Hey Guys,
Not only am I new to EvoM, but I am also new to my 03 OZ Rally. I've put about 300Mi on the car and I have to say that I love it . It drives great, looks good and came with a bunch of entry level mods already done! Has an AEM intake, magnaflow, tint, and I think that it might have a short throw shifter (anyone know how I can tell for sure?) . I want to say thanks to the forums for already helping me figure out my heater selector issue.

I'm saddened to find out that there isn't a bunch more I can do to this thing to give it some more pep without dishing out some SERIOUS dough. I'm a husband and a daddy of 2 so I can't really justify dumping a ton of cash into a car that runs like new...

I would really appreciate any suggestions on some easy affordable ways to improve my cars performance (but lets not get it twisted, I'm not looking for unrealistic gains with some magical, bolt on, chrome plated automotive miracle). I'm not some kid looking to be a street racer, and I before any of you say it, I can't afford to dump my ride and pick up an EVO. Let's be honest though, we would all like a little more power and performance.

Anyway, nice to meet you all, and thanks in advance!

 

Hey new2Lance, welcome to the forum! There are definitely ways to slowly improve your car's performance without breaking the bank. The main thing that you want is to pump more air into the engine, match that with more fuel using bigger fuel injectors so that the car is running at the optimal air fuel ratio (i.e. not too lean and not too rich), have a more breathable exhaust system so that again more air can be pushed into the engine without a backlog of air stuck at the exhaust and have it properly tuned.

Check out this website that I found pretty useful...
http://www.drive-more-fix-less.com/modifications.html

Cheers!

 

Speaking from experience, I would say to look into an intake and exhaust for slightly improved performance and sound. I bought my first new car in 1970. It was a Camaro 350 2 barrel. I began to modify it, but it never came close to the performance of the SS and Z/28 models. A wise old man told me that it was a waste of time to make a race horse out of an old nag if you get my drift. BTW., I have an Evo X that is being modified, but I did not buy the car to street race. I bought it because it gives me such pleasure in acceleration, braking and handling, plus it looks nice.

Besides the intake and exhaust, why not maximize your driving experience with grippier tires, nicer wheels and suspension mods like swaybars and shocks/springs? I have had cars that were not fast in a straight line, but were incredibly satisfying around corners and cloverleafs. Congrats on your purchase!

 

save up what you would spend in some parts, sell it and buy an evo !

 

Thanks for the great link pitabread, I've built many cars in the past so those concepts aren't foreign to me. I rebuilt and restored a 1960 Chevy Corvair, a 92' Camaro, 94' K1500 Suburban, and an 02 Tacoma. My favorite was my 02 Toyota Tacoma 4x4 SR5 TRD that I tricked out pretty good, but the after market support seemed exponentially more vast then with my OZ.

This is the first Mitsu I've had that I didn't promptly blow up (86 Starion was my first car, I was young and stupid and cranked the boost to high, blew the turbo seal, somehow reversed the bearing and sucked all the oil out of the crank case straight onto the road through the air filter at 80mph:BOOM)

I like your suggestion Samson! I've built them slow and low, fast and straight, made to haul, and for climbing and dirt, but I've never done nimble and agile. That's a whole new ball of wax! I look forward to learning more from everyone here. And who knows Hopeful Kid? Maybe someday I'll hit the lotto and buy an EVO!