PFL cut-off point

[ruud2boy]

At what point did production of PFL cars end? As far as I've been able to fathom from online trawling it was sometime in 2002, but possibly 2003? Mine was registered in Oct 2002, so I'm right in the hinterland.
I'm looking at a replacement interior online, which the seller indicates is from from a PFL car, so apparently the  seatbelts etc are located slightly differently from later units?

[Chilli Girl]

My very first facelift MR2 was first registered in Dec 2002 if that helps.

[Ardent]

Seat belts def changed. So be careful on that one.

[Carolyn]

At what point did production of PFL cars end? As far as I've been able to fathom from online trawling it was sometime in 2002, but possibly 2003? Mine was registered in Oct 2002, so I'm right in the hinterland.
I'm looking at a replacement interior online, which the seller indicates is from from a PFL car, so apparently the  seatbelts etc are located slightly differently from later units?

Does it have Facelift or pre facelift headlights and tail lights?  Do the seats have hole in the seat back (facelift) or not (pre)?

Up on the lift: the Facelift has extra bracing from the front corners of the rear suspension to the sub-frame.  The subframe is different. The front bracing underneath has cross-wise braces, the PFL doesn't.  The bumpers are different... there's just loads of things to tell you what you have.

[Gaz mr-s]

I thought it was September '03 that FL was launched.
The only change I know of re seat belts is the male buckle changed shape.
If seats are swapped between a pfl & an FL, it can entail the female's needing changed too.   In terms of sill location, - not that I've noticed.

[Ardent]

to add to the above.

Changes by Year

Courtesy of GSB of MR2 Roadster Owners Club | August 2, 2004 

2000 – Mk3 is launched in Europe, having previously been launched in Japanese and US markets. A small modification is made after the car has been rolling off the lines for a while, when Toyota add very small aerodynamic "spoilers" under the car ahead of each wheel. These were fitted to aid high speed stability.

2001 – As 2000.

2002 – Addition of improved Oil Control Rings fitted to the Pistons.

2003 – (Production actually from late 2002) Mid term revision. Essentially a cosmetic overhaul of the car, however some mechanical changes have been made:

    New front bumper with integrated front fog lamps.

    New headlights with seperate high/low beam units and chrome housings.

    New redesigned taillight lenses.

    Addition of new colour coded rear bumper inserts adjacent to number plate.

    New colour coded side vents.

    Interior gets new chrome detailing on vents, tweeter surrounds, heater controls, and door handles.

    Redesigned seats fitted.

    Instrument and ventilation control fascia's redesigned with new typeface.

    New Toyota Branded CD/tuner replaces Double DIN Sony CD/Tape/tuner fitted to previous years.

    16″ rear wheels replace 15″ wheels previously fitted. Rear tyre goes up to 215/45/16 to fit the new larger wheels, up from the previous 205/50/15 sizes fitted in previous years. Front tyres remain the same.

    Updated suspension spring and damper setings.

    Improved suspension member brace set up installed on front and rear suspension.

    6 Speed gearbox fitted to both manual and SMT cars, replacing the 5 speed unit fitted to previous models.

    SMT gets Electronic Traction and Stability Control.

    Options list is expanded to include TTE accesories, which were previously unavailable in the UK.

2004 – Visually the same as the 2003 car but some major upgrades have been made under the skin. Essentially these have been made to improve safety although they do have the advantage of increasing chassis stifness as well:

    New front under-members and momentum cancellers on the strut towers to help prevent the side members from rising in the event of a frontal impact, reducing dash panel intrusion into the cabin space.

    improved in-cabin passive safety package adopting an anti-intrusion mechanism on the brake pedal and cushioning material below the accelerator pedal – where the driver's heel rests.

    Reinforcements to the upper front members and the door beltlines help disperse collision energy forces applied to the front side members, minimising any cabin deformation.

    New rear bumper brace, a new strut bracket brace and new floor-to-rocker brace panels attached to the main rear-cabin cross member.

    Refinements to the kick panel reinforcements, floor-tunnel reinforcements and floor cross members help minimise intrusion of the dash panel in the event of a collision.

    The centre pillar has been reinforced with additional gussets and reinforcement of the centre floor cross-member.

[Alex Knight]

My very first facelift MR2 was first registered in Dec 2002 if that helps.

Registration date doesn't mean a thing.

I've seen some cars have been sat in consignment stock for literally years before being registered and sold as new cars.

[fawtytoo]

Mine is a PFL registered September 2002. But it probably depended on what a dealer had left on their forecourt, so it could be possible to have bought a new PFL in early 2003.

The production date changes were in October 2002.

To tell what you have is really what @Carolyn said.

[bobbe]

Seat belts def changed. So be careful on that one.

Interesting. I've had both pre- and post-facelift seats in a 2005 car and not had a problem with the seatbelts. Is it the case that a facelift buckle will work in either seats, but a pre-facelift one will not?

[s12vea]

I've seen an 04 prefacelift that must of sat in the dealers for a long time.

All the interior parts are interchangeable so easy enough to chop and change

[Ardent]

Interesting. I've had both pre- and post-facelift seats in a 2005 car and not had a problem with the seatbelts. Is it the case that a facelift buckle will work in either seats, but a pre-facelift one will not?

I swapped in some pfl seats. Bolted in fine. But the existing fl seat belt clip would not engage with pfl buckle.

Edit.
Looking at what needed swapping around. I deemed it too much phaff. The risk of damaging the plastic end caps and the buckle wiring. I gave up and put the original seats back in.

[Petrus]

I swapped in some pfl seats. Bolted in fine. But the existing fl seat belt clip would not engage with pfl buckle.

I was (slightly) caught out with that too when putting in UK driver side slides at the EU passenger side. Now both sides are adjustable in tilt/hight.

[bobbe]

I swapped in some pfl seats. Bolted in fine. But the existing fl seat belt clip would not engage with pfl buckle.

Edit.
Looking at what needed swapping around. I deemed it too much phaff. The risk of damaging the plastic end caps and the buckle wiring. I gave up and put the original seats back in.

I have pfl seats in an fl car with no problems at all. Everything works as it should

I've also had two sets of fl seats in the car at various points with the same belts and again no problems - as you would expect on an fl car with fl belts, of course, but again, no issues with pfl seats either

Who knows!

[Ardent]

Who knows indeed.