Good Old Toyota

Phaeton

Moderator
Staff member
Long long ago before the turn of the century I made a rash promise to my wife that was 'When you're 40 I'll buy you a 2 seater sports car' at the time she didn't have a license so I figured I was on safe ground. Anyway roll on about 16 years & I ask what she wanted for her 40th birthday to get a reply of 'I thought I was getting a 2 seater sports car' Oops I'd forgotten about that At the time we had 2 teenage kids so clearly it was very practical. Anyway with my usual Yorkshire splashing the cash around, I went & bought a MR2 MK1 with an engine problem, then went out & bought another to rob some parts off it, swapped over the engine loom & we had a nice little runaround. This was in the early days of Fleecebay 2002, I made a tidy sum on parting out the remaining bits, this was the start of my love affair with these cars. Over hte last 16 years I think we've had 7 of them in various states of repair. The only issue with them is they lack grunt, so after about a year we sold the MK1 & we bought a MK2 Turbo, which was an awesome car

dsc00797.jpg


But the desire was to have the MK2 2.0L Turbo engine in the MK1 chassis so along came this beauty

IMAG0213.jpg


I spent a fortune getting the bodywork up to standard, to take it for an MOT to find it was as rotten as a peach underneath, I'd already bought a 2.1L stroker Turbo engine for it, but I was so devastated I sold everything & vowed not to buy another one.

So roll on 2 years in the meantime we bought & sold a MR2 MK3 (didn't like it) although I did buy a Celica 190 2ZZ engine to put in it, bought & sold a Saxo VTS we used on the track, then one day whilst on the twobrutal forum somebody put up a for sale for a MK1 that already had a V6 Camry engine fitted, but there was a problem with the gearbox. It was & I suppose still is the 2nd V6 converted MK1 in the UK, it was being converted in Manchester at the same time as the 1st one that was being done at the famous Woodsport in Durham, it again was & still is the 1st road legal V6 MK1 in the UK.

So I contacted JB who built & owned it, went over to look at it, put my hand in my pocket & bought it, I can tell you I had some sleepless nights, buying a car that had not been on the road for 8 years, can't hear the engine running, gearbox doesn't work because the driveshafts don't fit. JB had got the car on the road & in 2006 was backing from JAE the big Jap show & on the way back the diff seized, he could still drive but the car tried to push forward & not turn. It had an early turbo gearbox fitted so JB replaced it with a later model turbo gearbox with LSD, at the time it was thought that only the E153 turbo gearbox could handle the power, now it's known that the standard E53 gearbox is also suitable & because of the ratios a better gearbox.

To Be Continued
 

Phaeton

Moderator
Staff member
So we trailered the car home & got it onto the drive, the battery had been moved to the front & the cable was just laid above the gearbox in the engine bay, we pulled the cable slightly up in the air & made sure it couldn't touch anything & turned the key! Nothing! no lights, no fans no nothing, so back into the engine bay & found another big cable that looked like it originally fed the starter motor, so connected the 2 together & tried again, turned the key, the dashboard lights came on, the heating fan ran, I heard the fuel pump prime, & all the exterior lights worked. Enough for today we have some success.

So a little more about the gearbox issue, JB had changed the gearbox for a later model & although the nearside shaft fitted the offside wouldn't, the engine has a carrier on it which when you put the shaft through went tight & wouldn't go fully into the gearbox. He was convinced that when he'd offered up the gearbox that the engine & the gearbox hadn't lined up properly & that the it was open at one side. His recommendation was to remove the engine & gearbox sort out the issue on the floor & put it back in again, so that was my aim. My concern was that if I removed the engine & it wouldn't start when I put it back in then I would not know was it an existing fault or one that I had made, I decided that the engine had to be running before I removed it. At least that way I knew it it didn't start when I put it back it was my fault.

I fitted the starter motor, connected up any loose wiring I could see, put the dizzy cap back on & connected the leads, I thought I may as well see what happens, there was no manifolds on the car so any exhaust fumes would come straight out of the heads, the fuel was 8 years old, I was going to get some new but thought what the hell. I turned the key & nothing happened, OMG I've spent a shed load of money on a pup, pass me the noose. With my son sat in the drivers seat with the key turned to start I moved the wiring & suddenly it briefly spun over, then moving it again it tried again. I eventually found a connector that wasn't fully home. So here was the moment of truth, turned the key, I would say in less than 3 seconds she fired straight up, only on 5 cylinders but she started, bloody hell it was noisy, only ran it for 10 seconds but that was enough to know it lives.

