My old 87....

[Berg9987]

...Is about to get a second chance!

I finally have an excuse to start fixing her up. I still have a Celica I am spending most of my time on, but I will be squeezing the MR2 in there as well. I still have to use it as a daily driver, so I wont be able to do all the work I want right away.

I've already ordered a new front left fender and will be cutting the rust out of the rear fenders and roof in the next few months. The car will be getting a new paint job (from blue to black). The interior will have the old carpets removed, tho I might not be able to replace them for a while. The cracked dash will be smoothed/filled and painted flat black. Fabric on the doors will be reskinned as well as certain select pieces. I'm also hoping to get some new suspesion bits too, but we will see how time and money goes.

First parts will be arriving on Saturday. I'm doing all the work myself out of the parents garage. I'm pretty excited. I'll let you know how things go.

Cheers,
Berg

[Redlyne_mr2]

please post pics when you can

[jsn]

Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
please post pics when you can

+1

I love mk1s :D

[The Cosworth]

Originally posted by jsn


+1

I love mk1s :D

I think 87's are MK2, because I had a 1982 and It looks quite different, or are they considered the same?

BTW, badass man, please post pics

[SI_futbol]

Originally posted by brendankharris


I think 87's are MK2, because I had a 1982 and It looks quite different, or are they considered the same?



yeah their the samee

[Berg9987]

I'll take some pics this weekend. I might start removing the interior and/or even fitting the new fender.

The car is in pretty sad shape as it has had a rough life. There is over 330000km on the dial. I bought the car off a classmate who bought it off a guy who used it for racing (I believe he lives in Lethbridge as last time i was there a group of people recognized the car). He had modified it quite a bit. It has a 4A-GZE engine swap (tho strangely the tranny is the stock NA unit), it sits on Eibach springs, momo shift knob, momo wheel and a four point harness for the driver. I added a short shift kit, brass shifter bushings and some gauges. The body was all pitted and scratched from the racing minus the front passenger side fender thanks to an acura denting it while the previous owner had it and the insurance company replacing it.

Since I've owned the car it has been dented by some jerk in a parking lot hit and run (hence the new fender on Saturday). The t-tops leak badly and currently duct tape is keeping the wet out. Rust is a major issue as the roof just above the windshield is rusty as are the rear fenders (usual spot, drivers side is worse). The passenger side skirt is cracked, and all the plastic inside is brittle and cracked.

I need new tires, front bearings, front tie rod ends (thanks to the hit and run), new rear tie rods, and an allignment. I just got a new position at work and can finally start putting some money into this old girl.

Parts to pick up Saturday: Drivers fender, clear lenses for the turning indicators
Parts on order (getting shipped in): T-top adjustment plugs, oil filter sandwich plate for gauge sensors
Next month: C-pillar trim, side skirt trim

Puts a smile on my face just thinking about it....

Cheers,
Berg

[James]

Originally posted by brendankharris


I think 87's are MK2, because I had a 1982 and It looks quite different, or are they considered the same?

BTW, badass man, please post pics

I think your confused....what kind of car did you have that was an '82? cause it wasnt an MR2.

[Berg9987]

In 1987 the MR2 changed a little bit, but nothing major enough to call it another generation. The braking system recieved a much needed upgraded. I believe that they changed the front lip and added the sideskirts that year as well (dont quote me on that, it may have been an option). In 1988 the supercharged motor was made an option (probably came out earlier in Japan). I think it was also the 1988 model that recieved a different spoiler (third brake light becam integrated leds). I might be wrong. The car didn't undergo a major change untill the early nineties when the Mk2 came out.

Cheers,
Berg

[jsn]

Originally posted by brendankharris


I think 87's are MK2, because I had a 1982 and It looks quite different, or are they considered the same?

BTW, badass man, please post pics

not trying to bash anyone but they didn't have mr2s in 82. If you bought your car thinking its an mr2 i think you've been ripped off :rofl:. The mr2 came out in 85. And just to clarify by Mk1 i meant the AW11 mr2. I'm pretty sure all aw11s were mk1s and sw20s were mk2s.


Originally posted by Berg9987

Parts to pick up Saturday: Drivers fender, clear lenses for the turning indicators


i was just wondering where you're planning on getting the clear lenses and how much it costs, because i was looking for a set too.

But back on topic.... big fan of aw11's and would love to see pics asap :thumbsup:

[Berg9987]

I am picking up the clear lenses tomorrow from Charlesglenn Toyota. I think that they are for a Camry, but I'm not sure. They are made from the same mold as the MR2 lense, so they will bolt right in. If you want to get some just order them from the Toyota dealership of your choice. Part numbers: 81511-03011 and 81521-03011. Ones for the driver's side and the other's for the passenger. I dont remember which is which right now. I am paying just under $28 per piece (plus applicable taxes
;) )

Cheers,
Berg

[jsn]

Cool thanks for the info. Just wondering, do you have to change the bulbs underneath so that they are yellow? or can you leave them as white? I heard that cops will pull you over if they see that your turning signal is white?

[bmeier]

i have the camry lenses on mine and have had white bulbs for the last 5 years. Technically if they wanted to give you a ticket they could but i have never had any problems.

[Berg9987]

To keep the car legal the bulbs should be replaced with amber ones. However, I believe that white is forgiveable. If you were to get a ticket for them it would probably be after the cop had pulled you over already for something else. Or if you piss them off, or if they have had a bad day. The downside with amber bulbs is that the colour can be seen through the lense, thus defeating the purpose of the clear lenses (at least in my opinion). You can get around this by replacing the bulb with a special one that can be found in most aftermarket/tuner shops. They appear chrome untill they are turned on. Another option is LEDs. You can purchase drop in replacements. I might even take a stab at making my own. Have to see what happens.

