Selling a non-running or long-stored Toyota MR2

Toyota sold the MR2 here from the 1985 model year through 2005, in three generations. It was the first Japanese production car with its engine mounted in the middle and the rear wheels driven. NHTSA's file on it is short: 67 complaints and a single recall.

Three generations, one recall

1985-1989: the first MR2

US cars had a 112-horsepower 1.6-liter four and a five-speed manual, or an optional four-speed automatic. A supercharged version with 145 hp reached the US in 1988. EPA rates the 1986 at 25 mpg combined. These five model years hold 16 complaints and no recalls.

1991-1995: bigger, with a turbo option

The second generation arrived early in 1990 as a 1991 model. The base car had a 130-horsepower 2.2-liter four; the MR2 Turbo had a 200-horsepower turbocharged 2.0 and came only with a five-speed manual. Turbos weren't sold in California-emission states after 1994, and US sales ended in 1995.

This is the generation with the recall. Under 91V223, filed in December 1991, the driver's steering wheel and air bag on 1991-1992 cars exceeded the 60 g thorax criterion in NHTSA crash tests, so the system missed the energy absorption requirement in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208. The fix was a modified steering wheel. NHTSA lists 26,395 vehicles in the campaign. The 1991-1993 cars have 17 complaints between them; NHTSA holds none for 1994 or 1995.

2000-2005: the MR2 Spyder

The third MR2 was a convertible with a 138-horsepower 1.8-liter four. A five-speed manual came first, then a six-speed manual and a five-speed sequential manual (SMT, which has no clutch pedal) from 2002. Toyota announced in July 2004 that US sales would end after 2005, and only 901 of the 27,941 US Spyders were 2005 models.

The Spyder holds 34 complaints, 18 of them on the 2003. Toyota's 2013 customer support program for electronic throttle parts, which came out of a settlement over unintended acceleration claims, lists the 2001-2005 Spyder with the SMT. It covered parts such as the cruise control switch, accelerator pedal assembly, stop lamp switch, throttle body and engine control module. It isn't a recall.

The MR2 complaint file by year

Complaints filed with NHTSA by model year, as of October 10, 2026. Years with no complaints are left out. "Fires" counts complaints that report one.

Engine and engine cooling is the area owners name most, in 14 complaints across the run. With so few reports and no complaint text read, we don't point to a common failure.

Fix it or sell it?

On a car this age, the defect file matters less than the car in front of you. A long-parked MR2 can need a lot of work before you even know whether the engine is healthy; our car sitting for years guide walks through what to check. Before you strip it for parts yourself, read part it out or sell it whole. On a 1991-1992, a VIN search at NHTSA shows whether the steering wheel recall was ever done.

Selling an MR2 whole

Note the VIN, the mileage, how long the car has been parked and what's wrong with it. Ask for an offer online or call (877) 421-6008. Let us know if it lives in a garage, under a carport or behind a barn, and if it can be pushed. Pickup is free anywhere in the US.

Sell the whole car as it sits, with the engine, wheels and catalytic converter still on, and mention any parts already gone. Have the title ready at pickup; if it's lost after years in a drawer, start with our no-title guide.

Other Toyota sports cars: the Celica, Supra and GR86, or see every Toyota.