Hey, I'm looking to get a new car within the next year. I'm looking at the MR2, S2K, Miata, theZ3, and the 1 series (if they import it). I'm a little weary of the S2K for reliably and resale issues. They dont' seem to be holding their value well, and I'm not convinced that high reving engine will last too long. I just got back from test driving a 2005 MR2, I have yet to drive the Miata or my preferred Z3 (2.8). The car was a blast, I quiet enjoyed it. It handled surprisingly well stock, and had more storage space than I thought it would. It's no S2K, but I feel a lot better about the car as a whole.
My only complaints are that the brakes are really subpar and the power kicks in way too late. I'm sure both of these problems can be fixed with a few modifications. Speaking of which, what is the aftermarket support like for these? How much power is this engine capable of putting out?
The other basic questions I have are: how reliable are they? Do they have limited slip diffs? Why is the Gen3 4 lug when the Gen2 is 5 lug?
I'm looking for a car that I can track/autocross on the weekends, and still drive to work on Monday. I drive a lot, over 25,000 miles a year, and I need something that can keep up. My current car does keep up well with the strain I put on her, but I need to lower my payments.
Gen1's were 4 lug
Gen2's were 5 lug
Gen3's were 4 lug
Lotus Elise is 4 lug........
I dunno.... I prefer 5 lug.... but if Lotus figured 4 was good enough for the Elise.... meh.
I don't know how great the aftermarket support is..... but there is always the 2zz swap out there. There are also a few turbo kits out there... but if you want to remain NA.... I don't think there is too much support for the 1zz. I drove one as well and wasn't that impressed.
monkeywrench racing has a bunch of stuff for the Spyder. injectors, top secret turbos, IC's, springs, valves, headers, turbo exhaust manifolds,suspension parts and some other stuff ..and Unorthodox racing has clutches, pulley sets and flywheels. I was gonna turbo my 01 spyder, but bought this '91 turbo instead after I had already installed windowed kevlar racing clutch, 8# flywheel and pulley set, dual exit exhaust from Team Moon out of Atlanta...It's got a torquey low end, but power doesn't really kick in till 4200rpm. it s a good high reving engine, so far , very dependable. but it still only has about 37k miles on it.
very strange that you say the brakes are sub par. if nothing else, a trip to a prts catalogue could change the overall braking feel. i'd start with the compound of the pads. then, maybe i 'd go with some SS brake lines, but i quite enjoy the MkIII brakes. tires would be my next stop as for braking. the RE040's are nice, but there are better compounds out there. as for power, the 2ZZ swap has become a reality and really puts the car in the power that most gearheads would have wished for. it's good enough for the Elise...
not that i'm discouraging u buying a MR2 but, look at the rest of Honda's high-revving VTEC equipped cars (Civic Si, Integra, etc.) and they are still very reliable as long as u don't race it everyday and make every shift at redline. That and proper maintainance and it should last as long as any other car. (If u also don't already know they have discountinued the MR2s, which could slightly raise repair costs and also resale value)
The Z3 is a BMW (obviously) and therefore, repair costs, etc. will problably be higher.
If u can, test drive the Mazdaspeed version of the MX-5 Miata. It's equipped with sportier suspension, better brakes, bigger rims, better tires, a supercharger, and some ground effects that the other Miatas don't have.
If it's not out of ur price range, mayber look at a 350Z? Or save some money and find a nice, taken care of gen 2 MR2 turbo...
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When in doubt, use the search function (link)...no one is spoon fed...
not that i'm discouraging u buying a MR2 but, look at the rest of Honda's high-revving VTEC equipped cars (Civic Si, Integra, etc.) and they are still very reliable as long as u don't race it everyday and make every shift at redline. That and proper maintainance and it should last as long as any other car. (If u also don't already know they have discountinued the MR2s, which could slightly raise repair costs and also resale value)
The Z3 is a BMW (obviously) and therefore, repair costs, etc. will problably be higher.
If u can, test drive the Mazdaspeed version of the MX-5 Miata. It's equipped with sportier suspension, better brakes, bigger rims, better tires, a supercharger, and some ground effects that the other Miatas don't have.
If it's not out of ur price range, mayber look at a 350Z? Or save some money and find a nice, taken care of gen 2 MR2 turbo...
I'm coming from BMW, I can do a lot of the repairs myself. They really aren't that expensive to keep up if you know how to do it yourself. They get a bad rap because dealerships charge a lot, but they are really quite reliable. Mine has 90,000 miles on it and I've never had a problem. This is also probably why I think the brakes on the MR2 are really bad.
I still need to look into the S2K a little bit more. But I want a car that can last. I know that a Z3 will be good to me well over 150,000 miles (just a side note here, this is why those Toyota commericals really piss me off. "name a car that can go 200,000 miles and still be on the road" oh I won't just name one, I'll SHOW you multiple examples in this area alone), And I know the MR2 will also last. I really don't want a 350z, they annoy me, far too common.
I would prefer not going all out with an engine swap. As for a gen 2 turbo, I like how the gen 2s look, but I don't want to buy a car that is 10 years old. Its unfortunately they didn't make it for longer. Oh, also, what is the suspension like on the MR2? Semi trailing arm? Multi-link?
many people that i know are seriously discontented with their honduhs...they have absolutely NO torque. even a guy with a SC'ed S2K that i kno wis getting out of his.
many people that i know are seriously discontented with their honduhs...they have absolutely NO torque. even a guy with a SC'ed S2K that i kno wis getting out of his.
well the MR2 isn't exactly a torque machine. Toyota should invest in a system similar to double vanos. I get torque at 2500 rmps, then again at around 5000.
i don't know exactly what you're after that isn't/hasn't already been published. maybe if you want more in-depth answers with modifying the MkIII try going to spyderchat.com
i don't have any intention of doing anything to mine besides driving it.
For one, any brand new car will lose a great deal in value right when u drive it off the lot.
The s2000 is not of the same class as the mrs, miata and z3. The mrs and s2000 are the more dependable cars of your list. I've driven all four of them, and by far the s2000 was the winner. It had better handling as well as acceleration. People who complain about the torque of this car simply do not know how to drive it. In order to launch, yes, you do need to take it to high rpms. In everyday driving, you will not be reving as high, so the dependability issue is not a problem.
As for value, I suggest that you buy a used car that is 1 to 2 years old with low mileage. Let someone else take the hit.
My bro just bought himself a 350zx anniversay edition last week. My cousin bought one when it first came out, and I was not impressed with it, especially for how much it costs. Besides, they lose 10k in value within the first year.
I suggest buying a mr2 mkII turbo. You can still find a few that have really low mileage. Ebay recently had a 91 and 92 turbo with less than 32,000 miles each.
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