Discussion
Hi all,
I have been a long time viewer of these forums, searching for info on Google I always end up on Pistonheads, so I thought I’d finally create an account.
I’ve got a bit of an itch to scratch and I’m after a Toyota MR2... the mk1.
After a bit of research I’ve found that the Turbo is the one to go for, not the NA. However, I can’t seem to find many for sale!
I can see the well-known car selling website (not sure if I can say which?) has 1 Turbo for sale but it’s a bit tarted up, I was hoping to find something a bit more stock.
I then looked on PH Classifieds and there’s a few for sale, but all with one seller... who don’t appear to be very well known. Has anyone had any dealings with them?
I’ve heard really good things about the mk1 so happy to be patient to wait for the right one to crop up.
Are these as rare as they seem, or am I missing a trick?
Or am I bonkers to be looking at this car?! Appreciate any help or advice.
Cheers,
Clarky
I have been a long time viewer of these forums, searching for info on Google I always end up on Pistonheads, so I thought I’d finally create an account.
I’ve got a bit of an itch to scratch and I’m after a Toyota MR2... the mk1.
After a bit of research I’ve found that the Turbo is the one to go for, not the NA. However, I can’t seem to find many for sale!
I can see the well-known car selling website (not sure if I can say which?) has 1 Turbo for sale but it’s a bit tarted up, I was hoping to find something a bit more stock.
I then looked on PH Classifieds and there’s a few for sale, but all with one seller... who don’t appear to be very well known. Has anyone had any dealings with them?
I’ve heard really good things about the mk1 so happy to be patient to wait for the right one to crop up.
Are these as rare as they seem, or am I missing a trick?
Or am I bonkers to be looking at this car?! Appreciate any help or advice.
Cheers,
Clarky
So turns out I didn’t do enough research! Thank you to both of you.
I just didn’t know that Turbo’s weren’t actually sold over here!
I don’t really like the idea of an import, never bought one before so for my first MR2 I think I’ll just go for an NA MK2.
Will be sure to update this post once I’ve found one!
Many thanks again guys!
I just didn’t know that Turbo’s weren’t actually sold over here!
I don’t really like the idea of an import, never bought one before so for my first MR2 I think I’ll just go for an NA MK2.
Will be sure to update this post once I’ve found one!
Many thanks again guys!
I contacted them and was really impressed with the quick response, but they pointed out my budget is a bit low. I’ve got about £5k-£6k to spend and realistically to import a decent Turbo from Japan I need £10k.
I think I may just go for an NA already on sale in the UK and look at a Turbo in the future.
I think I may just go for an NA already on sale in the UK and look at a Turbo in the future.
Hi all
I’ve been doing some hunting and found this Turbo.
The car is relatively original (aftermarket alloys but the original alloys come included).
The mileage is excellent and it’s also a T Bar.
Can anyone shed some light as to how competitive this price is?
Cheers
Clarky
I’ve been doing some hunting and found this Turbo.
The car is relatively original (aftermarket alloys but the original alloys come included).
The mileage is excellent and it’s also a T Bar.
Can anyone shed some light as to how competitive this price is?
Cheers
Clarky
Edited by andy.mod on Tuesday 26th May 20:07
25th QV said:
Had an '88 back in the day.
My lasting memories of it are that it rusted for fun, was slow, had no torque and was great fun to drive and felt a bit different and special.
Bit the rust, oh the rust.....
Thank you for your insight, definitely keen on hearing all feedback, good and bad, really appreciate it. My lasting memories of it are that it rusted for fun, was slow, had no torque and was great fun to drive and felt a bit different and special.
Bit the rust, oh the rust.....
Although wouldn’t an ‘88 have been a mk1?
I’ve heard that the mk1’s had a bigger rust problem than the mk2’s. Is this not the case?
ETA: realised my thread title states MK1 which is probably why you’ve mentioned yours haha. Sorry, I can’t edit it!! I am looking at the MK2 now.
quigonjay said:
That is an early rev 1 car, I would say for the money you could do much better (rev 3 onwards), that is very strong money for that car regardless of the mileage
Thank you, how do you know it’s a rev 1? I was under the impression it’s an early rev 2.The seller was pretty clear when he said it was a rev 2 also... and the dates seem to point to rev 2.
Have I got this wrong?
Appreciate what you’re saying on the price... I must admit I thought it was a bit high also but I’m struggling to compare anything similar on the market.
