Toyota MR2 Reliability

hi i maybe somewhat bias but after buying a 1985 mr2 mk1 i found them to be very reliable having owned my first mr2 for about 4 years it cost me a new clutch thats it i then up graded to a 1987 model t top i have owned that now ten years and the only thing that it has cost apart from services is a new alternator tyres and one headlight untill last year when the rad sprang a leak this cost me 288 pounds and i changed the exhaust on recommendations which was around the 350 pounds, my son has one my daughter has one and my wife has one has well and all i can say is treat them well on regular oil services and keep up the cambelt changes and you cant go far wrong
jim

We have a '91 NA 5spd. My wife bought it in '92 with 17,000 miles and I've maintained it since, and driven it hard the last 5 years. I put it's first first replacement clutch in at 215,000 miles. Replaced the water pump at 105k with a Napa pump that only lasted 10K. The Toyota pump that I put in after that has been fine ever since. Replaced brake rotors at around 150K. Parking brake cable failed last Thursday, have a new one coming. Surprised me, but I guess it's not that unusual with these. That's it except for tuneups and timing belts. Car has been nearly bulletproof, and still gets 29mpg on average, 2/3 freeway. Parts have been a little more expensive than for my Toyota '87 PU. Goes like crazy and really sticks at high-speed. You must be careful not to scare the bejeebers out of people on the freeway when coming off the cloverleafs. If the back end comes out, keep the gas on, or you'll wheel-jack and get REALLY sideways. Get a newer one with the revised suspension if you get loose a lot. ('93?) Decent snow car if you keep it out of the deep stuff. Get off road in 8" of snow and you'll be digging...no clearance.

The '85 was the 1st. Anyone considering one should get at least an '86 because
the '85's had inferior handling characteristics. '87 added a front strut
stabilizer bar, but you can add one of those for a few bucks from a junk yard
if you get an '86.

You got off easy. I had to replace the cooling system hoses on an 86 MR2
to the tune of $1000+, and that was only half of them.

I will just take this opportunity to SERIOUSLY disuade anyone considering an
MR2.
I had an '86 and it was the biggest piece of crap car I have ever owned.
And, this is coming from someone who had an '82 Camaro. I had it 3 years and
it cost more in repairs than it cost to buy it.
Anything involving the transmission or clutch is outrageously expensive because
you have to take the entire engine out to get at them. Worse, the engine won't
fit out the hood, so it has to be lowered out the bottom.
It had more rattles than my '83 Dodge D-50 pickup with 170,000 mi on it, which
I have THRASHED.
Before '88 you couldn't get power stearing on them. This may seem like no big
deal on a car this light (which is what i thought) but if you do a little
racing thru very tight mountain roads, and you've done the same with a car that
had PS, you will see a definate disadvantage. Then of course there's parallel
parking, which goes without saying.

Then there's space and comfort. You can't even fit a suitcase in the trunk
cause it's too shallow. The front trunk isn't wide enough, and the spare tire
makes that even worse.
The seats hardly go back at all, and if you want to lean them back a little
they go back even less.
A good stereo system with a nice subwoofer box? Forget it. You could put it
behind the passenger seat if you don't plan on having any passengers besides
midgets or leg amputees.

In short, THESE CARS SUCK!!!

The newer body style may have eliminated some of these horrors, but it couldn't
have fixed them all.
The very slight improved handling of a mid-engine car is just not worth it.
Plus, the only reason frt engine cars aren't as balanced is because they put
the transmission in front too.
If you really want a well balanced car, get the new Corvette, or the new
Ferrari Maranello (sp). They have transaxles in the rear.


email: darkstar(at)zeus.ax.com
[replace the "(at)" with "@"]

Quote of the Day:
"Dictatorship (n): a form of government under which everything
which is not prohibited is compulsory."

I previously owned a 1986 MR2 , and currently own a 1994 MR2 Turbo, that I intend to sell in spring 2010. I have a complete history of maintenance expenses for both cars (including tire refresh expenses) in Excel spreadsheet format, so contact me with email info if you'd like copies.

