Thinking of buying turbo--->

[1crb1]

hi bit of a quick one really, i no alot of newbies ask some stupid questions but....
Am looking to sell my elise and pay off everything so that i can save for a house (boring!)
wanted something quick and fun for around £3-3.5k mark and have always fancied a mr2 turbo. Now the main questions is this is all well and good but how reliable generally are these!
i no it all depends on loads of factors but generally i would like to here from you guys on what you think! espech as its only going to be a few grand car after all or is it best to leave these sorts well alone!! I am a mechanic by trade so alot of work can be done by myself but i dont really want the thing to break down every bloody morning!
thanks in advance chaps!

[nailmonkey]

Hi,

It's a toyota, they don't break down!! Having said that I've had to be towed twice in 80,000 miles but to be fair, both times I have had advance warning that something would need attention soon. First time water pump on a Mk1, started rattling about 2 days before it gave up, Second time brakes seized (Mk2 turbo).

Spares are easy to get and you can do the work yourself, I'd say go for it.

Nik

PS: Welcome to IMOC

[GGilbert_MR2]

Mr2 - Very reliable

Lotus - Lot of Trouble Usually Serious

[Neal]

Mr2 - Very reliable

Lotus - Lot of Trouble Usually Serious

They have love affairs with their head gaskets the elise does

[nailmonkey]

I'd imagine the newer ones are pretty reliable, it's a Toyota engine after all...

Nik

[mattcambs]

They have love affairs with their head gaskets the elise does

That's Rover power for you

[Mike 'MR2' McHugh]

Your not gonna get any bad remarks about them here mate.......i think they are amazing cars.

[1crb1]

i no this is a mr2 forum after all but..........
yup lotus's do eat there k-series head gaskets, its not just lotus, its all rovers espech freelanders-there terrible 4 it!
any other advise would be much appreciated!

[Turbo-G]

Plastic dowels and inefficiant cooling system is the major floor on the k series engine, however it is a good engine.

If you are a mechanic by trade you should be able to spot a rough one a mile off.

Buy as new as your budget allows (possibly aim for a rev3), and go for lowish miles. If you want reliability go for one that has been looked after and not fettled with other than general maintenance.

imo I would also avoid 'fresh imports' from traders, as often the people selling the car don't know anything about the car, and are often very mis guided on the facts.

[skipp123]

i had the same thoughts when buying my 2 scared it would break down all the time so i brought a £300 metro 1.1 for daily comute and kept the 2 for sunny days also makes the 2 seem faster when uv been driving a metro all week

[Leon.]

There's no doubt the MR2 is a great car, but there are some bad examples out there. You just have to look for the good ones, and maybe be prepared to stretch to £4k or a bit more for a good rev 3.

Best way is to look at the market and see what you can grab! Look at as many as poss before deciding so you know what you can get for what money, and to know the good from the bad.

[splashnatz]

From what i can tell, the more stock the car is, the more reliable it is. ('spose that's the rule of thumb with every car though really)

[Bobby (aka Shaggar)]

these might help depending on how much you already know about the Tubbies?...............

http://www.infoideas.net/mr2s/Toyota_MR2_Mk2s.htm

http://www.btinternet.com/~netsurf/mr2t/mr2tfaq.html

At that price range mate , youre gonna be faced with a lot of skips mate. As ive said many times, the prices of 2s are quite boyant despite what some people might have you believe. Good MR2s still fetch adn dictate good money. Unfortunately the market does look artificially depressed because of the amount of dogs appearing on the scene as 'some' UK owners have had thier direspectful way with them for the past few years. Even a minter Rev1 will command good money.

I was in a sheet ice 'incident' years back and looked at the poss of getting another cheap 2 to transfer everything over to or combine parts with. But everything i saw under 4k was a dog mate. One example described as 'good for year' came round smoking, shot wheel bearings, a ding on EVERY panel and wring problems everywhere. I seriously old him he needed help and I'd give him half a pack of Quavers for it!



Admittedly this is a few years ago so price 'have' come downa bit. ike someone said above, you'll spot a dog froma mileoff. there are , however, the rare examples of 'house deposit needed' or 'lost job' etc where you may find an absolute steal but in my opinion these are indeed rare.

Like already said, i would look to up your budget to over 4k for a goodun of any revision if youre looking for something to chersih rather than an occasional trackslag.

my 2ps worth


HTH



Bobby

[Quigonjay]

tubby owner looking for an elise -

http://www.imoc.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=54034