Bargain MR2 Roadster fun
Discussion
This ladies and gents is 1700 quids worth of facelift MR2 roadster from 2003 with fsh and 3 owners. Leather, ac, hardtop, 4 good tyres, no rot and came 3/4 of petrol.
I've had a brilliant afternoon thrashing round Derbyshire lanes in it today. Its a brilliant point and squirt toy. I'd go as far as to say that 190bhp engine conversions in these would be absolutely blinding fun.
Needs a headlight sorting as its milky on the inside ( the other polished up lovely) and the leccy aeriel isnt moving but it does have a fabulous jvc stereo with mp3 input.
Trackday fun here we come.
It is indeed monsal head sir! Well spotted.
If i didnt have plans for chucking money at my 993 next spring (complete new suspension)
I would seriously consider a 190bhp conversion to this. It would be an absolute riot for trackdays and fast road runs. I don't think much would keep up with you on the lanes tbh at that.
I have the biggest grin from just driving the thing. The seats are awesome for comfort and grip as is the driving position. Could do with a slightly smaller wheel as im tall and i cant heel and toe at present due to offsetting my leg to the right to clear the rim but otherwise perfect.
Not sure if its had dampers as its done 102k but the ride and damping are perfect. It literally dives into corners and has lots of grip on fairly mundane dunlop road tyres.
Glad i went this route as opposed to a rusty mk2 mx5 for 2 grand.
I have a manifold with decat to go on asap which i hope frees it up as well as removing the risk of cat bits being ingested.
If i didnt have plans for chucking money at my 993 next spring (complete new suspension)
I would seriously consider a 190bhp conversion to this. It would be an absolute riot for trackdays and fast road runs. I don't think much would keep up with you on the lanes tbh at that.
I have the biggest grin from just driving the thing. The seats are awesome for comfort and grip as is the driving position. Could do with a slightly smaller wheel as im tall and i cant heel and toe at present due to offsetting my leg to the right to clear the rim but otherwise perfect.
Not sure if its had dampers as its done 102k but the ride and damping are perfect. It literally dives into corners and has lots of grip on fairly mundane dunlop road tyres.
Glad i went this route as opposed to a rusty mk2 mx5 for 2 grand.
I have a manifold with decat to go on asap which i hope frees it up as well as removing the risk of cat bits being ingested.
Words cant explain how chuffed i am with the actual handling and grip down country lanes. I genuinely think I'd struggle to go as fast in my 993 carrera (maybe the value of that plays a part) but for the money its got to be the best buy yet. Obviously its an impractical car but it will keep my hand in over winter while the 911 is sorn and at that sort of cost if its written off its not the end of the world.
270 quid insurance on a 3k mile policy for me n wife and I'm also in the good books now as she loves it! Win win!
270 quid insurance on a 3k mile policy for me n wife and I'm also in the good books now as she loves it! Win win!
pilchard8 said:
Looks like a great example! Im on the lookout for one of these and due to oil issues the FL is the one to get. Good price and theres a few hovering around the 2k mark.
i believe the pre-cats are loose on mine as there is a resonance at certain rpm from the cat/downpipe area, this was my other concern. fingers crossed i am getting the manifold swapped on saturday for a de-cat one and that hopefully will be it. i need a drivers headlight as well, as mine is cloudy internally and i'd love a bit more noise so i'm watching ebay etc for an exhaust system if anything comes up, i cant justify chucking a lot of cash at this one to modify it. 200Plus Club said:
i believe the pre-cats are loose on mine as there is a resonance at certain rpm from the cat/downpipe area, this was my other concern. fingers crossed i am getting the manifold swapped on saturday for a de-cat one and that hopefully will be it. i need a drivers headlight as well, as mine is cloudy internally and i'd love a bit more noise so i'm watching ebay etc for an exhaust system if anything comes up, i cant justify chucking a lot of cash at this one to modify it.
First thing im going to do if I get one is change the manifold, looking at some owners club cars at the moment and most have the pre cat changed. The rear subframe can rust badly as well and your cloudy headlights are a common problem. Not much else goes wrong according to the buyers guide. Good little car and a nice upgrade to my mk1 mx-5. Think im going to keep my as a daily and resist the modding bug abut I want to do some track days next year in it so im guessing il need to some tweaking.The 2zz (190) engine is a common swap and unlocks the car apparantly (should have come from factory with this), turns it into a cheap elise and it isnt that expensive for the swap.
200Plus Club said:
Could do with a slightly smaller wheel as im tall and i cant heel and toe at present due to offsetting my leg to the right to clear the rim but otherwise perfect.
I had one for a little while and the interaction between pedals and box was one of my favourite features. Really satisfying and rewarding to work them hard.200Plus Club said:
i believe the pre-cats are loose on mine as there is a resonance at certain rpm from the cat/downpipe area, this was my other concern. fingers crossed i am getting the manifold swapped on saturday for a de-cat one and that hopefully will be it. i need a drivers headlight as well, as mine is cloudy internally and i'd love a bit more noise so i'm watching ebay etc for an exhaust system if anything comes up, i cant justify chucking a lot of cash at this one to modify it.
Fingers crossed indeed - it's f
king expensive if it lunches the engine, cost me the best part of £2k for a facelift engine and some other bits and bobs. Started to take heat shield off manifold and realised i havent got an open 22mm socket for the lambda sensors so jobs on hold till i get one.
The heat shield is loose so i managed to spray some penetrating oil on the manifold nuts. Lets hope they come off!
New manifold needs wrapping before it goes on.
The heat shield is loose so i managed to spray some penetrating oil on the manifold nuts. Lets hope they come off!
New manifold needs wrapping before it goes on.
Awesome purchase for that price OP!
I adored mine, so much fun and a much more precise tool than the obvious MX5.
Something to look out for is a decent second hand power steering pump, as they do fail and are a fortune (£1200 iirc) to replace with a new part. Worth having a spare if you find a low mileage car breaking.
I adored mine, so much fun and a much more precise tool than the obvious MX5.
Something to look out for is a decent second hand power steering pump, as they do fail and are a fortune (£1200 iirc) to replace with a new part. Worth having a spare if you find a low mileage car breaking.
WojaWabbit said:
Awesome purchase for that price OP!
I adored mine, so much fun and a much more precise tool than the obvious MX5.
Something to look out for is a decent second hand power steering pump, as they do fail and are a fortune (£1200 iirc) to replace with a new part. Worth having a spare if you find a low mileage car breaking.
Cheers will do that. Found a headlight for 80 quid and europarts have the lambda socket at a tenner. Fiddling methinks tomorrow afters if dry!I adored mine, so much fun and a much more precise tool than the obvious MX5.
Something to look out for is a decent second hand power steering pump, as they do fail and are a fortune (£1200 iirc) to replace with a new part. Worth having a spare if you find a low mileage car breaking.
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