Toyota MR2 Small Project
Discussion
I picked this MR2 up from a fellow PHer for a small amount of money. It needs a little bit of work to get it back up to standard but it should make a nice little motor for me to pootle about in until I get my 944 project finished.
Here are the pictures of when it first arrived (excuse the frostyness but it was chuffing cold!)
After getting some tax and insurance sorted out I took it out for a spin and 6 miles later the temp gauge was steadily climbing towards the red. I'd already been told that it needed a new radiator but the rad didn't even seem to be in the system at all. This overheating then turned into loud bangs as if the car was constantly driving over big rocks and they were bouncing around under the car.
After getting the car home again after a cool down I set to work bleeding the coolant system, that doesn't half take a long time on an MR2! After the first attempt at bleeding I took the car out for a spin again but this time with the cover for the radiator off so I could see it and locate the leak. Turns out the bleeding did sweet F.A. as the car was still overheating (although if you went up a hill it cooled down) and the heater wasn't working which meant I could see sod all. I did however locate the leak.
Another bleeding session later and all was well, the engine was getting up to temp and staying there and the heater was working fine. Even the radiator wasn't leaking much but I went ahead and ordered up a replacement anyway.
Next up was an early start to get the car tidied up a bit.
After warming the hell up and poking around the car in various places to get to grips with everything it was time for a good wash. The car looked much better once cleaned up but it did show the sorry state of the paint work rather well.
Now I had a clean car it was time to clay the bonnet and break out the polish, I used a combo of autoglym dodo juice and meguairs in an attempt to get some red back in this thing and here's the results after a load of elbow grease was used on the bonnet.
I moved into the garage to get a bit more done as it was getting pretty chilly outside again. This pic shows just how bad parts of the car are.
After this lot I had the urge to take it for a spin only to discover it had started running like crap. It was spluttering, misfiring and backfiring every so often so I popped it back into the garage and had a nose around. Couldn't find any obvious problems and didn't have my tools so couldn't take parts off to inspect them. So Today I went back to my parent's house to use their garage and get access to my tools and discovered a distributor cap with a mighty crack and loads of crap on the contacts.
New one of those and a rotor arm will be ordered up soon and should prevent the rough running. I also bled the clutch system today as the fluid was completely black and disgusting, I think there may be the odd air bubble in there still as if you pump the pedal a few times the biting point moves slightly but I was getting quite fed up bleeding it so another day.
That's everything so far, just got to get the rad, dizzy cap, rotor arm and some new coolant now.
Here are the pictures of when it first arrived (excuse the frostyness but it was chuffing cold!)
After getting some tax and insurance sorted out I took it out for a spin and 6 miles later the temp gauge was steadily climbing towards the red. I'd already been told that it needed a new radiator but the rad didn't even seem to be in the system at all. This overheating then turned into loud bangs as if the car was constantly driving over big rocks and they were bouncing around under the car.
After getting the car home again after a cool down I set to work bleeding the coolant system, that doesn't half take a long time on an MR2! After the first attempt at bleeding I took the car out for a spin again but this time with the cover for the radiator off so I could see it and locate the leak. Turns out the bleeding did sweet F.A. as the car was still overheating (although if you went up a hill it cooled down) and the heater wasn't working which meant I could see sod all. I did however locate the leak.
Another bleeding session later and all was well, the engine was getting up to temp and staying there and the heater was working fine. Even the radiator wasn't leaking much but I went ahead and ordered up a replacement anyway.
Next up was an early start to get the car tidied up a bit.
After warming the hell up and poking around the car in various places to get to grips with everything it was time for a good wash. The car looked much better once cleaned up but it did show the sorry state of the paint work rather well.
Now I had a clean car it was time to clay the bonnet and break out the polish, I used a combo of autoglym dodo juice and meguairs in an attempt to get some red back in this thing and here's the results after a load of elbow grease was used on the bonnet.
I moved into the garage to get a bit more done as it was getting pretty chilly outside again. This pic shows just how bad parts of the car are.
After this lot I had the urge to take it for a spin only to discover it had started running like crap. It was spluttering, misfiring and backfiring every so often so I popped it back into the garage and had a nose around. Couldn't find any obvious problems and didn't have my tools so couldn't take parts off to inspect them. So Today I went back to my parent's house to use their garage and get access to my tools and discovered a distributor cap with a mighty crack and loads of crap on the contacts.
