RS Grant

Ok, on Friday I am going through to a Jap Import Garage to look at a 1997 P-Reg Rev 4 MR2 Turbo, in black.

Its got: Climate Control, LSD, Twin Air Bags, CD Player, 240+bhp, Full Sports Exhaust, Twin Recaros, Lowered and Uprated on Fully Adjustable Coilovers, 17" Alloys. Auction Grade 4.5...

Are these car reliable, as I will be using it as a daily driver until september when my company car arrives. All I am planning to do it to fit a Blitz i.D Boost Controller and a Blitz DCII Turbo Timer.. As I assume this would leave the car reliable, without stressing engine/transmission too much??

Does anyone have any good or bad points to say about these cars??

Some guy pulled into a petrol station in a yellow Rev 2 Turbo and told me that they are unreliable as ****, and that I should stick with my Scoob....... Which kind of puts a wee bit of uncertanty(sp?) in my mind about changing!?

Cheers,
Grant

Ciaran

iTrader: (16)

selling her so soon mate what a shame!
scotland wet roads rear wheel drive car
dont be taking any off road trips!

Nicci

MR2 is very reliable if looked after.

As with most cars, the more you play about with them, the more likely they are to go wrong.

If you want more info or want to talk to people owning similar models to the one you are interested in then try:

T.O.C.
MR2OC
IMOC

I am switching later this year from MR2 to Scooby and I am expecting the scoob to be more unreliable.
Why do we take notice of the bad bits?

RS Grant

Yeah, to be honest I am looking for something different mate. Dont see many MR2-T's around about me, unlike Scoobs!!

Also, absolutely pi$$ed off with the lack of Customer Service that I get from the Subaru Dealer and Subaru UK; especially considering the bills that they keep putting my way. It (aftersales) has really put me off having another one to be honest.

I know what you mean about RWD and wet roads, however, the Rev3 owards received suspension mods and TCS which helped to control the back end from kicking out like it did in the Rev1+2 models. I'm not saying it wont happen, its just that I might get a little more warning in a newer model.

Cheers,
Grant

RS Grant

Thanks for the info Nicci...

What sort of MR2 have you got?? Have you had any bother with it??

This car is up for 8995, does that sound like a decent price for it!?

Cheers,
Grant

Nicci

I don't have an MR2 turbo, but plenty of mates do. I have had no problems with mine at all and would love to keep the MR2 as well as getting a scoob, but it would be too expensive to run both.

I am not too clued up on the turbo prices, but I think 8995 sounds a little expensive, I would say 8k, but people can always be knocked down on their price.
As I mentioned, ask about it in one or all of the sites and some tubby owners will come to the rescue (as I can't be specific enough).

If you are really interested, an MR2 turbo owner may view the car with you. I know a great guy in Edinburgh (thats the closest to you that I actually know).

Dream Weaver

I had a Rev 3 NA with the higher output engine. Fantastic car, ultra reliable.

The only niggle I had with it was that it wasnt the most communicative of cars when out on the country roads. When I sold it last year and bought the 205 I realised just how lardy the MR2 felt round the twisties.

All in all though a good car, and more practical than some think.

Ciaran

iTrader: (16)

grant one of my mates bought a 15k miler L plate although no turbo for about £6K 2 months ago it full spec and had all the leather air con etc in it and a set of 18in split rims also so a rough idea of what ur looking 4!

Subarstar

£6..... are you sure m8?

If so where did he get it, I 'll take 2.

Muffleman

I have an MR2 Turbo, and it has been bomb proof ! Admittedly, most parts now say something other than Toyota , but I've had no probs.

I'm very surprised to hear of anyone finding these cars 'unreliable as ****', I rarely hear of them having problems, even highly tuned.

A Rev 3/4 with mild mods will easily give a usable, reliable 300bhp.

There are a few ex-tubby owners on scoobynet, and I'm sure they'll back me up.

Try and take someone with you, and make sure it is what it says it is and you'll be ok. www.imoc.co.uk has a FAQ and links etc.

All the best


Matt

Oh, and this seems like a perfectly good opportunity to post a pic of my car

Dream Weaver

That looks gorgeous Muffleman

Still miss mine sometimes, especially for runs to the lakes on a summers day

Scoobychick

iTrader: (1)

Console yourself with the thought that you'd only get stuck behind one of many slow moving caravans on the way up there...

Oops, sorry

RS Grant

Nicci.. The import garage is through in Edinburgh, and I am planning to go through to see the car on Friday early afternoon, or Saturday sometime. I would really appreciate some input from someone who knows some in-depth things about MR2-T's so that I dont end up buying a scrapper that needs alot of work.

Muffleman.. I didnt think that those cars were unreliable, but thats what the guy said to me when I asked about his car at the petrol station. Unless, maybe he got one that had been through a rough life without being properly maintained?!

I take it that the transmission, etc on these cars is over-engineered so wont be struggling with mild upgrades. Aiming for a max bhp of 320bhp, but anything around 290-300 would be plenty!!

Cheers,
Grant

Muffleman

I'd say you're right, my tubby is conservatively around 340-350bhp, it has a fully rebuilt engine with forgies etc, and a stage 5 hybrid turbo - basically a similar spec. to an RS 500 turbo . I'm 'only' running 1.5bar boost max at the moment, as the next job is the MoTec ECU.
However, I'm still using the standard gearbox, LSD etc, and no problems so far.

Toyota seem to have a habit of building mechanically strong cars, Supra's are also known for being strong 'out of the box'.

There used to be an excellent FAQ on MR2 Turbos with everything you need to identify a car, engine no.s, chassis no.s, etc but it seems to be offline - I'll keep looking for it and let you know if I find it.

Matt

Muffleman

Hello again !

Give this a read http://www.imoc.co.uk/technical/buye...uyersGuide.htm

Matt

krazy

Did toyota actually make these http://www.mr2-direct-imports.co.uk/ click the stocklist top of list 1997 mr2 trd spyder, or is it some other conversion?

Dream Weaver

LOL

You can tow with a 2, just

Nicci

I can't get in touch with my MR2 contact.

I have put out a general call on an MR2 site for people local to the garage, had no replies as yet.

Doesn't help that many are travelling down to Santa Pod this weekend.

Hope its a good car.