I'm not quite sure if this is the right place to post this, but it made sense...

Basically I'm looking into buying an evo 8 and wanted to get some advice. But FIRST, let me provide some important background information...

I've been wrenching on 2g Eclipse/Talon for 4-5 years now and have a fairly respectable 95 Talon. I'm more than happy to do maintenance work and make repairs to the car myself. I've owned a 2003 evo 8 before for a short period of time and did some minor maintenance and upgrades. In other words, I'm not worried about having to replace/repair/maintain the car.

So right now I have the Talon as my weekend/track car and a 2008 Cobalt SS (turbocharged) as my daily driver. I like the fact that the SS is fairly "sporty", and gets close to 30MPG on the highway. I don't like how cheaply the rest of the car is made and how difficult/expensive it is to fix minor things in the car. My rear brake pads wore down to the metal in about 23k miles! No track time either. I spent over $250 on replacing just the rotors and pads non-OEM replacement parts. Genuine GM parts would have been well over $500!!!

Anyway, I just purchased a house in southern NJ near Atlantic City, but still working at my current job which is 2 hours away in northern NJ. I only have to make the commute Monday morning and Thursday afternoon because my mom is nice enough to let me stay during the week until I find something local. So one of my concerns is reliability to make that drive twice a week for however long it takes to find another job. I also know that it won't get as good of gas mileage as the cobalt, which I'm ok with I guess.

Now I'm paying about $250/month on the cobalt and have been looking at some higher mileage used evo 8's that are in the $15-$17k range with anywhere from 50k to 100k miles. Now I'm not worried so much about the mileage and again I'm willing to do the maintenance work. And after a few years I'll probably build a new motor for it anyway (at least a new shortblock) and swap it in.

So I know that was a bit much, but I was hoping to get some feedback from current evo owners. Thanks guys!

 

Looks to me that you're trying to cheat on your Newbie homework. There is tons of info relating to buying an evo on this forum so do the research first.

 

Perhaps I didn't phrase my post well enough. But I understand what things to look for when buying an evo and the maintenance work that goes along with it. I've done my research. I'm just looking for input from other members on my particular situation. More like a "what would you do" type of question.

 

Drive the crap out of it, I do!!

 

I know this is not going to be the response you were looking for, but oh well...Advise helps make decisions, yes. However, in the end the decision is 100% yours to make. Looks to me that if you have put this much thought into purchasing one, you have already made up you're mind, and are now just trying to sell yourself for some reason, with our opinions.

I'd say what the F and go for it. You will not regret it, and seeing that car in your driveway every morning is an amazing feeling...At least for me it is.

 

if you do the maintenance and treat the car right it'll last a long long time...there is a member that eclipsed 200k in his evo 8

end of story

 

If you are going to be buying the 8 from a private party I would ask for a test drive, if you're at a dealership a test drive should be no problem. During the test drive, take a note of how the suspension and everything in general feels. Also, check carfax, I know that not everything is reported but it might save you from buying a junk car. Another thing I would do is check the bottom of the car if you have a way of doing so. Check to see if the car has any scrapes or dents on the pipes because that is a sign the car has been driven hard enough to bottom out at some point.

To sum it up, take a test drive, make sure the car feels good and looks like it was taken care of. If you don't have the time to do this, bring the car to a Mitsubishi or other reputable place that knows Evos to have it checked out.

 

As with any car you plan to purchase, you need to take the necessary precautions to make sure that the car is mechanically sound and the car itself is worth its value. Evo's are great cars and if well maintained can last a very very long time.

 

If you're planning an engine re-build at some point, then why wait ? get one that drives well, looks good, and all you can do is listen to your instincts. I test drove mine and bought it the same day, I'm the 3rd owner, I'd suggest that installing a brand new clutch might be a good option for anyone buying a used Evo, but it runs perfectly, I'm very happy. Go for it

 

Eh, I think you're right. I think what's holding me back is the fact that I just bought a house and I'm trying to be "financially responsible." But if I can sell my cobalt privately and find a nice used evo for like $18k or under, I should be making about the same monthly payments I am now

Yea, that's what I like to hear! I know the 4G63 is a pretty stout motor. The one in my talon lasted about 150K with a big turbo, lots of mods, and lots of abuse! The only reason it failed was because I ignored the knock at the track and kept going. And I only spun one rod bearing! I decided to do a 6 bolt swap anyway...

Thanks for the responses guys...keep em coming if you have em.