20161030_160237.jpg


20161030_160247.jpg


20161030_160318.jpg


20161030_160308.jpg


There is a whole sage on getting it rolling under it's own power, let me know if you want to read it.
 

Lilspeed

Member
Brilliant Alan 8) Popcorn to hand and awaiting the next installment!!

I remember hearing you say you had the Mk3 at Stoneleigh one year, but didn't realise you were as much of an MR2 fan.
That motor looks a bit of a squeeze in there! Is that 3VZ or 1MZ? Lovely car, not many tidy Mk1's left now I'd imagine.
Like the spoiler on the Mk2 too!

I'll see if I can dig out some pics of mine!
 

Phaeton

Moderator
Staff member
It's the 3VZ-FE when it was done they were plentiful & the 1MZ were far more expensive bit like the 1MZ VVTI is now, it is tight in there but it's actually 2" wider began the struts, but it does have a trapdoor into the boot. The best thing is that it is absolutely solid underneath when it went for MOT he was amazed, he took me some pictures I'll post them up.

Yes I like my MR2's, problem I see is there is no real alternative & probably never will be.
 

Lilspeed

Member
Nice :) Very lucky to find a solid Mk1!!
Yep, shame they never kept the MR2 going I always thought. There's obviously a strong market for 2 seaters given the amount of MX5s and MGFs on the roads.
Interested to know what put you off the Mk3? Granted it's definitely the ugly sister, but I have a bit of a hankering for one mainly for the lightweight, bare bones nature of them. Bit like a poor man's Elise?
 

Phaeton

Moderator
Staff member
Few reasons for disliking the MK3 it was woefully underpowered even more so than the MK1, that's why I was going to swap out for the 2ZZ engine. Another reason was the steering it was far too light it gave no feed back at all making a very light front end even worse. Getting in & out was an issue for me, the sills are so high to give it strength it made it very awkward. But the last reason was the biggest the wife didn't like it!
 

Lilspeed

Member
My MR2 story started with MX5s! I was fed up with welding and fixing the Mini I had at the time instead of driving and enjoying it so started looking for a cheapish weekend car for a bit of reliable fun. An MX5 fitted the bill nicely but after looking at a couple I just found them a little bit too "twee". So I investigated other options and realised that the MK2 MR2 was also in the right budget and not too hard to come across and I'd always liked them.
The first one I went to look at was a 92 T bar UK car down in the New Forest. The garage that was selling it had known the car all it's life, and it had been looked after really well. Full history, all old MOTs, receipts and tax discs, just under 80k on the clock and in great nick. The last owner had had some lowering springs fitted (they looked brand new!), but otherwise it was factory. So I knocked the chap down a couple hundred quid and shook his arm off! ;D


It was incredibly twitchy on the lowered springs and standard shocks, so the first job was a set of standard springs. This made the nose sit a bit high but it drove beautifully so I wasn't too bothered!
The original plan for the 2 was to keep it nice and original, keep the miles down if possible, and wait and hope for it to appreciate in value a bit. They couldn't get much cheaper right?! Yeah right . . . :(

So Plan B started with some eBay bargains in the form of a Mongoose silencer and a set of 16" Enkei RP01s ;D


Wheels blasted and powder coated and fitted with Toyo T1R's . . .


Autopista copy spoiler . . .


And this is how the dear old girl looks now . . .


I've had it just over 4 years now and done the cam belt and alternator, had to make a couple repairs to the o/s sill, the brakes don't like doing nothing all winter, but I got her out of the garage for the first time this year at the weekend and the grin factor is still huge! Fantastic car for nearly 26 years old.
If a V6 donor turns up at the right money I may well attempt a transplant, but whatever happens it's not leaving my little collection any time soon.
 

250buggys

Well-known member
Does look in nice condition for the age, I don't think you had that rear spoiler fitted when I saw you at the car show the other year.
 

Lilspeed

Member
250buggys":2ae5kvc2 said:
Does look in nice condition for the age, I don't think you had that rear spoiler fitted when I saw you at the car show the other year.

I've seen cleaner ones than mine but most of them are a lot worse at that age! :D

You're right about the spoiler Chris, that went on over the winter of 2015/16.
 

