Looking To Buy My First Mk 2

[mackie]

Hi all,

Looking to get my hands on an MR2 Mk2 in the next six months.

If any of you have the time....Gen me up .

I've always loved the look of them, and everything I've read about them in mags and on this site rates them as good motors.

I've only actually had the pleasure of a ride in one twice :( .

I'd ideally like a T-bar, turbo model but...insurance :censor: dictates otherwise .

I've got about six (hard earned) grand (give or take 500) to get one on the road.

All info well appreciated, as I must admit, I know very little about them.

I hope some of you have the time to help.

Cheers in advance

[mr2nut123]

hi mate. im kinda new to mr2s myself and am looking for a uk rev2 model as these comes with abs and a slighly better engine. these go from j reg upwards as far as i know. getting a uk car will bring down the insurance a fair bit also as im very young and can get a quote on one, but its pricey :P just seen this post but theres sum kool people on here that know **** loads about mr2s, just wait for their replies im still really new to them myself. hope ya find ur motor soon....hope i do too lol.

[DeusMR2]

welcome to the club!

6grand will get you a perfect NA or a very good rev 3/rev 4 turbo (if insurance wasnt such a *****!).

The MR2 Mk2 came in 5 revisions, revision 1 was known as the tail happy one (or a real mans car accordin to rev 1 hehe :P ). They sorted the handling out on rev 2 (1992+) and later revisions with bigger wheels (15" standard), bigger brake discs and revised suspension geometry. Rev 1 and 2's NA's put out about 158bhp. Rev 3 and beyond had an even better tuned chassis and had several options as standard. They put out 175bhp stock but were actually very slightly slower 0-60 since they had extra safety bars etc. Rev 5's had power output reduced to 168bhp due to new emmission laws.

Your best bet in finding all about MR2's is to check the stickys on the top of the forum, theyre aimed at people who are new to them and are very helpful. I'm also sure that anyone in your area would be willing to go look at some MR2's for sale close to you There is an absolutley huge following for MR2's on the net, anythin youd ever want to know is there somewhere.

Anyway good luck with your search..you wont regret spending that hard earned cash...

[stgeorge]

Hello and welcome - as previously mentioned the threads at the top of the forum are a very useful resource so check them out for all the stats etc. I dont know much about the 2's and am very new to this so i will leave most of the "real" advice to the guys and gals on here who know what they are talking about.....

The one thing I will say is that the 2 months since buying my 2 have been great fun!! I spent a while (about 2 months) looking for mine, and as many people on hear will echo - the key is to make sure you buy a good un!

As for your budget - you will have no problem getting a really tidy motor - for that money - if a turbo is really a "no" then your ONLY decisions will be the T-Bar / Sunroof / tintop dilema...... oh and also UK or import...... oh and colour - all of which are frequently discussed on here ;) . Personally I went for a Rev 3 UK T-Bar with loads of history and absolutely love it - the only problem at the moment is I am working abroad and have no control over how often the missus borrows it!!!

Good luck and happy hunting......

[John R]

6 grand will get you mar car, click on the link in my signature!

(Uk model n/a rev4 T-Bar)

[mackie]

CHEERS FOR ALL YOUR REPLIES PEOPLE.

A couple more questions, anyone know about insurance groups?

Are the turbo models Group 20???

Can you get a tin-top with A/C? If so which models?

THANKS AGAIN

Mack

[DeusMR2]

yes turbo models are group 20, UK cars with the GTi Badge on the back will rarely have AC. Imported GT's will have climate control regardless of roof, GT-S will have it as an option and G...well lets not talk about G. You'll likely to find that 90% of turbos have climate control

[stgeorge]

Can you get a tin-top with A/C?  If so which models?

My understanding is that Air Con (or possibly Climate?) was only available on UK cars as an option - and a very expensive one at that (I think this is the case for all models). However in Japan it came as standard on alot of models so many of the imports up for sale come with air-con.

hope that helps - hope it is right too.... am sure someone will answer definitively in a bit.......

Ed

**Edit**

Bugger - Deus beat me to it there - I will get my coat, damn GPRS connections :ffs:

[mackie]

So any advice on which precise model you favour?

T-bar, tin top, Rev 3, 4 etc?

Turbo no option as am 25 and insurers semm very un keen.

[stgeorge]

Rev 3 NA T-Bar in red! Nuff said! Also UK car helped with insurance but did mean I had to forfeit A/C and folding mirrors :( (Also 25)

[mackie]

Right.

Any probnlems with leaky or noisey roof????

Mirrors no prob to me, but the A/C would have been nice.

Y rev 3 over the 4?

[mackie]

IF you don't mind me asking what you paying on insurance.

Tesco quoted me at £578 which want to bad with 4 years NCB.

[stgeorge]

Right.

Any probnlems with leaky or noisey roof????

Mirrors no prob to me, but the A/C would have been nice.

Y rev 3 over the 4?

My roof is fine - there were about 4 drops of water on the passeneger seat the day I picked it up which was perhaps the wettest day of the year, since then nothing even when I jet wash the roof - all i can assume is the seals were a bit dirty / not sitting properly and now it is. As everyone with a T-Bar is quick to point out though if the roof does leak it is cheap and easy to fix. There is some wind noise from around the top of the window / seal with the roof at motorway speeds but it is certainly nothing that worries me - really nothing to worry about.

