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View Full Version : MR2 AW11 SC Versus NA?



randedge
08-27-2007, 09:14 PM
I own a later model MR2 aw11 with the 7 rib 4AGE. Body is beat as heck, but motor runs crazy strong for something with 224,000km. Must be because it was all synthetic since I got the car 160,000km 5 years ago.

Mods include 2.5" exhaust that follows the stock route - no cat - and a short ram intake.

Lately, I've been expressing interest in Supercharged MR2's.

So far, in the City of Calgary, I've test driven two stock ones that were for sale. The first one was almost 300,000kms and this one just an hour ago had 160,000

The really really high mileage one, felt like it did have more torque down below. I mean, I was expecting it to be so weak due to the age, but was surprised that it was still alive and kicking so well. This car was beat however and would have been best as a parts car. The price wasn't much for a runner, but too much for a parts car. Hence, why I didn't end up with it...

Some other things besides more torque down low stand out: It isn't rev happy. The flywheel feels like it weighs a ton and the ratios feel like they're spaced so far apart. And I think as a combination of all this, the car just doesn't surge to the redline the same way my 88 stripper NA does. The overall feel was that it just ISN'T that much faster despite better off the line performance - which was marginal to begin with.

So, I waited for a chance to be able to test drive a younger, also bone stock SC. Hoping that maybe because the beat one I test drove had such high mileage, a fresher example would be better.

Today I got that chance and once again... it just doesn't feel that much faster!

Another local guy has this SC that's modified with pulley, exhaust, and computer work. His car really put me back to my seat when I rode with him in Autox. I expected at least some semblance of that.

But what I got from this stock SC with 160,000km was just an overall feeling of pork! I did keep in mind that my daily driven 88NA has much stiffer suspension (something to the tune of twice the stock rates) so I just tried to judge the car's reactions straight line and on the highway. My impression? Underwhelming. I was expecting a harder push. I was expecting a rush of power.

Nothing! Ahhh! Are SC's really not that much faster? Or are these two examples just flukes that are particularly weak? I wish I could drag race my car side by side for a definitive test.


My loyalty to the AW11 chassis is being shaken. If the SC doesn't offer much more, I might just pursue something else for more power.

randedge
08-27-2007, 09:15 PM
In fact, I'll venture to say that the NA seems like it's so much more fun to drive!

The C52's ratios are spaced much better, and the stock flywheel just lets the engine wind up and rev, rev, REV!

That said, what if you get the SC motor and the NA tranny? You get the SC's extra torque but without the burden of the tank like E51. Open up the exhaust and intake for more rev happiness and you should be good to go.

98GS400
08-28-2007, 12:20 AM
You ever consider a stripper model with a 4AG 20 Valve swap? I had a 20V '87 N/A with sunroof, no power locks/windows. That thing was really really rev happy, and had good, consistent torque throughout the whole rev band..


.. Just throwing out an idea..

Ashkente
08-28-2007, 02:01 AM
Mine is a "stripper" 89. but I'd imagine it's quite rare. No power locks/windows, cloth, but t-top and SC. I haven't driven an NA MR2, but in comparison to AE86's I've driven, yes it does feel like the fw is a lot heavier (but I'd attribute this more to the SC itself). The other thing though is the pedal effort itself is a lot stiffer than most other cars I've driven...anyone else find that?

GTS Jeff
08-28-2007, 02:38 AM
Why not go with a GZE with a lightweight flywheel, NA tranny, and a crazy final drive diff? That should take care of the response problems.

bmeier
08-28-2007, 12:46 PM
the sc doesnt feel a lot faster but i assure you it is much much faster all around. a lot of people dont like the gear ratios with the e51 tranny which is why swapping an sc engine into an na chassis is nice because you can keep the old c52 tranny and have better gearing. the downside to this is that you will probably wear out the tranny a lot faster.

Buying a new oversized crank pulley is basically all you need to do to make a very nice Hp increase.

randedge
08-28-2007, 05:53 PM
I gotta clear something up when i said this:


My loyalty to the AW11 chassis is being shaken. If the SC doesn't offer much more, I might just pursue something else for more power.

I'm no power junkie.

In fact, quite the opposite. In a world of increasing gas prices, I can trade off power as long as I have responsiveness and a good soundtrack.

I mean, if perception is reality, then the fact that a stock SC is in actuality a faster car still doesn't do much for the feeling that it seems slower and does not stir up the "happy driving feelings" I get from my NA.

Your suggestions all make sense. Light tune killer SC setup:
C52 tranny, 13" rubber, NA cams, and pulley.

bmeier
08-28-2007, 06:02 PM
ted components makes a very nice cam for the sc motor if do go that route.

i think its the kk108

Depending on what you do (swap or stock SC) i would definitely get those ted cams, either a bigger crank pulley or if you can find one a smaller sc pulley and finally a decent custom exhaust 2.5 inch is what i ran on my SC.


if later on you decide you need more power you can either turbo the gze or rip everything out and go 3sgte :)

Berg9987
08-31-2007, 04:55 AM
I've got an 87 AW11, no power windows, no power locks, no cruise, about the only option it has are the t-tops. It has the 4A-GZE swap with the NA transmission. It was swapped several years before it came into my possesion. Engine is still stock (though I do have a pulley on the way). The transmission still feels good. Clutch will need replacing soon, but if you want to do a side by side comparison sometime...

Cheers,
Berg