Hot Start and Die... Safe?

[landtoy80]

Looked at a 86 MR2 that I would like to buy for $900.
It is in very good shape wih some rust on the rear fenders.
I did a search but may not of used the correct words to search.

The owner say when he got it last fall that the kid he got it from said " it would die when it got hot". The owner that is selling it now doesn't have that problem but he has not owned it in hot weather.
It does have a problem with not starting when the motor reaches operating temp and is shut off. It will crank but not start unless you use a shot of starting fluid.
I found the vapor lock problem. The rear fan that cools the engine does not run when the motor is truned off. I got it to run for a second but it quit.

What I don't know is, should or does the rear engine fan ever run when the enging is running?
I will be driving it 130 mi/day to work and this is western CO and it gets hot out here.


I drove it tonight at 65 mph for about 5 mi and the front fan for the radiator did not come on but the temp out side is in the low 50's.
Should it come on when its cool out?


How safe is the 86 MR2? If I get in an accident will I be toast or did Toyota build it with safey in mind?

The AC and cruise don't work but other than that and the cooling issue it runs fine.

Should I take a chance on it or should I run like the wind???

[adrian_irwin]

Originally Posted by landtoy80

Looked at a 86 MR2 that I would like to buy for $900.
It is in very good shape wih some rust on the rear fenders.
I did a search but may not of used the correct words to search.

The owner say when he got it last fall that the kid he got it from said " it would die when it got hot". The owner that is selling it now doesn't have that problem but he has not owned it in hot weather.
It does have a problem with not starting when the motor reaches operating temp and is shut off. It will crank but not start unless you use a shot of starting fluid.
I found the vapor lock problem. The rear fan that cools the engine does not run when the motor is truned off. I got it to run for a second but it quit.

What I don't know is, should or does the rear engine fan ever run when the enging is running?
I will be driving it 130 mi/day to work and this is western CO and it gets hot out here.


I drove it tonight at 65 mph for about 5 mi and the front fan for the radiator did not come on but the temp out side is in the low 50's.
Should it come on when its cool out?


How safe is the 86 MR2? If I get in an accident will I be toast or did Toyota build it with safey in mind?

The AC and cruise don't work but other than that and the cooling issue it runs fine.

Should I take a chance on it or should I run like the wind???

Well, I'm no expert, but I can share my experiences at least:

Dieing when it got hot: could be as simple as sparkplugs. Pull them out and see how they're doing. As for the front fan, I've driven an '85 that had no front fan in the summer here, and it never had a problem. We used it as an autocross car, driving about an hour and half to and back from the track. However, I'm in Canada (southern Canada mind you).

[tHa kNiGHt FaLL]

you kno i would offer a good explanation for wha could be your problem.

but the fact you said you plan to drive it over 100 miles a day i wouldn't even consider this car.