Why a Rev 3 not a Rev 4? Cost, as simple as that - my budget was £5K and in the end I spent £5.2 and was no where near a good rev 4 for that. I was only looking at UK cars as I was a bit daunted at the prospect of an import (wrongly I think now - due to what I have read on here) and also by the massive hike in insurance I was looking at. If I was going to pay import insurance costs then :censor: it I might as well pay turbo prices

As for insurance well I bought mine from Bradford and left the missus to sort out insurance while I was on the way to pick it up from Cardiff - which could have been nasty!! Most of the usual suspects, Adrian Flux, HIC etc that I had used on previous motors were crap cos the car was UK and unmodified they were way over the odds. In the end Confused came back with the cheapest which was AXA:

Me:

25 yr old Male

7 yrs no claims

Clean License

Car:

1995 UK model

T-Bar

Kept on Drive

Totally standard

Factory Alarm

1 Additional driver:

My fiancee - 25+, with 3 pts over 3 yrs ago

Cost:

£600 near as dammit - fully comp with protected no claims

If you are serious then I would recommend talking to Rash on this forum he sorted me out with a really nice motor and also got Fizz one as well - probably others too but I dont know! He isnt too far from you - in Bradford.

Hope that helps - Ed

[DeusMR2]

im 21, payin out £1006, 6 points under my dad who has 3 points TPFT with tesco, although i think theyve stopped insuring people who apply for insurance if youre udner 25 now.

anyway as for t-bars they arnt noisy at all, yes they do leak but this varies from unoticable to a mild irritation and the benefits of it more than make up for it :D

[Rash@R.A.Motors]

Yo Ed,

hows things.....? glad to hear the other half's enjoying the 2.... :D

mackie - Check out the ForSale section, i have one there for sale at the mo...

Rash.

[stgeorge]

Yo Ed,

hows things.....? glad to hear the other half's enjoying the 2.... :D

Rash - things are good - car is sweet atm......BUT.... got to get it MOT'd and serviced soon so will let you know then!!! Only joking mate - will cost me a couple of quid no doubt but you expect that from an "old" car.

Only saving grace is the Missus finds the car a bit too harsh on the Cardiff roads - which are probably the worsed in the UK!!

[stgeorge]

mackie - Check out the ForSale section, i have one there for sale at the mo...

Looks like a nice car mate - couldnt see a price though

[Fizz]

mackie - Check out the ForSale section, i have one there for sale at the mo...

Looks like a nice car mate - couldnt see a price though

£5,200 ish...

but what a colour!... not that im biased... :P

[dawolf]

and G...well lets not talk about G.

Do you mean the G-Limited? I have one and it comes with air con, climate control and folding mirrors.

Mackie, for my N/A import I pay £1050 a year fully comp with tesco, I'm 23 with 3 yrs NCB and 3 pts.

[Bibbs]

and G...well lets not talk about G.

Do you mean the G-Limited? I have one and it comes with air con, climate control and folding mirrors.

nope .. he means the G .. FE engined, budget MR2 ..

[dawolf]

Ah okay, I understand now. They're the ones with 119bhp and no rear spoiler, right?

[Bibbs]

Ah okay, I understand now. They're the ones with 119bhp and no rear spoiler, right?

yup..

[mackie]

Cheers for the help guys, its a great site you got here.

Prices seem to vary quite a lot, it seems it could take a lot of searching to get the best deal.

I'm sure I'll have loads more questions so I'll keep you all posted.

All the best

Mackie

[stgeorge]

it seems it could take a lot of searching to get the best deal.

It probably will but it will be worth it

[mr2mk1g]

You people need to try harder when looking at insurance. I'm 24 (23 when quoted) and have 3 years no claims, no points. I'm paying about £285 for my tpft on a J reg Mk2.

Check out Highway insurance through Herts Insurance Consultants. They're specifically set up for younger drivers and modders and make a big thing about how they send their employees to track days and events etc so they're supposed to know where your coming from (to be fair most of the people I've talked to there really are actually into nice cars).

Now I have a couple of other mitigating factors in my profile such as my job and where I live/keep the car/home owner etc but I'm still surprised people accept £1000 quotes. I've not accepted a quote like that since I was 19 and was running a MR2Mk1 with no no-claims! Ok, I get a lot of quotes like that but I'm not about to accept them.

For me, it was the fact that turbo's are imports that prevented me from insuring one. I couldn't insure an NA import either... they're going out of favour fast. I even found a UK spec car that had been turbo modified and got favourable quotes on it but missed out on the deal. As I said, it's the import status not necessarily the turbo that's going to screw you.

As for what you can get from Highway - well, I've come into contact with them professionally and feel confident they're going to do well by me should I have a muppet claim against me. I'm also happy with the extras you can get such as FREE 3rd party vehicle cover (almost unheard of for under 25 year olds)! and foreign trip cover (again a rarity). They're also giving legal expenses insurance for something silly like £15-£25 - at that price even I'm going to pay for legal expenses insurance (I'd recommend you pay for this whoever you insure through, it can become a godsend).