Ike

Stopped by a Mitsubishi dealer today since I noticed a white Evo sitting near the showroom. Well it turns out they had a few used ones on the lot as well so I'm getting numbers hashed out for a used one (04 silver with 5k miles) and the white 05 which I guess is still from their first shipment of 05s.

I don't know what the hell to do, I still love my WRX but I love the way the Evo handles, but that's only if the Mitsubishi warranty nightmares don't ever happen to me. The notoriously weak clutch on the Evo scares me, the financial difficulties of Mitsubishi do to a lesser degree. Then there is the fact that parts of me would really rather have an 05 STi but financially I just don't want to take on that burden since I'd be looking at 3-5k more for the STi new + I believe higher insurance than the Evo.

The other part of me just wants to mod the hell out of my WRX, warranty is up soon and it's finally worth more than what I owe.

Looks - STi or my WRX
Cost - My current WRX
Potential hp - Evo
Reliability - Subaru
Not dealing with a jackass company - Subaru
Handling - Evo
Daily driver - My WRX then STi
Interior - Tossup
Handling - Evo with a slight edge over an STi


I know this is a decision that only I can make but what I really need is for someone to talk me out of getting a new car! :p Must resist temptation... must... resist... I'll know more Sat. and I'll let you know in case any of you actually give a damn what car I drive.

No More Oldsmobiles

I hear the RX-8 by Mazda is nice.

Speed-ER doc

I would mod the WRX if it is still without problems. Warranty is almost up anyway, what are you waiting for? Then you've got your sleeper.

I've ordered my intake and Magnaflow exhaust, btw, so my mod addiction is about to start.

VelociRedBeast

I was thinking that the whole time. "Rx-8s are pretty nice."

IZoomZoomI

u waited this long for the warranty to go away, might as well mod the **** out of it. Plus if you're worried about warranty issues potential HP don't mean jack on an evo til 5 more years.

Steiner

Well Ike...you know what I'm gonna tell you. LOL. If everything get's finalized with the sale of my car then I'm about a week away from a white '05 Evo VIII myself. The WRX is an awesome car. In fact it's the car that I believe started this whole recent 4 banger forced induction frenzy...STi, Evo, SRT-4, Mazdaspeed Protege, Cobalt SS, Ion Redline, etc. The WRX is a step down from the Evo though. Modifications may improve the handling and power, but it will cost thousands to get where the Evo is off the showroom floor...and the Evo has (supposedly) a 10yr/100k mile warranty. If you're not upside down on the Scooby go get yourself that white '05 Evo. The reason I say to get the '05 instead of the '04 is not just because of the HP/TQ increase between the model years, but the '05 model is a little safer in side impact collisions because of the new aluminum reinforced door beams. If it wasn't for those I probably would have gone with the STi and its side impact airbags. Not a big deal for everybody but, having been in a serious side collision in '03, the extra protection doesn't hurt. Good luck dude.

rotten42

IKe, mod the WRX. I would be leary of a car with that much power and a weak tranny...I have heard horror stories locally about dealers not backing up the warranty.....who needs that kind of hassle?

rx8pilot

dude..please don't do it..you love your wrx... that should tell you something.. my friend got an evo...and 6 months later was pulling the engine out because he had to fix something with the rods.. then it was something else....then something else.. mitsubishi wouldn't fix it under warranty.. and besides...mitsu's are really going downhill...who even knows if they'll be around in 2 years.. stick with ur gut on this..all i got to say

Ike

The tranny seems mostly ok but lots of reports of a 5th gear grind, the clutch on the Evo is however very suspect. The nightmare stories of how poorly Mitsubishi honors the warranty worries me. Every car company has some stories like that but the Evo seems to be the really bad one. I was told by the dealer when I drilled them about the warranty that they don't ok or deny any claims on the Evo, Mitsubishi requires the regional rep. to inspect the car before they can cover any warranty work.

Ugh, I love the way the Evo drives so much but I just don't know if it's worth having to worry about that kind of crap. I'd probably be more willing to buy the damn thing if Mitsubishi just knocked another couple grand off the price and didn't offer a warranty with it. The other thing that has me puzzled is there seem to be 5x the number of used Evos for sale in my area than there are used STis, I know the car has been out another MY but why the hell are people trading all these low miles Evos in, did maybe some of these guys have problems and get warranty claims denied? <shrugs> The dealer claimed two of them were traded in on Evo MRs.

I don't know, we'll see if they wow me with the numbers they come up with. The guy that is going over the numbers and going on testdrives with me is a Moderator on evolutionm so it'll be interesting to see how he answers some of the warranty problem questions and such.

Outlaws eXtreme

Save your money and buy the other car AFTER you pay off the WRX. Go for both. :P

At least that's what I would do. Still saving for my dream car, then I'm set. Gotta get that dream car before I get married.

rx-cars_rock

Don't touch that mitsu. Just do some mods to the WRX and it will tide you over for a while.

Ike

Already mods on the WRX, just nothing major, new turbo and intercooler to come should I decide to make the next step.

Tirminyl

If you waited for the warranty to be up to *really* start modding your car then keep the WRX. It would be bad to start all over with a new car. Personally I could not get anything from Mitsu with their current situation along with the horror stories I have heard about valid warranty claimes. No to the EVO and STI and YES to a modded WRX that will be paid off soon!!!

Red Devil

Stick with the WRX.

