Old shape MR2 - any experience?

Jefferson Darcy

I'm rather bored by the mk4 (fat) 'GiT' that I'm driving at the moment and I'm after something that actually handles. I drove a ratty example of the old school MR2 in South Africa last year and was quite taken by it. Combination of RWD, mid engined, excellent grip with a revvy, responsive motor is very enticing.

Whats the deal on these

- were they all grey imports?
- are there any left in good nick?
- is the turbo version reliable, would the turbo need a rebuild at this stage?
- are parts readily available?
- are the MR2s in Ireland all ruined by drainpipe exhausts, neon kits and over-large alloys?
- how much could I expect to pay for a decent example. B&S sell prices vary tremendously.
- is there a good web forum (preferably UK based) I can research?
- will I get insurance on an MR2 easily? Current insurance company is Hibernian (26yrs, full license, full no claims)

Squirrel

Mark 1 or 2?

Mark 1



Mark 2

RicardoSmith

http://www.mr2.com/

Most people write the Mr2 off as a hardresser cars. But its a real handful and can bite. Handling is league above most cars. The turbo ones are nutter fast, but its hard to find any mr2 mrk1 or mr2 that hasn't has a tap somewhere along the way. Most Mr2's seem to have been modded. Personally I think they are great. Driven a few, Mrk1's and Mrk2's. A mate ran one for a few years. Theres a whole rake of non turbo models. Some fast, some not so fast.

Its also my fav car in GT2 since you mod it to ridculous levels, and run it in nearly all the classes. Once you get the cornering down, few cars can stay with you in the corners. But it is easy to get it wrong and spin.

528i

The Mk2 Turbo (Mk1 is not to be taken seriously with that weedy little 1.6 corolla engine) is pretty fast and tunable (400+ bhp for little outlay), havent heard any horror stories but I suppose that Mr2 forum would be the best place to start looking. They're meant to be abit twitchy & unpredictable on the limit but if you dial in loads of negative camber and a soft progressive tyre compound im sure you'd have the ultimate in driftable trackday car !

Never really considered them safe for some reason though what with all that mass behind your ears, I mean you wouldn't like to hit anything bigger than a moped in a head-on collision. I'm sure a HKS tuned import could be had for peanuts at auction these days, big bang for bucks, get a T-bar in red and you can go around with a big woolly head sticking out pretending like you're magnum PI in higgens ferrari

Jefferson Darcy

Thanks guys for the replies thus far. It was the mk2 I was talking about.

Gonna go look at a few this weekend. A cursory glance at Carzone and CBG show the semi decent looking ones to be around the 11k mark. I'm not sure if a 1996 car is good value at that kind of money, especially considering the creature comforts and refinement I'd be losing over the Golf.

Squirrel

My dad has a 1993 t-bar, the only problem ever was the alternator, after 10 years

darragh o meara

The mk 1 mr2 is some machine there was a turbo one near me for ages but the lad who owned it wouldnt sell it. There has been a few coming out of the woodwork in south tipp recently. Wouldnt be mad about the mk2 but seriously quick all the same. saw one today with the F40 ferrari bodykit. Looked impressive but lacked the distinctive ferrari exhaust note. The only thing which annoyed me was the fact the chap who owned it tried to convince me it was the real thing even though it was taxed as a toyota and had toyota stamped on the windows........ best of luck finding one. keep us posted on your developement

jayo99

>Thanks guys for the replies thus far. It was the mk2 I was talking about.
>Gonna go look at a few this weekend. A cursory glance at Carzone and CBG show the >semi decent looking ones to be around the 11k mark. I'm not sure if a 1996 car is good >value

Well then it was the MR2 MK 2 you were referring to !!.. The M2 MK1 is the rather square looking one pictured above.
The MK1 was manufactured up to late 88/early 89.
The MK2 was manufactured from there on until 1999. It had numerous revisions/ suspension/handling upgrades along the way but never lost the shape.

Ratchet

528i wrote:

.....Mk1 is not to be taken seriously with that weedy little 1.6 corolla engine) .............

there was Supercharged version introduced in Japan which was nice little rocket.

1995 MR2 Mk2 Rev3 is the one to buy

RicardoSmith

528i wrote:

The Mk2 Turbo (Mk1 is not to be taken seriously with that weedy little 1.6 corolla engine)...

You're not to be taken seriously if thats your opinion of a Mrk1. Its considered to be one thee best handling cars ever. On a par with some of the best Ferrari's. Mid engined and almost a prefect weight distribution. Excellent steering weight and feel. That corolla engine is one of the best engines around aswell. :rolleyes:

Ratchet

Omeara_darragh wrote:

..........mk2 but seriously quick all the same. saw one today with the F40 ferrari bodykit.

there is F355 replica kit for MR2 and F40 kit was really put on pontiac fierro as body kit is to big for mr2.

RicardoSmith

Ratchet wrote:

...........mk2 but seriously quick all the same. saw one today with the F40 ferrari bodykit. ................


there is F355 replica kit for MR2 and F40 kit was really put on pontiac fierro as body kit is to big for mr2.

Its also very sad...

Ratchet

i like the mr2 look and would not waste money on F355 kit which looks close but what is the point

RicardoSmith

Ratchet wrote:

there was Supercharged version introduced in Japan which was nice little rocket.

1995 MR2 Mk2 Rev3 is the one to buy

Standard mrk1 was 122bhp the supercharged one was 145bhp. The States also got the SC model. You see a few of them here too, as Jap imports. I test drove a couple of ragged ones looking for a clean one, probably 5 or 6 yrs ago.

