Im thinking of buying a Toyota MR2 Turbo

[josh_isakson]

Yo guys,

I was thinking of buying a Toyota MR2 Turbo 90-95

What are the things I should be aware of? What is the stock engine capable of producing? How are these vehicle's for handling? Whats it gonna cost me to hit 11's with this car safely?

Help me out here guys!

Thanks

 

[jamesA]

Have fun trying to find one. I know of one in town... the guy said he searched for 6 years to find it.

 

[josh_isakson]

And how do I get these headlights?!

 

[jamesA]

buy a car with those headlights on it...

 

[NissanNiNjA2nd]

Revolution wins the asshole of the day award!... heh jk man

get on a car site and search for the car in your area

cars.com
autotrader.com

the like...

basically it wont be to hard

 

[Battle Pope]

What should you be aware of???

They are extremely rare... even moreso if you want one that runs and drives...

Even though the car is designed decently, and it is a turbo, it is not especially fast. Mid-engine cars are designed more for handling than speed.

The car is extremely small, inside and out. The only vehicle that is more confined IIRC is the Honda DelSol. Add in the pitifully small "trunk" (approximately 18" deep, 10" wide, and about 4 feet long) and you have a real optimal car for packing not much more than yourself and a friend.

They are really fun donor cars for V6/Small Block swap, but that requires a ton of beating it and untold amounts of time and work.

 

[josh_isakson]

Thanks... there's some within 300 miles on autotrader. One with 600 miles on the rebuilt engine... I dont like buying cars with rebuilt engines. And those headlights I havn't been able to find anywhere.

Would it be super hard to make it an 11 second car?

Thanks guys

 

[Hexen]

Originally posted by josh_isakson@Jul 21 2004, 09:58 AM
Would it be super hard to make it an 11 second car?

[post=366335]Quoted post[/post]​

It would be super expensive.

I'm not sure how much parts go for on MR2's... but have you ever driven in an 11 second car? Proabably not, most of us probably have not.

11 seconds = probably 20-30g's of work into any car.. if not more.
If you have that kind of budget... go talk to a performance shop in soCal.

 

[Battle Pope]

The simple answer is: If you just want an 11-second car within X amount of money, stop looking at imports. The ONLY way to make an import into an 11-second car is to start with something like a 4th gen supra TT or a Skyline R34 and spend another 20 to 30 thousand. Grab yourself a domestic and rock that V8 displacement.

 

[NotUrAverage_Si]

Originally posted by Hexen+Jul 21 2004, 11:07 AM-->

josh_isakson

@Jul 21 2004, 09:58 AM

Would it be super hard to make it an 11 second car?

[post=366335]Quoted post[/post]​

11 seconds = probably 20-30g's of work into any car.. if not more.
If you have that kind of budget... go talk to a performance shop in soCal.

[post=366342]Quoted post[/post]​

Whoa niggy, slow down there. Not every person will necessarily spend that much $$$ to reach an 11 second quarter mile. There are a lot of factors that will determine this. One of them will be are you paying someone to build your setup or are you doing it yourself with the help of friends? Also the type of car/platform you're starting off with is a big factor. It's not gonna take 20g's to get a new Cobra or z06 into the 11's. Turbo size and boost pressure also apply. Let's take my setup here for an example: And I'll even round up to the highest #. My setup is a b16 with stock internals, nothing special.

1.Stage 1 Full-Race turbo kit (up to 450hp)= $4000
2.Hondata S200w/boost, full throttle shift/launch control/3 step rev limiter, 3 Bar MAP sensor, P28 from Hondata = $880
3. RC 550cc (or bigger) injectors = $280
4. GReddy EBC = $300
5. AEM FPR = $160
6. CS Stage 2 clutch (pressure plate and clutch disc) $265
7. Walbro 255lph fuel pump = $80
8. Dyno/Tune Time = $400.

Now lets add in some more stuff that I don't have to help me reach the 11's.
1. TEIN Super Street Damper Kit = $950
2. Mickey Thompson ET Slicks = $500
3. Full-Race traction Bars = $350
4. Full-Race roll cage = $600 (won't let me race without one of these )
5. Quaife LSD = $900
6. Driveshaft shop level 3 Axles = $1000
Total = $10,665

Of course this is all on stock internals tuned with Hondata. So let's add in the price if I were to have a built bottom end:

1. $1000 to send in my block to GE for HD Series sleeves/bore and hone.
2. $500 will get me a great set of pistons/rings/wrist pins
3. $625 for a set of Full-Race turbo tuff rods
4. $120 for ARP head studs
5. $ we'll just say $150 for a custom headgasket from GE.

