Mid engine miata equivalent?

Jaynen wrote: The Fiero I know has had quite a few different swaps but I know nothing about how good you can get the suspension or what wheels/tires it can fit The MR2/MRS I heard can be a bit tail happy? And again don't know what their potential is or how they compare fun wise to a miata.

Lots of fun and swap in anything up to a Chev V8. The 1988 models had totally different suspension and are the ones to seek out.

I stuck a set of sway bars and Konis in mine and it made a world of difference. Add some better than stock brake pads (only the 1988s had vented discs all around) and you have a great little car to put a bunch more power into. Best we got was 0-60 in about 4.5 secs and a 1/4 in just over 13 flat with about 300 bhp.

Gunslinger wrote:

carbon wrote: I love my zzw30, it's as far from heavy lol. It involves you like few other street cars Ive driven in anger. Super predictable chassis, I ftd most events I attend so either its a competitive car or I'm just awesome . The 2zz swap is one of the easiest swaps in the history of the automobile, you even keep the 1zz wiring harness, plug and play bolt up, done. Aftermarket is as plentiful as you could ever want. Storage is minimalist but doable as a dd proposition. Check out my build blog: http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/00-mr2-spyder-commute-attack-car/68482/page1/ As far as aesthetics go, I don't find them an ugly car, but people like what they like. Each to their own. This is mine.

Your build makes me wish I had more money :) A 2zz spyder is in my future. Just need to depreciation or get a car with a bad motor.

It doesn't take much money to build a good spyder. You'd cry if I told you what I'm into that car for. Most of what makes mine good was cheap or free, gut it and throw some tein s tech springs on it (they're well judged, have a very streetable rate and work well with the oe dampers), you'll be amazed how well it works. The more parts you take off these cars the better they get. Alignment makes a huge difference in how these cars behave.

Jaynen wrote: I forgot that the MRS/MR2 had the relatively proven and easy (is it really easy?) Camry v6 swap is this the 2z something

Really easy is the 2zz 1.8 4 cylinder.

Not so easy is the 2gr 3.5 v6.

K20 swaps exist as well.

unevolved wrote:

Knurled wrote:

unevolved wrote: So sort of a sidebar here, but why is the 2nd gen MR2 unloved?

They got crappy drivetrains (went from the 4AG to a truck engine) and the Turbo models were expensive. IIRC they retailed at $70k in 1997.

Oh, ok. I've always kind of wanted one, I think they look really cool. So at this point, that just means an engine swap is basically necessary, I guess.

Or just buy a turbo one. It's an extremely strong motor with possibly the strongest transverse transmission in history attached to it.

V6 swaps aren't truly easy in any generation MR2. Doable in all three, yes. Easy? Each generation has much easier swaps than the V6 that will also likely cost far less and have far more support.