Realistic MPG?

[AmeR]

With my first 2 - 5spd prefacelift, I used it purely as a daily on short runs, public roads to work and back 30-50mph roads. Never used it much at weekends due to this, but regularly got high 30s return for my fuel. I was running v-power too (no need for a debate, plenty of them elsewhere!!).

[nirurin]

Well it seems the MR2 wins on fuel efficiency! Such a difficult decision between these cars lol. Such a surprise that the sporty MR2 can actually be vaguely fuel efficient too.

I think if I could source an MR2 hardtop in the right colour, it would solve the problem for me. I know a lot of you seem to think they aren't necessary, but still. Unfortunately I can only find silver ones.

[Bernie]

You still appear to be in 2 minds about the MR2 v MX5 just also take into account the rusty cills issues with the MX5 as the roof drains run down through and are notorious for blocking up and the water ingress causes the rusting !

[nirurin]

You still appear to be in 2 minds about the MR2 v MX5 just also take into account the rusty cills issues with the MX5 as the roof drains run down through and are notorious for blocking up and the water ingress causes the rusting !

Ahh yes, I do actually know about this, but the car I have been offered is a pristine mk1, zero rusting, original paintwork, etc. Though it does mean that it might start rusting over the years that I drive it!!

[mrzwei]

From what you say, I'd buy the local MX5.

[nirurin]

HAHA! I'm sure you're not supposed to be saying that on here  s:P s:P

Might I ask why you say that? It is a very nice Mx5, black leather seats and british racing green paintwork, 62k miles. But the MR2 is newer and is a lovely looking car that handles like a go kart and is better on the boring economy front lol.

Edit: and in fairness, the MR2 I'm after is also pristine, and has a new clutch and a fairly new interior so the seats etc are pristine too. 6-speed gearbox as well.

[mrzwei]

 s:lol: :lol: s:lol:   One thing I learnt very early on in my business career was that you need to make decisions. You will always be wrong in some peoples eyes but, the only crime is not to make a decision!
In the immortal words of Nike, JFDI.   s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

[nirurin]

lol, yeh this is true. I cant make a decision until the weekend though as I am waiting for some details etc. So in the meantime I'm information gathering  s:P s:P

The nice thing is, whatever I choose, I will end up with a really nice and fun car. So I can't really lose.

[Anonymous]

MPG - average 40!

done 45 mpg in mine before,

I see a noticeable difference in winter/summer though. Winter i get about 36mpg... Summer 42...

[nirurin]

Totally unrelated, but ill hijack my own thread anyway..

Is it harder to work on the mr2s engine, because of where it is? People seem to think it is, and so garages (maybe ones inexperienced with the car anyway) will charge more for labour time etc.

Wondered if this was a bit of a myth.. I remember the mk1 engine bay being a pain to do certain jobs in though.

[AmeR]

No more difficult than working on any other car in my opinion. There's a similar level of access to any car with an engine wedged in to a small engine bay. It has some quirks, but then every car does.

I do as much work on my car as I can myself. Mainly because then I know what's been disturbed / changed in there and can do other little jobs at the same time. The more you put in there eg. Turbo, charge cooler etc, the more difficult it becomes but that's fairly obvious  s:) s:)

[loadswine]

Whatever folks say on here now is pretty academic really. I am thinking the choice will rest on other things now.
Yes you will have a fun car either way. One thing that hasn't been mentioned is space for the driver and passenger. I have tried to sit in the MX5, Mk1 and Mk2 a few times, but just cannot fit comfortably and I'm only 6ft. The first thing I noticed about the 2 all those years ago, was how comfortable it was. I once did a fairly long days drive in one, accompanied by several others, from Strasbourg down to Venice and arrived with no aches or pains from being in the car. It is a very comfortable place to sit.
Good luck with your choice. personally I'd go for the more modern car, but that's just me.  s;) s;)

[Zonda_]

I get 55 miles from a tenners worth of fuel (135p a litre)  never seems to vary whether I'm cruising or flat out. Incidentally, my car prior to this was a MK1 MX-5 and I hated it,  not in the same league in quality terms and very uncomfortable as has been said. If I could I'd keep my Roadster and buy another car while my operation mends but I can't I know I'll regret selling it and I've never said that about any of my many cars.

[tomaky]

As requested  s:) s:)

[nirurin]

Well ain't that a thing lol. Do the doors still close?

Impressive  s:) s:)

I have in fact pretty much decided upon the MR2 now anyway, assuming the car ends up being what I'm looking for etc. So fingers crossed  s:) s:)

Though while trawling through the parts costs of things, just to see how much I would  need to budget for maintenance (seems to be no more than the MX5, or in fact any small car), I came across a strange anomaly...