Cheers,
Berg

FIRST PARTS TO BE AQUIRED TOMORROW!

[Berg9987]

Alright! The new fender is on as well as the clear lenses. I took several pictures, but I left the camera behind. I could not belive how much work is required to change the fender! Changing the lenses took about five minutes. Changing the fender too about eight hours. Wasn't nearly as simple as I thought.

Quick break down of todays excitement:
-Got the parts
-Changed the lenses
-Removed drivers side front skirt
-Removed drivers side skirt
-Removed drivers headlight housing
-Removed splashgaurds
-Removed fender
-Removed compost behind fender
-Cut out rust hole in body behind fender
-Welded in new metal and painted under fender
-Primed fender
-Installed fender
-Reinstalled all removed parts

Needless to say, many of the nuts/bolts were rusted and several snapped. This meant that I had to drill out some of the nuts and install different hardware. So now I have one grey primer fender on a blue and rust car.
Pics to come in the next day or so.

Cheers,
Berg

[RiceCake]

Originally posted by Berg9987
In 1987 the MR2 changed a little bit, but nothing major enough to call it another generation. The braking system recieved a much needed upgraded. I believe that they changed the front lip and added the sideskirts that year as well (dont quote me on that, it may have been an option). In 1988 the supercharged motor was made an option (probably came out earlier in Japan). I think it was also the 1988 model that recieved a different spoiler (third brake light becam integrated leds). I might be wrong. The car didn't undergo a major change untill the early nineties when the Mk2 came out.

Cheers,
Berg

Don't forget that the 87+ models had better tails, the nicer steering wheel, and minus the 2 tone seats.

the LED spoiler didn't come out until 89 I believe.

As for the clear front signals, they're for a 91 camry. :D

I need to undergo quite a bit of suspension restoration come spring or when it warms up outside. Where did you order your parts?

More and more I want to start looking for a 87+ aw11 now... :banghead:

[Berg9987]

I also think that the transmission housing my be slightly different in the 87+ Mk1. Most of the modifications were done to the car before I got it. The short shift kit I put on came from twos r us as did the engine lid strut. The brass shifter bushings came from speed-source.net. The recent parts I got came from Toyota. I do have some parts on order from the websites twos r us and kbox engineering. They have many parts for the Mk1 MR2, both restoration and upgrades, and I most likely will be ordering more from them soon. Between those two sites most of the suspension problems can be resolved. The prices for the parts seem a lot cheaper than the last quote that I got here in town.

Cheers,
Berg

PS I have pictures but I do not know how to post. Can someone fill me in?

[Berg9987]

Ok, I have loaded the picture on the net, but I dont know how to post them here. If you want to see them check out:

http://s150.photobucket.com/albums/s117/Berg9987/MR2/

Lemme know what you think.

Cheers,
Berg

[RiceCake]

Well if you need any old parts or whatnot, I still have an auto 86 parts car :thumbsup:

[Berg9987]

I will probably take you up on that. At least I'll look at it. Do you have any pictures of it? Did the link to my pictures work?

Cheers,
Berg

[jsn]

Hey i recognize your car. I was cruising down crowchild i saw your car. recognize the yellow. Really stands out.

looking good btw :thumbsup:

[jsn]

oops accidentally double posted... can u delete this one mod

[Berg9987]

Lol! I'm not a big fan of the yellow personally. I am repainting the grill flat black. Havent decided what I'm doing with the side engine cooling vent (either same colour as the body or flat black like the grill). I have removed the MR2 sticker on the windshield (I never liked that). The four point harness is yellow, so I guess I'm keeping that. I drive around the city alot, but usually stick to the northwest. The car's pretty noisy with the 93 exhaust on it, so I'm pretty easy to single out in a crowd. I've seen a couple of clean looking Mk1's in town. On Northmount drive and 19th street. The one on Northmount was red and parked. The one on 19th was bue or black driving southbound after turning off John Laurie. Both were early in the morning. Do these belong to anybody here?

Cheers,
Berg

[jsn]

yea I'm not a big fan of the yellow either, especially on the sides. Just makes your car easy to recognize. Saw your car during the summer and when I saw the pictures, I remembered seeing your car right away :D

[RiceCake]

Mine's 2 tone red/black...

Part's car a crappy rusted out black that was originally red.

I'll try to get some pics for my parts car soon.

[Berg9987]

I'd still like to see it. I'm sure that there are some parts I would like to buy from you.

I just got started and now I am forced to take a break. I found out yesterday that work is sending me to Egypt for two weeks next Monday. So there won't be any updates for a while.

Cheers,
Berg

[RiceCake]

Hey Jsn: if you want to order clear front lenses:

From a 91 Camry

81511-03011 (driver side)
81521-03011 (passenger side)

[jsn]

ok cool thanks. I'm probably going to go pick up a set once i get my car back on the road... really miss it :cry:

[Berg9987]

Last update before I leave:

Fitted the oil filter sandwich adaptor and did an oil change yesterday. The adaptor allowed me to install aftermarket oil pressure and temperature sensors for the gauges on the a-pillar. Sorry, no pics of that.

I leave monday and will probably be running around in a panic all weekend, so no work going to happen on the car. If I can get internet where I'm going I will cruise by these parts.

Cheers,
Berg