Reece's Car Thread-WTF DID I BUY NOW

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Anna+Reece

Anna+Reece

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CPReece98
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CP Reece
I decided to finally make a thread since I'm going to start messing around with it some more.

Last year, I was on Craigslist for an amount of time, looking for a cheap restomod type car. After many cars that I THOUGHT would be decent but turned out to be crap, I stumbled across an ad labeled, "1986 TOYOTA Car" for $500. I opened it up to see what it was, and beyond my belief, saw two pictures of a White MR2. So I called the owner, and told me that he has some people coming to look at it that are VERY interested. Disappointed, I gave up the search (this was the 10th car that seemed to be a no go). The next day, he told me the potential buyers flaked. So I responded with a $350 offer and he said yes.

Next day, December 28th 2011 at 9:30 PM. I left with my stepdad to go pick up the car. It took a while to find the place, and I was REALLY hesitant because it was 10 PM in a really sketchy neighborhood in Downtown Minneapolis. I went up and knocked on their door, and the owner said the car was out back. I was REALLY freaking out then. Thinking I was going to be robbed or something, I cautiously walked out back and, to my relief, saw an MR2. The "owner" (wasn't the REAL owner, it was his friend's car he was selling) couldn't speak english, so his wife had to answer all the questions. Looking at the car, and it really wasn't too bad (though it was sitting in a dark garage), and ask if I can start the car. Get in the car, start it, and hear KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK. I decided to go for it anyway, because what will you get for $350 that's better than that? I knew I could drive it home as long as I kept the RPMs low, so I set off to the house. On the highway, the battery died. It was so dead that I couldn't even pop the clutch and restart it. That really sucked. So, I called a car towing company and had to wait on the side of a busy highway for 45 minutes. Keep in mind, Minnesota is known for bad drivers, and a few REALLY came close to nailing my stepdad's car. Truck finally came and I got it home and it has been waiting since.

Enough talk, let me post some pictures.



yes this $350 car is mine.










[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/33260400@N03/6848929000/]

Plans for the car:
-Either another 4AGE 16V, a 4AGE 20V, or a 4AGZE
-Cosmetic Repair
-Alingment
-Frame Repair
-Repaint
-Stickerbomb passenger side fender
-MAYBE Flip Up Headlight delete
-1984 Front Bumper
-1987 Steering Wheel
-Lower an inch or two
-Black Enkei 92s
-Duck Tail type spoiler
-AEM Cam Gears
-AEM V2 Intake
-Mishimoto Oil Cooler
-Mishimoto Radiator
-(Ricer Quote Alert) Turbo, haven't decided which to plan for
-If the turbo does happen, TurboSmart Wastegate and GrimmSpeed EWG Up-Pipe, Overhead Vent to act as an intercooler

So, there you go. I'm starting the motor removal process Friday Night.
 
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I didnt know you were in MN, maybe when both our cars are in better shape we should go to the Sonic meet on a Wednesday. Good luck!
 
Thatman
I didnt know you were in MN, maybe when both our cars are in better shape we should go to the Sonic meet on a Wednesday. Good luck!
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Thanks! That would be soooo awesome if both of us went to a Sonic meet or an RKC meet. Hopefully next year that can happen.
 
Thoughts...No ducktail. Cam gears are only useful if you get cams...I don't believe there is an intake available for this (only for the JDM MAP based motor)

Car looks good besides the usual rust. What do you mean by frame repair? How is the interior?
 
Anna+Reece
Thanks! That would be soooo awesome if both of us went to a Sonic meet or an RKC meet. Hopefully next year that can happen.
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:scared:Not for another year? Anyhow, that sticker reminded me of this manga:
images
 
Thatman
:scared:Not for another year? Anyhow, that sticker reminded me of this manga:
images
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I need to find that manga.....IT LOOKS AMAZING.

Eric.
Thoughts...No ducktail. Cam gears are only useful if you get cams...I don't believe there is an intake available for this (only for the JDM MAP based motor)

Car looks good besides the usual rust. What do you mean by frame repair? How is the interior?
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The car was in a minor accident, and the frame was never repaired properly. The interior, aside from the passenger side carpet, is fantastic. It's one of the nicest interiors I have seen on a car from the 80s.
 
This seriously just made my day. I remember seeing pics of this car somewhere else and saw the Akina Speedstars sticker. I meant to send a pm asking where he got it but forgot. Then, I lost the post forever in the massive black hole of GTP "post your rides" threads.

But now, I have found that car, thanks to you. So I ask... Where'd you get it?

Aside from that, nice find for the money. I always wish I could come across something like this, but the area where i live is rich enough that nobody owns crap cars (not that yours is) that could make a great cheap project.
 
SpartanG
This seriously just made my day. I remember seeing pics of this car somewhere else and saw the Akina Speedstars sticker. I meant to send a pm asking where he got it but forgot. Then, I lost the post forever in the massive black hole of GTP "post your rides" threads.

But now, I have found that car, thanks to you. So I ask... Where'd you get it?

Aside from that, nice find for the money. I always wish I could come across something like this, but the area where i live is rich enough that nobody owns crap cars (not that yours is) that could make a great cheap project.
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Haha great to hear! I actually found the sticker on eBay. I looked up Akina Speed Stars decal and that popped up. I love it too!
 
