If you're leaning more toward the STi, just get it.

Lets leave the hardcore, ***** to the wall EVO owners who will do what was intended with one of the best cars on the planet - SMOKE SOME WRX GUYS!!

That is all

 

These cars are so closely matched, and so tunable, it comes down to looks in my opinion. Very few will be able to notice the advantages each car will have anyway. Which looks better to you?

Of course, you'll probably see everyone arguing about which car is better regardless - I'd say either one is a great choice.

Chris
http://www.EVOtuners.net

 

Regarding the warranty. If you are going to mod it, it doesn't matter you will probably void your warrantly anyway. I did not pick the Evo for the warranty. I picked it for the absolute joy I get from driving it or just from looking at it sit in the garage.

My Evo was my first maunal transmission car as well. I had driven friends cars occasionally but not enough to make note of. I have not had any issues shifting and absolutely love how easly it shifts into the gears. I think I only missed a gear one time and maybe stalled it one time.

I also drive the car everyday and while yes it does have a stiff ride it does not really bother me at all. My 8 year old niece was riding in the back seet said that it was a little bumpy, but we were driving aroundon some pretty rough back roads...again I did not notice. I guess I just love driving it so much that I don't really notice the harsh ride.

Like many have already said, it is really just a matter of preference. Both cars are great cars and both will make you happy. Personally I love everything about the Evo better than the STI, but I do like the STI. You can't go wrong with either...

 

I'm very much leaning towards the Evo now. I can't get past the STi's looks. I kept trying to justify the STi by saying it's only 1 second or .5 seconds slower around a track than an Evo. And in reality for 85% of us, that's true. But what that 1 or 2 seconds doesn't tell you is how much better the car feels. I just feel in tune with the car more than the STi.

That said I'm going to test drive the STi one more time, hopefully to prove to myself once and for all that the Evo is the right choice. After that I wait for the 04s, make sure there are no rust issues, and saddle up.

 

I would be curious to know if anyone that has driven the Evo has driven a well-setup WRX (or STI) for handling purposes. My main interest is that I have a full set of Cusco 02R's, braces, links, swaybars, etc. for my WRX that I could swap right over to an STI. Since I already have these parts, and know how stiff it is (I run custom 6kg/4kg springs daily and 10kg/8kg track springs ), I really didn't find the Evo that stiff. I found the turn-in to be superior for the relative wheel movement, of course, but I can easily fling my wrx as well at the same speeds, if not better (and I have worse rubber daily).

I have always liked the old Evos, and I like the new one very much, but part of me feels like I basically need to go for the STI. I have everything for one already. Should I bow out and go through the hassle of selling all that stuff off?

I wonder if the Cusco's can have their camber plates changed to fit the Evo. Lower mounts may be the problem..not sure. I noticed they run identical spring rate ranges for both cars. Anyone have the know-how on Cusco parts for both cars?
Rob

BTW, ditch the wing if you go STI. Trust me, I have a WRX without a wing, and lowered they look _excellent_. Being a black car may have something to do with the look, but rear 3/4 is strong and supple looking.

 

Yes, I believe the Vivid STi had a ditched rear wing and looked very good kitted and lowered. Still don't think I can pass up the Evo though. It looks too good.

 

I honestly regret not getting the sti. If you’re going to keep it near stock, get the sti. If you’re going to mod it heavily, then, it's a tough call. I just don't have the kind of emotional connection to the evo that I do with the sti. The evo feels slow to me, while the sti feels fast. It’s really not even close according o my butt-o-meter. Then there’s something else about the sti. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but when I get out I always have a smile on my face. I don’t get this with my evo.

 

Blueevilevo8 said:

"The evo feels slow to me, while the sti feels fast. It’s really not even close according o my butt-o-meter."

The fact is that the Evo and Sti are very close in acceleration. Nearly all of the instrumented tests have shown this.

There are so many variables that have to be taken into account anytime you are comparing cars like these.

First, and probably most important, there can be a significant variance from car to car. I personally test drove about 5 or 6 diferent EVOs before I bought mine and they did not all perform the same. One of them, in fact, had a very poor boost response compared to the others.

