My MR2 is Fixed and There’s No Greater Feeling Than When Your Car is Running Well

"Nauraushaun" (nauraushaun12)
07/31/2016 at 19:24 • Filed to: MR2

It’s too easy to forget this feeling, when things are too good for too long we forget how bad they can be. But the MR2 is fixed and this is your friendly Oppo reminder.

Nearly a year ago I !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . My 300ZX was !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and fixing it was dragging out. So I decided to tempt the gods, pitting all the reliability of a Toyota with a well-developed engine that was shared amongst many models, against all the unreliability of an old 4-cylinder privately-imported unconventionally-laid-out sports car. And I lost.

It broke. I made !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . I visited a man. I enlisted the help of my friend. And now it’s fixed.

On The Fix

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The biggest problem was a rattle at certain RPM/throttle positions, and it was caused by worn crankshaft bearings. Really worn. One of them had snapped. Two were missing layers. Chunks of metal were in the oil we drained out. The general consensus is that the crankshaft will have been beating on these and also getting damaged, but we observed and measured and it’s just fine. Replaced the bearings and it’s all good. Can I blame Toyota? Maybe. It happened because the oil got too low. I checked it when I bought the car but I wasn’t monitoring it like I perhaps should have. Nevertheless, the oil pressure light never came on, and it definitely should have. Call it a draw.

The bearings

Problem 2

Another problem that showed up was some stuttering, especially at low RPM. This was caused by bad ignition leads - probably damaged by us removing them during the work, but only because they were already old and tired. Duct tape fixed them temporarily (and surprisingly well) and confirmed the source of the problem, new leads have arrived for a permanent fix.

What The Mechanic Said

The mechanic I went to suggested it was valve clearances, that he’d have to remove the engine to fix them and it would cost $2,500. We did that and it didn’t help. Now that we’ve found and fixed the true problem I can say with authority that he was wrong. Paying him would have resulted in a destroyed bank account and a car that’s unchanged. What’s more, we’d found that unplugging the lead in cylinder 4 would remove the rattle completely, suggesting that it wasn’t valve clearances and was likely something related to certain cylinders. He completely dismissed this. I don’t think he even believed me when I said it. Clearly he didn’t test it before coming to his conclusion. I’m no expert, but he is and he was wrong.

In all it came to a few hundred dollars for the lot.

On The Feels

I drove the car as it was, engine rattling at cruising speed, hesitating at higher revs and stuttering at lower revs, for a few months. I don’t drive often, but I did go on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! covering a few thousand kays. I drove it fairly sedately for this time, but not like a grandma - I’d been told it was simply the valve clearances and that I couldn’t really damage the car if I kept using it. I could drown out most of the rattling with music and by having the roof off/windows down, and at least the car performed decently in the mid-range, but it was never really okay.

Driving a sick car is like having a sick child or loved one. It’s not about you anymore, it’s not about having a good time with each other. You just want them to be better and you feel guilty for being powerless to help. The MR2 is a sports car of course, and one of the pillars of enjoyment in my life. And I tried to enjoy our time together as much as I could. There were twisty roads, long trips away from home, stints with the roof off despite the weather at the moment. I threw it into roundabouts with gusto, trying to enjoy the handling of the car without exerting the engine. But it was never the same, always tainted. It was enough to get me through, and the car never let me down, but it wasn’t the fun we should’ve been having.

Back, baby

But now things are glorious. The engine sings towards redline, nary a stutter or hint of hesitation, all smooth revvy goodness. The power is likewise smooth, consistent and seemingly always available. It’s beautiful. It’s so easy to take this sort of thing for granted - to enjoy the feel and sound of your car without questioning whether or not it will always be this way. Next time you’re out on a nice road, take a moment to reflect.

DISCUSSION (16)

Urambo Tauro > Nauraushaun
07/31/2016 at 19:41

Driving a sick car is like having a sick child or loved one. It’s not about you anymore, it’s not about having a good time with each other. You just want them to be better and you feel guilty for being powerless to help.

I want to frame this quote and hang it in my garage. The place where I don’t feel so powerless.

Scary__goongala! > Nauraushaun
07/31/2016 at 20:37

I really wanted to buy a non turbo 2nd Gen MR2 instead of a Miata. But the mid engine worried me about working on it. I also couldn’t find any non turbo cars that had been well taken care of.

rockingthe2 > Nauraushaun
07/31/2016 at 22:09

Glad it’s fixed! For $2500 you could almost have a brand new engine in it!

Nauraushaun > rockingthe2
07/31/2016 at 22:56

Damn right! It’s more than 1/4 what I paid for the car :<

Nauraushaun > Scary__goongala!
07/31/2016 at 22:58

It is hard to find one that’s taken care of. They’re so old, and they don’t seem very loved despite being by far the best mid-engined option available under 100k.

And working on it is a bit of a bitch. The hardest part for us was taking apart the exhaust which runs under the sump, so we could remove it and access the bottom of the engine. It seems to be the same as a regular front-engine 4 cylinder though, except with a shorter exhaust.

Nauraushaun > Urambo Tauro
07/31/2016 at 22:58

I know that feel

MR2_FTW - Group J's resident Stig > Nauraushaun
08/01/2016 at 08:00

That mechanic was definitely taking you for a ride. You certainly do NOT have to remove the engine to clearance the valves. In fact it’s probably easier in the MR2 than it is in a damn Celica All-Trac with the intercooler sitting on top of the engine.

Nauraushaun > MR2_FTW - Group J's resident Stig
08/01/2016 at 09:24

I think you’re right on both counts. Even after we did the clearances we couldn’t figure out why he wanted to machine the head. But that’s what he said. And that involves removing the engine, so you may as well do the timing belt, yada yada yada. $$$

rockingthe2 > Nauraushaun
08/02/2016 at 01:07

You paid $8k for an N/A?

Nauraushaun > rockingthe2
08/02/2016 at 02:36

In Australia, yes

MR2_FTW - Group J's resident Stig > Nauraushaun
08/02/2016 at 07:51

Even all that can be done with the engine in the car. Though now you’re talking a whole headgasket job which is a whole new can of worms.

Nauraushaun > MR2_FTW - Group J's resident Stig
08/02/2016 at 09:06

This guy was supposed to be the area’s MR2 expert :(

He did say he’d done a timing belt in the car, but that he wouldn’t wish it on anyway. TBH I can see why.

MR2_FTW - Group J's resident Stig > Nauraushaun
08/02/2016 at 11:14

Is yours a turbo? I’ve done timing belts on my 88SC and on a 91NA with the engine in the car no problem. The only thing with the turbo would be removing the intercooler that would be in the way. It’s no worse than doing a timing belt on a FWD car, it’s just in the middle. And no power steering lines to get in your way either.

Nauraushaun > MR2_FTW - Group J's resident Stig
08/02/2016 at 18:34

Nah, not a turbo.

It is just in the middle. But compared to the typical front-engined car (of that vintage), that means there’s a lot less room. Front-engined cars back then had 3-box designs with huge engine bays at the front, not like the little MR2 bay.

rockingthe2 > Nauraushaun
08/02/2016 at 20:47

That makes sense. Some crazy MR2 builds out there!

Nauraushaun > rockingthe2
08/02/2016 at 21:23

Not as crazy as New Zealand I suspect :P