If Lotus wants to increase their sales and actually stay afloat, they should fully partner up with Toyota. Lotus designs the car and Toyota builds and sells them under the MR2 badging because that's basically what it is already. Got the 4th gen MR2 with the Elise and the 5th gen with the Evora.
"Because that's basically what it is". Except its "basically" not. Its a Lotus. Its expensive. Toyota needs to make another MR2, under a Toyota badge, that is cheaper.
Lotus is done they use Toyota engines they make chassis not cars but their good old days rep is the only thing that keeps them around .I love a street go kart but crash safety has ended that .
I think this is the first time I've ever seen Mr. Regular drive like he likes to drive. Nice to see him actually pushing a car a little and enjoying it.
I love how everyone that never owned an MR2 has the misconception about these cars that they're just randomly snap oversteering people into trees all day long. I owned one for 7 years with half those running a 350hp motor swap. I drove the car like I stole it and never spun it once (unless intended). The only people that spin them are those that don't know how to drive an MR. Feel free to keep believing that though. It makes them more available for the rest of us.
Drunk3n_M0nk Rev 1 MR2s are more prone to it (91-92 USDMs), but since I've owned mine, I have never felt snap oversteer when cornering considering I bought it with 245/40R17 in the rear and have now put 265/35R18s. There is plenty of grip there. According to owners that have had several, manual steering cars are less prone to it, which mine is.
I've never owned one but its not something I overlook at about the mr2. You can make it snap if you either intend it to or yeah just don't know how to drive one. I've had my eye on mr2s lately and hopefully looking to buy one soon for the first time. 😊
It really is just a Rev1 thing. My old Rev1 N/a would (quite dramatically) break traction all the time, in the rain, even normal driving was sketchy. Now through, my Rev5 V6 has only ever spun the wheels when I've forced it to. Even then it was very manageable.
It was nice to come home to another new RCR video after a long shift. I'll be working the streets during hurricane Florence starting Thursday afternoon. I've been through many hurricanes growing up in eastern NC, but this is shaping up to be the best of the bunch. If anyone else is in the path of this storm, stay safe and good luck!
Im farther away in upstate SC, but still in the projected path. It will be weakened a lot by the time it gets to our area, but the slow crawl of the storm is going to bring a lot of rain throughout SC and NC for days, and we've already had a lot of rain recently. Im hoping that theres no major flooding or power outages. I'll be mostly outside working on the days that it is passing through, unless my work decides to close down until the hurricane passes. Lets hope for a miracle and that this thing somehow weakens or takes a different path. Anyway, good luck and stay safe out there man.
I remember the first time I drove my friends sw20. it was a stock 3stge with just a cat back, coil overs and lightweight wheels. holy fuck did this thing drive amazing. you can instantly feel how well balanced it is. oh yea you also used his old red sw20 in your miata video at around 34 seconds. I was showing him your videos for the first time and he was dying laughing, then i showed him the miata video video because of course if there is any regular car reviews video you show someone, its the miata video. he instantly recognized that was his car and started freaking out.
I bought a NA SW20 a week or two ago - although it's not fast or even quick by any means, it's an absolute dream to drive. It's nimble. It carves the canyons like no other. I love it to death.
I always liked the MR2! A perfect car. At least in the pressed sheetmetal unibody chassis category. When well-maintained and modified I look at them with lust. And then remember - "oh yeah I have what this car wants to be" -- a Honda-powered turbo-charged Lotus Elise. What a wonderful world.
16 PSI turbo flutter won't hurt much, but do it in my Audi 20vT at 24 PSI, and it will start to shred the sleeve bearings in the turbo down the road. Its a nice noise, but I'd rather keep the turbo than the noise. If you've got a nice air intake and the recirc valve is setup properly, you can get a nice hiss from it that's comparable.
