Just How Far Can This 1995 Toyota MR2 Go

Toyota had a minor hit on its hands when it introduced the MR2 sports car for 1985. With 112 hp from a 1.6-liter four, the 2300-pound, sharp-edged, mid-engine wonder was quick, agile, reliable, and affordable-all winning ingredients-and it was unanimously lauded by the motoring press and buyers alike. A 145-hp supercharged version available for 1988-89 offered even more smiles per dollar.

When the all-new Mk II arrived for the 1991 model year, it traded creases and corners for a smoother look, and it, too, quickly became a favorite among thrifty driving enthusiasts. The Mk II, or SW20, outweighed its predecessor by anywhere from 300 to 600 pounds but in return got a bit more luxury, sturdier components, and larger engines. It was also just a bigger car, adding nearly 9 inches in overall length and more than an inch in width. The base engine was a naturally aspirated 2.2-liter four shared with the Celica and Camry, which made 130 hp and 145 lb-ft of torque and came paired with either a four-speed automatic or a five-speed manual. The sexy option was a twin-cam turbocharged 2.0 liter making a nice round 200 horses and 200 lb-ft, with a five-speed stick the only transmission.

The beauty of the MR2 of (so named for its Mid-engine, Rear-drive, 2-seat configuration) is its underlying Toyotaness. It may look exotic, but it's not. It's not poorly made, and not fragile, either. If driven with care and properly maintained like any responsible adult should, there's no reason not to get an indefinite amount of miles from one. Which, coincidentally, brings us to our Sale of the Week.

This naturally aspirated, 292,000-mile 1995 Toyota MR2 sold earlier this week on Bring A Trailer for $18,112, including fees. Curiously, the last MR2 to sell on the platform, a 1991 Turbo with just 76,000 miles that traded hands on March 22, did so for the remarkably close sum of $18,637. What's up with that? Why would two stock MR2s, separated by four years of production, 70 horses, 216,000 miles, and two weeks in the market change hands for the same money? Probably because life makes no sense sometimes.

Then again, the bidders interested in our Super White subject car, owned all its life by one family (and by "the dad" for 27 of those 29 years) were clearly impressed by the care lavished upon it all this time. Rarity would seem to be at play, too: In 1991, Toyota sold nearly 4400 MR2 Turbos in the U.S. In 1995, the final year of availability, just 163 normally aspirated cars sold here.

The seller, the son of the car's longtime driver, was full of praise for the way his dad babied this thing, and the photos-outside, inside, and underneath-all depict a car that belies such heavy mileage. "Shout out to my dad, who appreciates all things mechanical and treated this daily driver very well," he wrote in the comments, going on to note that the paint is all original and has never even seen a touch-up, and that his dad replaced the timing belt every 60,000 miles. "He installed heavy seat covers on the original upholstery on Mile 6, and he has always kept the engine oil looking like golden honey." Also, crucially, "no slurpies capsized on the interior" and there are "no petrified chili cheese fries stuffed under the seats."

Recent-ish work to the car includes a head rebuild in the last eight years, with new engine mounts, valve cover gaskets, and clutch components in 2018, as well as a brake master cylinder replacement, new Kumho tires, an A/C recharge, and spark plug replacement in 2022.

As daily drivers go, this MR2 lived its best life as a commuter on back roads through a SoCal canyon-Highway 241 from Rancho Santa Margarita to Riverside-where it was then parked each day in a warehouse. Dad was an avid weekend skydiver, it seems, and "the trunk was a perfect size for his parachute gear." Talk about the perfect vehicle for a quite specific use case…

There are of course flaws present (how could there not be?), but we're talking small scuffs to the driver's side door handle, some marred paint in the well for the spare tire, fraying in the trunk lining, and a few odd lines in the material of the dash on the passenger side. Oh, and the original key, while included, is useless, "worn down to the nub from 40,000 ignition twists." But you just know that Dad saw to that: "The ignition was replaced and keyed to the door handles with two new keys about 10 years ago."

Given its overall condition, this MR2 sold right where we'd expect it to; call it #3+ condition. There is so much to like about this car, beyond its totally '90s pop-up headlights, T-top roof, and slim spoiler. That it was adult owned by an enthusiast who loved to drive it and appreciated its quality enough to keep it near-perfect, despite such incredible use, makes it an even rarer example of an already rare car. For those unbothered by mileage, it's a great poster car. For its lucky new owner, like some commenters on the sale noted, we hope it's only a short time before you get to slap on the 300,000-mile sticker included with the sale, and then keep on going indefinitely.