Welcome to my progress thread, aptly named because as everyone knows, slapping on eBay parts and some shiny new wheels doesn’t qualify as a build. I picked this car up a year ago today, from the lovely DVS_Turbo2, with the promise to take care of and responsibly own this beautiful car. It was clear how attached Tom was to his MR2, but I assured him it was going into safe hands, and would remain within the MR2 community.
However I did leave him with one promise that I had yet to fulfil, which was starting this build thread! I’ve been putting it off for a variety of reasons but I figured the first anniversary of ownership seemed as good a time as any to kick it off and show you the (reasonably uneventful) year so far.
 
I would like to preface this by saying that I do fall into the category of young, dumb and broke, being a 20 year old Uni student, and I never had a car to play around with on my P’s, so I apologise in advance for any ‘P-plater mods’ you will see, I’ve done my very best to keep it tasteful.
 
Here’s the mod list as of September 2020, with any work done by the previous owner highlighted in green. Credit where credit is due.
 
Drivetrain:
Gen3 3S-GTE
Brooks Racing Developments Catted Downpipe
Phoenix Power Dual Departure exhaust system
RacerX air intake box
RacerX BPV block-off plate
PrimeDriven Gen3 intercooler
GFB G-Force III Electronic Boost Controller
Light weight flywheel
Xtreme Ceramic Button Clutch
Walbro 255 LPH fuel pump
 
Suspension/Brakes:
BC Racing Coilovers
TRD front sway bar
Whiteline rear sway bar
Prothane full polyurethane bushing kit
Wilhelm Raceworks full suspension geometry kit
Prothane polyurethane steering rack bushings
Slotted/Drilled brake disks
ProjectMu TypeHC+ front brake pads
Forza FP3 rear brake pads
 
Interior:
Momo Veloce steering wheel (350mm)
HKB Sports boss hub adaptor
93+ OEM shift lever
93+ OEM shift boot
RacerX Shifter Box
Top Secret Shift knob
Kenwood KMMBT304
Bride Zeta II
Bride FG Rail
AEM AFR Gauge
 
Exterior:
Gen3 rear spoiler
Gen3 taillights
BBS LM
F: 17x8 +29, Hankook Ventus RS-4 215/45/17
R: 17x9 +35, Hankook Ventus RS-4 245/40/17
Clear front indicators
MR2Ben solid side mouldings
MK3 blue front badge
Replica Greddy side skirts
Replica Greddy rear spats
US Racing front lip
 
Now, some quotes to serve as inspiration for the journey ahead:
 
By the time Tom’s example popped up on this forum and my saved Gumtree searches, I had been looking for the right MR2 for around a year and a half. These cars were always so incredible in my eyes, and the Toyota love runs strong in my family. Mum had a bright red ST185 Gt-Four back in the day, and sold it a few years before I was born.
I keep reminding her of their value today, but at the time it was the right thing to do. With the popups, bright colour and the same legendary 3SGTE, though a different drivetrain setup, the MR2 seemed like the perfect car to carry the torch. One or two examples caught my eye, however my limited budget and p-plater status meant time was not necessarily of the essence.
 
But when I saw this car I knew it had to be, from the rare 3^rd gen engine to the plethora of clean and simple tune-ups, it would serve as the perfect platform for my entry into the MR2 community. Also it was finished in Toyota’s multiple shades of Super Bright Yellow, what’s not to love?
 
Still on my greens, I test drove the car for a few minutes, and Tom was more than willing to deliver the car to my house in exchange for a lift home. He also took the time to pull together any parts he had laying around, yet to install, which was a great way to begin ownership, free mods! Seriously, if he ever tunes up another MR2 and sells it around the Cairns area, you should snap it up in a heartbeat. Excellent customer service.

So with 7 months until my full licence, I wanted to do as much as I could with the car (somewhat) on ice. However the sizeable hole in my bank account had other ideas. 
Over that period I installed small, easy mods that wouldn’t break the bank. Momo wheel, shift lever, clear indicators, headunit… I told you! P-plater mods!!
I also threw in the shift lever and boot from a 93+ model, which allowed me to also run the small TRD ball shift knob. This is a good setup but the knob feels a bit light, and the colouring of the boot is slightly off, so I may revamp this section of the car at a later date.

