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blazinmr2 · 10-31-2005, 09:23 PM

Transmission

The non-turbo MR2 was available with a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission. The Turbo model was only available with a 5-speed manual transmission. In 1993 the Turbo's manual transmission was improved with triple cone syncros on the 2nd and 3rd gears. 91/92 Turbo transmissions tend to wear out 2nd gear fairly often, and this is an especially common occurrence on high mileage MR2 Turbo cars.

The grind associated with hard shifting due to syncro wear may be alleviated somewhat by changing the transmission oil. Many owners have found that Redline MT-90 transmission oil reduced syncro wear and made shifting easier.

Manual Shifter
The 91/92 manual shifter is fairly tall in design, and has a rather long shift throw. In 1993, a new, shorter height shifter with a shorter throw was added to the MR2. 91/92 owners can upgrade to the 93 standard by buying a TRD short shifter, or cutting down the height of the stock shifter. The TRD shifter includes a small round leather shifter knob.

Shifter Boot
Stock Toyota is Pleather, which breaks down with time and age. And will eventually need to be replaced.

Clutch

The Turbo's clutch is a fairly durable unit, and should have enough clamping force to hold up to 280hp when new.

Advanced Clutch Technologies (ACT) offers several types of clutches for the MR2 based on power application.

Many owners have not been satisfied with the Toyota Racing Development (TRD) clutch, so you may want to steer clear of this unit.

Ignition System

The MR2 Turbo utilizes a distributor based ignition system. The ignition typically produces enough spark energy to handle increased boost, up to 17psi, depending on the car's tuning.

The distributor cap and rotor should be replaced ever other year or so, depending on mileage and use. The stock cap utilizes aluminum contact points, which are not incredibly conductive. You should replace them with a distributor cap that has copper contacts.

Stock spark plug wires tend to be fine for most owners, although Magnecore and Nology wires are often used with success. TRD plug wires are also fine.

Many owners use aftermarket ignitions systems from MSD and Jacob's, although only some users find that the Jacob's system improves the car's performance.

Many different spark plugs have been used by owners, and many find that copper, rather than the stock platinum are the way to go for the performance-minded driver. Note that copper wears out faster than platinum, but is more conductive. NGK BKR7E (5020) spark plugs are used by many owners, but can be hard to find.

Alternator

For a non-power steering (EHPS) MR2 with a manual tranny, the alternator is rated at 70amps. For an automatic non-turbo MR2, the alternator is rated at 80amps. EHPS (Electrical-Hydraulic Power Steering) is run off of electrical, rather than hydraulic power, so any power steering cars are equipped with a 100amp alternator. MR2 alternators tend to be fairly durable units, but do fail. You will probably note a loud "death whir" coming from the alternator for several miles before it fails. An idiot light should light up on the dash as well if the alternator has failed or is at reduced output.

Fuel System

The stock fuel system for the MR2 Turbo is capable of supporting roughly 280 crank hp. The fuel injectors are capable of delivering approximately 440cdper minute of fuel at 37psi. The fuel pump is well matched to these injectors, and both the injectors and pump are limited to the same fueling level.

The MR2 Turbo was tuned very conservatively by Toyota to run very rich to reduce the likelihood of engine damage under high boost/engine speed conditions. By using an aftermarket fuel computer, such as the APEX'I S-AFC, can reduce the overabundance of fuel in the combustion chamber, picking up extra horsepower. Fuel tuning is dangerous business though, so it is highly recommended that you fuel tune your MR2 Turbo on an engine dyno for best results.

A common upgrade is to swap in the 550cc-fuel injectors and fuel pump from the latest generation Toyota Supra (1993-98). Combined these should support about 350 crank horsepower. The fuel pump resistor pack will need to be modified to handle the increased voltage utilized by the Supra's fuel pump. A fuel computer, such as the APEX'I S-AFC, will also be required to control the injectors. Without such control the injectors will probably run much leaner than is necessary.

A common modification to the fuel rail is to convert it to a dual feed setup. The stock fuel rail is fed at the driver's side end, which can lead to unequal fuel pressure across the fuel injectors. This can be dangerous to the engine at increased boost if one cylinder runs lean and causes detonation. The dual feed rail requires the owner to modify the rail to accept a second fuel entry point at the passenger side of the rail. This requires some drilling and tapping to allow for the second entry point. Often times this modification eliminates the cold start injector, which means the car will be more difficult to start and run when it is cold out.

The fuel filter should be changed every 60,000 miles or so. OEM is adequate.

Stereo

Speaker sizes are:

4" in doors, you can fit 6.5's though
1" tweets in the "sails"
3"(?) full range in the rear, I think you can fit 5.25's though.

There were many stereo options available in the MR2. The premium stereo setup included a double-DIN CD/Tape/FM/AM headunit, a tweeter in both door sails, one midrange speaker in the lower front part of each door, one smaller rear fill speaker behind the seats in the side body panel, and a subwoofer behind the drivers seat. A second subwoofer was added behind the passenger's seat in 1993.

The CD player is fairly robust, although it tends to skip with time. The CD player can be fixed to correct this problem, although many owners upgrade to an aftermarket stereo headunit.

Car Alarm

A car alarm was available on all MR2 Turbo from 1991 to 1995. The standard alarm utilizes the horn and flashes headlights on and off if the car has been forcibly opened or a door lock opened from the inside of a locked car.

