written by on 26/10/2009
it is a bad investment
written by antsmgturbo on 13/10/2008
I ' ve owned 2 MG Metro Turbos also, my dad owned grey one back in 1989 from new loved them straight away the smell inside was so nice it was about 1998 I owned my first one it was white f reg fully colour coded and absolutely mint but didn ' t really perform as it should so we took the carb apart and serviced it with all new gaskets then took the cylinder head off and removed all the carbon then replace the head gasket and put back together believe me this car was now awesome I ' m would not lie to you but I raced a 1.9 GTi 205 on the a24 and took him no probs the other driver told me at the traffic light he was pushing as hard as he could, so believe me if you can get your hands on a clean one which is very hard now don ' t hesitate.
written by MG mad on 31/10/2007
MG Metro Turbo is a fantastic car. Value for money, not going to depreciate any further. 'zippy' if not outright quick off the mark, good acceleration through the gears though and cruises well despite the lack of a 5th forward gear, and handle very well. Heaps of room compared to modern 'super minis'.
written by nozza71 on 07/10/2007
The MG Metro Turbo is fast, affordable, fun.
written by jinxwil on 18/02/2007
I've owned my MG Turbo for about 5 years now and I still love it to this day, but sadly the gear box only lasted me about two weeks before I broke it, and then it sat on the drive way to this day. But no worry as I've stripped it down now and have got another gearbox for it, and got hold of a full Metro 6R4 body-kit for it. But when I stripped it I found that the floor had loads of rust, so I've spent loads of time welding it! Hopefully in 6 months time I should have a Metro Turbo 6R4 lookalike running about 180bhp in blue and white with a one off stereo system in it, and all the engine looking beautiful with loads of chrome and red shinny stuff!
written by David Stepney on 29/05/2006
I've owned my MG Metro Turbo for six years and wouldn't part with it. I've held a licence for forty years and had some really nice cars, including a D8 Delage, an 'S' series Bentley a couple of Jags, various Daimlers (including a Majestic Major) Mini Cooper 'S' (a proper one - not the BMW sort)etc. and the Metro is up there with the best of them. Ran it standard as personal transport for four years and loved every minute behind the wheel. Eventually the tinpeckers got it and it has recently been rebuilt virtually from the waistline down at eye-watering expense. I also took the opportunity of having the engine rebuilt and modified to give 90 horse at the wheels (about 125 at the flywheel, so I am told). I got fed up with being beaten off the lights by Pug 306 HDIs.The engine mods have been done very subtly so the car look absolutely standard under the bonnet as well as from the outside.
Haven't had it back long, and haven't tried it against a stopwatch yet, but it has given a few fast cars a nasty surprise.I suspect that the 0 - 60 time is about 8 point something and, as the engine is now safe to 6.5K, about 120 top end. Decent gas shocks have made the car more stable on corners and a 4 pin diff has sorted out the torque steer problems.
Couple of points abpout tuning:
1. Sierra Cosworth actuators fit and open the wategate at about 8psi. Don't forget to do something with the dump valve. I put 5 mm worth of washers under the spring on mine, but those less inerested in originality might choose an external one and blank off the original one in the plenum chamber.
2. Don't be tempted to lower the car by adjusting the hydragas ride height. The extreme inside edges of the front tyres wear very quickly. It doesn't improve the handling either. The standard set-up works fine and is quite capable of frightening the granddaughter-in-law! Especially with the new shocks.
3. Tuning the engine requires a richer carb needle than SU can supply. You will need a file, an exhaust gas analyser and a small supply of needles as you are bound to f***k it up at first go.
4. Oil changes at regular intervals are critical. I use valvoline or Duckhans Q 20/50. Not blown an engine up yet.
Generally provided you are prepared to maintain a Turbo fastidiously, it will reward you with years of fun.
written by simonkeeble22 on 23/03/2005
I have owned 4 MG Metro Turbos in the last 3 years and any one who wants to give them jip needs to be shot. The one I own at the moment is an 89 black mg metro turbo, modified to produce 198 bhp and has 6 speed gear box, custom body kit, arches flaired to fit 17" aloys, full twin s/s exhauste and custom interior. This car has never lost a street race yet, has whiped cavalier gsi 4x4, 3.0 bmw's and many lotus's. So there you go there has never been such an exellent born car since the metro and wont be for a long time (and that does include the brand new mg metro turbo due to come out this year).