Total = $13,060

And the rest is left up the skills of the driver

Of course it will be much more expensive if you're having a shop do it for you. Probably add in another 8 to 10g's worth of labor costs, depending on whose doing your work and the prices they charge. If this were the case then I can see where your coming from, but like I said before 20-30g's won't apply to everyone.

 

[Celerity]

No such thing as a 90 MR2. MR2 Turbos are beat by the time they reach the used market. Getting power from an MR2 for drag is actually easy, as traction comes to them easier than most FR or FF cars.

A stock turbo, weight reduction, and megasquirt will see into 12's. That's about $600. Beyond that, Usual turbo upgrades, replace the trunk with an intercooler, tom's scoop, and upgraded fuel pump / rail / injectors and I'm sure you'll see what you want.

Good luck. Thanks for destroying another rare car.

-> Steve

 

[JDMilan]

slow it down boys,,,,,,,,,,,a lot more than that to get that motor to run properly with a larger turbo, fuel, and proper ECU tuning......... a lot more.


actually my buddies MR2 with about 10k in mods still couldn't beat my NA EG...LOL

he ran a best 13.5 at the track before being kicked out for not having a helmet..


the MR is a mother out of the hole,,,,,,,,I always noticed that his car never never ran properly from day to day......one day it would run like shit, another great..


I would rather start on a different platform...........just my opinion..

 

[BlackFrog]

A del Sol actually has alot more room than an MR2. I should know, i own a Sol, and i have a friend with a MR2 turbo. His interior is much more cramped than mine (and more poorly laid out too IMO) and his trunk is a joke compared to mine.

To me, things you need to worry about with that car is the basic maintance things. Everything is a bitch to do on that car due to space. We did a clutch on one at work 2 months ago, what a fucking pain in the ass. I helped my buddy change his BOV, and valve cover, easy things on normal cars, were a pain in the ass. They are nowhere near as easy to work on as a Honda

-Chris

 

[asmallsol]

Originally posted by BlackFrog@Jul 28 2004, 07:59 PM
A del Sol actually has alot more room than an MR2. I should know, i own a Sol, and i have a friend with a MR2 turbo. His interior is much more cramped than mine (and more poorly laid out too IMO) and his trunk is a joke compared to mine

-Chris

[post=369469]Quoted post[/post]​

Defently. Eveyone knocks the sol for lack of room, but really, there is TONS of room for a tiny 2 seater. I can fit an entire set of tires in the car, ski's, snowboards, 4 golfbags (that was before I had a strut bar) and a bunch of other stuff. My brother who is 6'2 can fit in it comfortably no problem.

a Miata on the other hand, now thats a tiny car (and I love it)

 

[K2e2vin]

i thought about a mr2 also. the toyota guys say the 91 and 92 models are the best for handling, and that the 93 understeers. but they seem kinda heavy, like around 2800lbs.

here are some mr2 1/4 mile times http://www.mr2ownersclub.com/quartermile/
if you click on the guy's name with the fastest time(like 10.2 sec) it shows you his setup.

 

[MaaseyRacer]

Here is my opinion on the cars handling. I posted this on another MR2 potential purchasing thread on this site.

These cars are quirky as hell, and I think in the end it is going to handle like your honda.
The car is RWD yes, fun? No. These things plow and push like a motherfucker, and then have snap oversteer. They eat up rear tires, and are not that reliable. My roommates miata will walk all over them at the track (road course).
The funny thing is, they "feel" like a Honda. They feel nice and tight but have a little understeer. The problem is once you get the car to come loose, there's no holding it back. It'll spin and there's nothing you can do about it. A nice suspension and some tweaking can overcome this, but it takes work.
Conclusion: MR2's are not all they're cracked up to be. Nice looking cars, but they handle like pigs and are a bitch to work on. You will end up modding this car as much as your civic to get it to what you want. They are great looking cars, but not a great handling car.


Now since you want a drag car, yeah this car I think is better suited for that even though that is not what it was made for. If you want to run 11s, I would look at spending quite a bit of money as when running times like that you are going to be putting a lot of strain on the motor. So build for reliability.

 

[K2e2vin]

just wanted to let you guys know, the winner of the 04 SCC Ultimate Street Car Challenge is a yellow MR2! he got like just above 1g on the skidpad.
http://bedellracing.home.comcast.net/uscc.html