New one of those and a rotor arm will be ordered up soon and should prevent the rough running. I also bled the clutch system today as the fluid was completely black and disgusting, I think there may be the odd air bubble in there still as if you pump the pedal a few times the biting point moves slightly but I was getting quite fed up bleeding it so another day.
That's everything so far, just got to get the rad, dizzy cap, rotor arm and some new coolant now.
Used to have one of those - same colour & year. Still regret selling it, but no room for a baby seat.
Rads are very susceptible to stones. There are also two pipes running the full length of the car from rad to engine that carry the coolant - these can corode and need to be replaced. Just plumbing really.
There was (is) a very active MR2 forum with loads of fix it guides.
............ sort of car I'd buy on e-bay after a few pints and wake up smiling!
Rads are very susceptible to stones. There are also two pipes running the full length of the car from rad to engine that carry the coolant - these can corode and need to be replaced. Just plumbing really.
There was (is) a very active MR2 forum with loads of fix it guides.
............ sort of car I'd buy on e-bay after a few pints and wake up smiling!
The pipes that run the length of the car are either alloy or stainless steel and are usually the best preserved item on a breaker! You sure you're not thinking about the pipe from hell for the heater part of the circuit? They usually crack and it involves a bit of work to sort (no biggy)
Had these for about 10 years now and had quite a few varients. Great to work on IMO as they are just like meccano after you've taken them apart for the 1st time. It's the horrors where no one has touched a nut or bolt for 5 years that are a pain in the arse at first.
The red comes up good with some elbow grease, but they do like to go pink quite readily!
Have fun with it!
Had these for about 10 years now and had quite a few varients. Great to work on IMO as they are just like meccano after you've taken them apart for the 1st time. It's the horrors where no one has touched a nut or bolt for 5 years that are a pain in the arse at first.
The red comes up good with some elbow grease, but they do like to go pink quite readily!
Have fun with it!
AngryApples said:
Def not from Falmouth!
10 years with us (Somerset), then Failand Bristol previous to us
Loving this, nice to see it go to a caring home Rob, keep up the good work matey
Good to hear that you're pleased with progress. Tried getting the distributor cap ordered up today but they can't do it without the chassis number for some reason there are a load showing up for that engine (which may mean the bloke at Toyota was thoroughly confused by it all as Halfords managed it) so going to try again tomorrow.10 years with us (Somerset), then Failand Bristol previous to us
Loving this, nice to see it go to a caring home Rob, keep up the good work matey
Did a bit more polishing today and got the driver's side front wing and door looking a little better.
And what it looks like before I go mental with the polish.
I gave the interior a good clean up and that's starting to look a lot nicer now. I thought the leather (or faux leather as it may be) was completely worn out but it turned out to be years and years of built up crap so a good session with some cleaner and I ended up with a very foul looking cloth but a very nice looking steering wheel. That's one less thing to replace is there, just need to get a new gear knob to replace the frayed one.
MadRob6 said:
AngryApples said:
Def not from Falmouth!
10 years with us (Somerset), then Failand Bristol previous to us
Loving this, nice to see it go to a caring home Rob, keep up the good work matey
Good to hear that you're pleased with progress. Tried getting the distributor cap ordered up today but they can't do it without the chassis number for some reason there are a load showing up for that engine (which may mean the bloke at Toyota was thoroughly confused by it all as Halfords managed it) so going to try again tomorrow.10 years with us (Somerset), then Failand Bristol previous to us
Loving this, nice to see it go to a caring home Rob, keep up the good work matey
If you continue having issues, let me know and I'll see what can be done
TBH, considering the mileage she did (circa 4k/year) it didnt get anything major done so I'm very happy with how she looks
Pulled the electric aerial apart tonight to try and find out why it was stuck. The coiled up plastic gear inside has snapped meaning once it goes up it can't go any further and then won't go back down again (even with persuasion). Apparently replacement parts can be obtained from Toyota relatively cheaply but I also managed to lose a spring for one of the motor brushes somewhere (maybe even inside the mechanism but I can't find the bugger) so now I'm stuck with an aerial that goes neither up nor down and it stuck down.
I may remove the gear that interfaces with the coil which would turn it into a manual aerial which would at least make it useful.
