Alex, Ive really enjoyed reading your Reader Ride thread.

Love the Recaros, nice one on the MoT today.

Quote from: Alex Knight on December  2, 2020, 13:44MOT passed for another year.

They did initially fail the car yesterday, as the small numberplate maaaaayyyy not be quite to the letter of the law, however I kept the old one, and re-fitted it for the re-test today.

Some work to do though.

O/S/R wheel bearing has a bit of play (surprisingly I think these are the original


 bearings!), so will replace all four at the same time. I believe that the fronts are bolt in/out, and the rears are press fit? Could someone please confirm?

Slight weep from an inner CV boot as well, so will replace all four again, most likely when the wheel bearings are done. Gives me a chance to change the gearbox oil too.

Tester mentioned that power steering pipes are starting to look a little crusty, so will replace those, along with new Ravenoil fluid.

So, some winter maintenance ahead, but that's literally all it needs. Amazing really, given how many times it's been on track. What a properly tough, well sorted little car this is

Yes alex rears are press in and front are bolted but be careful the bolts can be a pain. As for new front bearings they have the abs sensor built in and if they not broke don't fix and they are expensive! £150 plus each from Toyota Paul at tcb is your man for all you need he does front hubs from Japan start at £50

Quote from: justinread72 on December  2, 2020, 21:25

Quote from: Alex Knight on December  2, 2020, 13:44MOT passed for another year.

They did initially fail the car yesterday, as the small numberplate maaaaayyyy not be quite to the letter of the law, however I kept the old one, and re-fitted it for the re-test today.

Some work to do though.

O/S/R wheel bearing has a bit of play (surprisingly I think these are the original


 bearings!), so will replace all four at the same time. I believe that the fronts are bolt in/out, and the rears are press fit? Could someone please confirm?

Slight weep from an inner CV boot as well, so will replace all four again, most likely when the wheel bearings are done. Gives me a chance to change the gearbox oil too.

Tester mentioned that power steering pipes are starting to look a little crusty, so will replace those, along with new Ravenoil fluid.

So, some winter maintenance ahead, but that's literally all it needs. Amazing really, given how many times it's been on track. What a properly tough, well sorted little car this is

Yes alex rears are press in and front are bolted but be careful the bolts can be a pain. As for new front bearings they have the abs sensor built in and if they not broke don't fix and they are expensive! £150 plus each from Toyota Paul at tcb is your man for all you need he does front hubs from Japan start at £50

Perfecto, thanks @justinread72!

Checked the oil today, as I've not checked it since last oil change.

It's done a hard trackday, and a few more miles than normal since then. Still at the top of the dipstick. Remarkable really. What a great engine 👍🏼

Quote from: Alex Knight on December 12, 2020, 19:23Checked the oil today, as I've not checked it since last oil change.

It's done a hard trackday, and a few more miles than normal since then. Still at the top of the dipstick. Remarkable really. What a great engine 👍🏼

Its how it should be if they've been treated correctly.

Was it a low mileage corolla?

Quote from: 1979scotte on December 12, 2020, 19:41

Quote from: Alex Knight on December 12, 2020, 19:23Checked the oil today, as I've not checked it since last oil change.

It's done a hard trackday, and a few more miles than normal since then. Still at the top of the dipstick. Remarkable really. What a great engine 👍🏼

Its how it should be if they've been treated correctly.

Was it a low mileage corolla?

Not always the case with engines.
I've seen very, very well maintained K20 engines that burn oil.

The Corolla (MD51CDN) was on 80K miles when I bought it.

Engine is on 105K miles now, chassis on 125K miles.

Did some maintenance today, namely replacing the EPAS fluid and replacing the lift bolts.

Started with the EPAS fluid. I'd bought 2 litres of Ravenol E-PSF, and had a quick watch of this video:

https://youtu.be/ElmEb6PKZ50

Seemed simple enough, and it was. Didn't take long at all.

The fluid hasn't been changed in my ownership, and I decided it's high time it was done. It's also cheap and easy to do. It's good preventative maintenance too. Old, dirty fluid isn't great for the pump, and I've heard of a few failing recently.

The existing fluid was a proper state:





I used a 2-Litre drinks bottle with a tube going into the lid, then created an airtight seal around the tube.
Popped the other end of the tube into the reservoir, and squeezed the bottle. This then sucked out as much from the reservoir as I could get out:



I then removed the rubber pipe on the bottom of the reservoir, and fed that into the bottle (note: you need to plug the hole on the bottom fitting - I used a rag). I then topped up the reservoir with new fluid.

I then swivelled the steering wheel left and right, and watched the old fluid pump out into the bottle until the reservoir was drained again.



I repeated until I'd gotten through both bottles of new fluid. This was the result:



Much better:



Onto the lift bolts...

Now, I definitely remember replacing these when I did the engine swap, but that was 7/8 years and 20K miles ago. The bolts are about £1 each. These are a known wear item (even though I'd used the updated Toyota designed bolts last time), so I thought it wouldn't harm to swap in a new pair.

I'm glad I did. The old bolts, though not seriously compromised, definitely showed significant signs of wear. You can very clearly see where the bolts wear, which in turn fatigues the metal, eventually snapping in the head.

Old bolts on the left, new on the right:



Closer up:





Replaced the bolts and carried on.
Quick inspection of the cams shows all is well, no scoring etc (I'm either very lucky, or regular oil changes with high quality, ester based oils pays off...).



Made sense to pop on a new rocker cover gasket whilst I was there:



And I also popped a whiteboard on the door. That way I don't need to try to remember all the little jobs that need doing!

Your not lucky you are sensible.
Probably why you have 0 issues and others blow their engines to pieces

Enjoyed reading this and the pics Alex, you're doing well!