Written on: 07/03/2009
I owned a 1988 MG Metro Turbo as a student. It was a phenomenal car, standard and capable of dusting most big, powerful saloons in town and outhandling them on country lanes too. It was 13 years old when I had it, and did not have a single patch of rust on it. I just wish I had held onto it.
Written on: 02/10/2006
I owned an MG Turbo from brand new in 1987 (Moonraker Blue). I bought it from Brammalls Newcastle and it was the biggest bag of rubbish going. It dropped valves like they were going out of fashion, and the turbo packed in twice. It leaked when it rained (through the back push & clip windows), and it started to rust within six months.
Written on: 30/09/2006
I don't mean to be picky, but how in God's name did you manage to wring 198 bhp out of that engine? And you say it's got a 6 speed gearbox? Doesn't seem feasible to me. Are you sure your car doesn't say Honda Civic Type-R on the back?
written by Extrememetro on 28/03/2004
I would like to own a MG Metro Turbo. Spoke to a guy who insanely ran his turbo @ 21psi with no problems. Had a metro 1.3 GS but not quick enough though would like to modify one make it go fast. I had 13" turbo rims on my metro and it outgripped al ot of cars. Standard Ap 4 pot callipers and vented discs are mental when hot but not very good when cold. Would have been better if they had springs and shocks (coil overs).
written by DaRkMySt on 16/02/2004
MG metros have had an intresting history, i like them. theyre nice and not too ugly. not hard to fix and not hard to replace. I currently dont have a turbo but am thinking of installing.. i like this car.. nice and simple... you know.. the best things are made simple :) I got mine free from a friend and purchased a rover and replaced engines
written by ron jerremy on 29/10/2003
i have a Austin-Rover Metro it is green and a 2 litre turbo engine in the back and it has 19 inch wheels its got 4 5inch rage exhausts and has 12 bucket seats on the roof and 12 7 inch subs i made evrything myself it is so good it can beat a mini down a hill
Written on: 01/12/2003
When you actually get a car then you might be able to start taking the mic, on your bike.
Written on: 24/02/2006
yer i dont even think rear axles would hold 2 bucket seats and let alone how ever many u mentioned!
Written on: 16/11/2005
Is this a review of a real car or just some far fetched fantasy? Not really a very useful review!
written by marsh on 23/10/2003
MG Metro Turbos are very underated cars which makes them proper street sleepers, they are blinding on the b-roads.. ANYONE IN THERE EURO HOTHATCH BEWERE. Up the boost to 12Psi, modify combustion chamber in the head piper phase3 turbo should see you over 130bhp. DON'T under estimate!
written by colon on 10/10/2003
The MG Metro turbo has highly polished white alloys which are so smooth that under hard braking the alloy stops and the tyre continues to rotate.
Fred Flinstone's car outbraked metro turbos, probably handled better too.
written by dan. on 08/07/2003
I drove my mates mg metro turbo and relaised that they are great fun, they are fast and with a tiny bit of tweaking they will easily keep up with 1.6's and things like that.it will give any saxo a hard time on the street.
they are good for well over 100mph, and a 0-60 of about 8.5/9sec.
with new gearbox internals, an uprated headgasket, new needle and spring in the carb, a good dump valve and plenty of boost wound on it will easily be beating faster cars and should see power in the regions of 130bhp in an 800kg car.its possible to push the power to over 200bhp with work and you wont get many cars that will easily beat it on the street then.
buy one they are rare and great.
