I'm looking for a car to play around with and I've narrowed it down to a mr2 spyder or a miata. In b4 op is gay...

I'm looking for a car to play around with and I've narrowed it down to a mr2 spyder or a miata. In b4 op is gay, we all know that already.

I've done some research on both, and I'm still torn. I like the idea of mid-engine and the mr2 is lighter. Monkey wrench racing is around a 2 hour drive from me, so I could go there to get parts. I also like the styling more. However, I'm kind of scared of the mr2's track record. The 1zz from 2000-02 was notorious for having the incorrect piston rings installed so they slap and burn oil. Not to mention ALL years mr2's have the dreaded pre-cats which blows up the engine too.

I'm a big and tall guy at 6'4" tall and 265lbs. The mr2 has more headroom and shoulder room, but the miata seems to have more leg room. I haven't sat in either yet, just looking at stats on paper. I'm all torso and only have a 30 inch inseam so the mr2 might have more room.

I'll have enough money to buy the car AND throw mods at it right out of the box. I could always get a mr2 and have monkey wrench racing do a 2zz swap on it. Then again I could get an older miata for cheaper and toss even more mods on it. I kind of like that miata's come in automatic, I might go that route because I have a lazy left foot. (How gay is an automatic miata though?) The semi-manual in the mr2 is bull-shit garbage and I wouldn't even consider that.

What would you guys go for? I'm most likely going to get which ever one I fit in more comfortably.

mr2 based on the fact that miatas are played out and need a lot of bracing. mr2 probably does too, but at least it's not a miata. plus mr is unique.

if you get an automatic just kys

As a fresh MRS owner the piston rings were fine. It was all because of precats having suicide pact with the 1zz. They are brittle and tend to break, small particles get sucked into the engine thanks to VVTI and they damage piston rings and start damaging pistons and cylinders.

Most people gut the precats almost instantly, especially now.

MRS handling is subline, it being MR it loves tight corners and hairpins. Aftermarket isn't as good as miat tho, which is also a great handling machine.

Since you're tall first mods you want to make are getting a smaller steering wheel for MRS. I'm 180cm and even I feel a bit cramped. The pedals, steering and gearbox is fantastic.
If you want one get post facelift:
less deadly precats
frame stiffening
LSD
6 speed manual ready to take 2zz

Precats are a problem for all MRS's and cars that have it. It is an easy remove tho. Hardest part is securing a 22mm o2 socket.

Second problem is shocks dying at around 150k km (120k miles roughly)

Honestly a great car, get it. I reccomend finding or adding aftermarket exaust since you'll hear a lot of road noise and outside noise, and rather have that sound nice.

Beware: Speakers are shit and believe the "lol can't even carry a tampon in mrs storage space" but take the last with a grain of salt.

Check out spyder communities and forums, lots of info and buyers guides.

As for mods I mentioned exaust and smaller steering wheel.
I'd say focus on lightening the car with lightweight wheels good tyres, improved suspension and frame stiffening. It has plenty of power.

Ignore most of Veeky Forums posts it's mostly benchracing and busriding.
MRS bein a convertable needs bracin too. Hardtop helps.

forgot to mention: precat failure is pretty rare, but it is a question of not if but when.

Do MR-Ss come with any LSDs?

Wow that looks slick as hell with the hardtop.

I was in the same boat as you about 6 weeks ago. I ended up going with the MR-2, and I love it. Already put 4,000km on it.

I test drove both and the MR2 feels bigger. I'm only 6'1" but for what it's worth, if I slide my seat all the way back, it's hard to reach the pedals.

Compared to the 1.8 liter Miata, the MR2 is lighter and has a better power-to-weight ratio.

People will debate endlessly over which one handles better. The Miata has wishbone suspension which is theoretically better, and the MR2 does feel a little skittery in the coners on a rough road. That said, it's hands-down one of the best handling cars ever made.

Do not buy an MR2 unless the owner lets you see the pre-cats. If you don't know what I'm talking about, google it.

