Brian Hill is a packrat; somebody had to say it. But he's also a huge fan of the second generation Toyota MR-2. After years of dreaming, Hill picked up an MR-2 and started living his fantasy.
New to the world of tuning Japanese-spec turbocharged engines, Hill, of Atlanta, Ga., ran into big troubles. The dream had soured, turning into a nightmare of unskilled mechanics, difficult-to-source parts, and steep learning curves. But he had already fallen in love with the mid-engine layout and the styling lines of the SW20 chassis model. Determined to have another go, Hill rebuilt the car with the best of everything, but constant troubles with the new rebuilt engine meant a second failure. With all this rebuilding and assembly of his project, Hill had amassed a collection of pieces for the MR-2. When he decided to sell the car and part it out, Hill ended up with an even larger pile of interior pieces, audio electronics, gauges, and engine pieces for the MR-2. Unable to get rid of the bug nibbling away at him, Hill jumped back in when he laid eyes on another Toyota he couldn't pass up. With enough parts in his pile of goodies to make a grown man cry, Hill built his dream, this 1994 Toyota MR-2.
After a couple engine failures, a guy can get pretty tired of seeing the smoke plume of death in the rearview mirror. Hill turned to Finishline Motorsports of Marietta, Ga., to help with correctly installing his modifications. The bottom end of the motor was first built up with Vinolia forged pistons hung on top of polished and shot-peened stock connecting rods. Blowing air through the engine is a JDM CT-20b turbocharger upgrade that sucks through an A'PEXi power intake into a GReddy intercooler hooked up with a Nitrous Express N-Ter Cooler chiller system. The system uses NO2 to quickly cool down the surface of the intercooler, allowing for very fast drops in intake charge temperature. The cooler system also happens to share bottles with a fun Nitrous Express single fogger nitrous system. Expelled gases are handled with a Shem's Garage downpipe and a Garage Fukui 85mm exhaust system. Completing the turbo motor is a TRD head gasket, Turbohoses silicone hose kit and custom intercooler piping.
Assembling and throwing bigger turbochargers at a motor is one thing, proper tuning and engine management is another. Controlling boost levels is a GReddy Profec electronic boost controller, measured by a GReddy electronic boost gauge. A GReddy exhaust temperature gauge keeps the driver in touch with general engine lean and other dangerous conditions. Fine-tuning of the air/fuel ratios is accomplished with an A'PEXi Super-AFC controller, which is capable of modifying the airflow meter or pressure sensor signal to compensate for increased airflow.
The 1990-1995 SW20 Toyota MR-2 gathered a following with its smooth, sporty looks that, most importantly, don't make it look like a girl's car. Hill accented those smooth lines with a flurry of Bomex body parts: front bumper, side aero mirrors, side engine air scoops and drift wing. After the kit was molded to the body, AB Flug fender flares were installed along with SPL front bumper extensions. After a carbon-fiber hood and custom carbon pieces were installed from Madpsi.net, the car was shot down by Peachtree Paint & Body with layers of luscious silver sourced out of the Lexus color catalog. Filling up those wheel wells is a Tanabe Sustec Pro SS coilover system dropping the car down on to 18-in Volk Racing GTP wheels wrapped in Toyo Proxes T1-S tires.