The age old debate.
.
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I'm a mk1SC owner so you may read 30% bias into my thoughts but I still consider them a fair appraisal of the situation.
LOOKS:
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.Mk1 and Mk2's are both outdated.
.Mk3 Looks too bland from the factory but can look great with the right Kit
(I even toyed with the idea of getting one before coming to my senses).
Mk3 looks like a boxter from the front, the pros are it looks more expensive and a bit sexy, the cons are it can appear to be a
"Poor mans porsche".
Mk2 Looks like a FORD PROBE
(bad,bad car) from the front and is swamped in 90's styling cues that today make it look soft and in a no mans land of styling
(of course, again nice bodykits can rectify this).
The curved rear window looks great, the rear section itself is abit too soft and the front looks wallowy and over-large.
From the side it looks sleek and when lowered
+ good skirts looks very nice.
The problem is there are so many of them on the roads
(not because they were
"better" than a mk1 but because of the car buying climate and the production figures in the 90's).
This leads to a complete lack of exoctic or head turning ability on standard cars.
I am a fan of all jap cars and will crane my neck unabashedly to look at a car that catches my eye.
Only once or twice has a well kitted mk2 ever done that to me.
And again, I must stress that from the front they look like fleet cars with pop-ups for the sake of it.
Mk1.
Now that all you mk2 owners are frothing at the mouth with what I just said I will point out why the MK1 in my opinion is a styling sucess.
The
MK1 never set out to be beautiful, it never intentionally tried to capture the
"pretty and sleek" segment that the MK2 did.
Therefor it did not introduce compromises.
It is function over form.
Modern cars are now more and more attempting to simulate funtional and purposeful looks over soft, billowy,
"pretty" lines because they know that it even though it WILL date quicker it can still be apreciated beyond it's styling sell buy date as something more unique.
(oh and it only looks like a mk1 mr2 from the front which is a very good look and doesn't make people think of other cars immediatley as the mk2 and mk3 do!)
Hard lines, wedge shapes, compact dimensions, go-kart looks are all in the mk1 and just like you mk2 guys we don't mean always bog standard 14" wheels, stupid toyota pin stripes and decals everywhere etc.
With some subtle mods, tinting, lowering and wheels the mk1 can be made to look far less old fashioned and more importantly of a
"who cares what age it is" style.
It is a driving machine, and it looks the part.
You either love it or hate it.
It stands out and get's noticed amongst modern cars which I don't believe the mk2 does as much
(unless treated to a veilside or bomex etc).
Of course, the MK1 needs to be rust free and have good paint and preferablly the late style mirrors
+ colour coding everywhere.
In the same way the countach looks dated and ott the mk1 is an icon that relishes it's 80's upbringing.
The 90's mk2 tries hard to disguise itself and blend in and take cues from various other cars
(both exoctic and not so exoctic) it is a comprise in styling that while not as
"old fashioned" looking on paper as a mk1 has no styling pedigree or function over form to make up for it's dated design except for it's mid engine rear deck and window.
Styling sum up: Mk1 obviously looks more dated, but it looks intentionally dated by now, it's so old that it's style has gone around the clock and looks ok and sits well next to todays modern straight edged cars.
The mk2 tries too hard to be pretty and looks too soft next to modern cars.
It is a pretty coupe and I really got obsessed over them back in the early 90's but the appeal from a styling point of view is short lived.
The exception is if you are an owner of course, you will always see the beauty in them.
The same way many MK1 owners can see beauty in our so called
"boxy" motors.
Driving and performance.
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I think Lauren has to be correct about handling, modern tech and light weight is going to win.
As I bought the MK1 as primarily a fun or great car to
*drive* I would have a mk3 over a mk2.
If I had been going primarily for looks I would have opted for a mk2
(in the 90s).
The best of both worlds
(and a boot!) would be the mk1, retaining some of the mk3s compactness, some of the mk2's exoticness while being viritually unique looking.
.
.
if you can be bothered to repair the rust
Handling on a sorted MK1 is also a great laugh.
I don't mean when it steps out of line but within it's capabilities it feels like a
"sports car" and not a more numb gt car.
Speed in a straight line.
there can be no competition.
The mk2 Tubby is king here.
Then, if you were just after ultimate speed you probably wouldn't buy ANY mr2 but look elswhere for lighter smaller engine cars or fatter 400bhp+ monsters.
Tuning on the mk2 seems fun with many options and plenty of parts.
Mk1 tuning is limited, personally I feel a bog standard MK1 Supercharger is plenty of fun for most people, a few mild upgrades get's it keeping up with fast cars and overtaking them in the twisties
(many times
).
Flat out speed is limited in mk1.
Of course you can drop a mk2 engine in a mk1 these days and kill a mk2 and still look like the car doing it is supposed to do it
(angular, wedge shaped).
However, this quote from another post before sums it up really:
"Buts lets face it.
All three marks are three completely different cars, they are all loved by their owners no matter what condition they are in, they just happen to share the same name"
And that is were the
"problem" is in comparing these cars.
Someone who really apreciates a Mk2 is possibly not the same kind of person who falls in love with a mk1.
Conversely those with a penchant for swoopy, clean, softer looks will just point and laugh at an angular Mk1.
I am very fond of the looks of the Mk1 because to me they are timeless even though they are technically dated.Not many people ever call them
"beautiful" but when you own one, and you keep it polished and ensure you remove or upgrade any very-dated areas you can see it is in fact a beautiful machine with a purpose.
It STILL looks like a spaceship on wheels, it still looks like a mini-exotic and it still attracts attention
(oh and they are getting rarer by the day).
With the sc/tubby
+ mods they are more than fast enough to back up their looks.
A mk2 by comparision is a nice looking GT car of which there are MANY others to choose from.
The mk2 has 2 saving graces over modern cars
(which also apply to the mk1)
.it is mid engined
.it has pop up headlights
Whichever mark you own though, just remember it's a great car and enjoy it!
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