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I'm new here so thought I may as well post up a little intro and a few snaps of my car.
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I bought my MR2 in December last year as a fresh import after getting disheartened with my MX5 turbo project which I ended up breaking to fund the purchase of the MR2.
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Initially I wanted a black one and it had to be a rev3+ coupe, but having searched the auctions myself for a little while nothing really turned up that took my fancy, I definitely didn't want something that had already been owned/driven in the UK so when I saw this car as a fresh import already in the country
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here it is as I first saw it on the website:
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auction shot from japan
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![Image](http://i1004.photobucket.com/albums/af163/rob_ramsey/mr2%20turbo/582D0BD2-305E-4B8D-AB55-B480B55D691C_zps2ecemsfw.jpg)
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few snaps from the dealer
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so although it wasn't the colour I wanted It was worth a look, I traveled down to DCY with my GF for a look at it, it was pretty standard with a few little extras such as the work wheels, KYB gymkhana's, braided hoses, HKS hi power exhaust, ARC induction box, apexi BOV etc however the most important thing is that as with most imports it is structurally MINT, not a spec of rust anywhere and no obvious accident damage.
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here's a few pics of when i went to view it:
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the initial test drive was good, the engine was strong and the only issues that were noteworthy were a stiff gear change, creaky clutch and it didn't get up to temp on the move
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apart from that, and the tacky interior I was mega happy with the car so left a deposit there and then and returned two weeks later to take it home.
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bearing in mind this was a car to replace a project, to be
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I suspected it was in need of a thorough service, and while DCY did an oil and filter I replaced the rest of the fluids and filters myself.
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which was replaced with a HKS triple layer panel
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and I bought a HKS oil filter at the same time, I usually service my cars every 3 months
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pretty much at the same time I ordered a genuine replacement TRD gear knob to replace the shiny beast that was in the car, and a leather gear gaiter to replace the one that looked like it was fitted in the dark ages
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I also replaced the super shiny MOMO with a beautiful 330mm Nardi deep corn, easily my favorite upgrade I've made to the car, so nice to hold.
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I also fitted a leather handbrake cover which left the interior looking something like this, a HUGE change from when I bought it and such a nicer place to be
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so my first actual job was to try and sort the generally poor gearchange, maybe coming from a MX5, which have a beautiful gearbox, to a remote cable shift has spoilt me?
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anyway I bought some shift bearings to replace the bushes, a B&M copy quick shift, a new toyota nylon gear cup, and some decent gear oil and got to work
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the oil that came out looked clean and clear
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which is a good thing, obviously.
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after that little lot was fitted the gearchange was transformed, still not a patch on the old MX5 but significantly better, I also fitted a tegiwa 3.75" gearstick extension, simply because I like having the knob closer to the wheel and it gives a much more positive feel when banging up and down the box.
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in the quest for more power I bought this
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which lay in my cupboard under the stairs till i gathered the rest of the parts for what I'd class as a
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berk ceramic coated DP
AEM uego wideband
SMIC kit
greddy Multi D/A meter with oil temp
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all of the above was fitted over a couple of days at home when I was on leave
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I also changed the thermostat, the old one was split and the valve was rattling abut doing nothing at all.
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immediately I wasn't happy with ebay i/c kit, the core is fine but the pipes and joiners are crap, I never even contemplated using the mickey mouse T bolt hose clips, replacing them with real jubilee's instead.
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I bought one of GTS-Chris' BERK one piece top pipes which is a much nicer with than the beijing spec one
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and fitted
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the only thing now is that the cheapo silicone reducer for the trottle body is too big, I have a high quality reducer on my kitchen bench waiting to be fitted tomorrow.
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I then went for a drive along the A69 and over the hartside pass to take some pictures and to set the boost controller up.
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that's about it for now, I'm sure there's plenty I've missed, and lots I haven't taken pictures of
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My plans for the future:
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fit the bomex front bumper and PP spats i have in the garage
fit the bomex drift wing when it turns up from carben fibre creations
replace the tyres with 595 rsr's
refurb the wheels
replace the KYB's with some HSD mono's
full set of poly bushes
fit the GRP side mount bucket that's sat in my spare bedroom
powder coat the intercooler pipes, crossover pipe and rocker cover
maybe invest in a power FC
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anyway, all comments and feedback are welcome, thanks for looking
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Rob