Edited by Cl4rkyPH on Tuesday 26th May 10:14
rotaryjam said:
I've just purchased another one myself, a rev 3 t bar turbo. Previously owned 2 turbos and 2 NAs.
There is a nice original rev 3 turbo going for just under £6k with 98,000 miles which I almost purchased but not so keen on the colour.
The seems nice and genuine and has owned the car for 20 years, it's the best rev 3 turbo available right now in my opinion and I doubt you'll find better for cheaper in a while! I too looked at importing but the prices were a lot higher than expected, so it's actually cheaper to buy one already in the UK.
Here's the car: https://www.gumtree.com/p/toyota/toyota-mr2-turbo-...
Thanks a lot for the link.There is a nice original rev 3 turbo going for just under £6k with 98,000 miles which I almost purchased but not so keen on the colour.
The seems nice and genuine and has owned the car for 20 years, it's the best rev 3 turbo available right now in my opinion and I doubt you'll find better for cheaper in a while! I too looked at importing but the prices were a lot higher than expected, so it's actually cheaper to buy one already in the UK.
Here's the car: https://www.gumtree.com/p/toyota/toyota-mr2-turbo-...
I’ve just given the owner a call, yes I agree he’s very genuine and decent bloke. He’s going to WhatsApp me over some more pictures and videos.
The only issue with that car is that it has none of the documentation regarding the import.
I’m keen to ask you all on your opinions on buying an imported MR2 without any import documents.
On a personal level, it doesn’t really bother me… but what I’m thinking about is when it comes to selling it in the distant future, how off-putting that will be for a potential buyer.
All opinions appreciated!
Thanks guys for your replies.
Going to view the car on Sunday and hopefully put down a deposit providing I’m happy.
Would some of you in the know on these cars pick out anything in this video? I noted the leather wear which is typical (I’d plan to repair that) but is there anything else you’d point out?
The engine sounds good to me, not too tinny or rattly... but what do you think?
https://streamable.com/e81xm8
Going to view the car on Sunday and hopefully put down a deposit providing I’m happy.
Would some of you in the know on these cars pick out anything in this video? I noted the leather wear which is typical (I’d plan to repair that) but is there anything else you’d point out?
The engine sounds good to me, not too tinny or rattly... but what do you think?
https://streamable.com/e81xm8
So just to update, I didn’t buy the car.
Overall the car was good but the following points started to ring alarm bells.
It’s worth mentioning that each point in itself didn’t bother me, but it was the culmination of all the points (and the last point especially) that made me walk away.
The paintwork had lots of scratches on, some deep. The colour was actually lovely, it wasn’t really solid green, it was more of a green pearlescent like flip paint with purple. I considered that it was probably a premium colour, but touching up or respraying areas would be difficult and/or expensive.
There was years and years of MOT history but zero service history, for someone who had owned the car for 18 years I found this to be odd.
The owner claimed the cambelt was replaced 5 years ago but again there was no record of this.
Despite advertising the car’s mileage as 87k miles, the owner wasn’t aware if the odometer (reading 144k) was actually in miles or kilometres. The MOT history stated the mileage in miles throughout, so it was unclear as to whether the car had done 87k miles or 144k miles. The speedometer was also in mph. If this was my car, I would have been making it abundantly clear to the MOT garage every year to record it’s true mileage, but the owner didn’t seem to care!
There was budget tyres on the car, mismatched across the axle, and one had damage to its tyre wall... so would have been an MOT failure.
Brakes looked excessively worn.
Ultimately, the car struck me as having been run on a budget and with no service history to back anything up I was wary.
At this point I decided however, regardless of the above, to take the plunge, as I thought to myself I could get all this fixed, give it a bit of TLC, ignore the scratches, and enjoy the car for what it was.
So I started with a bit of light haggling and it quickly became apparent that the owner wouldn’t budge so I accepted the asking price and was met with “are you sure you want it? Can’t you find another one?”
I know he didn’t want to sell it but I still found it quite bizarre. I insisted that I wanted it and we finally agreed the sale.
However, the seller didn’t want me to pay via bank transfer and was insistent on me paying cash. I explained I’d happily wait until the funds cleared in his bank but he said that didn’t work for him and he only wanted cash.
With no option to go to the bank on a Sunday and withdraw it I decided that with all the points considered, to walk away.
