MR2 track car: V6 or stock I4?

Hi all,

Can't find the post but a while back I asked what a good cheap car would be to learn how to drive

(handle like) my Gallardo. Consensus seemed to be that a mid engine car

would be best (not looking to match power obviously) so I got a Toyota MR2.

I've now started to hear some rod knock in the MR2 which means need to rebuild or swap the engine.

I can either rebuild the current stock engine (around 135 HP) or with more difficulty put in a

V6 (about 200 HP). I'm an okay amateur mechanic but never done an engine swap.

What do you guys think? Since my goal is to try to learn how to drive the G without putting

a lot of money at risk, the V6 sounds like a much better option, but I don't want to bite off

more than I can chew putting it in.

Thanks for any thoughts,

'Dubs

PS sorry for crappy formatting, typing on iPhone.

Check the following link for info:

 

http://forums.twobrutal.com/files/v6mr2.pdf

Check the following link for info:

 

http://forums.twobrutal.com/files/v6mr2.pdf

 

Thanks Black. That's for a Mark 1 model, mine is a Mark 2. I've done a bunch of research on swapping in a V6 on a Mk II but that link you sent is much more detailed than anything I've come across. I'll dig a little and see how much different the install is between Mk1 and Mk2.

 

 

Moved this to off topic, hope you don't mind.

Check out http://www.mr2oc.com for a lot of useful info.

Thanks Black. That's for a Mark 1 model, mine is a Mark 2. I've done a bunch of research on swapping in a V6 on a Mk II but that link you sent is much more detailed than anything I've come across. I'll dig a little and see how much different the install is between Mk1 and Mk2.

 

No prob!!....If you sign up you can go to the MKII section and do research.

A great starters' car.

Why don't you get a 3s-gte. This engine's capable of 500+hp... You can get this engines' for dirt cheap and with some tuning/turbo charging, will set you up nicely for track. Mr2's are known for snap steers so I'll keep that in mind while talking that tight corner.

 

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A great car.

Why don't you get a 3s-gte. This engine's capable of 500+hp... You can get this engines' for dirt cheap and with some tuning/turbo charging, will set you up nicely for track. Mr2's are known for snap steers so I'll keep that in mind while talking that tight corner.

 

(

 

Actually, I had a Turbo (3SGTE) model before and I sold it to get the N/A. The biggest reason was simply a lot of really good drivers on the this forum said the turbo lag can actually be detrimental to trying to learn how to drive, mainly because lack of a linear throttle response. Which is why I was considering trying to do a V6 project, to get the power of the stock 3SGTE but without the lag and also more torque.

 

I'm actually a member of MR2OC.com and have been researching the V6 swap for a while, really I was trying to see if the added difficulty (for someone who has never done an engine rebuild and swap) would outweigh the added torque and HP benefits. But since my goal is to try to have something that would handle at least remotely like the Gallardo, i.e., mid engine, if I'm going to do that the V6 is the best way to close that gap.

 

I also read about the snap oversteer, so bought a 93 model which has a redesigned suspension to try to reduce that by desigining in a little understeer. I like the understeer also because it better approximates a G with the all-wheel drive, BMWRacer says the AWD causes a bit of understeer in the corners and from what I hear he's a rock star driver.

I used to own a 91 N/A that I did a 3s swap on. It was a great little car- but it was a nightmare to work on.

 

The V6 swap has been mastered- there was a guy doing them in his garage over the weekend and he would do complete writeups from start to finish. I dont recall the motor that was used but it would pump out around 280whp and 350whp with a blower.