Should I buy an MR2?

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 16:50

not sure about that, a little input from GF persuaded me in the first place, but after driving one i was hooked.

markiii · February 1, 2005, 16:52

Quote from: "theWizard"I see your a programmer too .... looks like this car is fast becomeing car of choice for programmers !

95% before 2003, but not exclusively

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 16:54

actually, I am glad that somebody pointed out that the pre-cats only seem to go on cars before 2001. I Have seen in a review some where that the car was refined on June 2001 and most adjustments made were to the cats. I'll try and find it and post the address and get more details as to exactly what was done.

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 16:56

Apparently the Avensis is terrible for its engine blowing up, the toyota dealer told me that but had never heard of a problem with the MR2,

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 16:57

Quote from: "theWizard"im not sure im right on this ... but im pretty sure that the engine failures have only been on models bought 2000 - 2001. im sure ill be corrected if im wrong .

Not true. IIRC, MRMike had a post '03 car that blew it's engine, and I found out on Sunday that my '53-plated MR2 also has a hole in the pre-cats.

Hence the reason mine are coming out ASAP. s:D

s:D

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 19:23

If you are buying new then any problems the warranty should cover, so go for it. All makes and models can have problems so you can never buy risk free. If you have a good local T dealer, which people here may be able to advise you on, then it takes a lot of the pain away of warranty work.

I had plenty of warranty work (never the engine though) but that has not stopped me recommending the MR2 to a friend.

And don't buy that Golf dressed up in wonderbra and suspenders unless that's your thing s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 19:32

Yeah, i see your point here, no car is perfect, however I would be very pissed off if i were to buy one knowing about the problem and didn't do anything about it. Most cars have niggly faults but not something that is as serious as this. I am still waiting for toyota to reply back as they told me they could give me some figures on how many uk cars have been dignosed under warranty, they recon that it is very small numbers. They also don't regard this as a big problem.
Have you stripped the pre-cats out or have you decided to 'risk' it?

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 19:47

Chris, just get one. For your safegaurd get new or one nearly new with warranty. Make sure it has FTSH and you've no problems.
Let's face it yes the pre-cats may cause you a problem, but then again a whole host of things are possible (car written off in a crash, car stolen and not recovered, serious illness, accident causing death, meteor falling out of space etc.. are you getting my drift?) but it doesn't stop us going out does it?
Get one you'll be delighted you did, if you don't you may or may not regret it because as you said "one drive and you were hooked".

PS my money's on you taking Seans (slacey) crown s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

SimonC_Here · February 1, 2005, 19:56

Quote from: "roadsterman99"PS my money's on you taking Seans (slacey) crown s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

Not quite yet but he is heading in the right direction s:)

s:)

S

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 20:01

who's slacey? I think if I can't find a nice enough mx-5 I will go for it but definately the first job as soon as i get the car back home will be to remove the pre-cats.
You would think that toyota would just recall them all to remove the pre-cats during servicing as would most other manufacturers.

Quote(car written off in a crash, car stolen and not recovered, serious illness, accident causing death, meteor falling out of space etc.. are you getting my drift?)

don't like your reasoning here roadsterman the worst risks are those that are ignored

Slacey · February 1, 2005, 20:15

Quote from: "chr15athome"who's slacey?

That would be me s:wink: :wink: s:wink:

(It's a bit of an in joke about the crown)

Personally I can't recommend the car enough. I gutted my precats at 30k and for what it's worth, there wasn't even a hint of degredation on them - they still came out though. As mentioned, it's an easy enough job, and there are plenty of members all over the country in ths club who would be willing to help get the job done.

Hope to see you stick around s:)

s:)

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 20:27

chr15athome - chill out man. The MR2 is without doubt (on a pound-per-smile basis) the *best* sub-20k roadster you can buy. The problem with car forums is that they tend to focus on the negative aspects of ownership more than they do on the positives.

By way of example, lets take a look at your other alternative, the (ahem) Audi TT. If you look around on car forums you will see a whole wealth of problems associated with it; for example see here.

