I am getting the itch for another fast car as a primary driver and since we have baby on the way, a 4 door is a must. My past two vehicles have been a Z71 Tahoe and now an Avalanche...so I am getting tired of being in something so big and slow.

After doing a lot of research into what I really want (style, performance, price, etc.), I have landed on the Evolution X.

Quick question:

While I do work from home, there are times that I still need to travel which can rack up mileage and equal hours on the highway. Given that I do not do any radical suspension changes, how does the Evo handle a lot of highway driving and higher mileage?

 

I drive my EVO X MRT as a DD, so far as of this morning I put 13585 miles since the end of December. My wife also drives a X MRT, her last car was a Chrysler Aspen, when we go for rides together she would tell me that the bump we just took in the EVO she would almost loose control in the Aspen. Great car for DD as long as you have the correct TIRES.
Get an alignment as soon as you buy her too, if you want the stock tires to last over 10k miles.
We have 3 kids

 

I have a 20 mile (one way) mostly highway commute which I use the Evo for. It handles the highway just fine. I have the 6 speed dual clutch though - I've heard the fifth gear on the manual can be somewhat load on the highway.

Probably the only thing that might be a pain is the gas mileage and the tiny tank. Not sure how far you have to travel, but expect about 200 miles from a full tank of gas if driving on the highway.

 

I was driving (and still have) an F-150 before I bought my '08 MR. The MR is a great DD. It's very fun to drive. The gas tank is small, 14.5 gallons I believe, so you stop to get gas more often, but it takes less time to fill up. I get over 23 mpg on the highway and can go 275 miles before fill-up with all highway driving and still have a couple of gallons left in the tank. I get over 18 mpg when driving about 90% city/10% highway. I almost always drive in manual mode, but when driving in the city if I get a phone call, or I'm eating in the car, it's great to be able to switch to automatic mode instantly and not have to worry about shifting. I did replace the original tires with all season tires and I don't think I will go back to the originals. The new tires made the car an even better DD.

 

I thought I was bad, but you're doubling up on me in the same interval.

For the OP: The EvoX MR is a great daily driver. It'll do the miles (I have a 405 mile commute in each direction on weekends), but it does get rather marginal mpg (20-22mpg for me). The ride is nice. Sporty, but nice. I even went down the suspension path with a Muellerized... upgrade of Stage1+ and it's still nice on the slab of I-5, but it'll rip its way through the back roads even better.

 

The Evo X is a great daily. I have a GSR and have to drive thru ATL occasionally. Around here in Augusta it is perfect. The traffic in ATL sucks with a manual but I can put up with it. If that is a huge concern than go with an MR. There are some great shops up there too. You can look up Topspeed and Forged. Both are great shops and forged is a great wheel dealer.

The cons are going to be more expensive maintance(fluid changes, brakes, tires, etc..), trunk space SUCKS- one of the smallest trunks ever, gas mileage is okay- prolly similar to ur truck. To improve gas mileage I would go to Topspeed and get a tune. They tune with the AP so you can take it off at anytime and not void your warranty.

Check out evoatlanta.com

 

MR-T

 

Thanks for all of the responses. That is exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for. The truck is down in the 14.4 mpg range so anything is an upgrade at this point! Luckily most of the traveling I do involves heading through the mountains (I try to keep away from highways when I can)...so having AWD and some horsepower would liven up my commutes for sure.

Now I just have to find a wicked white 5 speed with S&S, leather and nav...and if I am lucky...a demo or used. That is proving to be harder than convincing the wife!

 

Good luck and thank you for reading and doing your homework before coming in and posting ridiculous questions. It's nice to see an educated new-er member.

 

I'm crazy picky!

The other hard part about the process is finding a dealership that will actually let you test drive one. I understand why they don't why every "joyrider" coming in and test driving their fast cars, but I am pulling up in an expensive truck and ready to buy if the car is right. They still don't want to pull them out.

I understand the reservation...just frustrating...

 

Talk to the sales manager direct, let him/her know you're a very motivated buyer, and then request an appointment for a test drive... worked for me. This all fails though if you dont talk to the sales manager.

 

It's as smooth as the roads, on crappy roads I am bouncing all over the place, on smooth roads it's amazing. Also, if you travel a lot you want an MR and the 6 speed tranny.

 

I drive on the highway all of the time, and I often consider trading for something more comfortable. While it is a lot of fun to drive, its not the best car for highway driving because its loud, and sometimes rattly

 

+111111111

I jacked up my tires up at 9k. I'm riding them cuz they were expensive.