Also the original Toyota alarm which is a horn in the engine bay has a habit of going off when unlocking the car using the remote but it only does it sometimes. So far it's done it twice at my parents and about 5 minutes ago in Sainsburys car park in the rain which left me standing in the rain with my finger on the horn to shut the damn thing up. I've now disconnected the horn so it can't do it any more but I don't suppose anybody has a bright idea of how to shut it up? Oddly when the aftermarket alarm unlocks the car the open door light comes on the dash even before the doors are open but that doesn't explain why the alarm only goes off on some occasions and not others.
Gotta love cars eh?
I may remove the gear that interfaces with the coil which would turn it into a manual aerial which would at least make it useful.
Also the original Toyota alarm which is a horn in the engine bay has a habit of going off when unlocking the car using the remote but it only does it sometimes. So far it's done it twice at my parents and about 5 minutes ago in Sainsburys car park in the rain which left me standing in the rain with my finger on the horn to shut the damn thing up. I've now disconnected the horn so it can't do it any more but I don't suppose anybody has a bright idea of how to shut it up? Oddly when the aftermarket alarm unlocks the car the open door light comes on the dash even before the doors are open but that doesn't explain why the alarm only goes off on some occasions and not others.
Gotta love cars eh?
New Distributor cap, seal, rotor arm and air filter now fitted and the car runs so much better. It now pulls smoothly through all gears and runs beautifully.
Also it turns out a friend of mine works in my local Toyota dealership but I had no idea meaning I got a cheeky discount
Picked up enough coolant to do a full change whilst I was in there so I can put the new radiator on this Saturday and have it running with completely fresh coolant.
Also somebody is coming to look at my little Skoda Felicia on Saturday so with any luck I'll sell that which will cover every thing I've spent on the MR2 so far.
Also it turns out a friend of mine works in my local Toyota dealership but I had no idea meaning I got a cheeky discount
Picked up enough coolant to do a full change whilst I was in there so I can put the new radiator on this Saturday and have it running with completely fresh coolant.
Also somebody is coming to look at my little Skoda Felicia on Saturday so with any luck I'll sell that which will cover every thing I've spent on the MR2 so far.
Quick update.
Radiator is now changed which was a wonderful job to do in near freezing temperatures. Ordered up a wiring adaptor for the stereo so I can have some tunes in the car since I don't own a single cassette and continued the polishing.
I haven't taken any pictures to show you lot as by the time I've finished doing something the first thing I want to do is go somewhere warm and not stick around taking pictures. I'll grab some of it looking considerably more red at some point though.
Radiator is now changed which was a wonderful job to do in near freezing temperatures. Ordered up a wiring adaptor for the stereo so I can have some tunes in the car since I don't own a single cassette and continued the polishing.
I haven't taken any pictures to show you lot as by the time I've finished doing something the first thing I want to do is go somewhere warm and not stick around taking pictures. I'll grab some of it looking considerably more red at some point though.
I've been using a bit of a combo with megs clay bar, dodo juice lime prime, AG SRP and a bit of AG Paint Renovator but the best thing has been giving it a lot of elbow grease.
In a lot of places it's still quite hazy but if I keep at it I reckon it'll improve slowly. The passenger door and rear quarter panel are looking like some paint might be required due to peeling lacquer and really bad fading.
In a lot of places it's still quite hazy but if I keep at it I reckon it'll improve slowly. The passenger door and rear quarter panel are looking like some paint might be required due to peeling lacquer and really bad fading.
Excellent, thanks! I'll give it a go, I've got some Pinky areas on the engine cover and the drivers door seems more Orange than the rest of the car! The bonnet has had a re-spray at some point in its life so I'm considering having the whole thing buffed with a cutting compound I'll let you know how I get on if it goes ahead.
Nope it was an air lock in the coolant system or possibly boiling coolant. There was so much air in the system that the radiator wasn't in the loop so the temp just went higher and higher until you turned the engine off to let it all cool down.
It basically sounded like the car was running over a load of rocks that were banging around underneath as the sound came from right underneath you. If you think your rad is knocking it shouldn't be too hard to give it a shake to see. One of the bottom rubber mounts on mine was a bit loose but despite that there is no noise from it whilst driving.
It basically sounded like the car was running over a load of rocks that were banging around underneath as the sound came from right underneath you. If you think your rad is knocking it shouldn't be too hard to give it a shake to see. One of the bottom rubber mounts on mine was a bit loose but despite that there is no noise from it whilst driving.
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