hey everyone I am Chris, I live in Colorado!!

So a lil car history, Ive had two b5 (00-02) Audi S4's both were heavily modified..Then I went a total 180* and bought a 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 (mostly stock, I made an H-pipe/deleted the big muffler), which is what I am currently DD-ing..

I recently had a major break down on the highway (still in the process of sorting out what exactly is wrong, and the extent of the damage..) I bought an aftermarket warranty (fidelity) thru my jeep dealership and they are fighting me tooth and nail trying not to cover what damages occurred. This is the first break down in a year and a half of ownership.. But if this is a sign of things to come I figure I should get out of the Jeep and into something else now, versus waiting and getting boned again if I wait.

Now I realize I got dooped by the stealership into buying this warranty, it was literally the most expensive/extensive warranty you could buy. As of today they are only going to cover ~30% of the total bill (wont know if that fixes everything till the parts are installed in order to be able to drive the jeep, it is possible there is more damage).....Plus I have to pay their 100$ deductible.. So I am planning on getting out of this Jeep ASAP!!!!! The warranty is fully transferable and I'm NOT upside down on the loan, I'll actually pocket ~4-5k if I sell it at a fair KBB value (which the dealership said they will pay KBB/NADA value no hassle).. So no real issues with selling it.

The Evo X I found and like is a 2010 Evo X SE (it has the DSG, and seats of the MR and bumper of a GSR.. lighter than a MR, am I missing anything else?

Now I have some questions:

I figure these are reliable when kept stock, and would try and keep it stock till the warranty expires (if it comes with one, I will find out more Monday..)

But how reliable are these cars when modified? W/ bolt-on's? Tuning? Big turbo's? Built motors? (I know most of that rests with the motor builder/machine shops)..

I assume that an Evo X couldnt possibly be worse than a b5 s4 in terms of ease to work on, and regular maintenance.. So I dont see how this decision could be a bad one.. The evo gets better MPG's, is faster, and better handling than my current jeep.. And it will get me out of my headache with the Jeep and its aftermarket warranty situation.

TLR;
I have an 07 jeep srt8 with an aftermarket warranty, that doesn't cover anything.. Wanting to get into a Evo X SE, am I crazy? Am I getting myself into something that's going to be a headache in the future?

Evo X in question;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nogarorain/6974263629/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nogarorain/6974265149/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nogarorain/6828142556/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nogarorain/6828144852/

Pics for your time! SORRY THEY ARE HUGE!
I am building my first b5 s4, turning it into a dedicated track car (still in progress.....) will have a single 76mm Billet wheel BB precision with a TiAL 1.44 a/r exhaust housing.. it will run on alcohol and become rwd with a bunch of more custom stuff to come.. fixin to do the 1/4 mile and full mile.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nogarorain/6793788859/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nogarorain/6793788157/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nogarorain/6793786765/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nogarorain/6793785185/

 

You could always buy my evo ix se in Boulder

 

lol but I want a X, and DSG!!!

 

The X SE would suit you well. The reliability is hard to say. I think a lot of it comes with how you maintain the car. I'm on my second Evo and have never had any major issues. The problems I have had are those that I've caused (clutch, brakes, etc...). Good luck.

-Izzy

 

i hav an evo x se also in colorado. its a great ride even stock. ive done some simple bolt ons and a tune. hav had it for a year and havent had any issues. easy to work on maintenance is easy as well as long as you keep up to date.

 

I figured a lot of it has to do with proper maintenance, that's how the s4's were.. I have no issues when playing and things break, but I do have an issue when it's something along the lines of what happened with the Jeep.. I literally was going 65mph with the cruise on and had a thermostat stick shut, boom coolant/steam everywhere.. So far they've figured out the thermostat went bad, but I had the trans overheat message on my indicator. Of course they can't drive the car till the theromstat is replaced to determine if anything else is wrong.. And that warranty won't cover "secondary damage" so they'll cover the 80$ thermostat but not a bad trans....



The S4 was insane to maintain... I went from never doing a tune up, to pulling/installing the motor and rebuilding my own transmission (rebuilt kit came with a DVD lol)..

So I figured it would be much easier with a car that has better reliability to begin with.. Only other Japanese car I've had was my first, it was an 01 Honda accord 4 cylinder 5speed sedan.. Drove it for 70k without an issue.

 

those are not MR seats.

 

Yea, not MR seats. What is do you mean by GSR bumper? And what is DSG?

To answer your question, the X is really reliable as long as you keep up on the maintance. It is fairly easy to work on too. The SST tranny is still something that I'm unsure about but it seems very reliable so far, just not for me..

 

They're not MR seats, but they are heated. By bumper not sure if he means that the SE doesn't have the chrome trim in the front like the MR. Not sure about DSG.. The SST isn't horrible, have heard from a few people with over 80k that they haven't had any issues. The only downside I've seen is that you don't make as much in gains when modding..

 

DSG is the VW name for their version of the Twin Clutch Tranny.

 

Ohhh.. yea sounded familiar. ive heard dct before as well wasnt sure if it was just a typo

 

Yeah sorry thats what a lot of the euro car manufactures call it. Paddle shifters sounds... Well weak.. The bumper comment, I thought the MR's had a bigger lip and looked a bit different.. But after googling both I think it's the black/chrome that made it look different at first looks.

Anything else I'm missing regarding SE and what it is?N

 

theres no rockford fosgate option, it has heated seats (not leather), no chrome trim on front bumper, it has the bilstein shocks

 

So the SE is not supposed to have MR seats, correct? The seats in this car are the ones it came from the factory (if you can tell, I know you can't physically see them..)?


Thanks for your help, tomorrow I'll have a better idea if this deal is going through.. If it does I've gotta drive to F'n Montana to pick it up/trade the jeep in..

 

I've been satisfied with my SE to date. TC-SST is awesome, love way it hugs the road, the headlights are a nice factory feature, seats are comfy (and warm for the winter)....it's just a blast to drive.

I may be biased but if the price is right I'd say it's a good choice for a DD and is plenty of fun in stock form. My plan is to accumulate parts and install dealer friendly items at a slow pace. Why? Because out of the box this car has everything a "driver" should want/need and while there's plenty of room for improvement, modding just brings headaches and becomes a money pit.