Thanks B24, all options to consider.
I have pretty much settled on a particular turbo model near Melb, but family issues have cropped up which may derail the whole project. Should know one way or the other soon.
 
cheers

Early in December, I bought a turbo version from Dwyer125 who lives near Warnambool. A factory import. Mr Dwyer had the engine and gearbox out when he first contacted me and the deal was that if he would drive it up to Sydney and it wasn't making noises or belching smoke then his rebuild would pass the test.
 One Saturday evening he arrived after a long day on the Hume. The next morning we went for a drive down the Old Pacific Highway, popular amongst Sydney's motorcyclists, with a pristine surface. He drove down to the Hawkesbury River and I drove back. It was fast and well behaved.
 The car needs a few things tidied up, like trims etc and I want to go over the suspension which is stock.
Mr Dwyer is/was amazingly helpful in answering my many dumb questions.
 
One question I have : is there an easy/cheap way to get hold of the various plastic clips that hold linings, panels, wiring, etc in place throughout the car ? I suspect if I have to buy them from Toyota they will be ridiculously priced.
 
 
 

I bought a packet of 100 from eBay for 8 dollars. Best option and they work.

The clips for the SW are still available from Toyota, and are relatively cheap.  Yes, you can find eBay bargains, and most of the time they are the right size.  I've got a 90% success rate on this, one bag was "just" too small and the clips dropped out of the holes . . .

Thanks Eric & Dennis, I will try the eBay route first.

TwoDogs
He is 14 and into muscle cars, I explained that I don't have the money to do a Mustang.
(Plus my own personal bias against guzzlers). 
 

Hm, I am getting pretty much the same kind of gas mileage with a 91 mr2 turbo than I did with a 96 N/A Cobra (V8), so I would say that they could both be considered gas guzzlers. The mr2 turbos are surprisingly inefficient considering their low weight and only having 4 cylinders.
 

Hi Alex,  my comments were made without experience of either car. The petrol cost is not as intimidating as the cost of the project. I suspect (again no experience) that an absolute bomb of a mustang would be $20k and the costs start until completion somewhere north of $50k (?). I told him up front it was outta the question. The MR2 rocket I just got is registered and cost <$10k. I took my son for a blat in it, he is happy.

Yeah, sadly, muscle cars are way overpriced down here :(
Glad to hear your son is enjoying the mr2 though :)

What fuel consumption is your mr2 getting alexv? If running right they're way more efficient than an American V8.

FYI mine is a stroker with over 300rwkw & the fuel economy is way better than any local v8.

MR2QIK
What fuel consumption is your mr2 getting alexv? If running right they're way more efficient than an American V8.

FYI mine is a stroker with over 300rwkw & the fuel economy is way better than any local v8.

With the mr2 I got about 22-24mpg (9.8-10.2l/100kms) freeway only (I haven't been driving much in the city but it looks like it was a bit lower than that, maybe 20mpg/ 11.5l/100kms).
With my mustang I was getting 17mpg city (13.8l/100kms) but 22-24mpg freeway (9.8-10.2l/100kms).
 
It seems like a normal mileage for an mr2, isn't it?