Herro,

Couple weeks ago, picked up a set of powdercoated X SE wheels



It has a 255/35/18 tire. Im glad the 255s do fit. Lots of people on MLR stated it wont fit. Funny part is, I think 265's would fit, maybe even 275's.

I recently picked up a portable steamer. Gonna take off the tint on the back windows. The loser stated over and over, it never got broken into. What a lie. Im still finding glass everywhere. Anyways, should be tuned within the next 2 weeks. I cant waiittt!

 

can you post another pic for some reason that one isn't loading

 

Props on the amazing build! I have a few questions I was hoping you would be able to help me with.

First, What did you use for the gas tank? I'm assuming the Mirage tank won't work with the AWD setup. My car has a massive fuel cell in the trunk but I would prefer to go back to a stock gas tank.

Also I love your black Mirage dash! Is there a certain year or trim level Mirage that came with black that can help me narrow down my search?

Thanks!

 

You're going to need an Evo 4-6 fuel tank if you want to go back to stock. As for the black dash any 97-01 Mirage could have it, mainly those with a tan interior. Coupe dashes work as well.

 

Would you mind taking a pic of your fuel cell? I was thinking about having a custom one built. The one currently on my 5 is a 6 fuel tank (factory split). Im worried hard cornering will starve the motor for fuel. Especially since Im running E85 only. How about some pics of your 5 too!

BCspeed is correct. Any 97-01 dash will work. Afaik, black dashes were very common on Mirages. The last 2 I seen at scrap/junk yards had black dashes.

Sgasper: Sorry man, posted it from our local Evo forum. Guess they dont host afterall lol

 

Wow, that is stunning! Great job! What is the name of that color white?

I will post up some more pics of mine when I get home. I'll warn you now it's had a rough life and needs a lot of love.

Thanks for the advise on the dash, I know nothing about mirages, lol!

 

Wow that looks awesome! I keep entertaining the thoughts of doing a RHD --> LHD conversion of my EVO 6 but not sure what all it entails. I should sit down one day and try and figure it out

 

Very nice man!! You guys are killing me with these mirage conversions. I have been in contact with Japperformance over the last week discussing my options for doing the swap!

 

 

How much do they charge for these front clips? I could buy and drive down a real EVO 5 for like ~8-9k$ though it wouldn't be register-able in the states, could be used for a full swap.

 

Thanks man! No idea on the color. Its the stock Mirage White. The last owner touched up some paint so it could be another white, not entirely sure. I do notice when Im parked next to other whites they dont look the same at all. The best white imo is the 8/9 Wicked White. That was the color of my old Evo 8..



Your 5 looks awesome! Whats the plan? Road race? Rally? That fuel cell is not what I had in mind. I was thinkin one to fit in the spare tire well and stepped up to the rear of the seats. Looking to hold 15 gallons. Just an idea for now.

Thanks man! That would cost you a lot of time to convert from RHD to LHD. The parts wouldnt be that expensive. Especially if you sourced a Mirage firewall instead of a LHD 5/6 firewall. Pics of your 6!!

Thanks buddy! There is a lot of conversions for the simple fact you cant get them here yet. 2023 will be the first year we can bring the 5 and later the 6 over. My plan is to bring a real one over at some point, just to keep stock. I believe Sean mentioned it costs roughly $11-13k to build one, not including the weld time if you arent capable. Easily $6-8k for just the front clip. Extra for doors, trunk/wing and floorpan.

 

The guys over at Japperformance ive been talking too have told me its more beneficial to just buy a whole car and let them know what I want off of it. I thought that was great, but then I emailed them asking if I were to buy the whole car, if they could just cut it in half right behind the two front seats. He said they could do that, it would just be missing a couple interior pieces from the cut.

But for about 9kusd I would have the front and back halves of the car shipped to me. Should be about everything you need there lol

 

Damn 9k is a steal! Though I would consider not cutting it in half. Reason why is the floorpan would be in 2 pieces, which would seem like it would compromise integrity. Or remove the floorpan then cutting the car in 2. Does that car run? 9k seems ultra cheap damn

 

I'm not too worried for time, I was thinking about buying a mirage and bringing it home to do the swap over the winter maybe next year. Just need to see if I can get all the parts I need from a mirage or if I'm still going to be sourcing obscure parts.

No good pics as of yet, waiting for the weather to get better before going out and taking photos, just the generic crappy ones from when it was bought in Japan.




9k isn't all that unbelievable. My 6 was ~11k shipped to Calgary and we tried to bring over a nicer condition one for that.

 

I had a nice long reply typed up and lost it.

$9k is a great price for a complete car. However if it doesn't include shipping, that'll be pricey. I paid $1000 just to ship the floor pan, fuel tank, and side skirts from Japperformance.

Also what most people forget, all this stuff has to clear customs. If they decide to inspect it, you have to foot the bill. Also, you'll be responsible for daily storage fees during that time and it could take weeks. I lucked out and got it released right away but I imagine with a front and rear clip, they'll be holding onto it for a little bit.

It's been a while so I don't remember 100% but this is the rough estimate.
-$6000 shipped for the front clip, trunk, rear bumper, doors, and rear drivetrain.
-$1800 shipped for the floor pan, fuel tank, and side skirts
-$250 shipped for rear strut towers. Evo towers are taller and allow more travel
-$200 shipped for rear arches on the quarter panels
-$150 shipped for 3 emblems
-$500 shipped for Evo 8 front seats (Requires modification to Evo 4-6 rails to fit)
-$100 for Evo 8 rear seats. (don't fit perfectly but they work)
-$700 for Evo 8 rear diff, mustache bar, diff support and axles (Evo 4-6 ayc rear end is weak)
-$150 black dashboard. Sedans with tan interior and Mirage coupes have these
-$50 black seat belts. Only on Mirage coupes
-$700 coilovers. Not necessary but the Evo 4-6 have a rally car stance and sit kinda high.

That's $10,600 to get you a fairly stock Evo 5. The dashboard, seatbelts, and coilovers can be passed up. This is also assuming you already own the Mirage, if not add anywhere from $500-2000 depending on the condition. Also factor in paint and body. I lucked out and bought a white Mirage with a somewhat decent body and also paid a premium for the nicest Evo 5 clip I could find. Also most Mirage sedans are automatics so you'll need the LHD center console and shift surround. Also a LHD pedal set. This adds a couple hundred to the cost as well.

If you can't do your own labor or welding, most shops charge $80-100 per hour for shop time. I'd assume at least a few thousand to do the floor pan swap as it takes A LOT of time.

So you'll have a stock Evo 5 for a little more than the price of an Evo 8

Downsides to the swap. Lots of time, money and research. At times I wish I hadn't sold the Evo 8 and started this project. At the end, it was totally worth it. Sourcing parts requires patience as some aren't interchangeable. Resale value. If the time comes to sell it, at the end of the day it's a Mirage. So unless the person you're selling it to has cash, no bank will loan more than a couple thousand for a Mirage. Insurance. Make sure you take out additional coverage. Farmers allowed me to get insurance for the value of the car plus $10k additional. This doesn't cover everything but it sure helps and it keeps a minor fender bender from totaling out the car.

When it comes to performance mods, it costs the same as a 8 so I won't give a price breakdown on that. Hope this clears a lot of things up. Be 100% committed to completing it. I see a lot of people selling half completed conversions and other people going on YEARS and still not completely done. I finished this one in almost exactly 1 year and it was a lot of long nights and weekends. Mostly during the cold winter months.