New To Mr2-S, Should I Have Bought This?

[welshdave3012]

Hi there, this is my first post on the website and I'm new to the MR2 scene. I will cut straight to the point as I'm a little anxious on what I have won off of eBay:

eBay item number:251722607925

I am a little worried about what to look out for. Sadly I never had the chance to visit the item in person before bidding (I know) so I'm buying blind really but I do know about the common pre cat failure. Is there any other signs that I should pick up on to make me walk away from the deal as I really want a rear wheel drive and thought that the MR2-s was the best bet. I'm going Saturday to view but any good feedback is welcomed as I want to have a car to enjoy and not to fix every month. I doubt the guy selling it to me will allow me to take the heat shield off of the manifold to check the pre cats either so I am dubious about this, Should I be?

Obviously signs like engine management light being on is obvious but I'm looking for other issues that aren't so easy to spot.

Thanks for any help you give, but please don't give anything bias as that's all I seem to find on the internet. I Don't mind about the lack of space either as I'm only young so I might as well get the sports car ownership out of my system now haha.

Thanks,

David.

[blz-8027]

Cheap enough car at the price

alloys look good ,common issue with flaky paint ,headlights look good ,another common issue with misting

low milage so wouldn't worry about the precats not being done before buying ,just do them as soon as you can if not done

sign up on this club as well

http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB3/index.php

[welshdave3012]

Great cheers blz-8027. The owner kindly gave me the v5 number so I could check previous mot. My only concern is that the management light has been advisory in 2009 2011 and 2012. Could be just a sensor. I've read people saying the engines in a pre 2003 weren't too good. But that's most probably mx5 owners haha.

[Aki-MR2]

As said, join up to MR2ROC as that is a forum dedicated to the roadsters. As you say you've read all the precat bit, doesn't only affect the pre 03 cars though, the true fix for the problem didn't come until the late 05 cars.

I believe one of the most effective precautions against this is regular annual servicing (oil and filter changes) its poor old thick oil that blocks up the control rings and starts the problem so when you look at it have a look at the service history if it has any and the state of the oil on the dip stick, before and after you take it for a spin, incase they have just topped it up. If you have a sensor socket you can take out the O2 sensors and peer in and look at the state of the precat without taking off the heat shield but even the O2 sensors can be a bugger to undo sometimes and a soaking in plusgas is needed?

Have a good look down through the engine bay at the lower cross member as these can be rust magnets, you could try looking up from underneath but its hard to see if the plastic nappy is in place which is why it goes un noticed during an MOT. it is possible to get new or reconditioned ones of these if need be and bolt them in (no welding required I don't think?)

Check the tyres are the correct size and stagger (i.e. the backs should be wider than the fronts, I think its 185 on the front and 205 on the back but as long as they are wider it should be OK, if they are not then factor that in as it affects the handling.) the pre facelift models had 15" wheels all round, the later 03 onward face lift models had 16" on the back.

Roof drains, this is something you can check when you get home as its not a deal breaker, they are down in the sides of the parcel shelf behind the seat belt, when these are blocked they fill up with water which overflows into the storage bins behind the seat, the first you'll know about this is the sound of sloshing water. The drains should be flushed out once a year to keep them clear. But when you look at the car you can check the bins are dry.

Check the roof is in general good condition, when you open and close it you usually have to help it by placing the palm of your hand flat on the back window as it goes down, don't force anything though, smash the window and its a new roof.

Check the engine management light comes on when you turn the ignition on and goes off again when you start the car, if it doesn't come on someone has disabled it to hide an error?

Lastly, if alls good and you take it keep a close eye on the dipstick for a while, every journey at first, then weekly, if the car has always been well maintained and you carry on doing so then you'll probably be safe knowing you've not bought an oil burner and you can check it monthly.