10-31-2005, 09:23 PM	#14 (permalink)
blazinmr2 Resident guitar shredder Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Pella, Ia Posts: 781 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 2 Posts iTrader Rating: (0/0% )	Transmission The non-turbo MR2 was available with a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission. The Turbo model was only available with a 5-speed manual transmission. In 1993 the Turbo's manual transmission was improved with triple cone syncros on the 2nd and 3rd gears. 91/92 Turbo transmissions tend to wear out 2nd gear fairly often, and this is an especially common occurrence on high mileage MR2 Turbo cars. The grind associated with hard shifting due to syncro wear may be alleviated somewhat by changing the transmission oil. Many owners have found that Redline MT-90 transmission oil reduced syncro wear and made shifting easier. Manual Shifter The 91/92 manual shifter is fairly tall in design, and has a rather long shift throw. In 1993, a new, shorter height shifter with a shorter throw was added to the MR2. 91/92 owners can upgrade to the 93 standard by buying a TRD short shifter, or cutting down the height of the stock shifter. The TRD shifter includes a small round leather shifter knob. Shifter Boot Stock Toyota is Pleather, which breaks down with time and age. And will eventually need to be replaced. Clutch The Turbo's clutch is a fairly durable unit, and should have enough clamping force to hold up to 280hp when new. Advanced Clutch Technologies (ACT) offers several types of clutches for the MR2 based on power application. Many owners have not been satisfied with the Toyota Racing Development (TRD) clutch, so you may want to steer clear of this unit. Ignition System The MR2 Turbo utilizes a distributor based ignition system. The ignition typically produces enough spark energy to handle increased boost, up to 17psi, depending on the car's tuning. The distributor cap and rotor should be replaced ever other year or so, depending on mileage and use. The stock cap utilizes aluminum contact points, which are not incredibly conductive. You should replace them with a distributor cap that has copper contacts. Stock spark plug wires tend to be fine for most owners, although Magnecore and Nology wires are often used with success. TRD plug wires are also fine. Many owners use aftermarket ignitions systems from MSD and Jacob's, although only some users find that the Jacob's system improves the car's performance. Many different spark plugs have been used by owners, and many find that copper, rather than the stock platinum are the way to go for the performance-minded driver. Note that copper wears out faster than platinum, but is more conductive. NGK BKR7E (5020) spark plugs are used by many owners, but can be hard to find. Alternator For a non-power steering (EHPS) MR2 with a manual tranny, the alternator is rated at 70amps. For an automatic non-turbo MR2, the alternator is rated at 80amps. EHPS (Electrical-Hydraulic Power Steering) is run off of electrical, rather than hydraulic power, so any power steering cars are equipped with a 100amp alternator. MR2 alternators tend to be fairly durable units, but do fail. You will probably note a loud "death whir" coming from the alternator for several miles before it fails. An idiot light should light up on the dash as well if the alternator has failed or is at reduced output. Fuel System The stock fuel system for the MR2 Turbo is capable of supporting roughly 280 crank hp. The fuel injectors are capable of delivering approximately 440cdper minute of fuel at 37psi. The fuel pump is well matched to these injectors, and both the injectors and pump are limited to the same fueling level. The MR2 Turbo was tuned very conservatively by Toyota to run very rich to reduce the likelihood of engine damage under high boost/engine speed conditions. By using an aftermarket fuel computer, such as the APEX'I S-AFC, can reduce the overabundance of fuel in the combustion chamber, picking up extra horsepower. Fuel tuning is dangerous business though, so it is highly recommended that you fuel tune your MR2 Turbo on an engine dyno for best results. A common upgrade is to swap in the 550cc-fuel injectors and fuel pump from the latest generation Toyota Supra (1993-98). Combined these should support about 350 crank horsepower. The fuel pump resistor pack will need to be modified to handle the increased voltage utilized by the Supra's fuel pump. A fuel computer, such as the APEX'I S-AFC, will also be required to control the injectors. Without such control the injectors will probably run much leaner than is necessary. A common modification to the fuel rail is to convert it to a dual feed setup. The stock fuel rail is fed at the driver's side end, which can lead to unequal fuel pressure across the fuel injectors. This can be dangerous to the engine at increased boost if one cylinder runs lean and causes detonation. The dual feed rail requires the owner to modify the rail to accept a second fuel entry point at the passenger side of the rail. This requires some drilling and tapping to allow for the second entry point. Often times this modification eliminates the cold start injector, which means the car will be more difficult to start and run when it is cold out. The fuel filter should be changed every 60,000 miles or so. OEM is adequate. Stereo Speaker sizes are: 4" in doors, you can fit 6.5's though 1" tweets in the "sails" 3"(?) full range in the rear, I think you can fit 5.25's though. There were many stereo options available in the MR2. The premium stereo setup included a double-DIN CD/Tape/FM/AM headunit, a tweeter in both door sails, one midrange speaker in the lower front part of each door, one smaller rear fill speaker behind the seats in the side body panel, and a subwoofer behind the drivers seat. A second subwoofer was added behind the passenger's seat in 1993. The CD player is fairly robust, although it tends to skip with time. The CD player can be fixed to correct this problem, although many owners upgrade to an aftermarket stereo headunit. Car Alarm A car alarm was available on all MR2 Turbo from 1991 to 1995. The standard alarm utilizes the horn and flashes headlights on and off if the car has been forcibly opened or a door lock opened from the inside of a locked car.