The biggest factor was:

1) The black interior with silver accents instead of grey+wood combo.
2) The bodykit and wing which gives this car a sort of character.
3) OZ Rims with better and wider tires.
4) It's my wife's car and she loves the yellow color.

All of these together with the fact that we got it for 16500 closed the deal for us.

 

Rear sway bar, brushed aluminum dash and ground effects would cost you $2,000 easily. If you're gonna use the full difference in price, use the full difference in parts.

EDIT: Don't forget how few junked Lancers there are and how expensive going through dealerships is.

 

huh? K, oz has lighter wheels, ground effects may way slightly more and the rear sway bar might be a little heavier, but I'm guessing if ya had scales the difference would be within 10 lbs. on the car, and with lighter weight wheels, you don't gain horsepower, but you do prevent more loss of horsepower, so I'm willing to bet that your ES isn't any faster than my OZ,