A few things:
1) Both cars are GREAT in snow!!! Just use winter tires. The comment about the 94 Turbo being bad in snow must have been written by someone who can't drive in snow, period. My 94 Turbo has a Limited Slip Differential ... the 86 didn't but power was less. My wife, who didn't grow up in snow as I did, drives these in winter without issue. They are better in snow than any other car we've owned with the exception of my 2006 Acura RL with it's phenomenal all-wheel drive system (best on the planet as far as I'm concerned).
2) The 94 is more reliable than the 86. Less rust, fewer engine issues.
3) DON'T use synthetic oil in the 94 Turbo!!!!! Ignore the advice of the so-called "experts" by NOT using a synthetic. Change your REGULAR oil every 2500 miles per Toyta recommendation. (Toyota manual specifies non-synthetic oil). I ran Mobil 1 until 70,000 miles and was rewarded by having EVERY seal in the engine leak oil ... the synthetic is hard on the seals and leaks past. This was a $3500 repair lesson ... you are WARNED!!!

Annual repair costs (including replacing both winter and summer tires periodically, as well as a spare set of rims for each season):

1986 MR2 MK1: $624.97 (owned 16.51 years)
1994 MR2 Turbo: $1446.27 (owned 13.15 years)

It should be noted that the new purchase price of the '94 Turbo was more than 2x that of the '86, so keep that in mind when comparing costs. Adjusted for inflation, I would say the maintenance costs are similar, and if I hadn't stupidly used syhthetic oil, I might have avoided that $3500 repair.

If you have questions, you can email me at hp15668@yahoo.com.

Harry

i have had a 1996 mr2 for the last 7 years and have only spent a few pounds on it as all i have had to do is service it once a year. its a 2.0 gti 16 v and as i have not had to spend any money on it i am getting it resprayed and hope to keep it another 7 yrs, it is the old story if you get a good one (then keep it) when i use it i drive it hards and fast and thats ehat it likes, joe

Buy it dont be square. Just bought one at the grand old age of 40. the best thing i have driven in a long while. No problems with mechanics has a timing chain no belt driven cams etc. solid well proven *** engine. Let it scream to six and fly throught the gears. push it into the corners and accelerate out no problems. Oh one word of advice whatch it in the wet.


Have fun james.

hi iv had a mr2 m2 for years and i think this is a very good car i have this serviced every 4-5months and this is the key to keeping my 1990 mr2 going it feels like a new car so as long as you keep it serviced regular it wont let you down it costs me £60 for parts and labour from mrtwos email address is www.mrtwos.co.uk they are in st anns street willenhall nr wolverhampton hope this helps you reguards phil

First Why did you have to replace all of the hoses??? When did you
realize you bought a small car?? Didn't you test drive it? Or open the
trunk. Just because you made a bad choice in a car for you and got one
that was neglected by you or the previous owner doesn't condemn the
model. BTW can you afford a Ferrari or a corvette, speaking of trunk
room! Why would you buy a mid-engine car knowing that they are rare and
difficult to work on if you can't afford that kind of repair. You made
an uninformed decision. It seems to me you just don't know what you are
talking aboutBTW I am sure you that the guy looking at the MR2 could
afford a corvette or a ferrari<<<<<---cheap to maintain!!

I beg to differ on some issues:

wrote in article
<
car that
Hm, my complaint on my '85 is that the steering feels too light! I just
can't see
why you need power steering on this car if you are moving 10 mph or over.

I parallel park on hills all the time on crowded city streets. No problem
if your
tires are properly inflated. Of all the non-power steering cars I've
owned, the
MR2 is the easiest to parallel park.

You can fit a standard carry-on suitcase in the back trunk. I just went
out
to the driveway and tried it out with my Samsonite hard carry-on roller.
I also have never had any problems with grocery bags in the back trunk.
The MR2's space and comfort is fine for commuting, which was what it
was originally made for.

<the rest snipped>

My rad only cost me a bit more than a hundred dollars (CDN) to have it re-cored (I
did the remove & replace myself) - $700 - $1000!! I think you got taken unless all
the "miles" of coolant lines under the car had to be replaced too. This was not a
problem on my '86 MR2 but one of the steel coolant lines near the front was
starting to leak when I took the car off the road. Seems to me there would be less
expensive methods of repair than replacing the lines with genuine Toyota steel
coolant lines. Agreed though that genuine Toyota parts can be unjustifiably
expensive.

