Toyota MR2 Mk1 

I joined the Toyota MR2 Championship in its infancy in 2004.  I liked the low cost ethos and the Toyota MR2 Mk1 was an exciting car to drive and cheap to buy.  At the time the MR2’s raced within the 750MC Roadsports as there were not enough cars for a standalone race and so there Nobles, Porsches and TVR’s whizzing by all the time.  The cars used standard engines and gearboxes, the suspension could be uprated, the exhaust and air filter could be changed but apart from the usual safety features that was about it.  On the mandatory Yokohama A539 tyres there was more power than grip and it was a fairly common site to see them going off the circuit backwards.  In the short time I had the car I never got the best out of it, both in terms of the car and the driver.  There was only one race where the car had the power that I thought it should have done which was the first race at Snetterton in 2005.  It was only when I sold the car that I found the cause of the problem and as usual it was something silly.  I had fitted a fancy cone air filter that had an egg shaped venturi in the middle to help the air flow and I had attached some flexible ducting around the cone which went to the bottom of the engine bay to suck cool air in.  When I removed the ducting to get to the battery it would not come off the filter, it had got sucked between the venturi and the cone. ..so there was hardly any air getting to the engine!  I still wonder what might have been…  At Brands Hatch in 2005 the car was involved in an accident at Graham Hill bend, another car had spun off at the entry, went across the grass and then came back on the circuit in front of me…whack!

Above: The damage sustained at Brands Hatch in 2005

  I managed to finish the race but with the gutless performance of the engine and a lack of time and money, I never raced the car again.  The MR2 Championship is thriving now, something that I never doubted would happen, and it’s a great place to start motor racing.  Now that Mk2 cars are allowed I would recommend racing one of those as they are not so prone to rust and parts are more plentiful.