DreRX8

EVO--maybe you should create a poll.

Mugatu

iTrader: (1)

mod the WRX. it looks better, plus you have money into it already, so it makes sense to keep going.

Omicron

Keep and mod your WRX, Ike. Better car all around. Lotsa people get Evos and dump 'em quickly, many less with WRXs.

Besides, IkeEVO just doesn't sound right.

And ya know, you really should consider getting maybe a used RX-8 too. It's a superior car in almost every way except straight-line acceleration, and with all the FI kits now starting to hit the market, it'll soon be as fast too. You know you love this place and the car, so why not give into it? :D

Ike-formerly-WRX sounds about perfect, too. :D

Luftwaffle

I'm with Omi and everyone else. Keep the WRX. IkeVO isn't the same.

My only experience with Mitsu-fscking-bishi so far has been a computer monitor I bought last year. I've had to replace it twice and the current one that I have isn't problem free either. I blame poor quality components. I don't know if it's the same in the motors division, but the warranty claims and customer service at Mitsu Electric absolutely BLOW. The first time I needed to have it replaced, they wouldn't honor a new monitor, so they sent me a refurb. It took them almost 2 months to get me my monitor. The refurb came back scratched and with the same exact issues I had with the old monitor plus some moire distortion and bad horizontal alignment. I had to send it back again. This time I demanded a new one and that they pay shipping. After two weeks, they said OK. I sent them the refurb back and it took another month and a half to get my new monitor. After two months with it, the same problems began developing again, only to a more bearable extent.

I like the EVO, it's a neat car performance wise. I'm not too hot on the looks, but that's subjective. I considered waiting for an EVO MR before getting my 8. But, Mitsu's service on the monitor really left a bad taste in my mouth. I didn't want to bother with it. So, I'm going a little slower in my 8. (Which is probably a good thing.) :D

grapes

EVO-piece of junk---about a year with no problems, then watch out.

RX8-TX

What is it about the Evo that you like the most? Handling, isn't it?
Can you change rack & pinion ratios / disable the assist on the soobie, and there you have you go-cart! :p

rodrigo67

first I understand the need to just get something new or different but I think there are some things you really need to take a hard look at.

I never really liked rally cars but understand and appreciate what they are and what they can do. The Sti, Evo, and Srt all have amazing drivetrains but...and I know how you feel about this...the srt is not just a neon, but it is a chrysler product, same goes for the evo, it's not a lancer but it is a mitsu. If I had a chioce of the 3, the subaru would be my pick based on reliability and subaru support.

You alreay know the little quirks and idiosyncrocies of your wrx, you know the capabilities and limitations of the wrx, you know all the little frustrations that come on every car. The Evo is a big unknown. You don't know how it was broken in, you don't know what type of issues that are common on this car and if mitsu will take care of it, you don't even know if mitsu will be around.

If you are the type of guy that can rip out an engine, rebuild it and pop it back in over a weekend, maybe the evo's for you, but from your past posts it sounds like this car will be used as your daily driver, and the wrx is just more reliable. If mitsu was on more solid ground and you were talking about a new Evo, I would say go for it, but you are talking about a big investment just for something different.

So, mod up your wrx ( for a fraction of the cost of this used evo), and since you were going to keep the evo stock, you'll be running the wrx faster and cheaper.

If I were to ask your advise on trading my 8, which is almost paid for, in for a used turbo 8 which may or may not void the warrenty, which will definitely be faster but have unknown reliability, and other unknown issues plus starting payments all over again. What would you advise be? That should be your answer...

canaryrx8

iTrader: (3)

If it was me and i already had something for a while that I've put a little money and that hasn't given me any problems than I'd keep it, get it paid for and trick it out and enjoy it. If nothing else get it paid for and hang on to it a while, there are a lot of exciting cars coming out in the next couple of years that might be more fun and less hassle than an EVO. Me personally I'd still be driving my S10 if it didn't have so many mechanical problems as i had all kinds of money into it but it just wasn't dependable. I liked the 8, got a good deal and that's what I have now. It's not worth the hassle, financing, etc to swap rides if you really don't need to and only want to, then you have to start all over, you have to deal with payments, you have to re-learn the market and who makes what for your car etc.. If it was me i'd stick with what I got, pay it off, enjoy it/tune it/whatever and then splurge on my next ride :D

LNWLF

Ike,

My neighbor has an '03 Evo with nearly 21K on the clock, and the clutch shows no signs of grind or slipping. He did replace the clutch line with a Stainless Steel line at 2K Miles, and he says that helped the feel of the clutch immensely. Perhaps the clutch problems aren't as bad as evryone makes them out to be. Besides, after a year or so, it would be nice to upgrade the clutch to something a little stronger to supprt all those mods... :D

PS. The Evo has cams, reflash, exhaust, and a drop-in.

rx8pilot

yes..the evo will do quite fine if you use it as a daily driver and baby it....

lol

and what planet are we on that suggests you'll baby an evo?? you won't..it will be broke within a year if you drive aggressively. trust me..experience on this one.. i helped my friend with 2 of the 3 times he pulled out the engine....

you know what to do my man... don't look back. the car u want is out in ur driveway.

p.s. his tires were gone by 8k.... hope the ones ur lookin at have new shoes. those advans are a pretty penny.

Speed-ER doc

Hell, I've already fried my rear tires at 8K too.