where have you found the weights of the 05 vs 04 RS's?
from my seat the 05 RS should be heavier than the 04 due to the addition of the ACD and the additional equipment/plumbing that goes with it.

YMMV,
Greg

 

From what I have read the aluminum roof only sheds 8lbs...there should be another few pounds in the thinner sheetmetal

 

yeah, and "have more fun" trying to resell that loud and stripped down RS in a few years. you'll be lucky to find a buyer at all.

p.s. the RS is NOT going to be 140 lbs lighter than an MR, let alone 250 lbs lighter than an '04 RS. nice try.

 

The RS is about 80/100lbs lighter than a regular Evo or MR. I personally didn't buy the RS for resale value, something tells me there will be a market for it though.

 

I think the RS is a great thing for someone who only plans to track their' car or can't afford the others. But most of the weight savings are things that you can simply just take out of a GSR. Really no question as to which one is the better all around car, the only question is which is a better value. Even more-so now that all of the 05s will get the LSD and one article I read stated that the MR will be getting the thinner trunk lid as well.

And weight is the enemy as far as performance goes but time has shown that it isn't the end all. The heaviest versions of performance cars are not always the slowest around a track. Look at the GT-Rs. Also if a lightened car's suspension isn't tuned for it's diet, results can be just plain bad.

 

As it stands the '04 RS is the fastest and best handling Evo available stateside. What will be interesting is to see how the '05 RS stacks up against the MR. I predict it will be faster in a straight line (same HP improvements, less weight, less gears to row) and it will be a tossup in the handling department (the RS is lighter and only lacks the upgraded bilsteins). I had the regular Evo and my personal preference is for the RS, it's the most hardcore EVO Sounds like you need an STI

 

MR will come out By the end of this year here On US soils foo!

 

I definently don't need an STI.. The thing with the 04 RS is that when it first came out, 03 GSRs sitting around on dealer lots were marked down less then the RS's MSRP . I thought about it and the only thing that I wanted from the RS was the front LSD, and really AC is a necessity here during the summer so an Evo minus some and plus LSD just didn't sound all that great in the end. Now that they all get another LSD, it's just no question for me. And on tarmac, I think the sport ABS will be a definite advantage. The Evo is a hardcore car to begin with, I think all the evo models will be somewhat of a tossup around a track anyways. The RS is great and I'm glad they charge less for it, but there is a reason they do. Simply taking stuff off a car isn't that hard to do. We'll see where the price is at on the 05.

 

All stateside RS' come with A/C from what I have seen...

 

Wazzup Bear - interestingly enough I've been second guessing the MR purchase of late and wondering whether an 04 RS might not be the car for me.

MR has all the bells and whistles I want, yes, but complications:
1. I wonder about owning a car longterm with ACD and potential costly repair problems and an "iffy" warranty.
2. At the price (out the door with finance charges considered) - approaching $40G - can I afford to mod it or race it and loose the 10 yr 100,000 mile warranty?
vs
RS
1. cheaper version that I can take to the track and say f*** the warranty
2. I could get a 2004 if they are still available?- no ACD worries.

Hey - Is anyone out there selling a white 04 RS?!

 

At this point, why not hook up on an '05 RS? Although you may strike a good deal on an '04. I hear what you are saying about the electronic gadgets long term and that's worth considering. I think an '05 RS with the MR Bilsteins and wheels would be very nice

 

Because I would actually prefer no ACD given the choice, which means 2004 model RS - power and handling can always be tweaked later.
I prefer a little less computerized intervention when it comes to handling.

Oh - and I must have LSD - So 03 GSR will not do.

 

Hey Ron

It's hard to say how much power the ACD can take. I know I've heard that overseas usually just the AYC is what goes for drag racing. Man, I sure hope that prices don't get to 40k, I'm still hoping for closer to 35.

You know; if you're kind of anticipating the warranty going, before I'd consider an 04 RS I'd look at one of these 03 GSRs w/ a ton of mods that are going up for 21-24k weekly. Most of the guys have original parts too and I'm sure you'd have the know w/ a test drive/inspection to see if it's a good car or not. Honestly, if the RS had the 6spd, still came with the alu roof and was 5k+ less then the GSR I would go for it too but I would still need to take a good hard look at how long I would be going without modding. Alot of people complain about the Mitsu warranty but alot of people have had good service as well. I still don't know what to expect with this. Maybe it is just me but I have a gut feeling that if I stayed away from hard launches and something went wrong, I wouldn't be completely left behind by them. AutoX/Organized events are another story though, did anyone find a surefire solution around that?

note: Aftermarket or after-installed OEM LSDs are a possibility, right?

 

Price wise - I'm seeing roughly:

MSRP - 35,000
Tax - 2,000
title, tag - 200
---------
37,200
interest 3,000 ( on 5 yr. loan)
-----------
$40,200
======

At THAT price and all the electronic, computerised sensors, special parts that this car has, I just might need to keep the warranty intact. Only sure way of doing so is no mods and no racing it.

Where as if I buy an RS I won't think twice about warranty - maybe give it a few months to make sure its not a lemmon - then anything goes

But I guess I can just keep the Sentra for the track. Like my truck, I'm not sure I can bare to part with it anyway.

 

looks about right to me