Second, a bad tank of gas (California 91 octane sucks to begin with) can significantly decrease performance.

Third, are both cars properly maintained? (Oil change, etc.).

To summarize...

Make sure and test drive a few samples of each before making any important decisions.

 

hmmm, maybe this is the case with my car. I could have sworn the evo's I test drove felt faster. Also, every person who has riden in my car said it felt really slow compared to my ss. Time to get a boost gauge I suppose. Probably leaking somewhere...

 

The "butt-o-meter" dyno is the cheapest, but not always the most reliable. First of all, there's the psychological "noise", you don't know whether what you're perceiving is a real difference or simply because your mind is interpreting the signals wrong. Sometimes your own car may feel slow when you're in another fast car, simply cos "the grass is always greener on the other side".

But the STi may well feel faster because of the 2.5 liters and aggressive low end gearing. This means at street speeds, you're going to have practlically zero feeling of turbo lag, gobs and gobs of low end torque and silky smooth power delivery. This is probably what your butt is picking up on. Different people may interpret the situation differently. To them, a car that starts out "normal" and then seems to go into warp drive when boost comes on is a very fast car. To them, non-linearity of power delivery is perceived as speed. Different strokes for different folks.

 

Exactly! I drove an Evo and WOW! What a car! Coming from a DSM I was use to the 4G63's power band. Dude if you have a hard time with the clutch then you need to eval your driving ability as these cars are not toys. They are serious missles that can kill you as fast as I am typing this. Where the STi has loads of low end torque the EVO is broad and pulls on the top end. Where the Scooby is slow on the turn in the EVO is razor sharp. The EVO is what I would call a superhero's car in that it can take ANY driver and make them seem great because it is so easy to go fast in.

Also, I would be hesitant about buying a car from a dealer that pushed the car to 120.

I unfortunately ended up buying an SRT-4 which for 20k is an awesome little car, but is no Evo in the handling realm. Believe me I was very upset that I just couldn't swing the Evo. Maybe in a couple of years I'll get one when I am tired of wrong wheel drive and the lack of traction and sub-standard handling.

 

Alright guys...sorry if this will be long.

I've had the STi for close to an year and seriously i haven't had any complaints thus far. it has a lil over 8,000 miles. mostly used as a weekend car. Anyways...my biggest concern was that several STi owners who've modded their cars to about 350-400whp have been experiencing severe detonation and in some cases even blowing up their motors. Granted they have been experimenting without any viable engine-management such as Utec or Ecutek. but this is a serious concern of mine bc my goal was to bring up the STi to about 400whp and that to be driven reliably and on a daily basis. i knew the STi's engine would provide plenty of torque being a 2.5 liter but i thought the internals would have been alot stouter but i guess i was wrong. maybe that will change when they crack the ecu but it still doesn't hide the fact that Evo engines are easier to work on in terms of modding as opposed to the boxer flat four with side feed injectors, electronic drive by wire throttle, etc. i've been hearing that Evo's can run reliably up to almost 400whp on stock internals being it is a cast iron block and that most of its internals are very strong to take up to 22psi reliably. So it makes more sense for me to get the EVo rather then getting the STi cause even with engine management i would end up spending more money to forge all the internals, convert to front mount and slap on a bigger turbo. with the Evo i don't have to do that much work.

Question is...is there any enginemanagement for the Evo as well? no just a piggyback system like the Xede but something more thorough like a utec?? also among the Evo owners here how many of you guys are getting 350-400whp on mostly stock internals and just boltons?? would i have to switch out to bigger injectors? turbo? intercooler? cams? 400 reliably driven whp is all im' looking for...low 12sec to high 11's.

thanks, Ghost

 

Checkout this site.

http://www.vishnu-performance.com/welcome.htm

They have a really good reputation and I was just down at thier shop today ordering a Stage 1 Kit.

 

thats funny, i am actually thinking about trading my evo for an STI and i also have 8000 miles...

 

wow!! lol...that is pretty weird, if you don't mind me asking what are your reasons for possibly trading your evo for an STi?? i would like to weigh all the pros and cons before i make my final decision. thanks, Ghost