The Toyota MR2 is one of the greatest Japanese cars ever made. And for quite a while, people have hankered after a new version. What helps the MR2 is the fact it can be easily modified to its owner's content. This particular MR2 in South Africa is something else entirely, however. It's an 850 hp monster, with a turbo V6 engine that is all designed to crush any hill climb that has the bad luck of being in its way. Its owner sat down with Cars.so.za on YouTube to talk about his monster creation.
Built To Be The King Of The Hill
The car's owner is Peter Zeelie, who for years was chasing the dream of taking the King of the Hill title at the Knysna Simola Hillclimb. Zeelie and his wife both raced, so it was only natural that they would go on to develop a crazy car like the MR2. Zeelie spent a lot of time on the aero of the MR2, as his rivals for King of the Hill all had all-wheel drive cars. The aero work done on the car helped the MR2 gain two seconds worth of performance. The car has a massive diffuser and rear wing, plus a very sizable front splitter.
The Magic Under The MR2’s Hood
Thanks to some weight saving as well, Zeelie was able to shed some 64 kg from the car, a big advantage up the hill. The engine inside the MR2 is the 3.5-liter V6 Toyota engine but of course highly modified, with its turbo, and Zeelie and his team are looking to improve the engine further to remove its mechanical blockage which is preventing them from boosting the engine. That should unlock more power, so expect that 850 hp figure that the car currently has to increase quite dramatically.
A Real Monster Of A Hill Climb Car
Zeelie has further ambitions for his car. He thinks he can go much quicker up the King of the Hill run, so he is hoping his engine improvements and just extra experience will help him go faster up the hill. It’s a very impressive piece of engineering is Zeelie’s MR2, with he and his team doing pretty much all the work themselves, including the carbon bodywork and the engine improvements. Things like the carbon and Kevlar floor helped make a big difference. It will b exciting to see just how far Zeelie can take the MR2.
Source: Cars.co.za YouTube Channel