MK2 Turbo Prices

[craig]

Yep, rev3 turbo is the best one to have. Non-cat test

Took me 2 days and written confirmation from the DVSA to convince my MOT station to do the non-cat test...

What would they compare the emissions to? Surely it would have been evident, when they came to do a cat test, there's no data for a pre Aug '95 turbo?

[Shaoxter]

Yep, rev3 turbo is the best one to have. Non-cat test

Took me 2 days and written confirmation from the DVSA to convince my MOT station to do the non-cat test...

What would they compare the emissions to? Surely it would have been evident, when they came to do a cat test, there's no data for a pre Aug '95 turbo?

Well first they said it was a fail because originally the car had a cat on it and it had been taken off. Then they used the Basic Emissions Test for vehicles from Aug 1992.

Then I called the DVSA and they were pretty clueless too - they said the only way to use the non-cat limits would be getting a letter from the manufacturer stating that the car never met UK emissions standards. After reading their own manual back to them, I finally managed to convince them and got them to get in contact with the garage!

[jimGTS]

jim's car is lovely.. very tastefully modified.

There's nothing wrong with a converted car but a genuine turbo with the same spec/condition would be more desirable/valuable

Thanks
Don't get me wrong, if i had a choice same condition/spec, I'd choose original every time. It's always a minor drawback when owning a converted car. Problem is no 2 cars are the same (mod/spec/condition) so the choice is never there.
On average, imports are in better condition, but the cleanest cars ive ever seen, 'in person', have been rev4/5 UK cars. Gaz's car on the OC being one of them, he's also had a conversion many years ago.
I'm not sure what it is, perhaps late UK cars being kept bone stock for 10-15years with few miles before one of us 'tweakers' gets hold of it maybe one reason, unlike imports that do tend to have a lot of 'messing' around over the years. Turbos mostly.
I'm speaking generally of course. Thats not to say there arnt some cracking imports.

At a show, at a meet, no one looks at anything other than the whole package. Very few question or care if it's had a convertion. Aside from reg plate sizes, there isn't a lot else in it visually.

Im just pleased the cars in general are commanding higher prices these days.

[Rob]

I've had this dilemma for years - basically, when I was 22 I bought the best MR2 I could afford - a stock UK Rev2.

Mine is a bit more obvious as a conversion due to the Sunroof shell.

I invested a lot of time and love in the car and when I had engine issues with the original N/A lump I went for a Turbo conversion. The car got magazine featured and well known on the forums, plus I knew its history and that it had never been abused.

The big doubt about keeping it was when the sills went when the car was 18 and I was one of the first to discover why they rotted (see my restoration post on MR2OC) and how to sort them properly.
I paid £600 for a first class job on one side thinking all was well elsewhere. The other side seemed more sound but went through 2 years later where I couldn't inspect them inside the box section to the rear.

Another £600 went getting this done as I thought breaking it would be heartbreaking and a waste of the original £600. I then found a small hole in the rear turret to boot bulkead which cost me more. By that time my car was rapidly approaching a rust free specimen which I know others are going to suffer from when the owners discover the same areas going rotten.

So basically I have a very tidy car now that has cost me more than a good import low mileage Turbo would have cost.

Whilst I regret the outlay I at least have a mint car with known history and the one advantage that conversions cost significantly less to insure than genuine Turbos as they are still classified as a UK NA despite declaring the conversion and added performance. Multiply that with 7 years post conversion ownership and I have probably broken even although a big part of me wants my car to be genuine.