This weekend, we didn't get much of a chance to work on the MR2. It was Nicholas' birthday, Sean's Son and it was my nieces birthday... We couldn't afford to miss out on those... :-) Sean had to prepare for Nicholas' birthday, and I had to buy a few presents for my niece.

I did manage to do a few little things in between... first off, was the Exhaust heat shield... it wasn't in too crash hot shape, with smallish rusty spots all over... so I gave it a quick sanding and a few layers of black paint... Of course the paint is rated at 1200Degree Celsius... so I don't think it will ever burn off....



... And since I was at it, I removed the selector shaft control arm, disassembled it, and gave it a good clean. Then masked up the areas I didn't want to get any paint on, and gave it a few layers of paint... They came out pretty good...




They were hung up to dry for a while, and then had to be backed in the oven to cure the paint...

I also checked the Selector shaft... All is good... :-) Mind you, the gearbox isn't in very good shape, and I'm glad to have the 20v gearbox that will be re-used.



After that, I had the opportunity to inspect the drive shafts... Do you know that the MR2 drive shafts are about 1 or 2mm thicker than the 20v, yet, the 16v is very similar weight. Of course the Long shaft of the 20v was a lot heavier than the 16v, and again, the 16v was 1-2mm thicker. Also, the 16v knuckles were a lot more flexible than the 20v, which I find odd, because the 20v was front wheel drive!!!!! Anyway... still contemplating which ones to re-use...



I've also checked the engine mounts... I had the opportunity to purchase the Urethane engine mounts inserts from the TwoRUs shop. I inspected the rubber, and there are clear signs of the rubber mounts starting to disintegrate/splitting... I'm still contemplating if I should or shouldn't, as I have hear rumours that they might have potential of tearing out the engine mounts.... Anyway... Pictures of the engine mounts and urethane inserts. Please note, the smaller diameter mount is a lot more riggid than the bigger one... The small one is fitted to the back of the motor, whereas the bigger one is towards the front of the engine...

I also decided to re-install the aircondition unit, but this will be in the process of re-assembly... I might as well, but I will be re-using the MR2 aircon compressor, so I took the opportunity to check and compare both the 16v and the 20v aircon compressor. Oddly enough, the 16v Compressor is much larger than the 20v, but then again, that is understandable, as it goes from the front to the back, and then back to 1/2 way into the cabin... so a considerable amount of piping the aircon unit needs to push compressed gases through. Also, another odd thing about it, is that the belt has an additional rib (IE: Wider belt) and the pulley is a lot larger than the 16v counterpart... Anyway... pictures tell a lot more... ;-) (Obviously, the oily/dirty unit is the 16v item)...

That is pretty much all I managed to do this week-end. Smallish stuff, but had to be done...

Next week-end... Not too sure if we will get much done, as Sean's wife is expecting child #2...

Apparently, Sean's going to be a "Sugar Daddy"... ;-P... IE: Daddy's little girl.

So we might do a little bit of work on the MR2, but also will be preparing the nursery for Sean's new arrival. It certainly is a very exciting moment with Sean's new arrival coming soonish... I think it's about another 3-4 weeks when she is due to arrive...

Got an e-mail from Doug... The harness has been completed, and is ready for shipping. Doug is just waiting for the rest of the components, such as coolant hoses, vacuum lines and fuel lines to arrive, and he will then be sending it back.

I have also been requested by a colleague of mine who is following this, to allow reader's comments... well.... it's now open. The blog is pretty much up to date now, so from now on this is the stage I'm at... So stay tuned... :-)