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View Full Version : The MR2 of Death



A790
05-12-2008, 11:45 AM
Remember last year when I bought my MR2 and I was so thrilled that it had been taken care of so well by its previous owner? Yea, I take just about everything I said back.

Body wise it's in great shape, with only a few minor dings/scratches. Otherwise, only me, god, and the dumb jackass I bought the car from knew exactly what I was getting into.

When I first looked at the car it seemed to be in great mechanical shape, and it was. It was lowered in Tein SuperStreet coilovers, had 17" Seneca Rims, a custom made exhaust, GenIII engine/transmission, and a host of other little things that made it stand out. When I drove it, it rang great. It pulled, HARD, and launched like a bat out of hell. Admittedly, I fell in love with the car in a way. It was the sexy black beauty that I had always wanted, so I came back a week later with my uncle (who's a mechanic) to check it out in a bit more detail.

He poked around the engine bay, checked some things, and everything turned out fine. He didn't know these cars at all, but he said that it was running fine and he didn't see any real obvious mechanical problems. Well, that's because the guy that owned this car before me obviously went out of his way to hide the bullshit that I was going to wade through.

I get the car home and two days later the drivers-side tire is flat. I refill it, and two days later it's the same thing. I take the rim off the car, down to Canadian Tire, and get an inner tube put in it just so I can move it around the yard without damaging the rim. I was going to replace them anyway, but didn't see the point in doing so at that point. What I find odd is that the drive home from Barrie (about 1.5 hrs from my parents place) was fine- the tire was fine. Remember this point.

I take the car out of storage and it won't start. I boost it, and as soon as I take off the boost cables it dies. Either the battery or the alternator is fucked. We pop open the bonnet and have a look and there's no fucking belt on the alternator. Not only that, but trying to turn the alternator pulley takes A LOT of effort. A belt hadn't been on this thing for a while.

Whatever. I put the car on a trailer and get it taken to my mechanics that specialize in cars like this. Actually, they specialize in Talons, so I knew that they had a LOT of experience with electrical problems (I kid, I kid). We get it off the trailer and I take off for the day.

I get a call the next day. They want me to come in to "talk about this car and what I want to do with it". Well... that's never a good sign. I head on in there (I had a rental car at this point).

They hand me a LIST of shit this car is going to need to pass inspection:

+ New suspension. The coilovers were leaking, the front two being completely shot. I never knew the difference, but apparantly the car isn't supposed to sit that low or ride that hard. Not only that, but the stock Toyota mounts are gone and to get new ones is $1,000, or a new Tein kit is $1,900. I order the new Tein kit.

No big deal, I figure, even though the guy told me the suspension was brand new and only used for a few months. Whatever, buyer beware right?

+ Horn/signal lights are buggered. I knew this going into the deal. I was told by the previous owner that it was a relay problem, which it was. No biggie.

+ The exhaust is mounted to the rear bumper. Literally, BOLTED on to the rear bumper. Not only that, but the guy made a custom 3" downpipe that fed into a stock DODGE NEON muffler, with a hacked pipe that had been spot welded in. A ghetto-ass exhaust job.

I wouldn't have belived it if I didn't see it myself. Unreal.

+ Other odds and ends not really worth mentioning. These aren't what piss me off...

... this is. We take off the rim and tire, and it's PAINFULLY obvious that a chunk had broken off at some point. So, they took a section FROM A DIFFERENT RIM ENTIRELY, NOT EVEN THE SAME KIND OF RIM, and spot welded it in. You could SEE the JB weld. This thing could have fallen off at any time, and I wouldn't have had a clue since he had paid to have the face of the rim refinished and powder coated.

What really upsets me is that this guy was fully comfortable with me driving the car across the damn country (as I was originally going to do)... anything to make a sale, right? That car wasn't even safe to be on the bloody road at city speeds, let alone cruising along the highway.

So I've litereally replaced just about everything aside from the engine/transmission, which I verified IS a GenIII, and IS a LSD tranny, both of which are in surprisingly good shape considering the rest of the fucking car.

I've replaced...

+ Steering wheel
+ Signal relay
+ Rims/tires
+ Suspension
+ Exhaust
+ Bushings
+ Ball joints
+ Who knows how much little shit not worth mentioning.

Now I would be suspicious of my mechanic, except for the fact that he does mechanical work for me and I do web development work for him. He's an honest guy, more a friend than anything else, and I've brought other vehicles to him that were a quick fix that he comped for me.