Written on: 18/05/2005
please can you tell me where in the world i can get a metro turbo i used to own a 1.1 metro standered and loved it i could get about 120mph out of it and thats no lie all my mates laughed when i said i want to have one back but if i got a turbo the would be the ones laughing.
written by AlexC1981. on 17/05/2003
Its quite fast as standard, but nothing special. About as fast as a good condition XR2.
Its when you mod it that you see massive gains. However if you are thinking of upping the boost, dont do it unless you have a lower compression cylinder head fitted. Fit a stronger carb needle/spring, exhaust, airfilter. If you run about 11-12 psi you should see about 130bhp. Dont tune it further unless you want to change the gearbox.
130bhp in an 845kg car is more than enough!
Fit a dump valve as you cant hear the standard dump valve unless your running high boost and high revs. Even then its quiet. With the right exhaust fitted, there are few cars that sound better.
And no, they dont rust more than most other cars.
written by Martin. on 17/12/2002
The MG Metro Turbo is a fine, unknown car. Most people don't know there is a Metro Turbo so they are surprised when the little Metro does the 0-60 in just over 8 seconds and leaves so-called better cars behind, I speak from experience!
Written on: 27/02/2003
Just over 8 secs. --IT'S A METRO!!!!!! Any metro would fall apart at reaching that speed in that time!
Written on: 02/03/2004
With regard to worthwile (but not wild) tuning, Matthew, The most useful thing I did to an MG Metro 1300 was to replace the timing chain with a belt drive, complete with adjustable camshaft pulley. This had a few advantages:
<br>
<br>I could adjust the valve timing perfectly to manufacturers specification.
<br>The belt didn\'t strech, so timing was always spot-on.
<br>The belt was quieter than the chain.
<br>
<br>I also added a K&N filter and a Janspeed exhaust (not a noisy one!), then took it to a good carb tune-up place. This all gave the car a decent pace without breaking the bank or stressing the engine.
<br>I Never got round to doing the same on my Metro Turbo, though. The insurance company decided they didn\'t like my modifications. Oh hum!
Written on: 27/02/2004
Erm... I\'ve got a 1989 mg metro, not a turbo, and it packs some punch... I was wondering though, does anyone know what I can rip some alloy\'s off to fit, as I cant seem to find any... and any gr8 modifications I can do to reclaim lurvely bhp would be much appreciated!!
<br>Mail:[email protected]
Written on: 04/02/2004
This talk of overboosting is all well and good, but no-one has mentioned the weak spot revealed when doing it - the gearbox! When I investigated doing this when I had a 1990 Turbo (one of the last ones - found it in Jersey being used as a hire car), a few reputable A-series tuning specialists said that the gearbox would take 120BHP and no more without serious modification.
<br>
<br>Incidentally, a good few cars were scrapped, because the drivers were watching the boost gauge, not the road. Hence the boost gauge being deleted from about 1986.
Written on: 08/01/2004
Hang on didn't a company put a 2.0 litre engine into a Metro (or rover 100 whatever they re named it) and that car I know did 0-60 in under 7 seconds and produced over 200BHP. Now that thing was stripped out and surley the BHP per Tonne figures are massive! coming close to Lacost and Kit car BHP per Tonne there.
<br>
<br>I know of a lad who has a 145 BHP Metro Turbo powered Mini and that thing is immense! I have only heard of super charged Polo's beating it at the traffic light grand prix.
<br>
<br>So from what he gets from his engine everyone can aswell, I can see it ripping!, if 350BHP can be dragged out of the R5 GT Turbo then this metro Turbo unit should and has seen some reasonably cool figures.
<br>
<br>But the view on the actual car, each to thier own.
Written on: 25/11/2003
I just bought a metro turbo today. it had been driven very little by the prev female owner. I got it above 3000rpm and it all went nuts! The boot was massive, i had never driven a turbo car before so i used it. It seems to go from 70 - 90mph in about 3sec is this right? Surely not because about 10min later it started to misfire and that was the end of the headgasket. its now dead. looking at the wastegate it look like a bolt has moved. It seemed much much faster than my Xr2 so i think it was overbooting a bit too much! Is a 1990 G and has no boot gauge at all which does not help as if had of known I may not have killed it, Gutted
Written on: 31/08/2003
im gaging 4 a complete metro turbo lump 2 put in my mini any1 know of 1? findin it really hard 2 find 1 and dont really want 2 destroy perfectly good mg metro turbo
Written on: 11/07/2003
Metro's can do 0-60 in 8, seen it done by relatives MG. But does anyone know what the standard top speed on a turbo is. Spec sez 112mph but my non-turbo will do that.Anyone?
