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Diary of t_anne's MR-S

6K views 28 replies 16 participants last post by  johnnneg 
#1 · (Edited)
So, I recently purchased a (practically) brand new 2000 Silver MR-2 Spyder... only 11,500 miles and barely a scratch on it! From what I understand the red interior is pretty rare too. Here are a few pics taken by my very talented boyfriend:






The stock antenna has already been replaced by the LT Stubby antenna... a much needed improvement




Another little addition I've made :)




I absolutely love the red interior...




Anddd a couple more...





Modifications so far:
K&N Air Filter
Midship Runabout Steering Wheel badge
LT Stubby Antenna
TopSpeed Pro1 Dual tip exhaust
Midship Runabout Front Badge
TRD Shift knob
 
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#5 ·
t_anne321,

Nice find, ... Interesting, I bought mine (silver, red interior) a year ago in June with 11 K miles ... be warned, addictive to drive.... i JUST did my 25K oil changes etc!



(LAST summer (2009) before I learned about Dev's top straps (EARS!) OH.... gut your pre-cats)
 
#10 ·
I just got my first performance part for the car! Normally I'm more into handling mods vs. power upgrades, but I found a great deal on this Top Speed Pro-1 exhaust and couldn't resist.

Luckily I work at a shop with a lift, which makes it a whole lot easier to do the install.




Unfortunately, what the seller neglected to mention (and I'm guessing the reason he was selling it for so cheap) is that the exhaust was crooked with the left side about half an inch higher than the right. It's hard to tell exactly how crooked it is in this picture but just looking at the muffler you can tell it's not sitting right.



The first thing we tried was bending the hangers using a torch and a pipe for prying in order to get it to sit correctly. This definitely helped but created another slight problem. The cat didn't line up with the exhaust anymore because we changed the angle of the muffler. At this point, I was almost ready to just put the old exhaust but we decided to forge on. The next thing we had to do was cut the flange that connects to the cat off of the exhaust, trim it down, and have a local welder put it back on at the correct angle.

Finally, with a little more bending of the hangers we put it back on and... SUCCESS!







As you can see, you also have to take the heat shields off of the cat and the muffler to get it to fit. I figure with all that stuff gone and the lighter exhaust, the weight you're saving is at least 15 lbs.

I'm not sure if all of the TopSpeed exhausts have the same problem as the one I got, but it's something to be aware of if you're thinking of getting one. Still, with a little hard work it's definitely worth it... it sounds and looks great!
 
#14 ·
Since the car is off the road for the winter, I figured I'd get a few things done to it...

To begin with I decided to open up the air flow a bit by replacing the inlet pipe behind the driver's side taillight. The stock plastic pipe narrows down from 3" to 2", restricting some of the air flow to reduce intake sound.





Since I couldn't afford the $500 TRD pipe, I decided to improvise with some 3" brake ducting we had lying around and a couple hose clamps from Home Depot. Here is the before...



and after...

\



It's such a cheap easy way to get a little extra power... it feels like cheating :)
 
#18 ·
my gawd that is a clean car!!!
 
#20 ·
As can be seen from this picture, you need some info:


The Spyder benefits greatly from under-body bracing. A BreastPlate is the single most cost-effective modification you can do.

Later Spyders are equipped with a chin spoiler/air dam/spat running across the car on the underside of the bumper cover. (Spoiler, Fr Part# 76851-17070) Without the spoiler, the car tends to wander at highway speeds. I bought a new spoiler at the dealership for about $70 and mounted it with some humongous plastic clips I found at Ace Hardware. The clips are similar to the push-center rivits used all over the Spyder, but have a 1" head and a 3/8" shaft. I simply drilled holes in the plastic bumper cover and clipped the spoiler to it. I didn't expect the spoiler would make much difference, but it did! Amazing.
Thanks, I'm actually on the waiting list right now for Corky's BP :)
 
#21 ·
While the car is off the road I've been adding a few cosmetic details here and there. I was looking for somewhere to get my valve cover powdercoated, and ended up finding a guy that specializes in valve covers just a few minutes from where I work. I went for Wrinkle Red to match the red interior...



Sooo much better...





Also, I put in my christmas present from the BF :)



 
#22 ·
The shop I work at had a dyno day a few months ago, so of course I had to throw my car on just for curiosity's sake. The only "power" mods I've done are a K&N filter, and the TopSpeed Pro1 lotus style exhaust. The exhaust manufacturer claims a gain of a few horsepower, but I wasn't sure if it would really do much without an intake or header... besides sounding good of course :lol:

Anyway, here are the results. (This was on a DynaPack 3000.)



It would have been interesting to have done a comparison before I put the exhaust on, but I'm still pretty happy with 125hp. At least it still has more power than my Spec Miata...
 
#25 ·
How's the intake tubing so far?
Have you done any vacuum tests or checked your plugs?
Having that much more air going into your engine without any fuel or software tuning could leave your car running lean.
I don't remember exactly, but I think somebody on this forum with a 3" CAI had stalling issues because of it.

But wow... your header heat shield is clean!!!
Makes me want to take mine off and go glass bead it.
 
#27 ·
Hmm...I have done any tests with the intake tube yet. I wouldn't think it would make too much of a difference, but I plan to put the car back on the dyno in the spring once I have it out again. Then I can see what kind of power it makes (if any), and check air/fuel.

Yeah, the heat shield was the one part of the car that actually looked 10 years old. It was pretty rusty, so we bead blasted it and painted it silver :)
 
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