So this "pristine" MR2 that I bought was really a death trap. It's pristine NOW, but only because I forked out over $5K on top of the purchase price to make it so. I had to cancel a lot of plans I had and things I wanted to buy because the guy FLAT OUT LIED TO ME. If he had told me this shit up front, like I had asked him to, I would have saved some money aside for it since I'd have been aware of it.

But no, he lied like a bloody cockroach for a lousy $7,500.

Of course, all the BS things we found you wouldn't see without it being in the air. I mean, who jacks up a car and removes a rim to check the suspension during a test drive?

Sorry, just had to vent. Thinking about this really makes my blood boil, since every time I've sold a car I've always been honest about what it does and doesn't need. Every time. Because I'd hate to BS to someone only to put them in harms way, or even just inconvenience them. This guy didn't give a s hit that one of the rims had as much structural integrity as a ham sandwhich...

Anyway, that's my rant. Thanks for reading :)

PS - Pics coming soon of new rims, suspension, tail lights, etc.

PPS - I still love the car, but not the douche that mistreated her before I rescued her.

boxer23
05-12-2008, 12:31 PM
Its an MR2 as much as Ilove them, those parts mentioned were gonna break at some point or another...but yah it would really get me boiling to if someone lied to me like that...atleast its mint now:burnout:

A790
05-12-2008, 12:33 PM
Originally posted by boxer23
Its an MR2 as much as Ilove them, those parts mentioned were gonna break at some point or another...but yah it would really get me boiling to if someone lied to me like that...atleast its mint now:burnout:
I know shit breaks and that's not what vexes me. The biggest thing is the rim- that's a HUGE saftey hazard.

boxer23
05-12-2008, 12:36 PM
yah i was thinking the same thing...its funny because my friend recently mentioned when he bought his FC, something went wrong, so he took it to a mechanic to have it checked out...turns out a part of the exhaust was being held with rubber bands

TE4MFaint
05-12-2008, 01:02 PM
Sellers are absolutely sick these days, its disgusting.
Anything to make a quick buck and ditch a car
with problems, they will do it.
Cars should always be inspected fully (out of province inspection sheet used) before a sale is done,
especially to an older and modified car.
Its $100, and itll save a massive headache.

heavyD
05-12-2008, 01:46 PM
Originally posted by boxer23
yah i was thinking the same thing...its funny because my friend recently mentioned when he bought his FC, something went wrong, so he took it to a mechanic to have it checked out...turns out a part of the exhaust was being held with rubber bands

Man when I was selling my SRT-4 I found a crack at one of the exhaust hangers that probably no buyer would notice. I still got it welded (by legendboy) just because I try to treat people the way I expect to get treated.

It's a pretty crooked industry and you really have to learn to trust nobody and proceed with due dilligence on any used car purchase. Oh and never fall in love based on a quick drive and exterior looks which can be hard to do when you are set on a car. ;)

403Gemini
05-12-2008, 01:56 PM
Originally posted by heavyD


Man when I was selling my SRT-4 I found a crack at one of the exhaust hangers that probably no buyer would notice. I still got it welded (by legendboy) just because I try to treat people the way I expect to get treated.

It's a pretty crooked industry and you really have to learn to trust nobody and proceed with due dilligence on any used car purchase. Oh and never fall in love based on a quick drive and exterior looks which can be hard to do when you are set on a car. ;)

:thumbsup: You're srt was probably one of the best maintained, cleanest srt-4's out there. If i was in the market for one, yours is the one I would have looked for.

It is a tough market out there, I took my chances with a guy on beyond but I knew his rep as hes been around the forum for quite awhile and car is beautiful. :thumbsup:

A790, sorry to hear about your shitty luck man, but look at the bright side, your project is almost complete probably sooner than expected ;)

A790
05-12-2008, 04:00 PM
Originally posted by 403Gemini


:thumbsup: You're srt was probably one of the best maintained, cleanest srt-4's out there. If i was in the market for one, yours is the one I would have looked for.

It is a tough market out there, I took my chances with a guy on beyond but I knew his rep as hes been around the forum for quite awhile and car is beautiful. :thumbsup:

A790, sorry to hear about your shitty luck man, but look at the bright side, your project is almost complete probably sooner than expected ;)

LOL yea that's a way to look at it. I just got her home from the shop, all ready to go. Perhaps a victory cruise is in order?

