MR2 Mk3 100 motorway miles per day - fun or torture?

[skoff]

Thursday musing... Opinions welcome

I am currently driving a 530iA Touring as a daily hack, with a Monaro for weekends. I am pretty bored of the 5er, great car as it is, and don't really need a big car as weekend family duties are well serviced by the Monaro, and the OHs car. I've been trying to think of a replacement for the 5, anything from a Jag XJ through to a Fiat Panda 100hp. My latest thought is that a MK3 MR2 might be fun for a while, with added roof-off smiles.

Would this be torture? I ran an Elise S1 for 3 years driving from Woking to London, so I can put up with a bit of discomfort (though I don't want to go back to the Lotus wet-leg days thankyouverymuch), but I do need the car to be reliable. I have read about the pre-cat issues and mitigations for that, but what's it like to live with a MR2 day to day?

It will be on the motorway for 95% of it's life, but might get used by the OH from time to time, and hopefully will convince me to go for a Sunday morning roof-less hoon, just because. The MR2 is also seemingly much more economical than a MX5 (one of which I owned for a while - great car also), and doesn't seem to have the tinworm vices of the Mazda (which killed my MX5).

So what are the pros and cons? Budget is around 3K ish, but less is better.

[Red Devil]

skoff said:

My latest thought is that a MK3 MR2 might be fun for a while, with added roof-off smiles.

It will be on the motorway for 95% of it's life, but might get used by the OH from time to time, and hopefully will convince me to go for a Sunday morning roof-less hoon, just because.

I can't fathom the logic of buying one if it's going to spend 95% of the time on a motorway.
The last place I would want to have the roof off too. All those diesel fumes.....
It's natural home is twisty A and B roads on which it is very good indeed.

skoff said:

So what are the pros and cons? Budget is around 3K ish, but less is better.

On the plus side it's economical to run. The downside is the lack of load space. Strictly squashy stuff. It's the only reason I wouldn't buy one - nowhere to carry a set of golf clubs.

3k is borderline for a post-facelift model and would be a private purchase rather than through the trade. If it was pre-facelift it would need to be in good nick, particularly the soft top. It expensive to replace. Also, make sure the drainage valves/channels are not blocked up. On either version the pre-cats need to have been dealt with.

[skoff]

Red Devil said:

I can't fathom the logic of buying one if it's going to spend 95% of the time on a motorway

(twisted) logic is as follows:
I need a change of car and this is definitely a change, I feel like I need a small car in my life if only for a short time
Motorway with the roof down is fine on a nice day (it's the M5, not M25, so more caravans than trucks)
5% pootling around might change into >5% if it's as fun to drive as I think it will be
The economy is an added bonus, I am starting to wonder why I am lugging around several tonnes of German metal every day when it's just me in the car
My OH and daughter will love it, and may use it a fair bit in summer if it's fairly docile (the Lotus was too hardcore for her, but the MX5 was a big hit)


Budget figure isn't absolute by any means, but I am looking for a car I can pile the miles on and not worry about depreciation (if you pay £3K for a car, you can only lose £3K...)
As mentioned I am also considering a plethora of other options, including a weedy Z3 - though put off a bit by the BMWness of it. Basically I don't know what I want other than something different.

[Red Devil]

skoff said:

My OH and daughter will love it, and may use it a fair bit in summer if it's fairly docile (the Lotus was too hardcore for her, but the MX5 was a big hit).

If she liked the MX5 she should be OK with the Mk3. It sits somewhere in between the other two.
With the MX5 you can hang the tail out and get it back without drama. The MR2 is less likely to forgive a mistake.

skoff said:

Budget figure isn't absolute by any means, but I am looking for a car I can pile the miles on and not worry about depreciation (if you pay £3K for a car, you can only lose £3K...)

In that case stump up the extra ££ and go for a post-facelift car. If you are serious about getting a Mk3, I would invest some time on here first.

[Evil.soup]

I lived with an MR2 Roadster for about 3 years and used it not just for commuting but for business as well. I have to be honest, its a far nicer place to be than an Elise but with 95% of the benefit. Don't get me wrong, it can still be a little bumpy but its far more civilised than the Elise. All in all I loved it as a daily hack and it didn't fail to put a smile on my face when I pushed it. However, it can be a little wild to drive if you push it hard and in the wet rather unpredictable if you don't treat it with care but it really is a great car to live with. I would imagine you could end up driving the MR2 over the Monaro on sunny weekends as its such a hoot to drive, I really miss mine from time to time even though the Impreza is a better performer and have considered getting a cheap one again to run around in.

What I am saying is, its a great car, bags of fun, cheap to run, reliable if well maintained and reasonably comfortable as a daily driver, get one!!



The facelift is probably worth the extra few quid by the way;)