And back to serious again . . .  Very tidy AW, and certainly worth keeping as clean and tidy original condition.
 

dennis the menace
" . . . my wife and I have started a family, so spare time is a lot less . . ." I found that 5 minutes at the end of a day is enough for this task, shouldn't affect workshop time that much?

very true just doing small things working at odd ours when you get the chance will help. no race here... unless there is one? Then I shall challenge you too one, see who can get there MR2 working first hey?

" . . .see who can get there MR2 working first hey?"
 
Challenge accepted - just the incentive I need.

Very nice car man! Love the colour and how clean/tidy it is.
 
Hope you get it up and running soon. Such a shame that it cannot be driven & enjoyed.
 

Michael,
sounds like the right approach to me. Make sure of course you get the agreement on time back in writing from your wife . I have been married for 45 years (that's right, 45 years - you don't get that long for armed robbery) and wives have a way of developing memory block when it comes to time for working on cars.
 
With your daughter, the wife's PhD, etc. it will be great to have something to do that provides some head space, and these cars deserve some time and attention to be put back close to the way they were when Mr Toyota built them.
 
I had the front of mine off for six five months when I first bought it after I discovered the steel safety bar behind the plastic bumper had the dreaded tin worm in spots. I managed to find a local metal shop that would rebuild it for me, so while this was away getting done I did a huge amount of tidying up. It has just been so worth the effort and time spent.
 
Glad to see you are getting it back to stock. We might even consider starting a Special Transmission Interest Group (STIG)  for AW11 and SW20 owners who have the pleasure of owning the auto versions. Remember - Automatic MR2's - adding couth and culture to what otherwise would be just a vulgar brawl.
 
Looking forward to more pictures.
 
Walter

dennis the menace
" . . .see who can get there MR2 working first hey?" Challenge accepted - just the incentive I need.

Oh its on

Cheers guys for the comments.
 
Yeah I shouldn't use wife and family as my entire excuse, there have been times I keep my mind interested in other things rather than working on the AW11, as said before you need to be able to keep your sanity as well, but lack of budget for rebuild hasn't helped either, or lack of proper garage/workshop. But yeah it's still my fault at the end of the day how much time hasn't been spent on it. Watch this space in the coming months.
 
It's only been the last 6 months I really haven't done anything to it apart from take the covers off it and make sure everything is still there lol. It lives well sheltered under my enclosed carport, but still gets really dusty.
 
My next step is getting an engine stand to mount the block and complete the teardown before it goes to the shop for a block hone and deck, crank linish, all new mains, bearings and rings. Head will get a skim and valve seals redone. I have a complete Toyota Genuine engine overhaul gasket kit already. Once I have the fresh block back I'll reassemble with a new Toyota oil pump and water pump, new welch plugs etc.
Dizzy also needs a rebuild but I have the KBox rebuild kit already, just need a bearing clamp to pop the old one off so I can swap the new bearing on.
From there it should just be all other ancillaries, check valve clearances, install the engine and hope for the best!
 
Just today I sent through funds to SAW4397 for his surplus auto transmission, with some luck I can swap over torque converters with my good one, as well as have a new seal kit and general service performed, and it will make a suitable replacement. Worst case it's a spare parts box for mine when it gets rebuilt.
 
Also count me out of any rebuild race :P I know it will get done in due time, but you can't rush perfection ;)

SAW4397rims not my thing but damn colour and body nice. and it has supercharger written on the side!!

Yeah the rims are the first thing that changes once the car is back on the road. They're 15x6 +48 and were originally white, but resprayed dark metallic grey to match the racing stripe on the car. I suspect they're some kind of Honduh aftermarket rims and they're pretty damn heavy as well. I also just don't like the look of them, not period correct at all. They are wrapped in barely used Potenza RE-002's though, so I suspect they'll stay longer than hoped.
 
I've already bought a set of factory teardrops that need refinishing and a small amount of welding/rolling done on the lip. I like the look of the teardrops and they suit my "factory improved" theme very well. Because of their condition I've had to take off the original diamond cut finish, but I'm hoping I can polish them up nicely instead. Not mirror finish but something that looks really nice.
I'll then wrap these in the best street legal semi slicks I can find, and reserve them for car shows only.
 
I also have my eye on a particular set of Japanese aftermarket wheels and already know what size I want. They'll be 15" but I'm not revealing anymore than that (not a fan of larger diameter wheels, I like seeing tyre sidewall!). They'll be my new street rims so I'll stick with something either semi slick or S-Comp, slightly more practical than the teardrop tyres as I'll be running them more often, including infrequent track days.

maj
Cheers guys for the comments. Yeah I shouldn't use wife and family as my entire excuse, there have been times I keep my mind interested in other things rather than working on the AW11, as said before you need to be able to keep your sanity as well, but lack of budget for rebuild hasn't helped either, or lack of proper garage/workshop. But yeah it's still my fault at the end of the day how much time hasn't been spent on it. Watch this space in the coming months. It's only been the last 6 months I really haven't done anything to it apart from take the covers off it and make sure everything is still there lol. It lives well sheltered under my enclosed carport, but still gets really dusty. My next step is getting an engine stand to mount the block and complete the teardown before it goes to the shop for a block hone and deck, crank linish, all new mains, bearings and rings. Head will get a skim and valve seals redone. I have a complete Toyota Genuine engine overhaul gasket kit already. Once I have the fresh block back I'll reassemble with a new Toyota oil pump and water pump, new welch plugs etc.Dizzy also needs a rebuild but I have the KBox rebuild kit already, just need a bearing clamp to pop the old one off so I can swap the new bearing on.From there it should just be all other ancillaries, check valve clearances, install the engine and hope for the best! Just today I sent through funds to SAW4397 for his surplus auto transmission, with some luck I can swap over torque converters with my good one, as well as have a new seal kit and general service performed, and it will make a suitable replacement. Worst case it's a spare parts box for mine when it gets rebuilt. Also count me out of any rebuild race :P I know it will get done in due time, but you can't rush perfection ;)

Very true please remember that you are restoring I on the other hand is just slapping it together so i can drive it again not really going for perfection here with mine so in the end yours will look better.

Yea the rims looked well out of place on yours, but i didnt want to hurt your feelings hehe.

And i would also like to chase down some 15s to suit my MR2 but i will be going for what ever semi slick tyres and sizes are cheapest and working my rims around that.

SAW4397
And i would also like to chase down some 15s to suit my MR2 but i will be going for what ever semi slick tyres and sizes are cheapest and working my rims around that.

15X7 or 15X8 in +35 to +25, 205/50R15 Toyo R888's can be had for just shy $1000 a set at St George Tires.