Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

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Rixoni
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Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by Rixoni »

Bit of a story, I had 3 MK1's back in my twenties, great car, can't really afford one now! I decided the Mk3 was a future classic when I saw a mint 44k 2001 come up on the Matthewson's auction in March. It was a sequential manual gearbox / transmission. Never knew of such things, perfect me thinks as the Mrs doesn't like manuals much so this could be a cracking run-a-round. Anyway with the Matthewson's following and a walk round video banging on about how immaculate the motor was it went for top beans. To me but I'd be embarrassed in hindsight to say how much I paid.
I nearly took a train up 300 miles to collect it but it was snow and all sorts so paid to get it shifted. Turned up on the low loader. It was mint. New MoT, took it round the block, took it down the road to my mechanic I usually use to get it looked at. Couple of miles then and that was that.
It starts, you put it in gear, it stops. The end.
Mechanic said it had hydraulic fluid leak and was empty. He filled it. He thinks air lock or similar and diagnostics says pressure fault. He thinks it needs bleeding but, and this is where I get lost, ECU won't direct what to do further so there is nothing you can do to rectify.
We took to Toyota, which was £96 I seriously regret as they didn't offer any useful analysis just 'diagnosed' to replace the entire ECU and gearbox for around 7 grand.
And so it has been sat on my drive ever since. It truly seems tragic. I have read since that SMG wasn't Toyota's finest moment. Hindsight is wonderful. Anything but an auction I'd have rights, I don't blame Matthewson's although their narrative on the car was unfortunate. The seller has had a right result though as currently the car is good for some parts only.
Unless someone out there recognises this problem and knows what to do. Unless someone out there is willing to tinker with an old MR2 gearbox. Unless someone wants to take it off my hands as a project or work with me. I really don't know to be honest. I'm just having trouble coming to terms with binning it off.
I'm in mid Kent so really I guess such expertise would be best in this area. But I consider anywhere if someone out there knew just what to do here.
Thanks for reading.



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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by MRHAPPY62 »

Give Patrick Chambers a call in Bexhill .
MK2 3sge Uk sold.
MK3 Chilli red sold.
MK2 Smg Gltd Super Edition now with V6

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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by Rixoni »

Thank you, I just googled them and I will give them a try. These kind of leads always help, I've plugged in various themes around MR2 specialists into Google and found relatively little and zip in my area. If you have a name it makes so much different to what pops up!

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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by MRHAPPY62 »

Patrick is the go to in the southeast :)
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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by TonyleFrog »

Image

You'll find out if it really is fixable without you needing to sell one of your organs, or not. As you have found out, Toyota dealers are only interested in doing major replacement work. They employ 'technicians' who swap complete assemblies, not mechanics who understand how things actually work and will replace/repair only what needs sorting where that is possible.

Do you know which specific diagnostic code/s have shown up?
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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by Rixoni »

Yep, I was desperate and hung on to the idea whilst they would be too expensive to use they might diagnose some useful detail of what needed doing that my mechanic could work with. Alas no & sadly fairly typical of so many things, just bin off and buy a new one.
Thanks for the link, I have message my mechanic but unlikely he's written it all down and kept it. Looking back his texts "we think mr2 needs a bleeding using a diagnostics machine but the ones we have won't do it, there is fluid weeping out of the hydraulic slave cylinder motor housing but the unit doesn't look that old."

I had another chap round who couldn't get a diagnosis and he was ex Toyota - he suggested taking ECU off and getting it looked at, said he knew a local place for around £50. Sadly he never came back despite numerous promises.
It's all been rather frustrating, if you've been sold a lemon , it gets condemned, you move on. I have an otherwise mint old MR2 on the drive undiagnosed properly. The whole SMG thing is a thing and most won't know what to do with it. I will be checking in on the place recommended earlier.
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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by jimi »

Is it an import ? IIRC The standard OBD reader can't communicate properly with JDM cars, you need one specifically for JDM. If it is Might be worth asking on MR2 ROC, there might be a member near you with the correct reader https://www.mr2roc.org/forum/
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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by Rixoni »

Despite turning up with 3 sets of keys and an immaculate folder of owners materials (good signs) there was a lack of paperwork. I don't think it was an import as there was a load of car purchase bits from a dealer in Mansfield area. From the visible lack of mileage on VOSA e.g. few thousand in last 5 years it maybe car has been hardly used or hardly used due to the SMG being a total pain in the a***.
It did get a MOT in October & 200 miles ago. Somehow.

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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by Rixoni »

Update & thanks - fixed by Patrick Chambers it was indeed. The guy is so on it he pretty much gave a choice of two probably outcomes on the phone. Replaced the actuator day after I got it to him. Cost a bit but nothing like scrapping it if I'd listened to Toyota. I might take the time to write to that dealership about that £96 rubbish, good for nothing diagnostics charge.

Anyway on to my next problem...
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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by jimi »

Great result, Patrick is very good :th:
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Re: Hi & help my SMG / ECU fail

Post by MRHAPPY62 »

"Anyway on to my next problem."

If you have another problem knowing Patrick he has already pointed it out . ;)

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MK2 3sge Uk sold.
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