EVO MR Delima, Cant Decide
Matt, you can't go wrong with either car.
As a former owner of '04 STi and a current owner of 9 mr, I can tell you both cars are amazing machines.
Your decision really depends on what your plans for the car are.
If you plan to modify it as you stated and are looking for around 350 whp, evo would be the better purchase.
You would be spending a lot more money trying to obtain that type of power from STi than evo.
I am fairly certain you need a larger turbocharger on STi to get it to 350hp or more.
I could tell you from personal experience, you could almost obtain 350whp on a dynojet simply with drop in, MBC, TBE, and a tune on evo 9.
More than just the power issue, stock evo outhandles stock STi fairly easily.
Although I can't speak about '06 model, I never cared for handling of STi.
Stis have tendency to understeer quite heavily entering the turn and then snap oversteer as you apply more throttle.
As a former owner of '04 STi and a current owner of 9 mr, I can tell you both cars are amazing machines.
Your decision really depends on what your plans for the car are.
If you plan to modify it as you stated and are looking for around 350 whp, evo would be the better purchase.
You would be spending a lot more money trying to obtain that type of power from STi than evo.
I am fairly certain you need a larger turbocharger on STi to get it to 350hp or more.
I could tell you from personal experience, you could almost obtain 350whp on a dynojet simply with drop in, MBC, TBE, and a tune on evo 9.
More than just the power issue, stock evo outhandles stock STi fairly easily.
Although I can't speak about '06 model, I never cared for handling of STi.
Stis have tendency to understeer quite heavily entering the turn and then snap oversteer as you apply more throttle.
I'll throw a little tidbit into this thread. If you are looking at STi's seriously, get an 07. With the new VF43 turbo, which has a larger wastegate, and the redesigned heads there are STi's making ~350 wheel horse with TBE, header and a tune. The kicker to that number is they are making just over 400 wheel torque. 3rd, 4th and 5th gears have had ratio changes in the STi and IIRC you can trap up to ~114 mph in the quarter in 4th. All that being said the Evo will still outhandle the STi stock for stock. Its all going to come down to comfort with the car and OTD purchase price for either IMHO.
I'll throw a little tidbit into this thread. If you are looking at STi's seriously, get an 07. With the new VF43 turbo, which has a larger wastegate, and the redesigned heads there are STi's making ~350 wheel horse with TBE, header and a tune. The kicker to that number is they are making just over 400 wheel torque. 3rd, 4th and 5th gears have had ratio changes in the STi and IIRC you can trap up to ~114 mph in the quarter in 4th. All that being said the Evo will still outhandle the STi stock for stock. Its all going to come down to comfort with the car and OTD purchase price for either IMHO.
evo rear seat doesnt fold down either
its easy to make 400 hp on the 9
so u have ridden in a new mr. i think its smooth as silk for the type of car it is - especially with the bilsteins.
the 06 mr has a different 4th gear part number. im sure they beefed it up from the old 8 mr.
its easy to make 400 hp on the 9
so u have ridden in a new mr. i think its smooth as silk for the type of car it is - especially with the bilsteins.
the 06 mr has a different 4th gear part number. im sure they beefed it up from the old 8 mr.
I know this is kind of
but I want to know where you read that the IX MR has a different 4th gear part number than the VIII... as far as I know there is no change from the VIII MR as it was confirmed in another thread, so just curious where u read this?As far as this topic is concerned, I would have to advise you to drive both. I have driven an '04 STI and although it mad a lot of low end torque, my IX MR would walk all over it- plus the steering mechanism (which may be different in the newer STI) is very loose and unprecise... made me feel sketchy taking corners at really high speeds while the Evo feels like you can keep pushing it faster with confidence. If you are more concerned about having creature comfort stuff like fold down rear seats than performance, there are other AWD options u may want to explore- the WRX TR (2.5T, AWD, $10k less than an STI), mazdaspeed 6 (Turbo, AWD), VW GTI R32 (3.2VR6 motor, AWD), etc. Some of these cars are geared more toward performance, and the MR is on the the most extreme end of that, followed close by the STI, and other models may haul *** and put power to the ground thru all 4 wheels with less performance but more creature comforts... Test drive the models you are seriously considering and research them all before making an expensive mistake purchasing the wrong one...
Last edited by DJ Brett B; Jan 31, 2007 at 01:00 PM.