First of all, that might just be the cleanest and most well-sorted MR2 I've ever laid eyes on. Massive props to whomever put that piece of eye candy together. Second of all, there is no 'on boost' or 'off boost' flutter. The flutter heard is due to the column of air in the intake piping doing its damndest to flow backward through the compressor housing. This places extra stress on the turbo bearings, as the air column in the intake piping backs up when the throttle is closed. What happens is pretty simple - while the engine is running, air is flowing from the air filter, through the intake tract, into the compressor housing of the turbo, through the intake piping (and, we hope, an intercooler), past the throttle blade, and into the intake plenum. Note that I'm not saying anything about boost pressure so far :) When the throttle is let off, the throttle closes, but the turbocharger compressor wheel is still spinning, so air is still getting shoved into the intake tract (between the turbocharger and the throttle blade). Air is a fluid - so what happens is pulses of more-dense air run back from the throttle into the compressor housing - and you hear the flutter. It's bad for the turbo's bearings, it can cause erosion of the internal compressor housing (albeit on a very tiny scale) and worst of all - actually *increases* turbo lag! Want to reduce spool / turbo lag? Set up a recirculating blow off valve. Don't vent to the atmosphere (yes, I know, it sounds *awesome*, but it's not the best for performance) - instead, vent from the blow off valve back in *front* of the turbocharger (between the air filter and the turbo charger). When doing that, the more-dense air pulses are relieved and the turbo goes into a near free-wheel mode - meaning the turbocharger is still spinning as fast as possible when you get back on the throttle. I love this stuff :)
uberDoward yeah you explained surge, which he says is fine which its not, when he says "on boost" i think he means wastegate flutter , the constant opening and closing of the wastegate to release extra boost not needed, typically happens in high gears at low rpms, fixed by downshifting.
Recirculating? I just learned a week ago that you're not supposed to do that since you're reintroducing that pressurized air straight back into the system, and a blow off valve that hisses/makes a psssh noise is safest on a forced induction system since that's "stock." Disclaimer, Im still learning how this all works so if what I read was bogus then let me know.
100% bogus :) the 'pressurized' air hits the intake tract, and immediately the pressure is reduced - the size of the intake tract is usually much larger than the hot side of the compressor. It's just that a recirculating system reduces/removes the 'psssh' sound that everyone loves LOL
IM SO HAPPY. That people are taking active steps to discount "Turbo Flutter" as "Compressor Surge" Remember guys Flutter when your foot comes off the pedal is fine... Flutter/Surging under load and full throttle means ya done F&@Z%'d Up. So fear not folks don't run a BOV and let the "psssh Sutututu" sound echo in tunnels, back roads and freeways to your hearts content!
If u have or can get the parts to restore and paint a car that's worth saving, DO IT. Cars like this deserve the love. They're disappearing and can only go up in value and nostalgia.
Love this combination! I also have the exact same engine in my 1st gen RAV4. Sounds so similar down to the flutter off-throttle hahaha! I have to agree the Gen 4 3S-GTE is the best swap you'll want in many 90s Toyotas. Even in stock form, it's perfect for street or daily use with the more advanced electronics without being too complex.
Knew a guy who modded one of these well beyond his ability to drive it. snap oversteer like you read about. within 2 weeks put it into a guardrail. fantastic car in the hands of someone with a healthy fear/respect for its capabilities.
Wish this video came out sooner. There was an mr2 aw11 for sale near me that I fell in love with but parts were very limited. This is a great web site for parts and I will love to use it for the first mr2 I get.
OMG. I had a rev 3 SW20 in the uk for 7 years and I loved that car. It was red like this one but needed regular t-cutting and wax to avoid going pink because all the lacquer was long gone. It had the t-top and wonderful black leather upholstery and it was really really special. Unfortunately the tin worm invaded as a result of the crappy sound deadening just above the sills soaking and then releasing water and salt onto the sills. It was about the most reliable car I've ever had despite me ragging it relentlessly. It was over 150,000 miles when I sold it. Just Amazing Cars. Luv and Peace.
I owned one of these back then... swapped from a N/A to a brandnew 3SGTE... modded with an ECU and Water/Methanol Injection boosted to 400hp with no other changes. That was the meanest, loudest piece of bitch ever. And fuck I loved it as hell. The Turbo and Wastegate were like 60cm from your ears, and it sounded like a goddamn F-16. NEVER had more fun in a car. THE SHIT!
