I've had an Evo as a daily driver for three years. It is a good daily driver if you are willing to make some compromises.

Here are some of the downsides:

The lack of CC sucks as has been mentioned several times.

Even on stock exhaust the car is loud for long trips (2-3hrs). Surprisingly enough it isn't from the exhaust though. It's the tires, diffs, and lack of sound deadener. We drove it to Bristol from Charlotte in the rain which makes it WAY LOUDER and by the time we got there my ears were ringing. That's saying something considering I grew up at a racetrack.

When it's hot and you want to run the A/C it doesn't cool very well unless you are moving along. Which you really won't have to worry about because if it is stop and go you'll turn the A/C off anyway because the car is a pig off boost with the A/C on. I don't know if the IX's are the same here, maybe the mivec helps that out IDK.

It gets a fair bit of attention. Some good some not. Every jack*ss boy ricer will try to challenge you and surprisingly enough you will find out every fast food worker you talk to was "Going to get one but, decided to get (insert anything from SRT4 to minivan) instead" and will then try to justify why. Sometimes it's pretty funny, other times just sad.

If you start modding it, it will consume your life. (good, bad, IDK? you decide)

The good things:

For the money there isn't anything street legal that can get you there as fast in as many different weather conditions or put as big of a smile on your face. That is a big one.

Modding it makes power quite easily.

You'll forget about any of the A/C CC woes if there is anything close to a back road on your way to work. This is another big one.

When you turn the heat on, you swear it has opened the gates to hell somewere under the dash. Good heat.

It is just about track ready right off the showroom floor.

Should hold it's resale value much better than any other Mitsu product.

If you're on a long trip and it's raining it will be loud enough you can't hear your wife complain.

Evo's make OK drivers look good and good drivers look like Senna.

I've found myself wanting something more luxurious a few times. The problem is I love how fast this thing is, how forgiving and, how well it communicates. Every time I drive a luxury car in my price range it gives up too much in the performance aspect and I find myself happy to be back in my Evo at the end of my luxury craving. If I could afford a new 911 turbo it might be a different story but, I can't so there isn sense in even talking about it.

Overall I love my Evo. It has it's faults but, it redeeming qualities make up for them 10 fold.

 

i appreciate all the input.....i have owned a few mustangs before, so as you can imagine this will be a big change going to an evo. i have driven a few of the evos from stock to modded and i always wonder about how they are everyday.
i have 1 more question.....is an MR worth the extra money????
1 thing i feel is great about working on mitsu's is that i get paid to fix my own car........haha

thanks to all and i will keep you posted on what i decide

 

I completely agree with everything you have mentioned, buy I especially agree with wanting luxury but not wanting to sacrifice performance. I had an EVO for about 7 months. I modded it a little and it was an extremely fun car. My friend crashed it, and I decided I needed a little class again, and got a 350z touring with nav. Nice car, looks good, rides really nice, but man is it slow. I cant stand how much performance I gave up, and as much as I'll miss the nav. and butt warmers, I cant wait for the right deal on my EVO IX. Hopefully its sooner then later!

 

i love my car as a daily driver. it can be driven hard or soft. as far as long road trips, only downfall is no cruise control. i have the leather seats in my car and they are truely comfortable to me. i don't get that numb butt and sore at the same time and i've driven it on several 10-15 hour road trips.

 

You really need to seach more (if you're even searching at all):
https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/sh...ighlight=mr+ix

Here's a link to the search page you should be using:
https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/search.php Bookmark it!!

 

If your planning on keeping it stock and you like the BBS wheels, stock ride hight, then the MR is worth it. If your going to mod it with coilovers, wheels, ect. get a regular evo. the only thing I wish I had off the MR is the six speed and thats not worth 5k to me

 

I absolutely love it! It is as practical as any other car for the most part. It is one of the most well-rounded and versatile performance cars around. The only thing I can think of that would make it more practical is if the rear seats folded down to give trunk access. The STis dont have that either, so whatever.

 

ok bernardo i get it.....
i just wanted to talk with some you guys about your cars. and i did some searching but just wanted more input, ok?
but thanks to all for the inputs.......i appreciate it alot. what i saw on searching and asking helped alot
thanks
keith

 

