I'm trading in my 04' WRX for a 03' EVO at a dealership. The one I'm looking at has a Boost guage installed and also a modified exhaust. How can I tell if the previous owner had a Boost controller installed?

 

uhm i guess you really can't, look at the vacuum lines, and take a test drive... make sure you get in writing that they will honor the warrenty with the mods...

 

well, if you've ever installed a boost controller on an EVO, you'd find out that those boost / vaccuum hoses that come straight off the compressor and wastegate actuator are IMPOSSIBLE to take off by hand. I'd imagine if you tried to take them off, and they came off pretty easily, chances are that thoes hoses have come off before.

And, if those hoses have come off before, chances are, theres been a boost controller on it.

 

Is it the factory "sports meter kit" boost gauge ( a panel of 3 gauges : voltage, oil temp and boost ) or an aftermarket boost gauge.

If the factory one, having the boost gauge doesn't really lead onto having had a MBC fitted. An aftermarket one, then maybe more so, but you coudl still say it was only added for show.

But as for knowing whether a MBC was installed - that would take looking at the connections going to the wastegate etc, to see if they've been disturbed. The one on the wastegate has some paint on it, so may show most signes of being tampered with ( eg paint worn off etc ), but it's also the most difficult to get at to see

 

Well I would most likely bring everything back to stock trim if I decided to buy. If the previous mods were undetectable then do you think mitsu would honor the warranty if anything went wrong? like say maybe 10k miles from now it fails because the previous owner boosted too much? thanks.

 

the boost guage is definately aftermarket, it's an autometer boostguage and is the only aftermarket part besides the exhaust that is on the car.

 

Usually when a boost controller is installed, most would install from the top taking out the radiator fan and such. One best way is to unloose the radiator fan and see if there is scratch marks on the actual radiator fins(right behind the radiator fan). Anyone installing from the top will almost always accidently scratch the radiator fins(that's because it is so fragile).

 

Also look for an original vac line coming off the BOV. Most of us splice that line and Tee in the boost control there. There should be a foam sleeve over the rubber vac hose right there.

I installed my MBC in a way that it's virtually undetectable if I put it back to stock. I have all the original clamps, hoses and pics of configuration.

You should be more concerned with the tranny and clutch condition than over boosting. If you put the car back to stock and you buy the car with a warantee, the dealership should honor it if you run into a problem.

Also, I have heard that when you void your warantee, your VIN goes into the computer and flags your car if you bring it in. Check into that and see if this car was brought in for warantee work.

 

thanks for all your advice guys. Hopefully i will be an evo owner soon