Phaeton

Moderator
Staff member
Well I'm toying with letting mine go, I want to do an odd trackday & can't in the MK1 as can't wear a helmet there's not enough headroom, so I decide to sell then go out for a drive, decide I'm keeping it & think about getting another set of seat runners & try to fit a lowered seat. Then it sits there for a few days & I decide to sell, then go out for a drive, you can see where this is going.

20170218_142237.jpg


20170218_142221.jpg


20170218_142245.jpg


Only bits that need sorting are

20170218_142420.jpg


20170218_142432.jpg


20170218_164736.jpg


Youtube of the sound which makes me not want to lt it go
https://youtu.be/rQdBBHj8AKU
 

Lilspeed

Member
Crikey that sounds nice Alan!
And before you ask, no, I don't want to buy it!! ;D

I have the same problem with headroom in the mk2 - the T bar shades had to come out so I could wear my lid but it still knocked against the glass. Would have popped the roof out but it was a tad chilly :-\

So would you get another MR2 for the track or something different?
 

Phaeton

Moderator
Staff member
When we had the MK2 Turbo I don't remember having any headroom issues I did Bedford in it, so IF I do sell I think after the house extension is complete I'd consider getting a MK2 would have to be Turbo, or put a V6 in.
 

Phaeton

Moderator
Staff member
Lilspeed":2plksrct said:
And before you ask, no, I don't want to buy it!! ;D
How about a nice little 2GRFE engine with the full install kit, there has one just come up for sale on twobrutal?
 

Lilspeed

Member
Might go to a grand for the whole car, but definitely a bit steep for just a lump and loom.

I think a running, driving Camry is the safest bet.
Still enjoying it with the 4 pot so I'm in no hurry :)
 

Phaeton

Moderator
Staff member
This is a very special car, it was the 2nd V6 conversion ever started, but more importantly it was the 1st that was actually legally driven & registered on the road in the UK. I take no glory in the building as it t was built by a qualified Aeronautical Engineer to a very high standard there is a 45 page build manual over on twobrutal if you want to see it's history. It started life as a standard MK1 which had been very well looked after which had only 3 previous owners, with under 60K miles. The car was completed, driven for a while but on the way back from JAE in 2008 (I think) there was an issue with the differential which locked up & effectively acted like a welded diff. The car was put into the garage & left until last year when I bought it from the builder, the gearbox was replaced with a low mileage turbo box with LSD, it was my intention to keep the car as we were moving to a bungalow which had storage space & garages, but that has all fallen through & I now have nowhere to keep it.

It really is in very good condition there is just starting to show a small amount of rust on the nearside arch but it is still very solid & I was quoted £100 to put it right.

Engine

Normally aspirated 3.0Litre V6 engine from Toyota Camry
Intake cone filter attached to AFM in place of original air filter
Aluminium Fidenza flywheel
Standard exhaust system from Yoyota MR2 MK2 GTS with connecting pipe modified to match Camry downpipes
Engine mounts custom fabricated from 4mm mild steel with chassis members reinforced to suit
Engine rubber insulators from Toyota MR2 MK2 GTS

Transmission

Standard Toyota Celica GT4 clutch
Gearbox Toyota MR2 MK2 Rev3 Turbo with LSD
Driveshafts combination of Camry & GT4

Suspension

KYB gas shocks absorbers front & rear
Rear anti-roll bar upgraded to MR2 MK2 Turbo 19mm unit

Brakes
Standard front discs upgraded from 256mm to 280mm diameter
Standard front calipers upgraded to Willwood 4 pot calipers

Wheels
TSW Apex 16" Alloy wheels
Yokohama A539 205/45 R16 87V

It's MOT'd until December 2017

20170315_164853.jpg


20170315_164907.jpg


20170315_164916.jpg


20170315_164931.jpg


20170315_164939.jpg


20170315_174328.jpg


20170218_142515.jpg


20170218_142505.jpg


20170218_142432.jpg


20170218_142420.jpg


20170218_142450.jpg


20170218_142356.jpg


20170218_142346.jpg


IMG-20161229-WA0009.jpg


IMG-20161229-WA0008.jpg


IMG-20161229-WA0006.jpg


IMG-20161229-WA0005.jpg


IMG-20161229-WA0002.jpg


IMG-20161229-WA0000.jpg


So if you have got this far you may well be interested, so finally the price, it's £3500 car is located in Worksop North Notts
 
Top