1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

[lokirx706]

I bought this car for $75, I got a parts car for essentially free and went to work. It was sitting in a field for five years because of of a collapsed clutch pressure plate. After the following the car started and drove fine,

Gas Tank,
Fuel Pump,
Various filters and hoses,
New Coolant pipes under car (Mid Engine),
New Clutch,
New Clutch hydraulic system,
New Brakes,
New tires,
New suspension bushings,
Alternator,
Starter,
Probably other things I cant remember,
Never mind cant remember what I was going to put here...
Or here...

Now I needed to repair the extensive damage to the interior. The drivers side window had been down for FIVE YEARS... I cannot explain why they left the window down... After I replaced the battery terminals (and the battery..), the window rolled up... It was far too bad to fix, the seats were two tone grey and black.... They were now green and black...........
Yuck....

After replacing everything but the dash and various hard plastic bits, I went to work cleaning, and it looks mint!

(No current interior pics...)

Now onto the.... uh... outside....







Here is an in progress shot of the interior,



Thanks to, Meguiars Interior Quick Detailer, and Meguiars Leather conditioner.

Some in progress shots, before I removed what rust I could without serious metal work, and before wax.



After some ColorX as a temporary protective measure, It did a good job. But by itself (at least under my extreme circumstances) I knew I could get a better finish using the Deep Crystal system. Although I have to say ColorX is a very impressive product!





Finally got around to using my Deep Crystal Cleaner and Polish, This is after using DC#1 and DC#2







Dont ever underestimate the consumer line of Megiuars products!

Engine bay, after, (Didnt think to take before pictures...)





Now it is my nice looking daily driver! With 150,000 miles on the clock this Toyota is just getting broken in!!

[Mike Phillips]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Nice save!

Car guys are the original environmentalist. By saving this car and putting it back on the road you've increased the service life of the car against all the time, money and resources it took to manufacture the car and all it's components from around the world in the first places versus buying a new car and all the time money and resources it takes to create a new car not too mention any new waste and/or pollution.


Cool car too, don't see many of the older ones on the road very often especially in as good as shape as this one.

[lokirx706]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Heh,
Please ignore my rust spot on the roof! Its not quite as bad as it looks, after removing the windsheild trim I can see it better, and a good sanding will eliminate it completely!

I didnt realize it stood out quite that much...

I have finished the waxing process, I started Deep Crystal earlier today. I finished with Gold Class, and after a few hours topped with NXT. Late tommorow I will add another coat of NXT, the paint already looks like liquid! It has a very rich color. And I cant wait to see it in the daylight, and take come more picture!

This isnt my first extreme makeover, I have done a dozen or more. This is easily the most rewarding one though. And the most documented... With gas prices steady at $3.99 for a gallon of 87 octane, I am positively loving 38 mpg!

Oh and Mike, you cannot forget that by keeping it on the road I am keeping it out of a salvage yard. Where it would most likely leak dangerous fluids into the local groundwater, and end up leaving glass and plastic pieces on the ground where they will never decompose. It also saves the atmosphere from additional pollutants from the crusher expelling fuel as well as the truck that will transport it to wherever they recycle cars.

I am sure there is more that is wasted during the recycling process, but truth be told, I am simply happy this car didnt get crushed. Its a blast to drive and worth every penny!

[03mach1]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Nice save. great work. Those are the best toyotas made. I agree, you can buy older 80's and 70's car for dirt cheap and run forever. Heck my auto teacher has a mustang 2 sitting and once it gets a new gas tank he is going to drive that around to run arons.

[craig7022]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Love the older jap cars nice motor mate great pics

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Great save. The Toyota looks like it belongs on the showroom floor. Great work. Enjoy it!

[Daniel Kinder]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Great work and save! Love pictures like these.

Where about's in dayton are you at? That's where I'm originally from,still have famaily there and go back from time to time.

[TimG]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Sweet! Great save indeed!! Tht lil engine is legendary for its small capacity with good powerband . Tune it right and you'll have great fun with it.



Tim

[yalerd]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Awesome save!
Job well done

[Nappers]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Great save, great car.

Mike hit it right on the money.

Mike Phillips-.....Car guys are the original environmentalist. By saving this car and putting it back on the road you've increased the service life of the car against all the time, money and resources it took to manufacture the car and all it's components from around the world in the first places versus buying a new car and all the time money and resources it takes to create a new car not too mention any new waste and/or pollution.....

Thats awesome

Good show

[APR Tuned]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Wow! Absolutely amazing. And this was all by hand?!

[RaskyR1]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Nice work! Cool car too!

[lokirx706]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Wow! Absolutely amazing. And this was all by hand?!

Entirely by hand, the extreme makeover I am doing currently actually requires a rotary buffer, so I have bought one finally. It is a 1989 Toyota Corolla SR5 (The two door aerodynamic looking ones, not the ugly four door...) I thought for sure it had clear coat failure on the hood, but after a test spot and a few hours, I got it to come back to life. After it took two hours to buff a 4inch x 6inch section, I decided the best investment to do the entire hood would be a buffer.

I like working by hand, its more of an intimate process, and even though I have a buffer, I still find myself doing 90% of the work by hand.

[lokirx706]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Great work and save! Love pictures like these.

Where about's in dayton are you at? That's where I'm originally from,still have famaily there and go back from time to time.

I actually live about twenty minutes north of Dayton in a small town called New Carlisle. I used to live in Dayton as well, but even the nicer areas are getting bad. As a matter of fact I lived in a nice neighborhood where everyone knew everybody, houses looked nice... I watched the news just the other night and there was a shooting two houses down from my old place!! I guess I got out in time! I love the country though... Less neighbors that stare at you while you buff out some old crappy looking car!

[OhioCarBuff]

Re: 1986 Toyota MR2 -- 56K Beware!!

Entirely by hand, the extreme makeover I am doing currently actually requires a rotary buffer, so I have bought one finally. It is a 1989 Toyota Corolla SR5 (The two door aerodynamic looking ones, not the ugly four door...) I thought for sure it had clear coat failure on the hood, but after a test spot and a few hours, I got it to come back to life. After it took two hours to buff a 4inch x 6inch section, I decided the best investment to do the entire hood would be a buffer.

I like working by hand, its more of an intimate process, and even though I have a buffer, I still find myself doing 90% of the work by hand.

Awesome before and after! I sure wish the clear coat finishes on the late model cars were that easy to correct