Looking good Alex.
I have a similar list i keep on Google sheets so teh wife knows what and when to order service bits to keep on top of everything
All future plans and prices kept on there too!!

If you've read this thread, then you'll probably know that I do like to keep my car clean, especially on the outside...

I had access to a Wet 'n' Dry vacuum recently, so it made sense to give the MR2 a good seeing to. I was genuinely surprised at the results.

Firstly I whipped the seats out to give full access:



Unsurprisingly a bit grubby. I was a little disappointed to see that the brand new OEM mats had started to wear a little under the driver's left (clutch) heel.

This is what went into the Vax:




And this is what came out!



I was genuinely surprised, but then again I suppose the has likely not been done in 18-odd years. It really goes to show that looking clean isn't always clean.

This is the result (the carpet is still drying):



The seats came out very nicely also (again, they were still drying):

OMG you cleaned the inside!
Good job I'm sitting down.

Quote from: 1979scotte on January 18, 2021, 15:19OMG you cleaned the inside!
Good job I'm sitting down.

Cheeky bugger!

I cleaned the steering wheel with alcantara cleaner a few weeks ago too!
Came out lovely.

Quote from: Alex Knight on January 18, 2021, 15:33

Quote from: 1979scotte on January 18, 2021, 15:19OMG you cleaned the inside!
Good job I'm sitting down.

Cheeky bugger!

I cleaned the steering wheel with alcantara cleaner a few weeks ago too!
Came out lovely.

But you touch it with your dirty hands.
No don't say it.
You actually clean them too.

so cool

Quote from: Alex Knight on December  2, 2020, 21:54

Quote from: justinread72 on December  2, 2020, 21:25

Quote from: Alex Knight on December  2, 2020, 13:44MOT passed for another year.

They did initially fail the car yesterday, as the small numberplate maaaaayyyy not be quite to the letter of the law, however I kept the old one, and re-fitted it for the re-test today.

Some work to do though.

O/S/R wheel bearing has a bit of play (surprisingly I think these are the original


 bearings!), so will replace all four at the same time. I believe that the fronts are bolt in/out, and the rears are press fit? Could someone please confirm?

Slight weep from an inner CV boot as well, so will replace all four again, most likely when the wheel bearings are done. Gives me a chance to change the gearbox oil too.

Tester mentioned that power steering pipes are starting to look a little crusty, so will replace those, along with new Ravenoil fluid.

So, some winter maintenance ahead, but that's literally all it needs. Amazing really, given how many times it's been on track. What a properly tough, well sorted little car this is

Yes alex rears are press in and front are bolted but be careful the bolts can be a pain. As for new front bearings they have the abs sensor built in and if they not broke don't fix and they are expensive! £150 plus each from Toyota Paul at tcb is your man for all you need he does front hubs from Japan start at £50

Perfecto, thanks @justinread72!

I did my front bearings removing the old ones from the wheel hub was a total nightmare:( In the end we blowtorched the edge on the hub then whacked the half unscrewed bolts and after a good bit of encouragement they finally came loose.

Thanks for the thread Alex. I haven't read it in a long time,
Just read from start to finish, really enjoyed it

I really want them seats. I am currently getting my track car back to road going, so ill be on lookout for something similar

Got a few bit to work through to get it back, hopefully do a trackday together soon again though!!

Quote from: pistol pete on February 11, 2021, 05:31Thanks for the thread Alex. I haven't read it in a long time,
Just read from start to finish, really enjoyed it

I really want them seats. I am currently getting my track car back to road going, so ill be on lookout for something similar

Got a few bit to work through to get it back, hopefully do a trackday together soon again though!!

Thanks for the kind words!

They are great on track, but I also like to keep it as a 100% useable road car.

Thats what i am going back to , I kinda want to Daily mine .
I don't mind the crazyness of it all and harshness, plus, i can always jump in the Landy

Quote from: pistol pete on February 11, 2021, 22:39Thats what i am going back to , I kinda want to Daily mine .
I don't mind the crazyness of it all and harshness, plus, i can always jump in the Landy

I'm very lucky in that my MR2 has always been a second car for me (hence the very low annual mileage), and that I'm fortunate enough to have a company car.

Couldn't daily mine its far to harsh with noise and vibration. Shame as the ride comfort is fine for the road.

I'm fortunate enough to have my land rover, the wife Kia and my r53 cooper s..
But I'm a bit mad and wanna daily the Mr.. noise harshness etc doesn't bother me..

I'll be selling the mini I expect to find buying a project classic beetle to do with my daughter

Quote from: pistol pete on February 12, 2021, 22:23I'm fortunate enough to have my land rover, the wife Kia and my r53 cooper s..
But I'm a bit mad and wanna daily the Mr.. noise harshness etc doesn't bother me..

I'll be selling the mini I expect to find buying a project classic beetle to do with my daughter

30 minutes in mine and I'm exhausted, lol. I daily a 330d auto barge so jumping in the MR feels like driving a race car in comparison. Good fun, but tiring for my old arse.

Hello all, update time:

It's time for some more maintenance (shock). I've been hoarding parts for the last few weeks in preparation for some TLC before the trackday season (hopefully) starts:



Front ARB bushes (ARB will be stripped and powdercoated):



New gearbox oil:



New OEM driver's side engine mount (it's the only one I didn't do when I replaced all the others):



Both lift OCV filters:



Four new wheel bearings:



New ARB droplinks:



Powdercoated and polybushed front arms with new ball joints:



Steering UJ gaitor:



New power steering pipes (and a bottle of Ravenol EPSF to top up:



Another oil and filter change:



New spark plugs: