Saying Hi !

[Mr2dude]

Hi !

I'll say some other stuff also...

First off, I joined the Mr2 Drivers Club (www.mr2dc.com) the other week. Not wanting to put them down at all, but the forum is pretty dead, and this place seems much livelier, so I reckon I'll be popping in here a lot more, and most likely will upgrade to Gold status very soon.

I bought a completely standard UK 1995 (Sunroof) Mr2 about 3 years ago, and during that time i've made a few improvements to the handling (Gas Shocks, drilled & slotted discs, new calipers all round, race pads and 17'' wheels). Made it to a track day at Bedford Autodrome and while the car handled good, (controllable oversteer and very little understeer), the power was seriously lacking.

That led me to my current situation - Turbo upgrade.

After pricing up the costs of a Fensport or Rogue conversion, the engine I wanted would have cost me about 8grand.

I then saw a car on eBay, 92 Tbar with conversion done just about exaclty as I wanted. I bought it last week. The specs on the engine (thats all that matters right ?) are...

1996 Rev 3 block

Rebored cylinders (std size, just rebored so they are clean)

Polised Crankshaft

ROSS Forged Pistons

Fidanza Flywheel

Full Circ (what ever they are !) Main Bearings

ARP Head Bolts

HKS Blowoff Valve (Super Sequential, i THINK !)

Cone type air filter (not sure of model yet, havent had real examination of engine bay)

Mongoose Exhause

Performance downpipe (no Cat)

High Pressure Fuel Pump

CT26 Turbo (which is a little odd for a rev3 block, but he said it was a Stage2 Fensport job which has a re-inforced spindle).

There's a few suspension upgrades, 60mm lowered springs, adjustable front shocks.

The guy then realised he had spend about 10K on his car, and abandoned further work on it, and put it up for sale.

Its not a perfect car, one driveshaft bearing is knackered, and the rear suspension is in need of an overhaul I think as its very "bouncy" at the back, and I havent had a chance yet to give the car a proper examination (it will be up on the ramps in my friendly garage at the weekend, so I can assess the under carriage, and any further unknowns on the suspension).

Its also in desperate need of a software upgrade, as the BHP charts (posted in another thread), are strange to say the least, and its rev-limiter is cutting in at 6K (in any gear) and the speed limiter is still on (I guess cause the ECU has not been remapped yet).

So I'm at the moment trying to decide if I sell on my 95 car as a standard car the way i bought it, (probably taking off my brakes system and putting them on the 92 Tbar Turbo), or doing the big swap, to get the engine from the 92-tbar into my 95 car.

Any feedback on my current situation would be appreciated, and might help me determine my next course of action.

If I do the converstion to my 95, and put my NA engine back into the 92 Tbar, could I keep my 95's brakes/discs springs and struts (which I am sure are 100% stable, and I've already tracked it so I understand how the car drives on the limit), or would I have to loose that because of the new engine that would go in the bay, giving me a completely new back end to learn anyway ?

Also as for chassis stability, how is a Tbar roof ? I like the idea of the Sunroof for overall rigidity, and have a suspicion the Tbar will be more flexible. Although the tbar is nice to have, it makes the inside much brighter, but for the amount of days you really get to get the glass out, is it worth the sacrifice on chassis ?

Apart from that (and the unknown factors of owning a new 13 year old car which will unfold after garage exam), the only other 2 things I've noticed different is the 92Tbar has no ABS, and inside the "boot" my 95 has a bar running from 1 strut to the other which is not present in the 92. I've seen on Fensport these stiffening bars are available so I could get one for the Tbar, but was this bar fitted as standard in 95's cars and not in 92's ?

Looking forward to a lengthy stay here, and eventually I'm sure I'll be bumping into some of you at the track in the future.

I realise I've bought into a whole new world, from owning maintenance free std 95 NA MR2, to a heavily modified Tubby, i know there'll be pain, blood and sweat and money that will evoporate from my being, but the end result of a 350-400bhp MR2 monster will drive me forward.

I'm a bit of a spanner monkey, but I'm learning. My Bro-in-law is a mechanic, and I've done a few jobs on my 95 car with under his wing (Gearbox change being the biggest one). I've just ordered the "Repair Manual on CD", cleaned out 5 years of ***** from my garage, swept the floors, and my first job will be the driveshaft bearing. Going to buy some axel stands and a trolley jack tomorrow, jack it up in my pristene garage and at least have a LOOK at the driveshaft tomorrow.

Cheers

Steve

[Jimlad]

weclome to the club !!

Didn't read your post as I'm really tired.. will read it tomorrow and get back to you... ;)

[houston]

If I do the converstion to my 95, and put my NA engine back into the 92 Tbar, could I keep my 95's brakes/discs springs and struts (which I am sure are 100% stable, and I've already tracked it so I understand how the car drives on the limit), or would I have to loose that because of the new engine that would go in the bay, giving me a completely new back end to learn anyway ?

you can keep all your suspension setup!

Also as for chassis stability, how is a Tbar roof ? I like the idea of the Sunroof for overall rigidity, and have a suspicion the Tbar will be more flexible. Although the tbar is nice to have, it makes the inside much brighter, but for the amount of days you really get to get the glass out, is it worth the sacrifice on chassis ?

yes it flexes more and people say its noticeable but i personally cant tell the diff. unless your gonna be on the track usin the 2 to its potential then your not gonna notice it either. and those few days of sun make up for it

Apart from that (and the unknown factors of owning a new 13 year old car which will unfold after garage exam), the only other 2 things I've noticed different is the 92Tbar has no ABS, and inside the "boot" my 95 has a bar running from 1 strut to the other which is not present in the 92. I've seen on Fensport these stiffening bars are available so I could get one for the Tbar, but was this bar fitted as standard in 95's cars and not in 92's ?

the t bar should already have a strut brace which is more than capable. few people on here have fitted the 3 bar strut brace and will be able to tell u if it made a change.

get some pics up of the car! this is a great site, i knew practically nowt bout these cars till i came on here, lot of helpful people in the know!

[Mr2dude]

"the t bar should already have a strut brace which is more than capable. few people on here have fitted the 3 bar strut brace and will be able to tell u if it made a change"

When I said "boot" i mean the front boot where the spare wheel is, mabey we are on crossed wires on this one, and you are refering to the back boot/engine bay ?. The 95 car has a brace from front strut to front strut but on the 92 there isnt one. The 92 car is reported as a previous CatD insurance write off, so mabey this brace was damaged and not replaced during the repair.

Both cars have a brace in the engine bay, its the the standard crossover type which sits above the engine, not the strut to strut one. But yer, I've seen the extra braces that FenSports sell.

Now i know I can keep my NA suspension/brake/wheels (which I have already spend a couple of K on upgrading) I am more inclined to swap engines and keep my 95 sunroof car with the Turbo engine. I much prefer the track day chassis advantage over the summer Tbar cruising ! I guess also hammering a Tbar around a track is only going to lead to further problems with leaks and cracks in the roof bar !

So what I'll end up with is a pretty solid 95 Turbo conversion, and a NA 92-Tbar with uprated suspension, that wont be worth much to sell on (due to history of previous insurance write off, and IMO it needs work). Thats fine. I'd rather have the best car to drive and re-coup mabey £1500-£2000 for the 92 car thats left over. It still means I've grabbed a 7K engine for about 2-3 which was the main reason I bought the tubby in the first place.

The only 1 problem I am aware of is the MOT ! I know I wont get away with the performance down pipe as its registered date is 10/95 and hence requires a cat. (Which the seller of the tubby kindly suppled me with !)

Mabey i can sort out the suspension on the 92 so its handling is as predictable as my 95 is, and then keep the 92 and sell the 95 as standard. God, i've just talked my self in and out of both scenarios !

I've been stuck on this dilemna since the second car arrived.

