Toyota MR2's

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Following the Blueflame/Mongoose zorst thread I've been looking at MR2's and didn't know how nice they were (never really looked to be honest). If you were to spend around £1.5k on one with 80k+ miles, what would you be looking for in terms of faults a points to look out for?
 
Just checked your age to see if insurance was going to be an issue and you have the same birthday as me. :p

Same date as well? :D. I've looked into Insurance and it's around the £750 mark which isn't too bad I didn't think.

edit: just checked the date. Happy Birthday for 35ish days ago :D
 
Can't really give you advice on your price range, but I love my MR2.
It's not practical but it's a hoot to drive, sounds great and I love how it looks even as standard. It won't be to everybodies taste, but that's what this place is all about :)
 
Depends on the model but second generation have a good size boot. As long as you go for a non turbo model with a good service history they can do astronomical mileage. Though abused cars can struggle to see 100k. They also cost a lot to fix if things do go wrong. Insurance is very steep for what they are really. Also be careful of jap imports as there are many about and many insurance companies will not cover them or will charge a lot more to do so. I would also warn that if you like pushing a car a bit there not the most friendly and do bite back compared to most road cars. Not really one for a enthusiastic young drivers if you will. You may wish to also have a look at the MX5 as they tend to be cheaper to buy, insure, run and are a much more forgiving and arguably fun car to drive.
 
Been thinking about one of these for ages and acctually half tempted to sell the astra and pick one up.

What are the repair costs like on them though?
 
They are fairly easy to work on, and reliable IMO. My 14 yr old turbo is the most reliable car I have ever had.

Personally, for £1500 I would be looking at mk1s. I think you need to spend more on a mk2. Very different cars, I prefer the mk2 in all honesty but I wouldn't be happy spending under 2K on an NA.
Rev1 mk2 are very unforgiving, which is not a problem if you know what you are doing. rev2 made improvements to make the back end more stable under abuse, rev3 better still but not at your budget.
 
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I agree with the £1500 budget on a Mk1 - you need at least £2.5k to get a decent turbo or £2k to get a decent Mk2 N/A.

I've owned both an N/A powered MR2 and a tubby and I love both engines!

Parts costs are expensive considering (i.e. £100 for a set of OEM front brake discs)
 
I agree with the £1500 budget on a Mk1 - you need at least £2.5k to get a decent turbo or £2k to get a decent Mk2 N/A.

I've owned both an N/A powered MR2 and a tubby and I love both engines!

Parts costs are expensive considering (i.e. £100 for a set of OEM front brake discs)

Is the MkII comfortable at speed? I.e. 50-150 mile motorway trip = pleasure/suitable/annoying/agony?
 
Is the MkII comfortable at speed? I.e. 50-150 mile motorway trip = pleasure/suitable/annoying/agony?

For a low slung sports car there not bad, a lot nicer than a Lotus. But if your comparing them to most normal family runarounds they really are quite poor. You feel the road through them and they tend to bounce on the nose noticeably.
 
They are fairly easy to work on,

Errm..really? Mine was pretty horrible to work on (but lovely to drive).

Is the MkII comfortable at speed? I.e. 50-150 mile motorway trip = pleasure/suitable/annoying/agony?

I did Plymouth to Norwich (~360 miles) a few times in mine and it was fine. Then again I much prefer cars with firm suspension rather than wallowy barges.
 
Errm..really? Mine was pretty horrible to work on (but lovely to drive).



I did Plymouth to Norwich (~360 miles) a few times in mine and it was fine. Then again I much prefer cars with firm suspension rather than wallowy barges.

I find the service items on my car to be pretty easy to work on (brakes, engine ignition bits etc) - although much of the suspension is nicely corroded together and requires some persuasion to part!

you joking right?

you can buy them £40 a set for the front, thats oem toyota

rogue rip you off on brakes big time ;(

OEM front pads alone are now £50 from my local Toyota stealership
 
I find the service items on my car to be pretty easy to work on (brakes, engine ignition bits etc) -

The oil filter is in the most ridiculous place ever on the Rev1/2, right next to the nice hot turbo, so burnt fingers are te order of the day, and it's mounted upside down so oil pee's all over the place when you undo it.

although much of the suspension is nicely corroded together and requires some persuasion to part!

Mine was the same. Along with dozens of silly little 6mm bolts holding the undertrays on that sheared off if you even picked up a 10mm spanner in their vicinity.

Wait until one of the heater pipes cracks and you need to drop the fuel tank to get to it. Oh what fun that was :rolleyes:

EDIT: found a pic of when the head gasket went on mine and had to drop the engine:
lift.jpg


Note engine lifter is actually lifting the car in the pic!
 
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