by "Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
Published 03/29/2017 at 15:06
by "Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
Published 03/29/2017 at 15:06
Tags: Europpomeet
; MR2
STARS: 9
I’ve been spending the night looking for brakes, suspension and half cages for the MR2. And track days.
"FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem" (fuelstratifiedinjection)
03/29/2017 at 15:09, STARS: 1
That’s exactly what Mr. BRZ told me numerous times on the way back home and I see why.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:12, STARS: 0
There’s a voice of reason in the back of my head that whispers “don’t do it, the backroad cruises won’t be enjoyable anymore!”. But, damn, the Green Hell was addicting.
Perhaps I should get a motorbike for the backroads.
"FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem" (fuelstratifiedinjection)
03/29/2017 at 15:20, STARS: 0
Once you’ve been bitten by the modifying bug then it’s too late...
But small improvements can’t be that bad. The MR2 seems like a great starting point for mods.
A motorbike on the other hand is tempting and the roads you chose seemed to have been made for motorcycles.
"4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30" (4muddyfeet)
03/29/2017 at 15:21, STARS: 2
Me too. I actually searched for a performance exhaust for the oil burner Skoda. Then some other bits like coil overs and sway bars. Turns out they’re not a very good car to track prep, who knew??
"BvdV - The Dutch Engineer" (dutchengineer)
03/29/2017 at 15:22, STARS: 1
A motorbike on the other hand is tempting and the roads you chose seemed to have been made for to be killed on a motorcycle s .
Fixed that for you! The biker on the one narrow road still has me sort of scared... (you know, the one I didn’t expect)
Of course the rest of the roads were perfectly suitable for motorcycles.
"Discerning" (discerning2003c5z)
03/29/2017 at 15:25, STARS: 0
I wanted one of these but I was told it was ugly and wouldn’t make for a good project car. :(
She is right though. They are kinda ugly. The search continues.
"FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem" (fuelstratifiedinjection)
03/29/2017 at 15:27, STARS: 1
The fuckheads who give motorcyclists a bad rep. But yeah, that was scary as hell. Like I said, imagine the UK guys cutting a blind corner just a bit and a cyclist doing the same...
A guy my age from my town died this Sunday afternoon in a motorcycle accident.
"BvdV - The Dutch Engineer" (dutchengineer)
03/29/2017 at 15:27, STARS: 1
On the one hand I want to make the Twingo into a mild track beast, on the other hand I think it is a better plan to save up for a car which has a more suitable chassis for track modifications. One way or the other, there will be a ‘Ring machine somewhere(think 2-5 years) in my future!
"Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow" (chriskf)
03/29/2017 at 15:27, STARS: 1
Get the half cage and do brake pads/fluid, then spend the rest on track days. Upgrade suspension and the rest once the stock stuff is slowing you down. This is the proper way to go about things.
Not that most people follow that formula... me included. lol
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:35, STARS: 1
Yeah, it was why I was on the horn in most blind corners. Except that one of course...
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:36, STARS: 0
It’s extremely compliant at the moment, so I’m hesitant of putting stiffer suspension on it. A half cage would provide more protection, but would also 99% surely mean ditching the soft top.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:37, STARS: 0
Kinda surprising, wasn’t yours on the contemporary Golf platform yet?
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:39, STARS: 1
To be honest, I think you’ll get frustrated with the lack of power sooner rather than later. It’s good as it is for the Ardennes and the Ring, but I’d wager stuff like Spa and Zandvoort might leave you wanting for more.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:40, STARS: 1
Thanks for the tips! Half cage would mean ditching the soft top, though then again, I leave it parked with the top down, and I rarely take it out in inclement weather (+ I’ve got the hard top as back-up).
"4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30" (4muddyfeet)
03/29/2017 at 15:43, STARS: 0
There’s a few bits and bobs, suspension and sway bars being a good example, but there’s no performance ‘bolt-ons’ and certainly nothing safety or weight reduction related.
"MultiplaOrgasms" (themightymultipla)
03/29/2017 at 15:44, STARS: 1
The Group chat has convinced me that Maxitwingo must return to the Schleife. And this time there are no brakes to hold it back.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:46, STARS: 0
They’re not the prettiest, but boy, do I love it! Every drive just feels special with the engine thrumming away behind you and the skittish front end hunting out corners.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:47, STARS: 1
Gotcha. Ditching the seats and a custom roll cage it is, then?
"Discerning" (discerning2003c5z)
03/29/2017 at 15:48, STARS: 0
I would love one. Might be able to convince her to green light an Elise or Evora though. Really leaning toward Elise because of the insanely low weight.
"4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30" (4muddyfeet)
03/29/2017 at 15:48, STARS: 0
Nice try homeboy, this is my sensible car
"BvdV - The Dutch Engineer" (dutchengineer)
03/29/2017 at 15:49, STARS: 1
True, next to the fact that it would be kinda ridiculous to put in a car that is a ‘bad’ base to begin with.
Your MR2, on the other hand, sounds like a useful base. Go for it!
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
03/29/2017 at 15:51, STARS: 1
You could make a nice upgrade without killing your streetability with Koni Sport shocks, Eibach or H&R springs, and Whiteline sway bars.
Then do a 2ZZ swap.
"BvdV - The Dutch Engineer" (dutchengineer)
03/29/2017 at 15:51, STARS: 1
Well, technically speaking there were no brakes to hold it back Sunday either, which was the whole problem, haha.
"FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem" (fuelstratifiedinjection)
03/29/2017 at 15:52, STARS: 0
I would honestly think twice about it if it were my car. I don’t know if you daily your MR2 or not or if you travel longer distances with it.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:54, STARS: 1
The Twingo’s platform is far from bad, but an engine swap is probably more expensive than a car that’s as fast as the result. It was a lot fun seeing the little Frenchies keeping up through the twisties!
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:56, STARS: 0
I daily ride the train, the MR2 is my nice weather and roadtrip car (about 5k km/year). The drive from the Ring back home is the longest I’ve spent in it on the highway.
I’ll probably start off by throwing out the precats.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:57, STARS: 0
A real step up that one, as barebones and hardcore as it gets. I’d love one as well, but the enormous costs associated with body and chassis damage held me back.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 15:59, STARS: 0
Ditching the seats increases the load capacity, the roll cage offers mounting points. Sensibility all around.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 16:01, STARS: 0
Sadly, a 2ZZ swap would immediately turn it illegal for road use. In a couple of years perhaps, when I get the space for a trackrat.
"FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem" (fuelstratifiedinjection)
03/29/2017 at 16:01, STARS: 0
Is removing the pre cats legal in Belgium?
"4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30" (4muddyfeet)
03/29/2017 at 16:02, STARS: 0
Damn. You’re quite good at this. But does it baby?
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 16:03, STARS: 0
Technically, no. Chances that anyone at the inspection station knows it came with precats are rather slim though.
There’s also a replacement header that fits underneath the heat shield, so practically invisible.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 16:05, STARS: 0
You can rig up a hammock-style cradle suspension. Instant sleep!
"FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem" (fuelstratifiedinjection)
03/29/2017 at 16:07, STARS: 1
Hm, that’s worth considering it imo. I just did a quick search on the pre cats and from what I can tell you will Not regret getting of them.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
03/29/2017 at 16:11, STARS: 0
This is where I’m thinking like an American, where our cars are subjected to minimal scrutiny.
Many states have periodic safety inspections but they’re checking for things like, “do you have brake pads?” Looking at a Toyota engine in a Toyota car they probably wouldn’t care even if that wasn’t the original Toyota engine.
Most but not all states test for emissions by not actually testing for emissions, but by scanning the OBD port to see that your car has no check engine codes and all of the emissions readiness monitors are showing as ok.
Even in California, which has the most difficult emissions inspections including a visual inspection where if they see an aftermarket part like an intake, you need an exemption sticker from the manufacturer of the part, you could still probably pass with a 2ZZ swap if it was relatively stock looking, and the ECU was properly talking to the OBD port and showing no codes and readiness.
I live in Wisconsin and have no emissions or safety inspection.
My BMW 335xi has a catless downpipe and would surely fail a tailpipe test. I have a little device that hooks into the oxygen sensor wiring to trick the ECU into thinking it sees a catalytic converter. This makes the ECU show no codes and emissions readiness as ok. So if I had to pass emissions testing, I could, in most places.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 16:13, STARS: 0
Welcome to Belgium, Europe, where every mod needs a certificate and safety inspections, and most things are off limits.
The beer is nice though.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
03/29/2017 at 16:18, STARS: 1
I told my wife I kept the dinky little secondary cats in the midpipe because I wanted to still have halfway decent emissions while making more horsepower. Her eyes glazed over about halfway through my very brief explanation of what a catalytic converter does.
“It’s the thing in the exhaust that cleans up the fumes and gets rid of the pollution. My car came with 1 big one and 2 little ones. I got rid of the big one to make more horsepower but kept the 2 little ones so it still is halfway decent for the environment.”
Riiiiight.
"BvdV - The Dutch Engineer" (dutchengineer)
03/29/2017 at 16:21, STARS: 1
Which is why I had bad between apostrophes. It’s definitely way too much fun for what it is.
I had a lot of fun driving the twisties you chose, so thank you for that! I’m glad you enjoyed seeing the Frenchies try to keep up, I think Clement and I tried to stick to follow you closely as much as we could, haha.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 16:21, STARS: 0
Hahaha, amazing! I’ll probably ditch the 2 little ones on mine, even if that isn’t allowed either.
"Chris_K_F drives an FR-Slow" (chriskf)
03/29/2017 at 16:24, STARS: 0
I only say to go for the half cage, as I expect some track day groups might require them. Safety items should always be the first purchases, hence brakes -> tires -> suspension/power mods. Check with your local track day groups and see what their rules are concerning convertibles.
"Out, but with a W - has found the answer" (belg)
03/29/2017 at 16:31, STARS: 1
Will do, thanks!
"BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires" (biturbo228)
03/29/2017 at 16:42, STARS: 1
Haha! Us too ;) we’ve been looking at mintex brake pads and ITBs ;)
I’d recommend Toyo Proxes T1Rs for tyres. That’s what me and Matt had and they’re great tyres for really not much money :)
Oh, and next meet you must hang out at the back with us and do some sliding on the switchbacks ;)
"BvdV - The Dutch Engineer" (dutchengineer)
03/29/2017 at 16:56, STARS: 0
Are you going to put ITBs on the MG? I need to know for reasons
While casually browsing youtube, I found Phil’s videos of the drive to the ‘Ring, looks like you guys had loads of fun at the back!
"BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires" (biturbo228)
03/29/2017 at 17:02, STARS: 1
It’s definitely on the to do list ;)
Yeah we’ve just been watching them too! As soon as one’s uploaded that isn’t getting lost and wind boise i’ll post them up ;)