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From: SOCAL
Thank you for your replys. I am as confused as ever now. I have driven both btw. I guess im really going to think this over, and go with what ever is a better deal. My Mom works in the Car biz, so im seeing if see can get me a killer deal.
Thanks again and ill be back.
Matt
Thanks again and ill be back.
Matt
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From: California
Gonna double dip on this thread. First off if performance is not your #1 priority then there are other AWD cars that might be a better fit for you.
I do have an 06 STI and a 06 MR. Our MR rides nicer - The STI has more travel but for daily driving the MR has measureably nicer ride quality. The STI just feels springy and stiffly dampened. In-spite of claims of bullet proofness, our STI makes a clunking sound in the tunnel when launched (even mildly - I know, I know to the dealer with it). I realize it's a mount issue but until it's fixed I cant call it bulletproof. What I will say is that the STI clutch is very strong while the Evo clutch is very weak, mitsu claims they intended this to be the weak link to avoid broken tranny's and other driveline problems. It shouldnt be a problem unless your gong to be drag racing the car and slipping it excessively. The STI clutch also has a nice feel where the Evo feels like it must be either in or out. Shifter wise the MR feels extemely precise and redefines the word smooth. The STI is extremely notchy in comparison. The Evo gears are also much longer, and the 4G63 revs much higher - that's probably why it kicks the STI's *** in most performance tests. The STI needs an extra shift to get to 60mph so the Evo seriously stomps it in 0-60. In my experience as soon as our STI has to shift to second that's when the Evo really pulls away from the it. The combination of higher displacement, higher compression, and a smaller turbo give it great low end torque (I think this is why people label it a good DD) but after 3500 rpms it really feels flat and this is where the Evo just starting to make power and starts pulling like a freight train. If you test drive make sure and do a WOT to redline in both cars and you'll see exactly what I"m talking about. My girl doesnt like that feeling of the turbo coming on like gangbusters so the STI suits her well. It has a very linear powerband from launch to redline. Me.. I drive these cars for the feeling they give me, and the Evo inspires alot more confidence. Also, last but not least.. the MR does cost more thant the STI.
One more thing, I've had more problems with my Evo than we have with the STI. My car has had a P0300 issue for 5000 miles (check engine light the whole time, rough idle, etc). The dealer just replaced the injector's this week and it seems like they might have fixed it this time (3 times to the dealer for this issue, car has 13K miles on it now). If it's not fixed I'm going to lemon it although I want another one just like it without the problem that they can't fix.
I do have an 06 STI and a 06 MR. Our MR rides nicer - The STI has more travel but for daily driving the MR has measureably nicer ride quality. The STI just feels springy and stiffly dampened. In-spite of claims of bullet proofness, our STI makes a clunking sound in the tunnel when launched (even mildly - I know, I know to the dealer with it). I realize it's a mount issue but until it's fixed I cant call it bulletproof. What I will say is that the STI clutch is very strong while the Evo clutch is very weak, mitsu claims they intended this to be the weak link to avoid broken tranny's and other driveline problems. It shouldnt be a problem unless your gong to be drag racing the car and slipping it excessively. The STI clutch also has a nice feel where the Evo feels like it must be either in or out. Shifter wise the MR feels extemely precise and redefines the word smooth. The STI is extremely notchy in comparison. The Evo gears are also much longer, and the 4G63 revs much higher - that's probably why it kicks the STI's *** in most performance tests. The STI needs an extra shift to get to 60mph so the Evo seriously stomps it in 0-60. In my experience as soon as our STI has to shift to second that's when the Evo really pulls away from the it. The combination of higher displacement, higher compression, and a smaller turbo give it great low end torque (I think this is why people label it a good DD) but after 3500 rpms it really feels flat and this is where the Evo just starting to make power and starts pulling like a freight train. If you test drive make sure and do a WOT to redline in both cars and you'll see exactly what I"m talking about. My girl doesnt like that feeling of the turbo coming on like gangbusters so the STI suits her well. It has a very linear powerband from launch to redline. Me.. I drive these cars for the feeling they give me, and the Evo inspires alot more confidence. Also, last but not least.. the MR does cost more thant the STI.
One more thing, I've had more problems with my Evo than we have with the STI. My car has had a P0300 issue for 5000 miles (check engine light the whole time, rough idle, etc). The dealer just replaced the injector's this week and it seems like they might have fixed it this time (3 times to the dealer for this issue, car has 13K miles on it now). If it's not fixed I'm going to lemon it although I want another one just like it without the problem that they can't fix.
