Three Toyota MR2 generations — AW11, SW20 and ZZW30 — lined up on the Hakone touge with a red sun rising behind the mountains. Editorial archive illustration.

The definitive Toyota MR2 reference.

MR2.

AW11, SW20 and ZZW30. Japan, the US, the UK, Europe and Australasia.

The range

AW11

1984 – 1989

Lotus-influenced chassis, mid-mounted 4A-GE twin-cam, pop-up headlamps. Supercharged 4A-GZE from 1986 (JDM) and 1988 (USDM).

Engines: 4A-GE NA · 4A-GZE SC

SW20 · Mk2

SW20

1989 – 1999

Five revisions, four markets. The 3S-GTE Gen 3 turbo arrived with the 1993 facelift — JDM only. The US continued an updated Gen 2 to its final 1995 model year and never got the Gen 3. The UK and Europe were naturally aspirated throughout.

Engines: 3S-FE · 3S-GE · 3S-GTE · 5S-FE (US)

ZZW30 · Mk3

ZZW30

1999 – 2007

Roadster only. 1ZZ-FE standard; the 2ZZ-GE swap is the canonical upgrade. SMT (Sequential Manual Transmission) has documented actuator and software issues — see Common Problems.

Engines: 1ZZ-FE · 2ZZ-GE swap

How sources are graded

Every fact on this site has a source and a confidence band beside it. Lower-tier facts are still published, but the band is always visible.

OEM manual Toyota factory repair manual, page referenced.

Factory documented Toyota press pack or official archive.

Factory-derived Toyota EPC, period road test, official brochure.

Forum verified Pinned thread, named author, date and view count.

Confirmed from part Genuine part confirmed in hand.

Specialist source Specialist supplier technical content.

Community verified Cross-referenced across multiple community sources.

Community unverified Single forum source.

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Photographs, receipts, factory documents, period road tests — reviewed, attributed, credited as they're contributed.