Did I do anything wrong here? Am I really expected to turn up with £6k cash in an envelope in the modern world of today? The ad didn’t state cash only so expected a transfer to be fine.
Please let me know and go easy on me, I feel like I’ve let a potentially great car go, but something just didn’t feel right on the whole.
Overall the car was good but the following points started to ring alarm bells.
It’s worth mentioning that each point in itself didn’t bother me, but it was the culmination of all the points (and the last point especially) that made me walk away.
The paintwork had lots of scratches on, some deep. The colour was actually lovely, it wasn’t really solid green, it was more of a green pearlescent like flip paint with purple. I considered that it was probably a premium colour, but touching up or respraying areas would be difficult and/or expensive.
There was years and years of MOT history but zero service history, for someone who had owned the car for 18 years I found this to be odd.
The owner claimed the cambelt was replaced 5 years ago but again there was no record of this.
Despite advertising the car’s mileage as 87k miles, the owner wasn’t aware if the odometer (reading 144k) was actually in miles or kilometres. The MOT history stated the mileage in miles throughout, so it was unclear as to whether the car had done 87k miles or 144k miles. The speedometer was also in mph. If this was my car, I would have been making it abundantly clear to the MOT garage every year to record it’s true mileage, but the owner didn’t seem to care!
There was budget tyres on the car, mismatched across the axle, and one had damage to its tyre wall... so would have been an MOT failure.
Brakes looked excessively worn.
Ultimately, the car struck me as having been run on a budget and with no service history to back anything up I was wary.
At this point I decided however, regardless of the above, to take the plunge, as I thought to myself I could get all this fixed, give it a bit of TLC, ignore the scratches, and enjoy the car for what it was.
So I started with a bit of light haggling and it quickly became apparent that the owner wouldn’t budge so I accepted the asking price and was met with “are you sure you want it? Can’t you find another one?”
I know he didn’t want to sell it but I still found it quite bizarre. I insisted that I wanted it and we finally agreed the sale.
However, the seller didn’t want me to pay via bank transfer and was insistent on me paying cash. I explained I’d happily wait until the funds cleared in his bank but he said that didn’t work for him and he only wanted cash.
With no option to go to the bank on a Sunday and withdraw it I decided that with all the points considered, to walk away.
Did I do anything wrong here? Am I really expected to turn up with £6k cash in an envelope in the modern world of today? The ad didn’t state cash only so expected a transfer to be fine.
Please let me know and go easy on me, I feel like I’ve let a potentially great car go, but something just didn’t feel right on the whole.
Thanks all, your supportive replies have made me feel much better.
Funny to hear that he accepted a lower price to you over the phone rotaryjam, I guess that’s my fault for not agreeing a price before travelling. He probably knew I’d accept the asking as I’d come all that way, so I don’t blame him for sticking to his guns.
However, makes it all the more bizarre that he wouldn’t accept a bank transfer as I was obviously keen!
Regardless, he’s apologised this morning for the confusion yesterday and I’ve wished him all the best with the sale.
I’ve enquired about this one, it’s had a bit of modification but still looks OK. I just wish these dealers would be forthcoming with the reg number so I could check it’s history!
https://www.japimportcars.co.uk/cars/toyota/mr2/tw...
Let’s see if they come back to me.
Thanks again
Funny to hear that he accepted a lower price to you over the phone rotaryjam, I guess that’s my fault for not agreeing a price before travelling. He probably knew I’d accept the asking as I’d come all that way, so I don’t blame him for sticking to his guns.
However, makes it all the more bizarre that he wouldn’t accept a bank transfer as I was obviously keen!
Regardless, he’s apologised this morning for the confusion yesterday and I’ve wished him all the best with the sale.
I’ve enquired about this one, it’s had a bit of modification but still looks OK. I just wish these dealers would be forthcoming with the reg number so I could check it’s history!
https://www.japimportcars.co.uk/cars/toyota/mr2/tw...
Let’s see if they come back to me.
Thanks again
quigonjay said:
Ad says 1992 but clearly a rev3 engine, bit too modified for my liking, prefer standard look.
Ahh yes you’re right.I’m starting to wonder if the rev1 I originally found is the way to go. The seller is very communicative and has sent me all the service history, it’s just a rev1. It also has cruise control which is a rare optional extra.
The mileage and condition is incredible for the age.
Should I really be that put off by the revision 1?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/402253270204
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