Toyota MR2 Mk3

[Ro5SM]

First, a little about my old car. One of the few remaining mk5 Fiesta Zetec-S, which I'd loved owning for a whopping 16 years. Still drove really well and totally reliable at 123k, but with encroaching rust issues as well as deteriorating paintwork, I decided it was finally time to move on.

Pic from the day before it went:



I actually had a bit of a moment when it kind of hit me that it was gone - sentimental bunch that we petrolheads are...

Still, I quickly got over it when I collected this! On pickup day:



It's a 47k-mile MR2 which I believe had been owned by the one family from new. Crystal Silver with the red cloth seats (which were the ones I wanted, really like the red inserts on the door cards as well). Drives really well, have been feeling my way into it as it's obviously a completely different layout to the Fiesta, though it's not the first mid-engined car I've driven. Engine, steering, suspension & brakes all lovely. Surprised how roomy it is inside and the forward visibility is actually better than many modern non-sports cars.



It was pretty clean inside so I just gave it a hoover and quick going over with Mr Sheen!

Everything seems to work with the exception of the aux port on the aftermarket stereo, might look into that at some point. Have tried it with different phones and different cables, so think it must be the port that's at fault. Was pleased I can still play my CDs though!

After a quick polish with the Autoglym (sorry this one's not a great photo):



Just a few plans:
- Aftermarket exhaust manifold, which will eliminate the precat worry. I'm no mechanic so will be getting it professionally fitted.
- The brake calipers show quite prominently with the standard wheels, so I'll be painting them red shortly to match the interior.
- Wheels probably need a refurb at some point. Have been considering colours but think I'll stick with silver, possibly a slightly darker shade or something like light anthracite to provide a little more contrast against the body.

[jamesbilluk]

Love these, I've read great things about the handling, yours looks in great condition, in a lovely colour combo as well, enjoy many miles of happy motoring!

[MB140]

Just commenting so I can follow really. Car looks in lovely condition.

How’s the handling in these as standard. I’ve read a few threads with people saying they can be a little nervous and susceptible to lift off oversteer.

I’m sure I followed a thread on here where the OP and his wife tracked one and they were pretty bulletproof but she had a couple of spins so he did a few suspension upgrades and a geo setup to improve things.

Anyway hope it brings you miles of joy.

[WestyCarl]

We've had one for 10yrs.

I don't want to call them nervous but you have to recognise they have a short wheelbase and mid engined so drive them with a little more respect than a front drive hot hatch, particularly in the wet.

[Ro5SM]

MB140 said:

How’s the handling in these as standard. I’ve read a few threads with people saying they can be a little nervous and susceptible to lift off oversteer.

It feels very agile but also pretty planted & confidence inspiring, no nervous moments as yet. Saying that my driving style is probably more 'spirited' than 'pretend I'm Max Verstappen'! Think I've read that the MR2 actually has quite a long wheelbase relative to it's size. Suspension seems nice and quiet so guessing it's all in good order. You get a nice sensation of the mass being contained toward the centre in how sharply it turns in. It also has what look like 4 x decent tyres on it (Contis up front / Bridgestone Potenzas rear) which no doubt help. I think drive it sensibly and you're fine.

[Heaveho]

I shared one with a mate for a few months earlier this year, threw it with abandon around Scotland in March on new Toyo tyres and thought it a revelation. One of the most surprising cars I've ever driven. We were amazed at how well it hung on in the wet, despite what I'd call reasonable provocation.

[Willhire89]

OP - I don't think you have the pre cat issue to worry about as they were a fitment only on the early MK3 models - I have an '03

[Craikeybaby]

I'm also a fan of these - I've had mine 11 years now, and have got a readers rides thread.

Handling is great, but they are sensitive to set up and tyres - you ideally want something with a stiff sidewall.

I don't think that there is a definitive answer on the precats - improvements were made with the facelift in '03, but further improvements were also made right at the end of the production run. Personally, I had them removed on mine, as they are not needed, although I went for gutting the precats out of the stock manifold, rather than fitting an aftermarket part.

[sir humphrey appleby]

Very nice, you will have a lot of fun with that. This is ours, a gift from Mother in Law, she had it from new, and refused to sell it or move it on after Father in Law died as it was the last thing he bought her. She effectively mothballed it after that in her garage.
It is now tucked up in ours with a couple of car covers over it. Has been SORN for the last year or so i think. Will probably get it out next summer. 2006, 36K miles.

[nismo48]

Nice car's, I regretted selling mine. But house move forced my hand.

[clarki]

Great cars there folks.

A real hidden gem the Mk3. Here's ours, bought as a lockdown project/youtube content creator.

However, still here after all the years, and likely to stay.

Shout out to Andy@J-Spec if you need any parts.

[Ro5SM]

Thanks for the responses, a couple of great-looking cars above!

Craikeybaby said:

I don't think that there is a definitive answer on the precats - improvements were made with the facelift in '03, but further improvements were also made right at the end of the production run. Personally, I had them removed on mine, as they are not needed, although I went for gutting the precats out of the stock manifold, rather than fitting an aftermarket part.

I've done a lot of reading on the issue, as I imagine many new owners would have. The general consensus seems to be that whilst the later model year cars are less likely to suffer the problem, it's still a good idea to sort them. And for the sake of a fairly cheap replacement part, it's not a risk I want to take. There are also a lot of different opinions on whether to gut the stock manifold or fit an aftermarket one. I'm not generally into modifiying cars but opted for the latter, if it makes the engine sound a little better that's another plus. I don't think the 1ZZ is a bad sounding engine with the stock exhaust, but I'll admit it's not the most tuneful in the world either.

In the meantime I've been trying to track down a persistant interior rattle. Thought it was coming from the wind deflector, so took it off for a look. It did have 4 x internal screws which were all loose enough to be removed by hand, so I tightened those up.



That's stopped the rattle when stationary, but it's still there when on the move. Definitely sounds like it's coming from that area though (central, quite high up), so next had a look at the central roof latch behind the seats. Bit of a pain to get to with all the trim in the way, but managed to move the flexible trim aside enough to get at least some access to it. It has a few different parts. there were 2 x small screws which hold the top panel on which weren't very tight, so I've taken that bit off and will see if that sorts it when I drive it to work next week... I've also taken the storage compartment doors off just to rule those out.