Plan to upgrade to an aftermarket exhaust header immediately after buying the car. If you can't find a good deal, you can remove the factory header and gut it yourself! Either way, it's an easy job you can do yourself.

You'll hear people complain about them burning oil. All you got to do is pretend it's a Mazda rotary. Redline it from time to time, make a habit of checking the oil whenever you get gas, and you'll be fine.

I'll be around for a while. Let me know if you have any questions.

Wait a minute...

I didn't read those last couple lines:

>> I kind of like that miata's come in automatic, I might go that route because I have a lazy left foot. (How gay is an automatic miata though?) The semi-manual in the mr2 is bull-shit garbage and I wouldn't even consider that.

What the hell is wrong with you??

Its complicated, post facelift jdm and eudm ones did. With americans it maybe did maybe not. For pre facelift it might've been a factory option.
There's a code that identifies LSD under tranny on vin plate.

But honestly, nobody really knows.

>All you got to do is pretend it's a Mazda rotary. Redline it from time to time
good tip, thanks

>I haven't sat in either yet, just
Veeky Forums in a nuts' hell

Anybody know what wheels these are?

JR12's. They got popular in spyder community due to their light weight, durability and cost effectiveness. Planning on getting some myself to replace my scratched to shit thomassens

op is a big guy

6'4" (you)

They look bitch'n. I'm checking right now to see where I can get a set. Thanks!

the time attack zzw30 from greece used them, that's where everyone got that idea. They were superwide as well.

Can this be an MRS thread now? Postin mine.

Why does op wear the mask

Same guy, ran out of sexy sci fi girls.

No kidding. I live in Greece. Got a link to the time attack? I'd like to check it out.

P.S. the JR12s are much cheaper than I expected. What size should I get? I'm thinking 15's but a little wider than factory. Any suggestions?

Here's mine. Sorry about the potato quality photo. I'm already imagining it dropped a few cm with the jr12's First project is going to be a full suspension overhaul, then I'll move on to the wheels.

Get the memecar

memecar?

I have a 2002 Miata, my friend has an MR2 Spyder (not sure about the year). It's manual. Not as good a manual as Mazda's.

I'm short, so the MR2 feels like a bathtub. But you won't have that problem. I think you'd have trouble fitting comfortably in a '99-'05 Miata, especially the '01+ models because they have thicker seat padding. (Mazda took the original Miata's body and shrunk the cabin a little bit for more crumple zone space.) So you have to go older or newer - the NC is probably the best Miata for you. Try to test drive one with a limited slip diff (more important in front-engined cars) and be prepared to replace the overly soft stock shocks.

As for the MR2 - it's pretty useless as a car. I can fit one or two carry-on suitcases in my Miata, or a ton of groceries. But you can't even fit a helmet in the MR2 unless you take the spare tire out. There's room for very small bags behind the seats.

Driven hard, it's harder to predict whether it's going to understeer or oversteer. In autocross, I've spun it without really understanding why. Yes, that says more about me than the car, but you'll want to take plenty of time before pushing it hard. It does feel lighter, and the mid-engined feeling is pretty cool.

Automatic Miatas were terrible until the NC (2006) came out. That one's good enough to be forgivable. You'd hate one of the earlier ones.

i've never understood why the NC powershift has up and down on both paddles instead of one paddle being down and the other being up like you'd expect. what's up with that

Back in 2006 it was new enough that there wasn't really a standard.

I'm a separate person who is not OP and was wondering if the PreCat problem exists on the 1985 mk1A gen cars?

Miata is great for people on a budget, who don't mind driving a meme / fag car. The MR2 is considerably more rare so it enjoys a bit of a cachet (plus everyone thinks rear engine makes it a porsche rival or whatever).

The Miata will let you get a car, and then whatever parts you want for peanuts. A transmission is $3-400 an engine is $4-700, fenders are literally free, a good shape soft top (on frame) is $100 - basically the same prices that most other car dudes pay divided by 10.

That gets you a well handling but really slow little car. An automatic will make it even slower and worse - don't do it.

It doesnt dumbo