In all likelihood, your car will be fine as long as it has been regularly serviced and has had a caring owner. So in this respect its no different to any other car! Remove the pre-cats for your own piece of mind, and then enjoy one of the best budget roadsters that money can buy.

Ash s8)

s8)

roger · February 1, 2005, 20:29

Quote from: "chr15athome"I am still waiting for toyota to reply back as they told me they could give me some figures on how many uk cars have been dignosed under warranty, they recon that it is very small numbers. They also don't regard this as a big problem.

We would love to hear the official line, please don't forget to post the info once you get it.

Roger

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 21:16

I have never had a problem in the last 2 years (my car is 5 years now). It is a unique opportunity for you to own a med engined rear wheel drive car and Toyota reliability it among the best in the world. if you are concerned get a 02 model or later. they have no porblems with the 'precats' although i am begining to believe it is a myth that they atre the cause. more likely its the piston rings that resonate at 4500rpm and bore a gap letting oil through the pistons. this is bad but has only ever happened in a timy percentage of cases. Certainly Toyota dont consider it a big enough problem to do a recall and their reputation is on the line.

Personally i like the look of the MX5, my '2 has a body kit and ill sell it to you in a few months if you ca wait (im thinking end of spring, early summertime PM me is you want specs cos it isnt ordinary) but as i say of your worried about the roulette get a 02 or later.

The car is the best i have ever driven, you will love it and its cheap too for what you get. Practicality isnt an issue unless you have kids, you will manage.

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 21:19

why dont you buy with £500 spare and het a cat back system with topsecret headers. smae as gutting but your get an amazing exhaust note. dont bother changing the intake though, the origional is best.

Liz · February 1, 2005, 21:33

Hi Chris and welcome s:)

s:) ... you could always buy one with the precats already gutted - problem solved - blantant plug for my pals car!!

m http://www.mr2roc.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5778 m

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 22:40

Chris, I had the same worries but got one all the same. Had it nearly a year and really like it, but due to circumstances, mine will probably be going this year, to hopefully be replaced by an Elise s8)

s8)

Out of the frying pan and into the fire. I go from possible pre-cat problems, to probable head gasket failure s;)

s;) Still, you only live once and I'll enjoy whatever car I have whilst I have it s:)

s:)

Anonymous · February 1, 2005, 23:09

I think your right if i get an 02 or newer then at least the warranty will cover me for a short period and then if i'm still concerned about whether there is a possibility that the car might generate this fault with or without pre-cats then i'll consider getting an extended warranty from some where like RAC, AA, etc. Apparently for around £215.
I need to check what they cover but it seems the only alternative.
There just doesn't seem to be another car that can get close to the mr2 barring the mx5 for less than £15,000. The only thing i prefer about the mx5 to the mr2 is the interior whereas the exterior of the mr2 is far better than the mx5.
s:flame: :flame: s:flame: Let's just say if it goes tits up i'll remember all your names, sleep with one eye open. s:shock: :shock: s:shock: lol.

Bongo · February 1, 2005, 23:35

Another thing is Toyota seem to be sympathetic to those with a full main dealer service history.

Buy one, it will make you grin on almost every journey (well it does for me).

Anonymous · February 2, 2005, 09:36

Quote from: "chr15athome"I think your right if i get an 02 or newer then at least the warranty will cover me for a short period and then if i'm still concerned about whether there is a possibility that the car might generate this fault with or without pre-cats then i'll consider getting an extended warranty from some where like RAC, AA, etc. Apparently for around £215.
I need to check what they cover but it seems the only alternative.
There just doesn't seem to be another car that can get close to the mr2 barring the mx5 for less than £15,000. The only thing i prefer about the mx5 to the mr2 is the interior whereas the exterior of the mr2 is far better than the mx5.
s:flame: :flame: s:flame: Let's just say if it goes tits up i'll remember all your names, sleep with one eye open. s:shock: :shock: s:shock: lol.