I sourced some new wheels to increase my overall track width and contact patch, as well as getting fully sik flush fitment. The difference in handling was decently noticeable switching to a staggered setup on good (ish) rubber. Full specs are 17x8 +29, 17x9 +35 Volk Racing GT-P, wrapped in 215/40/17 and 245/40/17 Bridgestone Potenza RE003.
Once I could start driving the car in July, I could truly appreciate the amazing driving experience an MR2 offers. Carving mountain roads and feeling the weight transfer work in your favour is an amazing feeling, and even in more boring situations I found myself getting way too excited at all the little things. I spent a lot of time enjoying the car as it was, in its perfectly functional form.

My goal for this car was never to make crazy power, so no K-swaps, intercoolers in the boot or crazy drag times. What I do want to achieve is a reliable power level, in a clean and stable car with maybe a few of the performance bits I’d seen in magazines growing up. I know I’m barely scratching the surface of what this engine can do on the road and/or track, so power increases are definitely not the top priority.
I installed a RacerX intake box, and managed to grab an FD RX7 filter to suit on clearance. This massively amplified the flutter sound, as well as some very minor power increases… maybe. They have run tests with this setup and claim increases of a few horsepower, though the slight extra responsiveness I felt could have just been good old placebo.
 
Regardless, it was a necessary supporting mod to tick off the list, and as part of their Black Friday sale it was all too tempting.
While I see many owners running the engine lid fan shrouds, I could not justify the money for a name brand one. 2 Spal fans off Gumtree and a $10 sheet of aluminium later, and I was on my way. It is far from perfect, but it achieves the same function, with almost the same aesthetic value, more polishing is needed however. It was also a good exercise in wiring, although it ended up being a very simple circuit.

Trying to piece together the last year from memory is proving difficult, though I will try to include more regular updates in future posts.
On the cards for the summer break are the new intercooler, polyurethane bushing kit, fuel filter swap, oil service, valve cover refresh, and a Greddy Turbo Timer install. That should be enough to keep me busy and my bank account out of trouble.
I hope this thread is entertaining enough, but nevertheless it will serve as a good personal diary of this cars progress.
Thanks for reading!

Nice job Champ. Keep it going... Im jealous 👍👍😁😁

karhunta
Nice job Champ. Keep it going... Im jealous 👍👍😁😁

Thanks man 😁

Adrifto

 

 

 
 

 
Nice work so far, did you buy this car from a forum member? Nice to see it went in to good hands.
 
Now just as a friendly word of advice - I'd look in to getting some jap sized plates from the rta\rms or whatever they are called these days - the way that rear plate sits could get you a nasty little note from a highway cop for 'obscured number plate' or even 'defacing a number plate' (because its bent - even that little bit) It's a 3 or 4 point fine and a big chunk of money that I'm sure you could find a better use for.

Dudeman

Adrifto

 

 

 
 

 
Nice work so far, did you buy this car from a forum member? Nice to see it went in to good hands.

Yes I did! I picked it up from DVS_Turbo2, he had actually listed it for sale in the classifieds of this forum.

Dudeman

Now just as a friendly word of advice - I'd look in to getting some jap sized plates from the rta\rms or whatever they are called these days

Thanks for the words of advice and I 100% agree with you. I've actually been looking at a plate change ever since picking the car up. I'm leaning more towards the 'international' style as I think amongst young people especially the Japanese plates are starting to carry some sort of stigma, though who really cares what other people think.

It's definitely on the priority list, might have to happen when I renew rego next. I've been lucky so far but I know all too well it just takes one grumpy cop to end your streak and ruin your day.
Any more advice I'm all ears, part of the reason I love the MR2 community.

Love seeing a well loved forum owners car go to another person who will carry on the work.
 
Where are you located?  Or did I miss that in the extensive post?  If so, sorry.................
 
Keep in mind that we have MR2 Nationals in Canberra in October & it would be great to see you there.