[Mk2] [Turbo] New owner, big list of problems from first service.. what to do?

[soozjr]

I just bought my 1994 MR2 and took it for its first service. My mechanic gave me a big list of problems and I really don't know what to do, as this is the first proper car I've owned.. and I'm not a petrol head, yet!
I hope I haven't bought a lemon, but I don't know whether its worth fixing all these things or try to sell it on to buy another?!
Are these common problems or did I just get screwed?

nsf steering arm
nsf wheel binding possible caliper/hose-disc has signs of over heating
front and rear backing plates corroded
rear brake discs poor
osr abs sensor bracket damaged
oil sump very poor condition (need to replace)
suspension bushes cracking
underside of vehicle rusty
radiator leaking
HT leads poor
oil leaking into spark plug holes
timing belt
air filter box insecure
cooling fan fault?
exhaust rusty
battery terminals poor

help please! what shall I do?!

[Harold]

That is quite the list, did you look at the car at all before you bought it?

[soozjr]

I did but didn't get a proper check done. It sounds and drives good and I really love it, checked all the past MOT's and repair docs which seemed sound. The only problem that was on the MOT was that there was a drive shaft oil leak but that hadn't been picked up on recently. Such a good car though :S!

[synXero]

You're being taken for a ride or you've bought a car that's clearly for the scrap!

Some of those things can be dealt with cost effectively and easily.

[alanmr2turbo]

First things i would look at / replace

underside of vehicle rusty - How bad? If very bad and needs loads of welding, scrap it.

then move on to these

timing belt - 60k or 6 yrs which ever sooner
nsf steering arm
nsf wheel binding possible caliper/hose-disc has signs of over heating
radiator leaking
rear brake discs poor
oil sump very poor condition (need to replace)
oil leaking into spark plug holes
suspension bushes cracking
cooling fan fault? Engine bay or front fans?

exhaust rusty - How bad?

osr abs sensor bracket damaged
front and rear backing plates corroded
battery terminals poor
HT leads poor
air filter box insecure

Are you going to be doing the work yourself or garage?

I can easily see around £400-£600 of work maybe more if your putting it in a garage

[soozjr]

Well the mechanic said to allow £800 to sort the breaks, so maybe I am being taken for a ride. I hope I can sort these out, the only things that I'm really worried about is the timing belt and the rust. It sounds like the brakes are fairly straight forward if I can get refurbished calipers on ebay, but I don't know about the rest.
Can anyone recommend an MR2 man I can take this to? I live in Essex / East London. Thanks.

[alanmr2turbo]

£800 to sort the brakes LOL, yeah your being taken to a ride to the moon and back. If your local to Birmingham i can come over and help you sort out the easier things

To me he sounds a bit anal and hard up for work.

Now the car is 18yrs old and yes underside can be rusty, but is it just surface rust or can you poke something through it.

The timing belt is around £150-£200 at a specialist to replace or at your service place i twould start remortgaging your house

[soozjr]

First things i would look at / replace

underside of vehicle rusty - How bad? If very bad and needs loads of welding, scrap it.

then move on to these

timing belt - 60k or 6 yrs which ever sooner
nsf steering arm
nsf wheel binding possible caliper/hose-disc has signs of over heating
radiator leaking
rear brake discs poor
oil sump very poor condition (need to replace)
oil leaking into spark plug holes
suspension bushes cracking
cooling fan fault? Engine bay or front fans?

exhaust rusty - How bad?

osr abs sensor bracket damaged
front and rear backing plates corroded
battery terminals poor
HT leads poor
air filter box insecure

Are you going to be doing the work yourself or garage?

I can easily see around £400-£600 of work maybe more if your putting it in a garage

Thanks for the tips. I will take it to a garage, just need to find out which one! I do love the car, it would be great to be able to fix it up, it just needs some love. Is any of this DIY that I may be able to tackle myself?

[alanmr2turbo]

the only thing i aint done to my car on that list is the rust and timing belt.

The rest are pretty much DIY if you have time, tools and a little know how

[Nic]

Where are you? I'd see if there's an MR2 specialist or knowledgeable member nearby who can give it the once over for you. Really need a lot more detail to access the extent of the problems.

I'm guessing you don't want to spend a fortune, check new part prices with forum traders or classifieds section for 2nd hand.

nsf steering arm - replace with new or good 2nd hand

nsf wheel binding possible caliper/hose-disc has signs of over heating - probably a caliper(s) binding, check www.biggred.co.uk & www.brakeparts.co.uk/ both do refurbished calipers which will be a lot cheaper than getting a mechanic to sort them.

front and rear backing plates corroded - brake disc dust shields?

rear brake discs poor - New discs needed, best to change pads as well at the same time, I'd recommend genuine OEM Toyota parts, check prices with forum traders

osr abs sensor bracket damaged - check classifieds breaking section should be able to get what you need 2nd hand cheap

oil sump very poor condition (need to replace) - check classifieds breaking section should be able to get what you need 2nd hand cheap

suspension bushes cracking - need to know which ones?

underside of vehicle rusty - to what extent, is it an MOT fail problem?

radiator leaking - check classifieds for decent second hand one or one of the forum traders/ebay for a new replacement

HT leads poor - Check classifieds breaking section for decent 2nd hand replacements or traders for new

oil leaking into spark plug holes - Probably cam cover seal leaking, get new seal from Toyota, simple fix

timing belt - Any records of if/when it was last replaced, any paperwork with car, can you check with previous owner, any sticker with mileage on the cover?

air filter box insecure - Probably just needs bolting up or check classifieds for replacement if something is broken

cooling fan fault? - What is the fault?

exhaust rusty - Find out the extent of the rust, if it is just surface rust then no problem, if there are cracks then check classifides for a 2nd hand replacement

battery terminals poor - get new terminals, easy fix

[soozjr]

Thanks so much! Taking it to Pacific works to sort out the main problems, it just needs a bit of love

[LuizeGT]

OMG!!! £800 for brakes?!?!? is he replacing the lot for now or something?!

[stealth]

Hey sooooo,
It's Matt, think your fella works with the Mrs
Really sorry I didn't get on here to talk to you sooner, I can help you with all this. I've done all this and some to mine, although I can sort your rust out I can't promise the paint work will be spot on, I take it to a body shop for paint. But apart from that I can show you what to do with the rest

Do you have the car back from Pacific works? Could look at it at the weekend?

Never used Pacific works but only heard good things and plan to take mine there to get the ecu remapped at some point.

[stealth]

Double post

[stealth]

Welcome to the forum btw

Also I have spares for most of that, inc an exhaust

[soozjr]

Hey Matt! Sorry I didn't see your posts sooner! Thanks, that's so nice of you
Yes, the car is back from Pacific Works, Luke sorted it all out, I couldn't recommend him higher!
Apparently the car wasn't in such bad shape as the mechanic I took it to first thought, in fact I think I got a pretty sweet deal. It just needed some work. The car is amazing to drive and even better now I know it is all good!
Maybe we could get together soon, I'll talk to Ryan & we'll sort it out?

[stealth]

Cool, glad its all sortrd