Chris,

I had VERY similar worries to yourself on this issue to be honest. But, there are a couple of things to remember. Although the people on here are a VERY knowledgable crowd and are more than willing to help in anyway (aaaawwweeee.........I love you guuuyyyyysssss........), you have to take into consideration that 1) only a few of the people on here have actually HAD problems, which have either been sorted under warranty or has been taken into hand by gutting cats and 2) we are still only a small proportion of the overall number of 2 owners out there. Not all people who own a 2 are going to be on this site.

So, overall, the number of problems is relatively very small. So, the likelyhood of your car going bang is quite small.

Secondly, people only tend to report on the bad things. Very few people (except maybe us sad lot on here!) actually make a post and say "My car is running perfectly and has been for 250,000 miles" or whatever. So, there is going to be an element of panic in some of these posts (just search for some of my posts on this subject in the past!). So it is always going to look bad in that light really.

Thirdly, I really don't think you have too much to panic about. Although Toyota have not officially recognised the problem, I reckon that with the other cars with the same or similar engines all (Avensis, Lexus etc) having something similar reported, they certainly KNOW about potential problems. Most people who have had a car in warranty and have had these problems have usually not had a problem getting the car fixed, no questions asked.

For what its worth, I bought a just over 2 year old 2000 model and had a whole load of things done in warranty (or what was left of it) e.g. new wheels, suspension top mounts, brake discs etc, with no questions asked. Toyota know about these things, simple. They just won't let on to save face, but they are obliged to get them sorted. But after reading about the "possible" pre-cat problems, I too started to panic. Car was now out of warranty, although running perfectly well, but a gutting meet was set up at Markiii's house (good on him. Much appreciated) and I had a quick trip down there and all ws sorted (as it turned out, nothing wrong with the cats, but I have MUCH more piece of mind).

So, go on, go out and buy one. Get some warranty on it if its not new, and drive it like you stole it!! Its the best roadster under £20K (I have driven a Barchetta and numerous MX-5s, which is good, but not as sporty as the 2), it is, overall, very reliable and the best fun without driving an Elise on the road. You would be MAD to let all these worries get to you and stop you buying one (which if you don't, later on you are going to SERIOUSLY regret) when the likelhood of anything going wrong can be easily righted if needs be and chances are small anyway. Its not as if any of the other cars don't have problems. I have heard a number of horror stories of MX5 gearboxes disintegrating with spirited driving. So there you go. It could happen with anything you buy.

Go on, get out there, Find the right car and buy it. Worry about it all when and a big IF it happens. You may as well and the more you dwell on it, the more you are going to talk yourself out of it............

Go on, off you go!!! s:wink: :wink: s:wink: s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

Anonymous · February 2, 2005, 12:58

"My car is running perfectly and has been for 250,000 miles" or whatever

very amusing, -the first 2 owner to do this milage should get a prize !!!

Anonymous · February 2, 2005, 15:36

I bought MR2 and i found out that the car is perfect - i have this feeling like it was made especialy for me. It brings you so much fun and pleasure. With MR2 you have a feeling, that you drive a car - it's difficult to say that driving MX5. I don't mean to put MX5 in bad light since i was just driving it once, but there was realy some strange feeling driving it specialy in reverse. Had this feeling like part of car was missing.

Anonymous · February 2, 2005, 21:45

I think I will risk it. It would be a good idea for whoever is in charge of this board to move the pre-cat tutorial in the tech problems section to a seperate tutorial section as it is the only one I can find.

By the way I was saying before that toyota revised the model in 2003. Apparently bigger rear wheels and tyres and some cat alterations.

On the mx-5 front, I think if I was going to get one then i would wait until the end of the year when the new shape comes out, cause the used prices of mx5's would fall big time.

Oh, also heard that toyota plans to stop producing mr2 and Celice and replace with a new supra, is this true, can anyone confirm.

Bongo · February 2, 2005, 22:01

The new supra will cost £70,000 and do over 200mph - hardly a replacement for the MR2 or the Celica.

Anonymous · February 2, 2005, 22:39

Didn't realise it was coming back as a supercar.