The Mrk2 1995 cars have the rear end suspension adjusted to make it less snappy at the rear. Its a matter of preference really. I'd get as new a one as possible if I was getting one. Turbos are all imports as they were never sold here originally. Then and now insurance is the problem.

Ratchet

additionally, 95 mr2 has bigger brakes and different turbo

RicardoSmith

Ratchet wrote:

additionally, 95 mr2 has bigger brakes and different turbo

And better stereo in the unlikely event that the original one is still there.

Ratchet

i do like MK1 and mk2. mk3 is weird looking

Skank

Hi the mk1s are ok mk2s seem to be nicer good handeler and can be as good of a handeler as a honda nsx but to do that ya would want to have driving skills of micheal shumaker...

there two engines a 1.8 non turbo and a 2.0 liter turbo the turbo has been none to push 250 bhp standered some clame a little more , as for models theres a t bar model and a normal roof model ,and it also comes with an l,s,d if its turbo ,

as for looks its cool .... does job . as gor prices can depend as mjaority of them will have been modified but you could be looky and get a standered one
but if ya get a standered tubo model get a turbo timer it will pretect your cars turbo and stop that worying about the day were blue smoke starts coming out then you no chit ching this is going to cost me other the that agood dervice every four thousand kilometers and keeep her feed with oil she wont do nothing bad on ya ...

as for insurance who no's ......

jayo99

>there two engines a 1.8 non turbo and a 2.0 liter turbo the turbo has been >none to push 250 bhp

If you are going to post info please make sure it is correct.
The MK2 non-turbo is also a 2L (I drive one).

The newest model MR2 (1999-) was a 1.8 L

puntosporting

The mk2 mr2 was never available as a 1.8.
If your looking to japan for one the best n/a is the g-ltd version.
You should factor in when buying one the cost of labour as a timming belt alone is a pain in the arse to fit the whole engine has to be dropped down to fit it.
They are a good looker even today i reckon they have aged well,also stay away from t-bars if possible they nearly always leak due to a poor designed rubber seals.
Also the solid roof version has a more rigid structure and handles that bit better.

puntosporting

Also the lsd was not standard in all the turbo models it was an option,it may have become standard after 96.

Skank

jayo99 ya drive one good for you mate i made a slight mistake , regarding an engine sise , as for the none they can push between 220 and 250 from what ive read ....

as for the t bar well ive heard that my self but never actuly seen one with a leek and ive bee in a few ..

Punto sporting timeing belt is an arse to do on all cars but thats the only bad thing about them really and that tend to leek shore the summers comeing ...

as for power wise how much brake hourse power ya want a can get ive seen 700 bhp mr2s to 350 essy it all depends on what ya wanna do with it ...

De Hipster

RicardoSmith wrote:

You're not to be taken seriously if thats your opinion of a Mrk1. Its considered to be one thee best handling cars ever. On a par with some of the best Ferrari's. Mid engined and almost a prefect weight distribution. Excellent steering weight and feel. That corolla engine is one of the best engines around aswell. :rolleyes:

Hear Hear...I love the mk1, such distinctive styling, recognisible instantly. It's is a demon for handling, powerful, great lift & cornering at speed is a dream even with the 1600 engine!

BlueDrax

puntosporting wrote:

... They are a good looker even today i reckon they have aged well,also stay away from t-bars if possible they nearly always leak due to a poor designed rubber seals.
Also the solid roof version has a more rigid structure and handles that bit better.

The T-Bar leak can be a right pain - Many a wet arse in the morning after rainfall over night.

I've a 90 G-Ltd and a 92 T-Bar Turbo.
The G-Ltd is great around town for nipping in and out of traffic while the Turbo is only happy on wide, open roads.

And who needs a radio when you can listen to the turbo

Ratchet

BlueDrax wrote:

.......Turbo is only happy on wide, open roads.
.............

it all depends who is driving

mista2

I run a '90 SW20 Mk2 Turbo, and it is the best car I've had. I absolutely love my '2.
From the above comments:
Handling: Because of the md-engined/rear wheel drive layout, you have to drive it differently to a front engine/front driver, and it feels very different to a front engine, rear drive. The trick is that you can put the power down earlier in a corner, and all the engine mass moves the weight to the rear wheels improving grip, but compressing the rear suspension. If you've gone into a corner too fast, or something comes the other way in your lane, the automatic response of most people is to get out of the throttle and onto the brake. This rapidly unloads the rear suspension, removing al that extra grip and you end up steering the car through the rear window The trick with the '2 is to curb that instinct, and just modulate the throtle and steering to change your line. This is the same for just about any mid engined car, and doubly so for rear engined cars with no traction or stability control.

Safety: Impact from the front: Huge crumple zone with all that front trunk ahead of you.
Impact from the rear: Rear trunk crumples, engine compartment can compress and the engine is desiged to dropout underneath just like nearly every other car
I've seen a '2 after going off the road, on its roof, and down a bank backwards. The doors still opened, and driver and passenger got out with just bumps and scratches. :eek:

Small engine in the Mk1: Get one with a supercharger Best little road leagal go-cart around.

Check out my website www.mr2.org.nz.

Cheers

Squirrel

Just after seeing this again,

puntosporting wrote:

also stay away from t-bars if possible they nearly always leak due to a poor designed rubber seals.

My dad's one leaked once, he glued extra rubber to the seals the next morning and it hasn't leaked since, that was 5 years ago,

Here's a pic of the car