Ok, so here I am again.

First I had a 2000 S2000.

I did some research back in 2004 I believe. At the time Mitsu was voiding warranties as soon as you left the dealership and weren't worth the paper they were printed on and trany's were grenading on the 2003 evo's at an alarming rate . Add that with my craptastic experience with my 2002 eclipse and I just wasn't having it.

So I pulled the trigger on 2004 STI instead. I was running a stage 2, TurboXS UTEC. Less than a year later, I couldn't stand the car. The shifter was stiff and notchy (strong as hell, but clunky... but isn't everything compared to a s2k shifter), the steering was really dead... you couldn't feel anything of the road with it. It had more rattles then a babies toy chest...

I ditched the STI and bought another 2000 S2000. After the STI, there was no way I was buying a new. Money isn't free . I've got the comptech supercharger, 4.57 gears, and life is good and all is well in the universe... for awhile.

Now here I am, asking the same old tired questions just a couple years later. The s2000 while a great drivers car, is killing me with the whole 2 seater and trunk the size of a tool box. I had to order a box fan online because I couldn't get the damn thing into my car.

So I've narrowed my choices down. Evo iX, STI (not too likely, not really wanting to go down that road again), WRX and mod it for fun and poverty, Legacy GT... See WRX.

I KNOW this is an Evo forum, and YES I expect it to be biased. S2000 guys think I should suck it up, Subies think I should buy anything with boxter engine ... preferably something with an STI logo. But if you want to know about a car, ask people who have one... don't listen to people who have never owned one, let alone driven it. So here I am!

Basically, how reliability been on the Evo's and what can you do with $2000 in the way of mods. I spent almost $7000+ on mods for my s2k and I'm not going there again.

 

How long can you wait? The next generation EVO's and STI's will probably be a big step up. I assume FWD is off the list.

 

Why would I want FWD? After owning FWD cars for 10 years... blah. RWD or AWD... preferrable RWD . Sliding around like a duck on a frozen pond sucks though.

Honestly I probably won't buy a new car until March-June. I gotta remove my supercharger/gears and that'll be pita. Also I don't really like buying new cars in the winter... terrible time to try and learn to drive a completely different car that does 0-60 in under 5 seconds

 

Whats up fellow S2K owner.

First, you will never find an AWD tranny that shifts as nice as the S2K. I've had WRX, 2 EVOs, driven STI, and drive an 06 WRX often, all are a lot more "clucky" then my S2K, which has 50K on the tranny.

The first US EVOs (03s) did have some grinding issue but most of the "stories" have to due with driver abuse.

EVOs are pretty reliable when it comes to the motor. Some people have TC and Diff problems but those have seem to not be as common anymore. All the EVOs I've been it, theres always stuff that rattles and such. I mean the interior isnt the greatest quality, but who cares.

The EVO is the best when it comes to mods. 2K dollar and you can be into the high 11s or low 12s easy.

If you more of a grown up business man type, get a legacy GT. I hear there great cars and have some power.

As for a WRX, I'm very impressed with the new 06 WRX. My g/f has one and its great compared to my 04 WRX. New 2.5l block, 17" rims instead of 16", 4 pistoms front/2 rear vs old wrx 2 front/1 rear. When dynoed on a mustang dyno, the 06 WRX puts down a lot of torque, around 210-230, which is close to an EVO or STi.

Anyways, just get a IX. You should be satisfied with the power to money ratio of the mods and if you take care of it, It will last.


ps, where are you located?? Im lookin into gettin the comptech blower for my S2K. and maybe some gears....

 

I don't think Evo tranny's have ever grenadded. That is a WRX thing, Evo tranny's are pretty consistantly strong, maybe synchro problems, but that's it.

If all those little things bugged you about the STi, DONT GET AN EVO. It has all the same problems but more extreme.

The Evo is the cheapest to mod, you can run 11's with $2000.

In your situation i would get the Legacy, i have been impressed by them at the track, and it seems the only logical car for you.

Maybe you should look at other cars as well, maybe an S4 or something...

 

I'm in New Jersey.

I can live with things rattling... After the STI, I learned how to fix them quick . I really like the legacy GT, but I'm a corner carver and the GT is pretty heavy. Besides the shifter in the STI, the dead steering feel is what did that car in. It had pathetic feedback and I'll have to test drive a 07 GT see if it's the same.

 

There's so much rumor and BS attached to certain cars that isn't always 100% true. You usually only hear the bad stories about Evo warranties, and yes they are usually terror stories. But its not ALWAYS the case, I know a few guys that have BPU's on their evo's and get warranty service no problem.. it all depends on your dealership.


if you are a true performance nut, you need to get the Evo. You'll be posting a thread a week after you get it proclaiming how much you love it.

If performance isn't your absolute #1 objective, get the legacy man. Thats a good car with some sacrafices in performance for the luxuries you might prefer.

 

I drove the new STI and the Legacy GT SPec-whatever before getting the IX. There's just no comparison if what you're looking for is that Porsche-like road carving feeling (yes I also drove several 997s but couldn't justify the cost over the IX).

The IX MR is the best choice right now among all those. That's what I got, and it really wasn't close.

 

Test drive of the cars you are interested in and decide for yourself. Don't let other people tell you what you should want. Don't forget about the RX-8, Lotus Elise, Z06, 350Z, third gen RX-7, E36 M3, etc. Not really sure what is in your budget.

 

I'd go with a new IX SE MR.

 

did someone say e36 m3??? haha ya i have one right now that im tryin to sell so i can get an evo ix mr... i spent around 9k building the motor from top to bottom and another 6k on the turbo kit for it... it was supposed to be pushing out around 650-700 to the rear wheels but i never got to finish the project thus why im selling everything now for a new car... if modding is what you really care for i wouldnt suggest staying away from the e36 m3 seeing as how it is ridiculously expensive to mod and you dont really get much power out of it for the money compared to the evo/sti... seems like your heart is set on a 4wd turbo car and ive driven all the cars you mentioned except the legacy... and i would go with a evo ix mr hands down...

 

Great suggestion. What is acceptable to me and others on here may make you miserable. BTW, the Legacy GT is only 100 pounds or so heavier than the STi.

 

A 650 HP m3 would alot more fun to drive around than an Evo in my opinion...you should keep your car and finish the project =) Might not have a whole lot of traction but it would be nasty at autoX/road racing and would be great for picking up chicks!

 

haha ya i already knew this but its not i like dont want it anymore... its cuz ive run into financial issues and im in debt so i need to sell the motor and turbo kit... then sell the car... and basically start fresh with a evo... it sucks everyday i open the garage door and see it just sitting there on jacks...

 

No RX-8 or 350z's. RX-8's are junk, and 350z's are plastic... and it doesn't help that I need a BIGGER car than my s2k. I'd keep my s2k over 350z any day, the vette and lotus are too freakin small, so again I'd just keep my s2k before I bought any of these. I can beat the crap out of a 350z (have several times) with my s2k.

RX-7's were great cars... 15 years ago. I need something reliable, so a 15 year old car is out.

M3's are just too friggin expensive, and BMW's tend to fall apart right after the warranty expires.

I'm trying to stay in $30k range. Once you go over $35k I don't want it . Before anyone says it, yes I can get a new Evo IX, STI, or Legacy GT under 35k.