What has this got to do with reliability? Steering is very light anyway, compared
to any non-power steering car I have driven. As long as the front wheels are
rolling, they turn easily. Obviously wider tires make this more difficult. I had
195/50 X 15 Yokahama A008R's on this car at one time - very sticky tire as any solo
/ autocrosser will tell you - still no steering problems. I'll take a maunual
steering car over any power steering car for a tight solo or autocross run. Power
steering often just can,t keep up with the demands and is even harder to turn than
power steering - even on a Corvette. BTW, I don't have muscle bound forearms from
driving this car - I'm a skinny guy, 5'-11" 135-140 lbs. soaking wet.

What has this got to do with relaibility??? I didn't buy mine to stick a big honkin
boom box woofer behind the seat. If you want a car for sound, get a Lexus or
something with a quieter interior. The MR2 does not provide an environment for
listening to good music, and wasn't intended to. My guess is though that this
person's criterion for rating a sound system is whether it can be heard a block
away over the sound of the car!!

How about comparing apples with apples here !! I love my MR2 because it is small,
and handles like a go cart. Best "seat of the pants" feel of any car I have driven
in my 25+ years driving. Personally, I even feel the newer MR2 is too big, and
lacks the feel of the earlier version. I didn't buy it to haul luggage around.
Soft luggage works nicely. This is a drivers car, and this gentleman doesn't sound
like he fits my definition of a driver.

I tend to agree with Tom Quan who posted to this thread also. I have had two early
MR2's, and they have been fairly reliable. Other than normal repairs & maintenance,
I have done the following:

'86 MR2 - 230,000 km - taken off the road due to body rust - rear wheel arches &
rocker panels. Owned since new.

Two alternator - repairs & two replacements. Bad location for alternator low and at
the back - gets lots of road dust & spray. - I live in a climante where de-icing
salt is used on the road during winter & I drove the car year round.
First repair was regulator & brushes - terminals corroded off these parts - Toyata
dealer replaced with "re-manufactured" parts without informing me & used under
sized screws. Repair failed in 1 1/2 years. I repaired with new Toyota parts. A
couple of years later the alternator quit (open in stator). Installed non Toyota
re-build & it burned out (literally caught fire) just over a year later & damaged
wiring harness. Replaced it with a new Toyota alternator - no problems for 2 years
until car taken off road.

All three cables on parking brake system have been replaced (two rear cables and
front). Rears due to broken boots & corrosion, front due to breakage of cable
anchor.

Two exhaust systems - both Toyota parts, second system installed in 1996, and since
re-installed on my recently purchased '85.

Radiator, somewhere around 1992, 175,000 km, water pump at about the same time.

Front steering rack needed new right side bushing - it clunks & rattles over bumps
- did not have it repaired.

Original radio quit after about 5 or 6 years.

Timing belt replaced at 96,000 and 195,000 km. - maintenance precaution.

I drove this car hard, but never had to replace the clutch or do any transmission
repair. Was about at the point where clutch needed replacing.

'85 MR2 - bought used 2 1/2 years ago at 135,000 mi. - car imported from Florida to
Ontario by previous owner & not winter driven prior to my purchase. Now has 175,000
mi. and is driven daily.

Steering rack right side bushing replaced at 145,000 mi. - had same clunking noise
as '86.

Timing belt replaced at 135,000mi - precaution - previous service record
unverifiable.

Exhaust system replaced w/ system from '86 MR2 approx 2 years ago.

Replaced engine computer w/ one from '86 MR2 - appeared to cure engine warning
light comming on without any apparent problem existing. Diagnostic codes with old
computer indicated bad Oxygen sensor, but never had the problem after substituting
computers. No other apparent change in operation of engine.

Synchro's seemed to be a problem for quick 1-2 shifts and if I tried to shift from
3 to 5. Found the reverse idler shaft locating pin was missing. Replaced this
without pulling transmission or any dismantling & cured synchro problem. Dealer
that checked the car for me when I bought it missed this!!

Re-built clutch master cylinder at about 165,000 mi. - it was leaking.