My honda exhaust a couple years ago was about £120 for a standard catback exhaust section. A mazda MX5 comes up on eurocarparts as £150 for the lot.

...but I cant find a online shop that sells the standard mr2 exhausts! You can find them for mk2's, and even mk1's, but not the roadster...

Course if I ever needed a replacement exhaust, I would buy a stainless one. Cobra maybe, that looks nice.

Aaaaaand.... I've just wasted another hour of my life looking at things I dont need  s:P s:P

[mrzwei]

IIRC the standard Roadster exhaust is stainless steel. Could be wrong.

[AndyM]

Aaaaaand.... I've just wasted another hour of my life looking at things I dont need  s:P s:P

  s:lol: :lol: s:lol:  I know what you mean. One other tip... once you have the car keep the credit card in another room when browsing these forums. It's still dangerous there but if it's within arm's reach then you're in trouble.   s:D s:D

[nirurin]

Aaaaaand.... I've just wasted another hour of my life looking at things I dont need  s:P s:P

  s:lol: :lol: s:lol:  I know what you mean. One other tip... once you have the car keep the credit card in another room when browsing these forums. It's still dangerous there but if it's within arm's reach then you're in trouble.   s:D s:D

lol dont worry... by the time I have a car and a hardtop sorted, I will be far too poor to actually spend money on mods  s:) s:)

....although, I really *really* wanted to get some of these for the front bonnet:
 l viewtopic.php?f=36&t=42119 l

but the group buy has ended, and Dev has said it'll be $100+ to get a set now. Which is probably a good thing, as it will stop me spending moneys!

[AndyM]

lol dont worry... by the time I have a car and a hardtop sorted, I will be far too poor to actually spend money on mods  s:) s:)

  s:lol: :lol: s:lol:   I wouldn't count on a little thing like that getting in the way.  s;) s;)

[tomaky]

Haha just research what you need to look at for buying more than enough info on here  s:) s:)

They certainly do and easily  s:) s:)

[Paul-B]

As a very new (4 weeks!) MR2 owner I also wanted a hardtop... having run the car daily with the hood down many days I can't think when I would ever fit one. A decent day and it takes just a couple of minutes to lower the hood, and with that down I can sneer superciliously at all those other convertibles I see with their hoods up  s:) s:)  Having to fit, remove, and store a hardtop would mean I probably wouldn't take it off much over the winter, and in that case I would be missing using an open car in those lovely days when top-down motoring is just great fun.

I drove both the MR2 and the MX5 before I bought mine, and I think the MR2 is so much better to drive... lighter, nimbler, better balanced, corners like a go-kart and has a surprising amount of storage space you can use, much more than I expected. And, in the end, that's why I wanted a sports car, for the performance and handling. Fuel consumption doesn't really come into it as it's so dependent on how I drive - a light foot gives me about 330 miles from brimful to low-light whereas if I really boot it that drops to around 280/290, and I would think the MR2 will be about the same.

[nirurin]

Fuel consumption doesn't really come into it as it's so dependent on how I drive - a light foot gives me about 330 miles from brimful to low-light whereas if I really boot it that drops to around 280/290, and I would think the MR2 will be about the same.

I assume you meant that the mx5 would be about the same, but as far as I can tell you should get around 5-10 more miles out of an mr2 per gallon. That's 50-100 miles more per tank. It all adds up!

Though you seem to be getting 28mpg out of yours, which seems low. Unless those figures were for an mx5, then they're probably about right.

[tomaky]

30mpg! Now thats better than expected! For the driving i do and how lets say giving i can be to the throttle pedal on the only carriageway driving i do do.

[Two's Company]

If you're this bothered about fuel economy and luggage space then the car probably isn't for you. You but it for the way it drives and the rest you live with. I got 40mpg when I was doing 600 miles a week. Now I do town driving I get 30mpg. Still better than the golf gt tsi 1.4 which is meant to be fuel efficient but does 24mpg.

I used to change my car every year or 2 because I got bored. I've had the mr2 10 years since new this year. There isn't anything to replace it with that isn't more compromised or much more expensive.

[nirurin]

If you're this bothered about fuel economy and luggage space then the car probably isn't for you. You but it for the way it drives and the rest you live with. I got 40mpg when I was doing 600 miles a week. Now I do town driving I get 30mpg. Still better than the golf gt tsi 1.4 which is meant to be fuel efficient but does 24mpg.

Well as far as fuel economy goes, these days everyone needs to keep an eye on it unfortunately. But it seems the MR2 actually does pretty well on that front!

I barely ever use luggage space though, for most of the last two years I never even opened the boot on my car, I always use the passenger seat and footwell. But I was just wondering about the "what if" situations, the rare circumstances that require a bit of space.

I'm already decided on the MR2 now, its just a matter of finding one