So I have a question about things with MR2s.

I was at an event at my local track this weekend, and there was drifting. I got in a conversation with someone that seems to know a lot about the concept of drifting. I asked him if he thinks an MR2 would be a decent drifting project, and he said it's more of a corner carver because of the MR drivetrain's weight distribution. He said if you try to enter a corner in an MR drivetrain, the car will oversteer and it will not be possible to correct it. It made a ton of sense, but he hasn't drifted an MR so it was just a prediction. My question here is, has anyone on this site drifted/tried drifting an MR2? If what he says is true, what would I need to do to the front end to make it stable?

I know the best answer is for me to try it, but if you read the OP, you'd see why I can't.
 
MR2s can be drifted if set up correctly but that's expensive and you will also need to practice a lot. They tend to want to oversteer one way and then if you don't know what you are doing they will spin the other way and you will lose control. Other cars do it but these do it quicker because of the weight bias.

I have drifted my SW20 at low speed in wet grass and it wasn't the easiest thing to hold on to. Obviously that's not where most drifting occurs.

I have been driving my SW20 for 5 years now and when I get into other normal cars and try to go around corners they just don't want to go. I love the fact that the MR2 can go around corners better than a lot of cars. Drifting is not so common in them but it does happen, and with some impressive results. I haven't seen an AW11 drifting on a sealed track, just SW20s.

This car has a Nissan SR20+T and doesn't run swaybars. Very fast rally car. Beats a lot of 4WD with more power. $80kNZD + has gone into this car though with heaps of custom parts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-WxZG4yBfY
 
Come on now, google can do that for you and certainly thats a tonne of go fast parts.
80000 New Zealand dollars = 62984.0000 US dollars
 
Yeah, that setup is out of the question. There has to be something that can get me sideways that doesn't require selling all of my belongings and my first born child.
 
You should watch a film called The Drift Bible, from the Drift King himself, Keiichi Tsuchiya.
He shows the concept of how to drift all the different layouts of vehicles and basic set ups etc. Its a great watch.
 
Quite a bit of that 80k has gone into the gearbox as it keeps eating 2nd and 3rd gear. Got custom gear sets made for it.

All I can say is get out there and try drifting it in local motorsport events. I have learnt a lot about how my car behaves from doing this.
 
Punknoodle
You should watch a film called The Drift Bible, from the Drift King himself, Keiichi Tsuchiya.
He shows the concept of how to drift all the different layouts of vehicles and basic set ups etc. Its a great watch.
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Definitely watch this! I bought it for $15 on amazon, but you can watch it for free all over the net. I just wanted to have it in my collection.

But anyways, he actually drifts a SW20 MR2 as one of the demo cars. So you will literally watch him drift your very car. If I remember correctly, you basically need to be more delicate in every maneuver. The braking needs to be less, the initial toss-in needs to be less violent, and the countersteering is less.
 
I'll definitely watch The Drift Bible. I'll try drifting the car at events when it's running properly, though I will need to wait a while because the drifting events in Minnesota that occured 5 times a year are no longer. I'll do what I can.
 
Not yet, I'm just getting started with the removal. I'm not going to be home for a few weeks so it was kind of put on hold.
 
So I was doing some thinking, and now I don't think it's a connecting rod making the knocking noise. Whenever I hear stories of cars throwing rods, it seems to be pretty violent, like the block being punctured or the hood being dented. The block is fine though. I am thinking it may be the exhaust, because the whole exhaust system is kinda sketchy. The radiator is missing a bracket, so for a little bit I was thinking it could be the radiator. What else could possibly be making that noise?
 
Yeah, If it really was the connecting rod the "knocking" would sound kind of like a mad exhaust. Ive had that happen twice. Otherwise like Leonidae said likely just the upper bits having an issue. If its still in, take a video.
 
So, I'm changing my mind with things.

I'm more than likely not going to rebuild this motor. I found a really cheap Silvertop 20V that I am super super interested in. If I get that, I'll just sell the motor in it anyway to an enthusiast that wants to rebuild it. I also found some really cheap NA Miata wheels with good tires that I want to buy if I can afford them. My front bumper is crap, though I'm not replacing it. I'm rebuilding it. I found out that the grills are decently common, and I found a really cheap CRX SI front lip that I'll be buying. OEM MR2 lips are too rare. I have decided I will be going for a flush wheel fitment. I will possibly buy a roof rack in the future. I like those and I think it would look good on the car. Spoiler is staying on, don't want to remove it because too many people would ask if I drive a Fiero. The front fenders look awful, I want to either stickerbomb them or find a Japanese flag wrap for them. Hate to be a ricer but I want to turbo the 20V. I want to buy an OEM stereo for the car too. I'd love that.

And, picture.

MR2 by 〄 Reece M, on Flickr

thoughts?
 
Don't turbo! The 4AGE is a great sounding motor, let it sing!

Also only worry about spending your money on simply getting the car running. If you get sidetracked with things like this roof rack or other bits, you start buying them instead because you can afford that but you can't afford the more important parts. It turns into a slippery slope where you keep buying stuff you want because you never have the money to buy the stuff you need.
 

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