I'll think I'll take both cars to the garage on Saturday and get them lifted to compare the differences of each. (Driveshafts, anti-roll bars....) Then we will have a better idea of what really needs to be swapped around if I go with the engine swap. I already know its the "basic" job of Engine/Gearbox/Loom/ECU. Its a tricky thing to decide because I will have to end up with 1 car remaining and 1 car sold before my next track day, and there's no way I will be able to track them both before i decide.

Apologies for rambling on, i've been through it all in my head countless times for the last week and I still dont know what the best option is. The nightmare scenario for me atm is that i hastily sell on my 95 car and then wish I'd kept it and put the tubby engine in.

[Razor_Rage]

keep the 95 and put the tubby engine in it is my recommendation

[Fitz]

Those posts are far to long to read, but welcome mate.

What did you do with the nasp? Oh, sorry, you said it was a sunroof one not a t bar

[Bibbs]

I've just ordered the "Repair Manual on CD",

You've no doubt been mugged .. I've just posted someone one of these for the pricely sum of a pint next time I see him.

[houston]

"the t bar should already have a strut brace which is more than capable. few people on here have fitted the 3 bar strut brace and will be able to tell u if it made a change"

When I said "boot" i mean the front boot where the spare wheel is, mabey we are on crossed wires on this one, and you are refering to the back boot/engine bay ?. The 95 car has a brace from front strut to front strut but on the 92 there isnt one. The 92 car is reported as a previous CatD insurance write off, so mabey this brace was damaged and not replaced during the repair.

yeah, sorry, thought u meant engine bay. but all tbars have a strut brace in the front as well

The only 1 problem I am aware of is the MOT ! I know I wont get away with the performance down pipe as its registered date is 10/95 and hence requires a cat. (Which the seller of the tubby kindly suppled me with !)

as long as u can get it through emmissions then you dont need a cat, theres no uk equivelant of this car so doesnt need a cat

midmotorsteve has done a turbo swap so maybe he's the best person to ask about what youll need for the swap

[Mr2dude]

Mugged of £2.99 (postage free) I can live with, and probably cheaper than a pint in some parts. But will no doubt buy a pint all round at the next convenient moment. CD is awesome btw, it arrive today.

Been chasing up a drive shaft bearing all day today. Went from Jap breakers who would only sell me the ENTIRE driveshaft assemble for £180 (how good that one would be i dunno), to a Totota garage (Mr T ?) for a bearing replacement of £52 + labour £80ish).

Have to decide on the engine swap first, as If i do it I'll need an entire Turbo ABS driveshaft, and the one from the Tbar will be no good (Because my 95car has ABS and the 92 dont). Do I have that correct ? Also would I need new Turbo Hubs that were ABS compatible ? or would the ABS Hubs from the NA car be ok on the end of the ABS turbo driveshaft ?

[Stu8]

Hi, welcome.

The first questions I've just got to ask; is why would the previous owner spend over £10k on upgrading it, then suddenly stop.

If that was a race car, that would be a "grey" car indeed.

[Mr2dude]

The guy that sold me the tubby, appears quite genuine. I've talked to him a lot on the phone and email before i bought it, and have been in communication with him since.

There is an entire history of receipts for all the work he's claimed done, (Many fensports receipts for the forged pistons, flywheel, blow off vavles etc, exhausts, garage receipts of the engine rebuild with the new pistons and crank fitted), and indeed the car does drive like a rocket. And on inspection of the easy visible parts the bits are indeed there and new looking. Spotless Mongoose exhaust, HT leads as described in invoices, Blow off valve is shiny new, and there is even a photo log of the engine being stripped and cleaned. Engine has only done about 2000 mile since it was on the road, and the car was off the road for 6 months while he did this project.

He said he's basically had enough of spending countless money, and could see ahead more grands on his future upgrades (Intercooler, larger injectors, Air Conditioning etc), but decided enough was enough, and had bought a more modern car (Beamer), and was happy to end his conversion project early instead of pumping even more money into it.

That seems reasonable to me, if you've simply got sick of pouring thousands into your MR2 with no chance of a return on sale value. I am just at the beginning of this adventure and I've picked up a good head start obtaining the engine (and indeed entire car) for half the money thats been spent on it so far.