some of you may have read my thread in general car chat, so you know my story. what can you tell me about hp/tq for the mr2? what years are good years to look for? would it be cheaper to find one with stock turbo and just up the boost or get the non turbo and add one ( basically is the block the same and can it handle the boost) how much boost on a stock block, with proper fuel management of course.

what problems are most common with the mr2? how much of an aftermarket is there? is the aftermarket mainly in cosmetics or performance or is it good all around.

what price range am I looking at for certain year models? decent condition basic wear and tear expected but nothing major needed. what motor swaps if any are available for the mr2?

what creature comforts came on them? sunroof, targa top? power options? I'm coming from hondas so I know little about toyotas, any info or links on good info would be appreciated.

 

for all the info you need, go to mr2oc.com but DONT just sign up and start asking questions...use the search function, read all the primers, sticky's etc etc as i usually tell newbies there a little morsel of info then tell them to search the rst of it. the MR2 is a great platform for all forms of racing, drag, autox, hill climb, top speed, road race, etc...with the exception of drifting but still possible with good driving.

i'm assuming you're interested in the MKII 90-95 (USDM) model years as that's probably the most popular.

200hp/200tq, at the wheels on stock boost you're looking at 170/170
It comes with the 2L 3sgte engine gen II with a ct26 turbo. upping the boost on this will get you a MAX of 250-270 whp (if you upgrade the ct26 turbo with a bigger compressor, cams etc etc...) However, the ct26 drops off up top after 5500 rpms and just sucks IMO, i suggest you upgrade to AT LEASt a ct20b if not someting bigger like a tdo5/td06. There enough aftermarket, ATSracing, KORacing are some of the specialists.

the NA's come with the 2.2L 5sfe, turboing that is a pain and usually end up in blown motors but some have successfully done it and TEC2RM did a complete overhaul in one and had 500+ with 10s timeslips (he has since upgraded to a GenIII engine also running 10s).

As for engine swaps, 3sgte, 3sge (beams or other), 1mzfe (or other 6 cylinder variant) are the most popular.

market value on these cars are much higher than KBB and finding one in good condition is few and far between. I looked for mine for over a year, paid 6.1K. it's a 91 SMG turbo, ttop, with 122K on the clock when i purchaed. NA's go for about half that and the 93's go for about 7.5 and 94-95's turbos in good condition can be seen for as much as $10-11K. These cars are rare...so good luck, but if you're serious about it, it was well worth the wait for me.

I lurk the for sale threads A LOT on the mr2 boards and wait for good deals to pop, i believe i have spend about 2400 so far on performance related parts and i'm shooting for 270whp and 12.7-12.8s in the 1/4, i do all my own installs so i dont have that figured into my costs however, i will tell you that working on the deuce is as royal PITA, but like i said, if you really want it, it'll be worth it in the end. XAT racing works on MR2's and has a decent swap package for you, however if you go thru them, they do not change out the NA fuel pump for you with the package price so a new one is definately in order, at least a turbo pump, if not a supra tt is a direct replacement.

 

thanks for the the info, I will check out the mr2 forum you listed. I am not in a hurry to buy something so I can wait till the right thing comes along.

 

Here is something interesting, either with stock turbo setup (for 5500) or well-done big turbo setup w/stand alone, fuel, and i/c...

https://www.tamparacing.com/forums/s...d.php?t=269573

 

that's actually a pretty good deal if anyone wants a modded car. Heh, but i love buying cars bone stock