GRADUATION PRESENT....to....Myself

breakneckvtec · 03-02-04, 01:45

Well, in Dec of 04 I will be graduating college. I have gotten some job leads and dont think I will have a tough time landing a job paying well. I currently drive a 1999 civic Si and love it. Its a bit on the boy racer side but I dont mind it, it does what I need it to do, and somehow also manages to do what I want it to do. For my next car I will be hoping it can do the same. Heres my plan:

When I graduate, as much as I will hate to see it go I will sell the Si. Its a great car, but being stick and me being so very picky about it, its not the best daily driver anymore. I will be investing in another honda, possibly a civic EX or maybe an integra LS, something with about 60-80k on the clock and automatic to tool around in daily.

Heres the big decision, the fun car, the "weekend warrior." I have narrowed it down to some choices, and need some opinions:

Lancer Evolution VIII - I love this car, its been my dream car since its inception in Japan I have been in love with it, awaiting its arrival I thought would never come. I have sat in one but never driven one.
Subaru WRX/ STI - This has been a recent love affair, I have really found myself liking this car. I like the fact that it has a 2.5 liter motor so the low end power is there. I also like that it has a 6 speed and that I can adjust the torque to the front and the rear.

Accumulator · 03-02-04, 02:03

*MY* opinion: You just gotta drive them both and see what you think. Make sure you're comfortable with a helmet on- you'll REALLY have a blast if you do the sorta stuff where they're required

See which one has the best dealer support in your area (no decent Subie OR Mitsu dealers where I live

).

At the risk of sounding like a grandparent...think about the garaging/detailing/insuring/maintaining of two cars. Especially if the daily driver has some miles on it. What if your (initial) employment doesn't work out? Sorry, don't mean to be a drag

Oh, and I haven't driven an STI, but the regular WRX does *NOT* have much torque. When you're off-boost it's a dog. Think: "clutch life". Slipping it to get on boost quicker is gonna be SOOO tempting

Consider that with the Lancer, too.

6cyl's_of_fury · 03-02-04, 02:06

Go the Evo, the gearboxes are infinitely better than the scooby ones if you are thinking of pushing any large amount of power through it and I hear that the STI suspension set up is a little "taught" for a road car and much better on the track ( ie a kidney basher on undulating public roads ).

BUT

Then you wont get that awesome burbly sound from a scooby when you add an exhaust or the bigger engine which *may* have better overall power possibilities. And I am not sure what the situation is where you live, but it is much easier to get aftermarket tuning stuff for the scooby than the EVO here in Australia.

But the easiest way to decideis to plonk your *** in the drivers seat and drive both of them and make up your own mind, remember that you have to live with, not all us here. One will feel more "right" than the other Im sure.

Gee, its a dilema I wish I had! EVO or STI, oh the humanity!

breakneckvtec · 03-02-04, 02:10

I have both a subie and a mitsu dealer reasonably close to my area. Mitsu dealer is closer though.

As for off boost in the base rex, those are 2.0 boxer 4s where the STI is a 2.5, so off boost response is better.

The EVO is a 2.0 inline 4 and I hear isnt anything real special below 3k. However, it pushes 19.5psi and once that twin scroll turbo goes it spools quick and pulls like phuck to redline.

As for money of maintaining and insuring yada yada. This isnt my first go around, I got that figured in to the cost of the car, this will be mostly a recreational vehicle. IE: Drag strip on some weekends, trips to the shore/beach, etc...

Murph1083 · 03-02-04, 02:30

im have to go EVO.........im just in love with them

TortoiseAWD · 03-02-04, 02:41

STi, IMO.

Mitsu screwed over a bunch of my friends with the crank walk issues on '95 - '99 model Talon and Eclipse motors. I missed having to pony up for a new motor myself by selling my '96 before the problem manifested (and it did less than 10k miles later). AFAIK, Mitsu to this day denies that there were problems with that run of the 4G63 motor, and never issued recalls or TSBs to rectify the problem.

It'll be a long time before I buy a new Mitsubishi again.

Drive 'em both, though, and read all you can in the various online communities that support the two cars . . . you may end up making your decision based on which crowd you feel more at home with.

Tort

breakneckvtec · 03-02-04, 02:45

Yes, I was a former DSM owner myself, one reason I love them. I had a 92 talon TSI.

To my knowledge though, the EVO is solid, never had a problem and is quite refined by now. If I decided EVO though I would wait to see what they came out with for 05, there is some rumors floating that it will boast a bigger engine with 320hp. Let the HP wars begin.

I do hear that Subaru has better service, which to me is a big deal, and most of you too. I plan to drive both, looks wise I like them both but lean toward the EVO. Something about that front mount that is ooh so sexy.

IndigoGTI · 03-02-04, 03:14

Another issue you should consider is which manufacturer is better at honoring warranty claims on a modded car. That is, if you ever decide to mod the car. Subaru dealers have been called no less than Nazis when it comes to getting warranty work on an even mildly modded car. Now this certainly varies by dealer, and your determination to get whatever repairs are necessary. Do a little search on the STI and EVO forums to see how dealers and service departments are treating customers.

teamvegas · 03-02-04, 03:29

Evo in my opinion. Have driven both and if you are using at a drag then the Evo has killed two Sti's here in Vegas. I have some video of it somewhere. Ill have to find it for you. But you will have to decide which one you like better. Turbo lag is greater for some reason on the STi than it was on the Evo. Drive them yourself and let us know.

breakneckvtec · 03-02-04, 03:57

Yeah, and there is another choice I have considered too. The Si doesnt make a bad "weekend warrior" platform. The paint is in GREAT condition, of course, I am autopian so the whole car is as perfect as can be. By time I graduate it should have 70k tops on the car. Not bad for a project vehicle. I would buy the beater still, when this is done the civic will be a fun vehicle only. Heres what I could do to the Si:
Bottom End:
JE pistons 9.5:1 comp
Eagle rods
New bearings and seals
Head:
GSR cams
Mild port and polish
New cam seals
Intake manifold:
Gasket match
Hondata IM gasket
Mild port and polish to smooth flow
Boost:
Drag Gen 3 turbo kit T3/T04E 15 psi
Engine management:
Hondat stage 2B
RC 440 fuel injectors
Dyno tune it with probably a fuel map for 8psi, 12 psi and 15 psi

That would probably all together run around 7k and put down around 280 whp on 8psi and around 400-450 at 15 psi. My car exterior wise is pretty mild, this would make a pretty sick sleeper. Not to mention the place I plan to move into will have a 2 car garage and 2 car driveway so I could keep her stored away.

Just a thought.... and in the end it would be cheaper than an EVO or STI, and if I do it right should be fairly reliable. I would run the 8psi most of the time and only crank it up for some track runs.

Accumulator · 03-02-04, 05:16

breakneckvtec- OK, I forgot about the CID difference with the STI

What about putting the big bucks into the daily driver? I usually end up appreciating my dds better than my toys. Go-fast cars can sometimes be done a lot cheaper than "nice to enjoy every day" cars, too. Though I bet you'd put more than $7K into the Si. That might be a lot of fun, you're already sorta attached to the car, right? But then, you could drive either of the new ones in all kinds of weather. Decisions, decisions!

Heh heh, good thing you're not graduating until the end of the year, there are a zillion ways you could go on this!

Jimmy Buffit · 03-02-04, 05:51

New kid on the block? Read the papers.

VW R32. $31,000

Normally aspirated, 247 HP, AWD. German fit and finish. Its an Audi TT without the price.

Smokes 'em all.

Jim