Faults:

At 5000 miles, sleeves blew causing really bad compression in number two and four cylinders.

General Comments:

This car was purchased because a friend had one and was talking a lot about it. Mine happens to be heavily modified with a.020" overbore and titanium sleeves with port and polished head and TRD metal head gasket. I run a ct20b turbo at 18 psi and punch over 300 to the wheels. She flies with power to spare. The specifications from the factory are unbelievable, but with an upgraded turbo, intake, exhaust, throttle body, and boost controller, this thing flies. I have yet to be beaten on a real track with turns because the suspension is to die for. This is a pretty fast car at a whopping 11.9 sec @ 118 mph in the quarter mile. Haven't been able to top out yet, but the speedometer has tacked out. Very nice car for the money and very easy to modify if you have the time and patients to maintain the vehicle. If I could find another, I would buy it in a heart beat.

Faults:

My head gasket blew at 136,000 miles.

Seats have started to wear badly.

This car is seriously quick and handles like it's on rails.

General Comments:

Kids love this car.

Faults:

Temperature sender had failed at 120000.

Rear right wheel bearing died at 120000.

CD Player died at around 12000.

Shocks where dead at 121000.

Exhaust bolts were loose at 125000.

Exhaust manifold gasket blew at 150000.

Cluster light when out at 150000 and then magically came back!

Front and rear axle boots disintegrating slowly past ~150000.

General Comments:

Turbo still going strong at 157000.

Handling is awesome for an 11 yo car.

Very comfortable and spacious for a small car.

Styling looks just as good as it did more than 10 years ago.

Never, ever, ever have your MR2 serviced at a dealer, ever!

Mid-engine cars are awesome!

Faults:

Absolutely nothing outside of scheduled maintenance.

General Comments:

I've owned a 62 Corvette, 4 911's, a Ferrari, etc. There is nothing like the MR2 Turbo! The car feels like a Lear Jet when cruising on the freeway, a go-cart on the turns. Has all the performance of the Porsche with none of the maintenance. Gorgeous Ferrari inspired looks, Japanese quality mechanics. This is a dream car. Purrs like a kitchen until you want to hit the afterburners, then this car screams. Excellent mileage, especially on the highway (30 mpg!).

Feels like it will go 350,000 miles, easy. T-top system is the best of any car I've seen, giving it tremendous sports car versatility. I've had guys in $200,000 Lamborghini's admiring it! If you can find a good one, buy it...they're getting very rare. I think this is among the finest cars ever made. Mileage doesn't matter if its been loved. It's a Toyota! Oh, what a feeling!

Faults:

The T-tops leaked when I got it.

Driver's side seat has a hole where the seat-belt has worn.

Sometimes when the engine is cold, 2nd gear grinds when you first shift into it.

Valve-guide seals needed to be replaced. This caused the engine to smoke when you first crank it up.

Rear brake calipers leaked but this was easily fixed.

Passenger side power window works periodically. Has a short somewhere.

General Comments:

This is the most fun car I have ever owned in my life! It's a car that is geared mainly for winding back roads because of its superb handling and quickness.

Controls in the cabin are very easy to use even when taking a hairpin turn at 50 miles per hour!

Very economical on gas for the performance.

Faults:

Quite difficult to work on since it's a mid engine car.

General Comments:

It's as fast as I expected. Been hearing some good things about the MR2 before I got it. Now I enjoy every minute I drive this hot rod. The seating is comfy, and it handles like it's on rails. Love how the engine sounds once the turbo kicks in.

Faults:

A few years after we bought this car, the battery began to die. We had it fixed and replaced several times. Leave the door open too long and battery dies. Have to wait several minutes before it can start. Just a year ago, the whole auto transmission broke down and failed while driving it to work. It cost about US$2000 to replace with a new one.

General Comments:

I wish Toyota would install better suspension on this car. Bumps and rutted roads make the ride dreadful. Plenty of engine noise enters the cabin. The new transmission we've just installed jerks eruptively when placed in gear.

Acceleration is slow for a sports car. The trunk is an absolute joke. It's too small to fit even a standard size luggage. I wouldn't go shop at Costco with that car. However, fuel economy is very good and handling is excellent. Overall assessment: A fun car to drive.