Just a FYI to anyone considering entering. You don’t have to purchase anything to win. If that were the only mode of entry it would be illegal. You can enter 100% for free.
When they're both facing forward they almost look like clones of each other, right down to the haircut, facial hair, glasses, shirt color, etc. - like they could be long-lost brothers or something. Uncanny.I want to drive this car!
I have a 1991 toyota camry if you want to review it. Has hardcore missing paint and is rusty. Interior is nearly perfect though with the automatic seat belts all working.
Kinda funny how wagons end up with the hot motors. I have a JDM Accord SiR Wagon's H23 VTEC in my Prelude. Much lower redline but way more torque through the whole rev range.
OMG that is a BEAUTIFUL MR2!!!! Very well done to the owner!!! Oh, and well, since it is a give away car..... I WANT!!!! But, I could not afford the upkeep, so to everyone entering to win, BEST OF LUCK!! :)
Mail in an entry. Its free. Mail-in Entry: To obtain an entry without making a purchase, Eligible Entrants also have the option to obtain one (1) Sweepstakes entry via mail by legibly hand-printing, on a 3”x 5” card or paper, their full name, complete mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address, and mailing the card in a #10 envelope, with proper postage affixed, to: Prime Performance, 103 Sparta Rd. Building D Unit 6, Stanhope, NJ 07874. You may submit up to 20 postal entry requests, but each request must be mailed separately. All entries must be postmarked by Sept 23, 2018, and received by Sept 29, 2018.
Fantastic sports car in its true meaning. My first gen Supra (3rd to all those that don't know) is a GT, heavy and fun. But it just didn't drive like this. And mine also had 300 rwhp. Which is up from the 190-200 or so from the factory. I wish I could find one clean and original, that wasn't a fortune.
it is my understanding that when the throttle body closes the boost pressure has nowhere to go if it cannot get out of the waste-gate. This can damage the turbo or cause other damage. does sound cool though lol
I love the idea of an SW20 with that kind of work done to it, because they're really pretty cars that can handle really well if you're a good driver. I just don't trust myself to always be that good a driver. It's why I went out of my way to get AWD on my current car, so it could bail my ass out of situations that would be unrecoverable with 2WD. But now, having heard about the challenges with finding replacement exterior trim, I'd probably best shelve any idea of owning one of these. Which is honestly fine. There are other cars out there that I'm quite fond of that would be better options as a toy or a project. A Z32 is one of those cars. It's got the nice curves in the right places with enough linearity to appeal to up-tight accountants with a fetish for SPREADSHEETS, and the interior screams "This is what the future looks like in 1990." The SW20 is more for the risky investment bankers who rake in a $200k bonus because they banked well on the dotcom boom and then blew it all on blackjack, hookers, and blow because "life's a gamble. You win some, you lose some." Then he drinks heavily to come down from his high and drives his MR2 off an embankment.
Hearing that blowoff valve sounds sweet, ok no blowoff valve it sounds so cool. Yet, since I am older than you kids ( I was born during the Bicentennial) I love the boxy look of the original... Each to their own, I guess...
My entire Junior/Senior year of high school : "Ever watch a black and white TV while thinking about all that second base band-bus action which was shoveled your way, but you were too much of a dweeb to notice because you had a GameBoy Advance and a Koss Portable CD player spinning "All the Pain Money Can Buy" by Fastball."
As a honda guy, i dont see why we dont see more mr2 builds. A base model with a 3sgte (celica gt4 year) is just about as "budget" as a base model civic with a b or h series swap.
I've been more than elated with the 138hp in my zzw30. Gives me grins every time I drive it. One day MAYBE, years from now when it's just not enough anymore I'd take measures to push that closer to 200... But 300? At the WHEELS? I think I'd need diapers man...
Fred Fredburger true but nice to have when you need it. Last week (I think when this was filmed) it was humid and 94 degrees near Pittsburgh, and yeah I don’t use a/c much but I certainly did on those days! Lol
