As you can tell, I'm a new member here. Anyways I signed up because I'm interested in buying an Evo soon and wanted to get to know the cars a little better. Anyways, I found an Evo at a local dealership here so I decided to stop by and give it a little test drive. Let me start first by saying that I drive a 2003 Focus with an automatic transmission. Save the jokes , its a POS, I know. Anyways, I've driven 5spds before, but never really outside of a parking lot. The Evo was extremely easy to drive. It took all of 3 seconds to get used to it. I loved the feel of the clutch and how the car shifts. I got on it a few times and was impressed at how hard the car pulled, and how quickly it got me to illegal speeds. The handling on the cars was great. Very responsive, very stiff. I think to most people this would be a turn off, as the ride was pretty harsh, atleast for most daily driving. But I like it. I like feeling the road. So anyways, we get back to the dealership after about 1/2 hour of test driving to talk numbers. They wanted $19,500 for a 2003 with 85,000 miles. KBB is $18,500 for one in "excellent" condition, which this one was not. The interior was about perfect. It has black leather interior, sunroof. It was nice. The exterior was something left to be desired. The front lip was about to fall off. On the drivers side of the front bumper there was a large black scuff mark. On the passenger side there was a big scrape/scuff mark on the headlight and fender where it looks like the car had brused up against another car, or maybe a light pole or something. I wasn't too concerned with these things, as they could be fixed/buffed relatively easily. The paint on the front would need touching up. Tons of rock chips and blemishes on the hood and bumper. This doesn't really bother me as I was expecting this. The main turn off was the wheels. 3 of the 4 wheels had significant curb rash. I'm talking about the entire circumference of the wheel was scratched up on the lip. Also, a Carfax history report showed a front end collision with "moderate" damage in 2005. The combination of the accident along with the general upkeep of the exterior makes me feel like the previous owner didn't take very good care of the car, which is ultimeately why I decided against buying it. I managed to talk them down to $18,500 out the door, so basically $17,500 plus tax, title, fees, etc. All in all, I'm pretty much sold on buying an Evo. I was looking at a wide range of cars, and so far it's been the most fun to drive.

Actuall, along similar lines, after I left this dealership, I went and checked out another. They had a 2001 Mustang SVT Cobra for sale. It was in excellent condition. Paint was nearly flawless except for some minor scratches on the trunk lid. On paper the Cobra is faster, so I decided to give it a test drive. The car didn't feel that great at all. It may be "faster" but the Evo pulled a lot harder. The Cobra felt like a boat and didn't handle good at all. Not to mention the clutch was so heavy it felt like I was driving a truck. I was impressed by the condition, the sound, and the price of the car ($13,000) but wasn't impressed enough to even consider it.

So today is a new day. I hope to test drive a 350Z and an S2000 this evening. I'm not really interested in a 350Z, but I hear they are fun to drive, so we will see. I compete religiously in autocross, so there is the obvious reason why I'm interested in the S2000.

Anyways, sorry for the long read, but thanks for taking the time. Now I see why so many people love the Evo


Cliffs:
Test drove an Evo, loved it.

 

Hello and welcome! I came from a focus myself! Good luck in your test drives and just remember not to rush into anything. I think just about everyone on here spent months looking for the right evo.

 

stock evo is just the start of where the fun begins lol

 

wait and get a nicer EvO...its worth it.

 

For sure. I'm not in any rush.

 

check out the for sale forums on the board, a lot of well kept evos at pretty good prices pop up there daily.

 

They are seriously taxing for that evo with all the problems. I bought mine with clean carfax, clean paint, 57k miles for 18k. THey are trying to get over on you, Just wait and you will find one. I have been waiting for like 2 years to get one and i finally got a good one. /yawn to the cobra Get a evo and bolt on's and tune and u will eat those up all day.

 

poon, did you get yours at a dealer or private seller? And yes, the stealership I visited was way over charging for the car. They seriously didn't know anything about it either. There are a few on here I have considered. I've shot some PMs but no one seems to be getting back to me.

 

I know you really liked the overall driving feel of the used evo, and I don't blame you. My advice is to not buy any used car ever. Either save your money for something new and just as good on the performance...Or if you need to buy a car now, then buy a new car that may not be as good in the performance. Bottom line is to buy a new car if I were you. Never ever trust a used car, even if the performance is very explosive. If I had a choice to buy a used evo for $20,000 or a new corollo for a few grand less, I would take the brand new corolla.

 

Got mine for 18k with 70k, well worth it for a spotless evo, they are out there just have to wait it out

(ex G35 coupe driver)

 

This is good advice, but I really want something "nice" and the Evo falls into that category. It's very hard to find what I want in an Evo, but they are out there, and I have a good deal of patience.

 

Welcome to evom! You can find a 8 with less miles than that for about the same price the dealership was asking, just keep looking and dont settle for anything ur skept about!