im thinking about purchasing an evo 8 soon.
from what i know, the only major difference between 04 and 05 (non engine or exterior related) are that 04s do not have

Active Center Differential (ACD)
Front LSD

am i correct?
if so, how big of a difference does this make performance wise??


well the biggest question here is.
would not having front LSD and ACD stop me or consider anyone from stopping to buy a 05 from 04?

thanks

My bad. I think the difference is there but not sure how noticeable and you can get the gruppe s acd flashes which almost made me jealous of the acd equipped cars.

'05s had bumps from 271 to 276 hp and 273 to 286 lb.-ft also.

I dont think anyone would really notice that kind of a difference since its always subject to change because of the weather too as a factor and how much its been modded. Does the acd do anything special for everyday driving or just for autox.

Maybe not the 5 hp, but the 13 lb.-ft may have been more noticeable, especially down low, as the hotside was enlarged.

Regarding the ACD, I don't experiment with it much personally, but when it rains, I switch it to gravel mode and hammer through the rain. I actually do notice a difference.

I plan on gettin mine to 320 whp I dont think i will notice that in a 8 compared to the 9. how much more grip you gain through gavel. Cant you do the same thing in the 8

It's probably nothing too drastic.

so which one do you think for the daily the 8 or the 9?

I'm biased, I've owned two IXs. But most people SHOULD say IX because the MIVEC helps with its torque curve in the lower rpms, which is where you'll be when daily driving, assuming you drive like a normal human being when you're going to work, as opposed to the guys who think they're in a timed autocross event whenever they go to the store.

well the biggest question here is.
would not having front LSD and ACD stop me or consider anyone from stopping to buy a 05 from 04?

I would suggest the 05 model. Not because of the ACD but because of the turbo.

turbo doesnt matter cuz ill b swapping it for sure. ill be going through an extensive amount of engine mods. im jsut worried about non engine related stuff

Oh ok. Well I would definitely go with an 03 or 04 since you can find them a little less expensive. More money for parts!

I chose a IX because I knew I would be taking my time with mods. So for a fun responsive DD the IX is awesome!

If your going to be doing a lot of engine work then you'll most likely be getting work done to you transmission so getting LSD installed wouldn't be a problem. As far as the ACD I wouldn't think it's super important. What are your plans for the car? Tracking it or drag strip?

thanks for the quick response.
im loving it here on evom lol.
im aiming for 400-500 whp range. aggressive street/mild track/ autox car.

i have heard about getting transmissions done. what exactly gets done (rebuilt) tho? are the gears replaced with beefy ones? or is it something else (shafts)

Yeah this is a great site for EVO's!

Check out this site sheptrans.com

This will give you all the info you need to know about the process of rebuilding your tranny.