1986 Toyota MR2 Restoration
Ethan Rabideau, 01 July 2016
Over the course of two years, I restored to original condition a 1986 AW11 MR2 in my parents barn, mostly in the dead of winter (it was very cold). It involved (among other things) a complete reconstruction of the electrical, vacuum, and fuel systems which proved difficult to reverse engineer due to missing reference points.
The completed product was mostly stock, with the most notable upgrade being a soldered 1/8 in audio jack onto the mainboard of the radio. I also added a 12v relay to the passenger door/window switch to reduce electrical problems with the driver-side window control panel. I also replaced the dreaded pre-cat engine-killing system with a california compliant alternative system, which also improved fuel economy from 25mpg to about 35mpg with no loss of performance, after the rest of the intake/exhaust system was adjusted properly.