mr2-digest Monday, 11 December 1995 Volume 01 : Number 059 Re: Turbo Magazine address Re: Plastic rear windows Re: Re:SC exhaust on NA [none] MR2 accessories [none] [none] RE: cold air box, 91->93 susp changes idle speed, etc. on MkI ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Mark A. Shehan" Date: 09 Dec 95 14:16:12 EST Subject: Re: Turbo Magazine address Turbo's address/phone number is: Turbo and Hi-Tech Performance Illustrated Graphic Communications 9887 Hamilton Ave. Huntington Beach, CA 92646 714-962-7795 Mark Shehan '91 MKII turbo t-top red 145 K miles ------------------------------ From: "Scott Kucera" Date: Sat, 09 Dec 95 13:09:15 PST Subject: Re: Plastic rear windows I saw Mike P.'s post on safety glass, and he is very close to guessing how they are made. There are two main sorts of laminated safety glass. The "traditional" kind which sandwiches two sheets of tempered glass together with PVC plastic (yes, vynil). A newer sort first used about ten years ago adds another layer of harder transparent plastic to the inside of the window to prevent the glass splinters from getting into the eyes and skin of the passengers. That newer sort is rare because the inside plastic layer is much more prone to scratching while being cleaned, so most car companies use the traditional safety glass. I read an article in a British do-it-yourself car restoration magazine called _Your_Classic_ where one of their writers went to Triplex to see how windshields are made. (Triplex makes glass for Rolls-Royce, MG, and lots of other British car mnufacturers.) First, a hardwood form is made in the exact shape of a windshield that is so precise that a 1/100 in. feeler can't be inserted between the finished windshield and this form when the windshield is laid upon it. Then a stainless steel form is created that precisely fits the form. That stainless steel form is taken to guy who cuts out two sheets of glass in the exact size to fit the form. The sheets are smeared with an anti-sticking liquid, and are laid on the steel form. Then the glass on their form are placed in a large oven with 16 infrared heatlamps which are precisely controlled by an operator to soften the sheets of glass so they droop into the shape of the stainless steel form, but don't puddle or melt. After the now curved sheets cool, they are pulled apart, the sheet of PVC plastic is put between them, trimmed, and the sheets are squeezed by huge rubber rollers which press out all but the smallest air bubbles. Last, the still opaque and bubbly window is placed in an oven under vacuum so the tiniest bubbles get sucked out. At this point the window is transparent, so it goes of for final polishing and QA testing. I'm pretty sure that windows with defroster grids are made the same way, with the grid inside with the plastic layer. At least one I saw on an my mom's 1972 Toyota used a third laminate of very thin glass to the inside of the other laminates to protect the defroster wires from damage. Also, the windows are tinted by tinting the laminating plastic layer. I bet that the Taurus/Sable windshields with the electric defrosting tint are also just a fancy laminate too. Well, enough about windshields, Scott ------------------------------ From: aly abulkheir Date: Sun, 10 Dec 1995 03:55:11 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Re:SC exhaust on NA To my friend (fellow '85 owner) who also wanted to know if putting on an HKS or Trust exhaust on a Mk1 NA would be any better than installing the stock Toyota exhaust from an '89 Supercharged MR2, as suggested in the MR2 Frequently Asked Questions. I have been discussing this with someone who has put a stock SC exhaust on his NA MR2. The only reason I was so interested in the idea, and this is only because funds are low, was to save some money. I figured that if a stock SC muffler was $150 from Toyota (chrome tips included from Dealer in Massachusettes in the back of Autoweek), you would save $300 instead of paying $450 for an HKS. BUT, the guy who did this is using an ENTIRE exhuast system from an SC MR2, not just the muffler. And if that's what it takes to make a small difference in power anyway, it's a waste of money, because if your going to buy yourself a mesh pipe, catalytic converter, AND muffler from an SC MR2, this costs MORE than an HKS system which includes a more free flowing cat in the system anyway. Now, the question is, if anyone out there is using JUST the stock Toyota SC MR2 muffler with the rest of the exhaust system NA stock on a MK1 NA and can confirm a noticeable difference in power, then it's worth looking into and is certainly more than worth the price of $150. But until then, I'm just going to stick with my stock muffler which a lot of people have confirmed is really not bad at all. I have ordered a TRD Header which has been confirmed to make a noticeable power difference, even with the rest of the exhaust system stock. The main reason that people are saying that the SC exhaust will make a difference on a NA is that the SC MR2 had 60mm pipes instead of 50mm as on the NA. The guy who did this stated that he believed that if you change the muffler to 60mm and leave the rest at 50mm, you probably won't notice a difference. But I would like to know if anyone has tried it with good results (ie, a real noticeable increase in power for the money). Anyone's thoughts on this are welcome. Hope this helps a little. Thanks, Aly, '85 MR2, Red with All options abulkh34@matrix.newpaltz.edu ------------------------------ From: uunet!bendnet.com!jdshort Date: Sun, 10 Dec 1995 09:20:18 -0800 Subject: [none] ------------------------------ From: uunet!aol.com!AstonMrtn Date: Sun, 10 Dec 1995 18:49:27 -0500 Subject: MR2 accessories I own a '91 MR2 and want to buy some things from the dealer for it (front end mask/bra, and mudguards) but Toyota isn't being too helpfull with this. About the bra, there's a one-pice design available for '91-'92, then a 3piece for '93 and up. Is there any reason why the newer 3 piece design won't fit my MR2 ? And mudguards aren't even listed as an option for pre-'93 MR2s, yet all the MR2s I've seen on the road appear to have identical geometry around the lower wheel wells. Anyone with a '91 tried to fit either of these options? thanks, Matt G. '91 NA ------------------------------ From: uunet!bendnet.com!jdshort Date: Sun, 10 Dec 1995 09:18:57 -0800 Subject: [none] ------------------------------ From: uunet!bendnet.com!jdshort Date: Sun, 10 Dec 1995 09:14:05 -0800 Subject: [none] ------------------------------ From: uunet!harvey.carol.net!bob (Robert Rogers) Date: Sun, 10 Dec 1995 19:08:33 -0500 Subject: RE: cold air box, 91->93 susp changes >From: Ken Sumrall >Subject: 91->93 susp changes? > >The way I remember it, in 1993, the MR2's suspension got beefed up with: > 1. Wider tires > 2. Bigger rims > 3. LSD differential > 4. Stiffer rear sway bar > [stuff deleted] 3. Optional LSD 4. the 91-92 mr2 rear tires would change toe angle as the suspension compressed. if you are cornering with throttle and change to brake the angle of the rear wheels will suddenly change, which can cause loss of control. they corrected this problem for 93. in the mr2 archive there are reports of 91's being retrofitted with 93 rear end, but it involves drilling new holes. 93 NA, 55Kmiles bob rogers bob@carol.net ------------------------------ From: "ROBERT C. SHAW" Date: Sun, 10 Dec 1995 21:56:32 -0600 (CST) Subject: idle speed, etc. on MkI Many of the MkI's I read about here have irregular idles' (as does mine) and the causes are numerous; I suspect any suggested solution from the info you gave would be a shot in the dark. The tall 5th gear is a bit of a strange beast though. I sometimes wish 5th had a lower ratio too, but I know a complete rebuild would be the only way to have a chance of changing that. I see you just recently bought your MR2; you'll grow to see that it is just getting into it's element at 4k rpm. Hey, I'm assuming those Japanese engineers knew what they were doing when they set those ratios. Bobby 85na ------------------------------ End of mr2-digest V1 #59