Project MR2

[Evan]

[
An old friend of mine had a 91 turbo and used to talk about how he stopped letting other people drive it because no one could understand that letting off the throttle at the limit is a bad idea.

this doesnt apply just to MR2's but i hear what you're sayin...

are you sure?

[Andy]

Bolted in the traction rods. The new front crossmember was built really well. It was a real tight and precise fit. Also put Konis in the front but didn't get a chance to put in the rears.

Next week:

Wheel bearings.
Wheel studs.
Rear shocks.
Get an alignment and the car should be all setup for VIR. Yay.

[Andy]

I need what is essentially a thick washer. It has to be 3.5 OD/2.5in ID.

Like this one:



I'm going to weld it on to my spare strut shells for my coilover project and serve as the lower perch that will hold up the sleeves.
Also, will any coilover sleeves do? Has anyone seen any failures of less expensive units. I'd hate to blow 400 bucks on a set of GC's if I don't have to.

My other option is this:



Trim the stock spring perch back but keep enough to hold the sleeve in place. Thoughts?

[Andy]

Well, car is ready for action.

New wheel studs
Changed the oil.
Changed valve cover gasket.
Cleaned up the spark plugs.
Reset the timing.
Bled the brakes.
Got it aligned.

All I got left is to fool around with the Konis some more. Maybe it's the offseason rust but I swear taking a high speed turn "feels" a lot scarier than it did the last time I drove the car in November. Got all week I guess. Still have to clean out the damn car which is going to suck considering I made it into a quasi storage shack/garage this past winter.

[.RJ]

How far off was the alignment? Did you get a before and after printout? Where'd ya take it?

[Andy]

How far off was the alignment? Did you get a before and after printout? Where'd ya take it?

NTB by my house. Andrew has done the alignment on the MR2 about 6-7 times since I've owned the thing so I trust him and he does it to my specs.

Alignment specs are

FCamber -2.5
Caster -4*
Toe In 1/16th

RCamber -1.5
Toe in 1/16th

Their printer was busted so I didn't get a printout, he just showed me on the machine.

[Andy]

Well, the dodgy suspension I was bitching about introduced me to the tirewall at hogpen last weekend. I bumped up the fronts to 2 full turns and dropped the back down to 1 turn and the car settled down quite a bit. I also dropped the tire pressure down to 34f/36r hot on the Hankooks.

Outside of the fender that I have to bang out, I also had 5th gear popping out on me. I'm still waiting for my LSD to arrive from JDM land so as a last act of pure desperation, I changed the gear oil from Amsoil 75-90 to Redline 75-90NS. To my utter amazement, 5th gear stopped popping out. I don't think it's really possible for a fluid to make this big a difference so I'm chalking it up to blind luck and 5th will pop out through the uphill esses which will inevitably lead to my death in about a month.

[CaptainHenreh]

5th in the uphill esses?

Seriously?

[Mike]

fluid can make that big a difference.

[Mike]

5th in the uphill esses?

Seriously?

4th goes to 100 in his silly car.

[.RJ]

5th in the uphill esses?

Always worked for me. 115ish in the H4 car, 120 in the ITR.

[Andy]

5th in the uphill esses?

Always worked for me. 115ish in the H4 car, 120 in the ITR.

I'm at 100, sitting at the rev limiter and waiting. Sadly, 5th tops out at 115.

That little crest at the first right hander (T8 ) still gets me. If my wheel isn't pointed straight, the ass gets loose for the second right hander.

[.RJ]

If my wheel isn't pointed straight, the ass gets loose for the second right hander.

Turn in earlier, use the curbing. This will probably force you turn in earlier for T7 (first left hander of the esses)

[Andy]

If my wheel isn't pointed straight, the ass gets loose for the second right hander.

Turn in earlier, use the curbing. This will probably force you turn in earlier for T7 (first left hander of the esses)

Cool, I'll try that.

[Andy]

Well, fifth pops out again. Back to the drawing board.

Last two things to try, check and make sure the motor mount inserts don't have offcenter holes. If they do, I may have installed them upside down. Swap in some newer shift cables. If neither of those work, I guess I'm without 5th gear for another month or so.

[Andy]

Okay. Shitty update.

Toyota says my LSD won't be here until end of May which will make it a solid 6 months from the time I ordered it. What sucks worse is that apparently the Quaife unit that goes into the 2000+ MR2 Spyders will fit in my car. FuckShit.

Go to wash the car today and realize someone tried to break into the MR2 sometime this past weekend. They cracked my door handle, wrinkled the doorskin and window along with jacking up my lock cylinder but somehow managed to not steal a thing.

The most awesome part is that I've been chasing my tail all year long trying to learn this new suspension. Oh well. What can you do.

[Andy]

Oh yeah, that past rant was actually about me buying a more gooder steering wheel. What have you guys used and liked. I really liked the Sparco 383. Are there any other models worth checking out? I'm planning on getting a quick release as well. If anything else, it'll be a good theft deterrent.

[ScottyB]

sorry to hear someone f'd with your car. i didn't know MR2's were high on the hit list.

[Andy]

sorry to hear someone f'd with your car. i didn't know MR2's were high on the hit list.

They must've confused me for JayRay.

[Mike]

i have a momo monte carlo... can't complain.