I have had my 05' MR for almmost two years now. It is my daily driver and has been on a couple trips over 3hrs. This is a good daily driver compared to a lot of cars. I say this not in regards to comfort alone though. See, to me a daily driver needs to be able to negotiate through traffic with ease. I have had an Explorer and a few 15 and 14 second 1/4 mile cars. I hated them in traffic. I was at the mercy of the idiots around me in those cars. So when that cork in the far left lane was doing 10mph under I had no way to get past them! With the Evo it is a breeze to get around such drivers. I agree with the others who've said the seats are not great for extended trips. I am about 6'4" and the wheel is not in the right place for me no matter how I try to adjust the seat and wheel. It is not as bad as some cars I've had though. So you know, I've owned a 90' mustang and a 95' mustang. I also drove my girlfriends 04' mach 1 enough to say it wasn't a good daily driver at all. The 06' mustang I drove was more comfortable then the older ones, but no better than the Evo. One more factor I want to comment on. I think the MR is a far better daily driver than the standard Evo. The suspension is a little less jarring and the 6-speed makes cruising quieter. I ditched the stock tires right away also, they are loud and bouncy. I put the new Advans from the Elise on and got more grip and a much better ride with far less noise. It just so happens that I work for Ford and can get you a discount on a new Mustang. I am also looking to sell my MR in the near future. So either way I got you covered.

Best of luck with whatever you decide.

Brett

 

If your gunna drive long trips get the MR with the 6 speed....the 5 speed is nice but it seems like if ur driving for long periods of time the rpm's are too high and it kinda gets anoying...driving in traffic will be the same for all manual cars which kinda gets old also...other than that i couldnt be happier with my evo, ive driven trucks all my life and 1 honda civic, the evo blows them all away by far

 

Nothing really new to add...just opinions.

The car is okay for a daily driver. The lack of cruise control never bothered me...I never used it. The seats feel GREAT. Coming from a Civic/Accord/Saturn/Windstar...those things felt like sitting on stacks of wood. The downside...on long trips they get so comfortable that I feel like napping in them.

The ride is harsh...got a backache and some headaches the first week of owning the car. But you get used to it. My backseat passengers complain that it makes them want to ****...or they get motion sickness. Sucks I guess because the backseats off no support for what the car can throw at them gravity-wise.

Gas mileage is tolerable...though driving does get addicting and you will use it more than just to and from work.

A/C sucks...never used the heater...I live in CA
Shifter is notchy at the start...and working the clutch does get tiresome in traffic. The big wing makes it hard to see people behind you.

But after driving it for a while...all the other "commuter cars" feel vague in terms of communication, soft as far as suspension, and just in general...don't drive as well as the Evo. The accord and civic are gone now...the saturn has no power to get onto the freeway, is noisy and rattles way too much (and thats coming from an Evo owner), the van's suspension is way to mushy, the seats are too high-ironically enough I get motion sickness from driving those cars now.

 

Daily driven (only car). Driving with A/C on requires a little more effort when trying to keep the RPMs up between shifts when "putting" around town. I find that I have to drive it with a different style when the compressor is dragging the engine. It is, after all, a ~3300lb. AWD car powered by a mere 2.0L (off-boost) connected to a 14lb flywheel........it takes a little finesse getting it going smoothly.


I'll touch on my limited cross country driving with the MR a bit:

I've driven mine to roundtrip to Texas and back (South Carolina) 3 times just this year. That's 1200 miles each way and I did that in an average of about 16 hours w/ just stops for fuel.

The seats are a little rough (they put a little extra weight on your lower back w/ the fixed tilt position), but after a couple of hours your back is numb anyways! Slipping a small pillow where the seat bottom meets the seat back (the crack of your azz) will unload some of the weight off your lower back and back to your buttocks where it belongs. It helps.

Driving more than 3 or 4 hours sucks in just about every seat and car I have owned (4 bimmers, 2 trucks, a Volvo, etc.). Just sitting upright wears you down after a while, so I wouldn't completely write-off the Evo's recaros as unbearable for long travel. You just get numb a little bit sooner.

The suspension on the MR isn't that bad. You still "feel" the road...which is good...in moderations.

I compare my previous cars as "radio music" whereas my evo was a "Live Concert". You're bumping around, hearing all kinds of loud noises, feeling "alive"....but after a couple of hours of excitment your senses get dulled and you can't wait to get home where it is quiet. It takes a lot out of you but at the same time you build a tollerance for it and start wanting it more and more. I can't wait to take my evo for an even longer road trip.

Cruise control is for pansies!

 

The only thing I HATE about the evo is the turbo lag below 2000-2500 rpm. Everything else is awesome. I don't understand why there is so much lag. My last, last car was a 2000 Si w/t3t04e and the turbo lag wasn't even CLOSE to as bad even that low in the revs. And thats with a way bigger turbo and a 1.6 It's never made any sense to me.

 

Plain and simple, if you buy an evo it will make your life more complete.
It will be one of the main reasons you push through the work week so you can hang out with your evo on the weekend, family and friends come second when you own an evo. It will pretty much put some meaning in to your life.

 

Dont get a Mustang GT...thats all I have to say.