Written on: 23/06/2003
I totally agree, the metro turbo is a great car. I am about to buy one as a second car for track days etc. I drove a modified rover metro GTi 16v for over 3 years with no problems, loving every minute of driving it and the mg turbo, if not quite as fast or refined, is even more fun when the turbo kicks in. They are extremely tuneable and it is quite possible to run the engine at up to approx 14-15psi with just a thicker head gasket and aftermarket intercooler. The main problem with these cars is the gearbox. It was never designed to handle anywhere near the amount of torque the engine is capable of creating, or they could easily have left the factory with 120bhp and torque to match.
Written on: 09/06/2003
It's a Metro! It's a granny's car, for granny's who can't afford a Micra. When they devalued the MG marque in the 80's by slapping it on a number of British Leyland junk (Maestro, Montego) they took the easy way out and just bolted on a Turbo to each of them, like putting an athelete on steroids (although the Metro was never close to being an athelete). The easiest way to make a car go quicker, and die younger. No wonder you don't see any around today, they've all been scrapped.
Written on: 03/06/2003
An addon to gibb's comment, the MG metro engine, with alot of tuning can happily be run at 18 psi with an overboost of 21 psi! It is more than possible for the car to do 0-60 in 8 sec's! It just cost for tuning, and there aren't many people out there that will waste their time making their car do it! However there is a man who has, so what I say is true I know as I have seen it with my own eyes (For all you doubters out there)
Written on: 23/03/2003
That 8 seconds was a typo! lol I ment 9 lol
Written on: 07/03/2003
Good Review - I am revisiting MG Metro Turbo ownership after 10years away,
<br>
<br>I had one when i was 17, it was silver with a Candy Flip paint job and had been tuned by Turbo Technics. It was blooming quick too. I recently - last month - bought a 1989 example as a purely fun car. It is not as fast as my original but will be by the time I am finished!!! visit www.maxed-motors.com for the full info.
<br>
<br>Great Car - Great Fun 0-60 is 9.3secs by the way
Written on: 06/03/2003
A metro turbo doing 0-60 in just over 8 seconds. I agree, if tuned enough it could probably be quicker. (How To Modify, details below)
<br>I bought one 2 or 3 years ago, and it had been modified loads, I never actually timed it, but when the turbo came in, it would make my head hit the head rest (honestly), the boost was massive.
<br>You will find literature everywhere saying, the boost can not be run above 7psi. This is rubbish, I successfully ran my car at 10psi, with no problems for months.
<br>I've been told that its possible run a metro turbo at 12psi, but I never tryed it, just incase I did any damage.
<br>I loved that car so much, I bought another one yesterday (05/03/03), but Im not going to mod it, its completely original and thats how its going to stay.
<br>There are loads of things you can do to improve the performance of your metro quite cheaply i.e.
<br>Flow your carb.
<br>Fit an induction kit.
<br>Fit an intercooler.
<br>Upgrade exhaust.
<br>This is basic stuff most people could do themselves, the best descriptions and advice I have found on these, is at:-
<br>www.mgmetroturbo.tripod.com
<br>There are great links there, that go much further into modifying a metro turbo, but as you will see they are costly.
Written on: 03/03/2003
I used to have one of these. 0-60mph took 9.9 secs. I'd have remembered if it was closer to 8 secs!
<br>Fun car though
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Samm's Response to simonkeeble22's Review
Written on: 01/04/2005
Nice car, I bet those beemas hate it when they see a little metro showing the exhausts, lol. But surely it would handle better and accelrate quicker if you didn't have 17s?