403Gemini
05-12-2008, 04:09 PM
Originally posted by A790


LOL yea that's a way to look at it. I just got her home from the shop, all ready to go. Perhaps a victory cruise is in order?

Dont push your luck ;)

Fcuk
05-12-2008, 04:12 PM
VICTORY CRUISE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FTMFW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

silviafreek89
05-12-2008, 04:14 PM
Yea I kinda ran into the same problem...However i baught my car from an exporter from Japan so an inspection was literally impossible!

Not to complain because I love my car and haven't had to deal with anything serious like you but 'buyer beware' take's on a whole new meaning when purchaing imports!!! Especially one's that are 18-19yrs old like my Silvia!!!!

Godspeed to all those that run into douche's that try and make a quick buck and endanger everyone else!

brandon
05-12-2008, 04:34 PM
Shitty luck! very shady on the sellers part!

lol, on another note my car is an 03 and I have replaced the following due to it breaking down.. not for modding purposes.

-brakes/rotors
-suspension
-exhaust
-motor
-tranny
-clutch/flywheel

Mista.2
05-12-2008, 06:04 PM
thts really shitty sorry to hear bout the bad luck.

Team_Mclaren
05-12-2008, 06:31 PM
Originally posted by brandon
Shitty luck! very shady on the sellers part!

lol, on another note my car is an 03 and I have replaced the following due to it breaking down.. not for modding purposes.

-brakes/rotors
-suspension
-exhaust
-motor
-tranny
-clutch/flywheel

Motor AND Tranny on an 03? WOW:eek: And they say the rotary is unreliable. fucking fanboys.

dj_rice
05-12-2008, 06:54 PM
Have you contacted the previous older about this?And what was his response

A790
05-12-2008, 06:58 PM
Originally posted by dj_rice
Have you contacted the previous older about this?And what was his response
No. I don't see the point. He's a liar and a cheat- he'd make up some bullshit, and it's not like I could get anything out of him anyway. Sold "as is, where is".

Mista.2
05-12-2008, 07:55 PM
Originally posted by A790

No. I don't see the point. He's a liar and a cheat- he'd make up some bullshit, and it's not like I could get anything out of him anyway. Sold "as is, where is".

yeah i guess it wouldnt do much good, but at least you got everything fixed...

A790
05-12-2008, 08:54 PM
Yea. I took her out for a drive tonight. Reminds me of all the reasons why I pursue this ridiculous hobby...

Peace. Relaxation. Happiness. All in one tight, sexy package.

Redlyne_jr
05-12-2008, 09:32 PM
Originally posted by A790
Yea. I took her out for a drive tonight. Reminds me of all the reasons why I pursue this ridiculous hobby...

Peace. Relaxation. Happiness. All in one tight, sexy package.

hahahah :thumbsup:

A790
05-12-2008, 09:48 PM
:P A car guy always I guess right?

Besides, when boost comes this quickly, why not?

Redlyne_jr
05-12-2008, 09:49 PM
Originally posted by A790
:P A car guy always I guess right?

Besides, when boost comes this quickly, why not?

exactly its like an addictive drug...

A790
05-13-2008, 12:05 PM
Originally posted by Fcuk
VICTORY CRUISE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FTMFW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Agree x 10. Just got back from a nice long drive.

Fcuk
05-13-2008, 12:30 PM
Good shit bro, you still in toronto? Im at school atm :( I can't wait to get off and go 4 a drive muahahhah :bigpimp:

A790
05-13-2008, 12:48 PM
Originally posted by Fcuk
Good shit bro, you still in toronto? Im at school atm :( I can't wait to get off and go 4 a drive muahahhah :bigpimp:
Yea, still in London.

Driving to Calgary next Wednesday though :P

403Gemini
05-13-2008, 03:43 PM
Originally posted by A790

Yea, still in London.

Driving to Calgary next Wednesday though :P

Awesome man :thumbsup: How long you gonna be in cowtown for? Or you comin back for good?

A790
05-13-2008, 03:46 PM
I'm down from May 23 (when I figure I'll show up in Calgary) until June 21. Moving back for good in a year probably.

Can't wait. A good buddy of mine is flying into London, lands at 6:10 am. We're gonna grab breakfast and spool 'er up for the ride back :)