Hey Guys,
As the proud owner of a 2000 Eclipse GT and previous owner of a 95 Eclipse GS-T I eagerly await the arrival of my Evo I put a deposit down for 6 mos ago. BUT, I just test drove the SRT-4 Neon, and, I must say, I liked it a lot. Maybe I just needed a turbo fix I down know but the car is fast as hell and handles pretty good too. The dealer I wnet to is selling it for MSRP plus there is a $2,500 rebate on it, with my trade I could get it for practically nothing! Only problem is it is a Neon, would I get any respect on the street, no matter how fast it is still Neon. I think the same of Civics, even when they beat me, it is still a POS civic. But reality is, 10Gs less than an Evo and similar performance. Whattaya think?

 

ooooo i can see where this is going...

 

Wait and drive an EVO, then you can make the decision you want.

 

Not so sure I would say "similar performance". Whatever floats your boat though. I would suggest a WRX over the Neon in a heart beat. $2000 got me in the 13.2 range for the 1/4 mile with the Subaru not to mention is rocks in the snow. That's gonna be tough in the Neon with it being FWD.

Mike

 

umm but dude its a NEON

 

If ya didn't guess by me screen name, I'm in South Florida, no snow here, rains a ****load though, AWD is god for that too though.

 

Maybe i can nip this in the bud since I have a lot of seat time in the SRT-4 and have an EVO on order.

The SRT-4 is a hellova' car for 20k...it is not however a EVO substitute besides the AWD and the extra power look as the Chassis and suspension. The SRT-4 has a Neon chassis w/ an upgraded k-member (subframe) now go to the EVO encyclopedia and look at the seam welding extra bracing etc. There is a massive difference. Then look at the suspension: SRT-4 has upgraded springs, struts, sway bars and PT cruiser brakes end of story. EVO: same with ALUMINUM suspension components (arms, subframe etc.) upside-down struts (super strong), Brembo brakes. I've probabbly left some other cool EVO stuff out (I'm sure the gaps will get filled in by my fellow forum members )

Bottom line: SRT-4: quick car for the money...EVO: SUPERCAR for the money

 

chronohunter, excellent post! That pretty much summed up the big differences. Case closed.

 

I think it's safe to say it's somewhat similar in straight line performance. Of course the lack if AWD traction is a huge minus. I would say you can totally compare the SRT-4 to your old 95 GST. I've got one now and I'll bet there wont be much of a difference if I test drive the SRT-4.

Rob

 

Good synapsis of the difference, except this part. The main benefit of inverted shocks is to get the lighter portion of the shock to be the moving part, while fixing the heavier valving assembly (making it sprung mass). This inversion allows for better responsiveness from the shocks. Any added strength is icing on the cake...

 

Buy the Neon and let someone else in your area own the Evo that they are sure they want.

 

The SRT-4 makes me want to . The only reason I will ever consider gettin' the SRT-4 over the EVO is if the EVO is slower then a civic, handles worse then a vette, and the SRT-4 only costs $10,000. Well that ain't happening, so test drive the EVO, if you don't like it get the WRX like what WRX1832 said.

 

I'm surprised after owning a FWD 2G Eclipse that you would even consider a FWD OPEN DIFFERENTIAL vehicle . When I had my FWD 2G Eclipse, every time I accelerated while turning, especially autoxing, my inside wheel would spin like crazy . I had to feather the throttle until I was perfectly straight. It was SOOOOOO annoying. A light(er) weight FWD open differential car with more than 200 lb*ft of torque is just not a good idea.

No brainer...evo all the way

 

That's true enough, it does help with unsprung weight but on a strut type suspension the inverted design resistence to side loads (remember that the strut doesn't just dampen it also locates) is just as importaint as far as the EVO's superior handling goes

Good point WestSideBilly

 

I live in south FL also, even if theres no where near to go off road, i would still go with EVO or WRX. If u start moding SRT-4 after a it will be hard to race off the hole, my friend has a 94 civic HB with LS Vtec/Type-R runin 12.01 all motor (Honda specialist built it) and he got beat by a GSX boosting 20 stock turbo that runs 13.2 just because it was off the hole then they went at it rollin but he had to go 4th to realy leave the GSX so why do u want to deal with that just go with AWD and go up north to the Towers and smoke some gay hialeah civics!!!!

Also theres a dealer here in south FL thats geting the most EVOs in the Southern US (20 EVOs) they clame on there site http://www.kendallmitsubishi.com/ And only 7 orders have been placed.


KENDALL MITSUBISHI
8523 South Dixie Highway
Pinecrest, FL 33143
Phone 305-669-2000
Fax 305-669-2030