, generally the owners have cherished the cars.

If you go for a really cheap car, you might be lucky, but you might face a £1000 garage bill too.

Are you paying cash or getting a loan? The reason I ask is that with a loan you could simply borrow a little more but know that you're spreading it out over 3-5 years anyway.

On final thought, not to take away from the Turbo cars, but, and I hope Mr Flibbles won't flame me for this , on a bendy road where these cars are most fun, there's not a great deal in it. Yes the turbo is faster top end, on a straight road, but the early NA cars, in particular the Rev 2 178bhp ones, are not exactly sluggish, and less punishing to insure.

Just to be balanced though, and avoid a flibble flaming, I do constantly bang on about converting my NA to a turbo, and everyone else here just tells me to sell my NA and buy a turbo as it works out cheaper ( there probably right ) but I've been on an NA MR2 for 7 years so I guess I'm used to the NA cars and want a change, plus I'm an old fart of 32 now so the insurance as come wayyyy down for me.

Happy hunting.

[sebo]

I would "settle" for a non turbo as I would imagine the running costs would be lower. I haven't looked at that fan site but I certainly will. Before considering an MR2 I looked seriously into a Fiat Coupe and so Fccuk.co.uk was really useful I imagine that site will be too.

Anyone here owned a Fiat Coupe? (I have got the extinguisher ready for when I get flamed with shouts of unreliability!

They are my 2 shortlist cars, have i over looked any? (other than the usual fast ford, VW etc)

Thanks again chaps, what a top set of guys u are in Jap Chat (I normally reside in the pie and piston or general gassing)

Seb

[timmy30]

well yes your right about the fiat coupe. Barge pole anybody.

Start here www.mr2dc.com/

With the MR2 one thing you need to consider is whether to go for a T-bar, generally they command a slight premium, and all I can say is there's nothing to beat having the lid off on a warm summers evening, or even a sunny winters day and going for a hoon to a nice pub.

Mines an NA, but it's the t-bar, full leather spec, when I bought it I really wanted to open top feel, but wasn't keen on a rag top, this seemed an ideal compromise. Photo on my profile if you want a look ( those wheels are going btw, what was I thinking )

Again if it's a case of budget you might need to decide between the power of a turbo and the versatility of a T-bar.

Personally I'd always want the T-bar option as it makes the car for me, however I believe that I'm correct in saying that the t-bar cars are actually slightly heavier due to the reinforcement needed to keep the roof safety cage strong enough. The t-bars can also leak, although there are various remedies. But the ladies do like to be taken for a spin in an open top!

Like I say test drive a turbo, test drive an NA, take a look at a T-bar car versus non T-bar. And decide what you like.

Tssskkk Fiat coupe indeed. I looked at one way back when before I boughht my first MR2... thank goodness I went for the MR2



>> Edited by timmy30 on Thursday 2nd March 22:29

[sebo]

great site, read through the buying guides again.

The thought of driving with the T Bar roof off in the summer sounds lavish, hearing that motor!!

However, throughout the course of the evening i have become more and more annoying towards the Fiance' because I really want one and to be honest i have you guys to blame / thank.

I think the next step is to go out in one, you never know - i may drive it and hate it

Don't suppose anyone lives in Bournemouth and wants a passenger?

[sebo]

Gazboy said:

Afraid not, I sold my tweeked MR2T and bought a Supra. I think if you bought that £1600 and it turned out it needed another 2k thrown at it your fiancee may be a bit more than annoyed...

I agree!!

I will keep my eyes open over the next few months to see what pops in the classifieds. Will have to see what the piggy bank says...

[speedtwelve]

Sebo

I'd be wary of buying a cheap MR2T. Decent ones are usually £3K+, and you tend to get what you pay for. I looked at 3 other MR2Ts before buying mine, and all of the others had some boost/hesitation problem i.e. they wouldn't smoothly produce full power through the rev range up to the limiter. It's very common, although usually just a rotor arm/plugs/HT lead problem.

Running costs are high on MR2Ts. You'll not get much better than 20 mpg, they must be run on super-unleaded fuel, require fully synthetic oil which has to be changed often, and need decent tyres all round. Not to mention insurance group 20. Having said that, you'd be hard pressed to find a faster, better handling RWD sports car for under £5k.

You might find a N/A Mk2 MR2 is fun enough for you, although I will reinforce what Gazboy has said, and that is on a twisty road in a N/A you would not see which way an MRT went such is its mid-range punch on-boost.

Alternatives? I haven't driven a Fiat Coupe, although the 20v turbo looks pretty impressive in a straight line. A mate of mine bought one to replace his MK2 Golf GTi and found it relatively uninvolving.

How about a Corrado VR6, or G60 Supercharger with chip and pulley bringing it up to 190 bhp? S14 200SX is a bargain, you'll get a half decent one for £2-3k, RWD, and relatively easy to up the power to 250 bhp+.

Forgot also to mention a Prelude VTEC. FWD I know, but they are reliable, cheap, and you'll laugh your tits-off the first time you hear the VTEC swop the cam profiles at 5000 rpm. Same goes for the CRX VT (not the totally camp '92 onwards car, but its predecessor).

>> Edited by speedtwelve on Sunday 5th March 03:01

[h4z]

ive got an mr2 t-bar turbo, 60-70,000 miles import, its got a knockin noise from the back and the lackers peelin off, otherwise the cars good. im lookin for around £1500. >unstarted project<

[sadako]

h4z said:

ive got an mr2 t-bar turbo, 60-70,000 miles import, its got a knockin noise from the back and the lackers peelin off, otherwise the cars good. im lookin for around £1500. >unstarted project<

Put it in the classifieds here perhaps?

BTW there were some UK spec turbos but they are unbelievably rare, as are the revision 5 BEAMS engine'd NAs

[bad_roo]

If you can handle some minor fixing up, I've got a mechanically very sound car that can be yours for £2,000. It's MoT has just expired but it has covered precisely zero miles since it passed its MoT so getting another one shouldn't be an issue.

It's a red MR2T GT with 17-inch Kosei wheels and a spare set of wheels with winter tyres. The problems with the car are as follows:

Dented front wing. Have a replacement part but haven't fitted it.
Immobiliser is faulty. Needs disconnecting
Scratch on passenger door that either needs T-cutting out or blowing over.

It's done just over 60,000 miles and has had the full cambelt job done. It has also been taken to Superchips. These cars get lazy springs in the turbo, resulting in a gradual bleed away of boost. This car has been boosted back up to its original 225bhp specification.



That pic is taken in Bournemouth as it happens.

>> Edited by bad_roo on Sunday 5th March 16:03

[bad_roo]

I love that little thing but I rarely get a chance to drive it.

[sebo]

Hi Chaps

After looking around i think that I will work on up-ing my budget. For just a grand or two more you can get so much more (lower milage, service history etc etc.

Thanks for the offers guys, but I may look around after the summer to try and make best use of the "buying in the shade" lower prices as is so often seen when the weather turns.

I did see a Fiat turbo on Saturday in Wimborne, it came hairing past and sounded nice but i personally dont think it is quite as appealing as a 2 seater, mid engined car.

Thanks for all the input guys,

Best regards

Seb