I could deal with no ABS but no EBD? No fawking way it's soooooooo helpful on the track! Most cars with no EBD would smoke the inside rear tires doing trail braking as deep as I like to do.

 

I've got 29k miles on my '05 RS. I still love it as much as the first day. I've added a 3" TBE, EcuTek flash and dynotune. The new cams and fuel pump are in the garage waiting for my 30k mile service.

I don't care about the power windows but the lack of power locks is a PITA when you have passengers. I wouldn't be able to tell you how it compares to ABS/EBD equipped Evos in the braking department, but I had a near miss at 80mph on the freeway last week. The car behind me was a Mercedes C class and it couldn't break in time to avoid the collision. I was able to break, maneuver, avoid a vehicle stopped in the fast lane and watch the Benz in my rearview mirror. The Benz plowed into the vehicle head-on at maybe 45 or 50mph as tire smoke filled the air. I don't know how much those cars weigh, but I know they have ABS/EBD and couldn't come close to the braking ability of the Evo RS. Maybe an MR or GSR could have done better, but I still felt like everybody was in slow motion except me. The RS stops like somebody threw a fugging anchor out of the trunk!

 

I installed a pwr door locks/w remote - spend $70 in parts and a weekend on the labor. I even added insulation padding in the doors w/ front speakers.

I don't think I ever missed not having ABS even during rallying in 2 foot of snow. Of course the snow tires helped a lot.

Installed Zeal coilovers to smooth out the bumps. It's now comparable to MR's ride and it turns and tracks very corner w/ authority!

Only thing that I don't like about my RS is the lack of noise insulation. It's great that you feel and sense the raw intensity of the mechanical beast but to live with it everyday is tiring. TBE and cams made my RS much louder x10. I need to look into a quieter exhaust...

 

i own one and it in fact does have a/c. and it works very well.

 

I would have got the RS if they had more colors. The MR is not that much better than the Rs as far as ride or anything else. The EVO is a pretty bare bones car anyway. I am actually saving up to get an RS...and a paint job.

 

I bought a used Evo recently and I was considering a RS but ended up with a 03 Evo.

I really wanted the front limited slip on the RS but the lack of ABS and power locks worried me. I don't trust myself enough that if in an emergency situation without ABS I might just lock up the brakes and skid into whatever I am trying to avoid. Also I regularly drive around with friends so no power locks would be a big hassle.

I like the boy racer wing too

 

More color choices would have been nice. To tell the truth, I'm not terribly fond of red or white. I chose the red, because white cars don't tend to age well. As I plan on keeping the RS for a very looong time, the red became the preferred option. If there were other color choices, I would have opted for the silver.

It seems like Mitsu is offering the two color choices, because they expect the cars to be repainted for track events. To me, that only adds to the intrinsic appeal of the model.

 

It sounds like you chose wisely

 

Check out this thread!

https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/sh...d.php?t=188378

 

Very interesting, although not entirely accurate relative to weight/effectiveness of various products. The Fatmat discussed in the thread is essentially rubberized asphalt, whose dampening and adhesive qualities are significantly lower than Butyl-based compounds. Honestly, it's not something I'd feel comfortable using in my car. I can recommend RAAMmat BXT60 and Dynamat Xtreme. Here's an excellent look at sound deadening materials:

http://www.sounddeadenershowdown.com/

Coincidentally, I'll be installing a small system in my RS this week. I've already moved the gauge cluster to the upper DIN (radio opening) - which made it much more usable, given my line of sight - and trimmed the lower opening very slightly to accommodate the mounting bracket for the Nakamichi HU. I'll also be installing a pair of Diamond Audio coaxial in the front doors and a small JBL amp in the glove compartment. This should add ~15lbs to the car.

I've been debating whether or not to deaden the doors. At ~.5lb/ft^2, this will add ~10lbs to the car, for a grand total of ~25lbs for the install. I'm hoping that the added weight will inspire yours truly to shed a proportional quantity of personal leverage.

I'm not interested in deadening the doors in hopes of limiting noise. Rather, I'd like to keep the sound produced by the speakers inside the Evo. I don't know how much I'll be using the system and not listening to the car, itself, but a big part of me says that I should complete the whole project in one shot.

 

Here's my $.02...

1. The wing does matter - My '03 was more planted at 80+ then either my '04 or '06 RS. If you drive the car hard at all you will notice it. It's something to be cognizant of but it's not scarey. Personally the wing is just too over the top for me.

2. Sound deadening matters - The car is loud, especially above 80. If you can stay at 80 or below it's not too bad (assuming stock exhaist with cat). The problem is the car will happy bop along at 100+ and stretches to 140+ are qyite easy and tempting.

3. Phooey on the windows and abs - I've not missed the p/l or p/w at all and I enjoy not having abs, the braking is fun to play with....

4. Stereo - I have 15,000 miles on mine and still no stereo and I do at least 400 miles a week. I may break down and get one but I love the nosies this little booger makes.

5. I cannot believe there are people that still walk the earth thinking there are usdm RS' without AC, I poop on them all.

No regrets.

 

Uh..................................no.

 

I was regretting not getting the RS after 5 months of enjoying a 2005 "GSR" EVO 8 and sold it to get a 2005 RS because I wanted the raw & "authentic" evo... and I love it.

Some actually have ABS by the way, and definitely amazed like others that people think we don't have ABS.

I'm another one that will never put the radio in the car. I love music but could careless while I'm driving the RS. It's lighter, alot more raw than my other...


It just sucks when it gets cold..you get cold..or when it's hot..you get hot. IE. The insulation/sound deadening I notice most when I'm in the middle of climate change.

 

Say what? I think you would be better off long term with white than the red. I know a guy who is already having problems with his red fading. Damn and their ****ty paint!

 

I wasn't talking about the quality of the paint.

For whatever reason, white cars seem to look less well out together (for a lack of a better descriptor) after a number of years. In this part of the country, that observation usually applies to all white cars, regardless of brand.

If you take a look at some 10-15 year old (and older) white cars, you may also notice how the gaps in their body panels stand out more, as an example. I think that's due to very small dirt particles settling into the crevices and over time becoming almost imbedded. It's hard to explain without visual aids. As I'm not exactly a Prince of Polish, typically forcing myself to wax my cars a few times a year, detailing to such high extent with any degree of regularity is out of the question.