Winter

[Crasian]

just wondering if any of you guys have driven your mr2's in the winter, or if it is even possible?

[stealth]

i seen one guy drive his with low pros, and he was loosing his back end, and not gaining traction.

[jvillain]

I had to drive mine the first winter I had it. Put some good tires on it and it actually works out quite well. You'll get the hole shot on 90% of the cars out there. You have to be reasonable though.

Having said all that the MR2 is to nice of a car to be winter driven.

[Gspotracer]

I drove an 87 for a winter beater last year, had a set of blizzaks on it & put a sandbag in the rear trunk, was lots of fun in the snow

I wouldn't drive a nice one in the snow, but I'm sure it would be fine with a good set of tires

[thinmyster]

i had to my first year of owning it. and with some good winter tires provided by the seller it worked out quite well.. no accidents to date.. with that car....

[Crasian]

thanks for the help guys
but no matter what car i get, it'll have to be driven occasionally in the winter, so i guess a mr2 would be a bad idea

[Redlyne_mr2]

Driving an MK2 MR2 in the winter is such a bad Idea. The car is soo low that it will get destroyed by rock chips. Its also old so any road salt will really affect it and might cause rust. Windshields for the MK2 MR2 are not cheap. Youre best to save your car and buy a beater.

[thinmyster]

soooooo true ^^^^^ after i drove my car that first winter i found minor rust spots on my doors and rock chips all over my front bumper but none on the windshield (thank god) it only takes one idiot to drive on the shoulder to make your life hellish!! i usually pull my car out may long weekend and park it sept-oct makes me appreciate it more and drop way more money in to it

by the way i offered montgomery's 1000 bucks for the 3sgte waiting to hear back on what they say????

[Eb0la11]

When is everyone planning on bringing out their MR2s this year? Im thinking in April I will be bringing it out, barring the roads are decent. I will likely put the bra on the front for April as well. The MR7 just isnt cutting it for me, so slow lol. I think our winter has been mild enough that it might end early this year, just like how it started late. Thats why I think April will be alright to bring it out, and if it does get bad I can drive the MR7 if it snows or whatever.

[jvillain]

I have allready pulled mine out of storage and taken it to where I work on it. I have most of this years upgrades in, just a couple of more to do. I am hoping to start road tuning in about 2 weeks. That is lower speed off boost stuff. Then it is off to the dyno and more tuning and then a bit more street tuning.

I am hoping to be able to use it as a daily driver in about a month. I will keep the winter beater around for ~2 months just in case though.

[randedge]

MK1 NA MR2 owner.

I have an 88 MR2 that is my daily driver, and rallycrosser.

I find the midengine layout to be especially useful in the winter. Gobs of traction, and gobs of controllability even with an opne differential. Going 'dorifto' style in the winter makes me fancy myself as a Lancia 037 rally driver in the Swedish Rally... :p

Anyway, the only idiosyncracy I find with it is the stupid brake bias of the non ABS MK1's: Too much in the front! The fronts tend to lock up as soon as I even hover my foot on that middle pedal. I now have learned to drive around it... even learned to 'tune' around it! Currently, I'm not running any front swaybar.

Aids in turn in and balance in the really slippery stuff. A little hairy at high speeds when the rear tries to come around on onramps and offramps, but I just have to tell meself never to lift and never to brake if you're not going straight.



As an aside, I enjoy driving and abusing my car so much that I now have this mindset that it is pointless exercise owning a car that I cannot enjoy in the winter - we have half the year devoted to that after all.

I have plans (more like pipe dreams) of re-beautifying this abused midengined trackwhore of mine and keeping her only as a summer mistress.
Never gonna happen.

The 'summer-only' part that is... It will still get re-beautified, and it'll continue to receive go fast parts (especially when the stock engine wonks out on me and I'd be forced to drop a GZE or somesuch). But it will be DRIVEN and DRIVEN HARD in the winter.

I have two complete suspension sets, from strut top to strut bolt, and I can now swap it easily in a matter of minutes. (ok.. ok.. so maybe about 90 minutes... but that's because I take my time) One a stock set, the other, a stiff set for summer autoX and spirited sunday drives.
Oh! I also have studded tires - probably what makes it so much fun as well.

Hell, I like driving in the loose surfaces so much I dream of actual balls-out rallying! someday...

...but for now, come see me at the CSCC winter Autocross (rallycross)
Next event 27 Feb. Sunday. 0900. Race City Spectator Lot.
If you wanna enter, bring 25 bux. (Bring 25 bux anyway-it's boring to watch)