![]() The Toyota MR2 Spyder is a 2-door convertible manufactured by Toyota from 1999 to 2007, with its presence in the United States market lasting until 2005. After all, Toyota's SMT mechanism requires an elaborate computerized control system to handle the delicate matter of coordinating clutch engagements and throttle inputs in a way that approaches a seamless flow of power.Shop Genuine Toyota MR2 Spyder Parts with If there's a single aspect of Toyota's system that remains incomprehensible to us, it's the lack of a fully automatic feature. It is, after all, still a conventional diaphragm clutch, and its throw-out bearing will thank you for a little rest. As long, of course, as you remember to pop the console lever into neutral during long periods at idle. It is also pretty cool to be able to sit in slow-moving traffic and have the hydraulic leg do all the clutch work. ![]() And in the interests of long and trouble-free operation, Toyota can argue that its SMT system will probably extend clutch life, being better able to match throttle inputs and clutch-engagement rates than many owners can. Of course, the MR2 is a little more forgiving than the race cars for which these automated manual transmissions were devised, but you get the picture. That's important if you plan to drive very close to the limit of adhesion, where a misstep in the pedal department of a car with a normal manual transmission can produce a chirp of rear-wheel lockup - not a good thing when driving a sensitive mid-engine car near that limit. You can brake deep into bends while pressing buttons for perfectly timed downshifts that match wheel and engine speeds exactly. The car is great fun to drive, engendering many of the same F1-style fantasies you get in the Ferrari. The quarter-mile time of 16.2 seconds (versus 15.6 seconds) is similarly prolonged.īut don't write off the MR2 SMT just yet. So the 0-to-60-mph time - at 8.2 seconds - is 1.4 seconds slower than the last MR2 we tested. Any one of our test drivers could stab the pedals and snap the lever through the gate in half the time. Although this isn't a problem during normal or even sporty driving, the shifts seem agonizingly slow at the drag strip. Then, once under way, the shifts are made slowly and deliberately. Thus, even with the accelerator floored, the launch is conducted gently, with just enough revs dialed up to allow a gentle clutch engagement. Unlike the F1 system in expensive Ferraris, where you're allowed to exploit an ultra-high-performance strategy that permits high revving of the engine before the clutch is dropped for a smoking wheelspin launch, Toyota's mechanism puts the emphasis on durability. On downshifts-as in Ferrari's $155,000 360 Modena F1-the system provides a blip of power to match engine and transmission speeds for seamless events.Īnd we can report that the system works pretty flawlessly, although cautiously. Both controls initiate a sequence in which the throttle is closed, the clutch is disengaged, and the shift mechanism is activated. Yep, Toyota now offers a five-speed manual in the MR2 Spyder that you shift using buttons on the steering wheel or by bumping the transmission selector on the center console, and without depressing a clutch pedal. Convertibles for $5000: Window Shop with C/D.But what about an electrohydraulically automated manual from Toyota? Convertibles, Old and New One expects high-tech F1-style paddle shifting from Ferrari and Alfa Romeo, and rallylike sequential manual shifting in a BMW M3 comes as no surprise. From the September 2002 issue of Car and Driver.
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