Converted this car to synthetic oil after purchase (ran '86 on synthetic from after
break-in). Oil consumption less than 1 qt. per 4,000 to 5,000 miles.

Brian

If you want a candid answer to your question, then it will depend on
the state of the MR2 that you purchase. I only had $1500 to buy a car
with, and we ended up getting an 1986 black MR2. It was kind of beat
up, but ran well. I NEVER had any engine problems until the 'final'
problem with the car. After about six months of ownership, I began to
realize that this previous owner had driven the car very hard and been
extremely negligent with auto car and maintenance. I owned the car
for 3.5 years, and the only things that died/failed were simply little
things: speedometer ($250), brakes ($400), crack in sunroof from
burglary ($700), new radiator ($200), etc etc. It ran extremely well
for having 100,000 miles on it. If the previous owner had maintained
the car well, then the only thing that would have gone wrong on the
car during the time that I owned it would be maybe the speedometer.
Last September, driving to college, the car started overheating (165k
miles). I spent $600 of my graduation money attempting to have it
diagnosed, only to find that to truly diagose it they would have had
to tear apart the engine. They felt it was a cracked cylinder head or
something of the sort. I, being a poor engineering student, did not
have the funds to repair this, and was forced to use the car as a
trade in towards my dad's new RAV4 (which I really like also, but it's
not the same).

My suggestions--- Don't let anyone turn you away from the car itself. This is the most
awesome car (in my little opinion) in it's price class that has roamed
the roads in a while. I have yet to find a car that handles like it.
If/when you buy one, make sure it has been taken care of very well.
Have it checked over. If it has been, the car should last until a
million miles, if not more. The only drawback is that where I live
there are no junkyards from which to scavenge for parts for MR2s.
Parts on these cars are expensive, but with the proper maintenance
repairs should be few and far between. As soon as I get that computer
engineering degree, the FIRST car purchase will be an MR2.

Hope this helps!

David

my uncle has an 89 S/C that he drives very hard, with 150,000 miles he
has only had to replace one rear hub bearing cause he hit a curb, and my
uncle is really bad about maintanance. so..

Matt Kowske < <6dpu7i$@newsops.execpc.com
I had a '91 and they are great cars. I sold it after it hit 100,000 miles
on it and the clutch went out. The repair bill was around $600. But that
had more to do with my frequent trips of 6000RPM launching than anything
else. Thats all that ever happened. If I could find a 94 Turbo I would
pick it up in a second. Reasonably fast with great handling and a VERY
nice ride to them. Thats what surprised me the most, how "luxury" car like
the ride was. Very tight, solid feeling, and EXTREMELY smooth on the
highway. (For a spots car anyways.)

I'm on my second MR2. The first was the original body shape ('85 or
'86 model) and now I'm driving a '91 (bought late '90). They are very
reliable cars. It is true, like you said, that they are expensive to
repair if things do go wrong. Except for 2 broken power antennas
(around $100 each because I don't always wait for the slow garage door
to open all the way<g chewing gum because I always get the good soft rubber), my biggest
unexpected expense so far has been to replace the radiator system.
That ran me around $700. Other than those and the usual maintenance
costs, the car has been great!

On 7 Mar 1998 19:28:58 GMT, "Scott" <
Bry
After Hours Hackers

please delete "SPAMIT" from my email address to reply privatly.

I have a 94 turbo, and its been pretty reliable, except for one thing.
a shift link shaft broke at 33k miles. it was replaced under
warranty. i have no idea why it broke, its about a 20mm steel shaft,
and it was broken almost cleanly, i suspect a flaw in the material.
it broke under normal use (i wasnt racing at the time)
but other than that, no problems. it is an extremely reliable car,
except that cant drive in the snow. ( i guess i should get an
all-trac ceilca) too bad the 95's weren't sold here

it does go through yoko avs intermediates at 10k miles(for the rear)
and 20k for the fronts
anyone use the A032R tire? i'm thinking of getting a set

-pete-

on Thu, 12 Mar 1998 04:37:05 GMT, (Bryan

Peter Adamkovics


Nice day: vfr700
Rainy day: mr2 turbo
Imaginary day: ducati 748sp

see also: http://home.att.net/~p-adamkovics/