Give it a chance!!! I got my car in May and have had some mods done and its not super fast.
BUT - it looks fast, it feels fast, it turns all sorts of heads, get nothing but great comments, hardly anybody has one (not like all the hondas and nissans in southern calif), and in just a couple of months there is already more aftermarkets available than when I bought it.

So as they say patience is a virtue.

Nice post Street.



Hang in there, don't give it up yet!!

 

Heres my take on it: sell it. Someone will want the car. Thats the whole point, people want this car. Look at the roads, look at the member count at this web site of people who own a Lancer. Mitsu did not drop the ball with this car. They produced an all around package for dirt cheap. I for one never looked at any small car Mitsu had until they brought out the Lancer. And I ended up buying one, and so did you. Job done. I very much agree if the car carried a Mirage nameplate, it wouldnt catch all the crap from the press. As far as tuning options, I have an intake, strut brace, and springs on my car, and the future is endless. I dont know if I speak for anyone else, but its my wallet, not the amount of mods availible, thats keeping the car slow. Im sure fellow college kids can sympathise. Anyhow, in the end its your call. All I know is wait for the spread on Boni's car in Sport Compact. People will be coming out of the woodwork trying to buy OZ's. And tuners will be throwing all sorts of cool stuff at us. That one article will be ebtter advertising than a bunch of idiots hopping around listening to Bare Naked Ladies..... (man I hate that commercial) Just my opinion

 

Yeah, I hate the Barenaked Ladies... I kinda thought a better song choice would be Green Day's "Nice Guys Finish Last" or even Me First and the Gimme Gimme's cover of Bob Dylan's "How Many Roads", but, that's me. Nissan does pick better songs for their commercials... "Galaxy Bump," for instance, or BT's "Revolution"... but, that's a different post.

Alright, I've thought about this post, and for all my defense of the Lancer, it does come down to what you want in a car. In my opinion, this car has all the components for a great car. What it lacks in stock power it more than makes up for in gobs of potential. But, you want power out of the box... the Import world isn't for you. There isn't a car you can buy now that is up there with (and let's admit it) with the domestic muscle cars as far as stock go-fast. There isn't a 350Z yet. There hasn't been a TT Supra since the late ninties. The RX-8 is stuck in redesign after redesign, and God knows what Mitsu is doing with the EVO. Your choices are pretty limited. A WRX... maybe, but that choice doesn't strike alot of folks as great. It's either you go used or domestic for a powerful car.

Me? I wanted quick, sporty, fun to drive, and easy on the insurance cost. And I got it. Some little things need to be changed, but, that's the price I'm willing to pay, and it's a fun trip as well. I look at that Injen intake and know that I did that. My car is faster than another Lancer without one because I did put it on. ME. Not some faceless engineer, or some guy in Detroit bolting things together. Granted, I didn't design it, or whatever, and it may sound a bit egotistical to some, and I'm entirely aware of that, but, I feel proud of that accomplishment.

It does come down to preference, though. I'm not going to berate the point anymore because it's like trying to turn a baptist into a catholic. It's like Jon Stewart said about sexuality... "You can't choose it. You drive by a pumpkin patch, and you get a little tingling... then you drive by it another night, and get a stronger tingling... I got some bad news for you. One night... you're banging a pumpkin." So, maybe in your opinion, we're banging a pumpkin. But, you got the tingling once too, or you wouldn't have bought the car.

Whatever your choice is... is your choice. Where ever you go... there you are.

I know this has been a strange post, but, I've been up for about 48 hrs.... try and pick the pearls out of the pig crap. Thanks.

 

Yeah sell it. Hopefully your not thinking about another fwd car? Sorry for ******* lancers but I hate fwd cars. Too much torque steer when power is where it should be.

Go with a rwd or awd sports car. What i mean is a performance car with a 12sec et potential which could also handle on the road course.

Good luck with your decision and hopefully your choice of a nissan would be a skyline in 2004.

 

Might sound stupid but would the 350Z be the skyline coming to the U.S? Or is it just a concept?

 

here it goes

nissan skyline = infinti g35 sedan = infiniti g35coupe = nissan 350z

 

Thanks for that in depth analysis.

 

Ahh 3rd gen eclipse? if you want a car that you can work on find a 99 gsx/tsi, or you could get a 94 gsx/tsi

either way with a 1st-2nd gen DSM you can make a damn fast car for basically any budget.

7 grand can make you a 1st gen in the 12's if you want.

its all what you want

auddy
dave

 

Sell it! But don't get a Ser, be patient, save your money and wait for the evo Vll, evoVlll, or evo pos or whatever the hell mitsu' will be sending the US. Because whatever they do send over, it will definitely BLOW the lancer POS.

 

get a
SVT focus
Mazda speed 3
Cooper S
Si
RSX-S
GTI
2.5RS
Matrix

that's my shopping list (minus the 2.5rs)

 

Man, B, you got quite a list.... Love my Lancer, but, my first choice WAS the GTI... just couldn't afford it.

I don't know about the Matrix, and I think the new Si is overpriced, and I'm suprised you left off the new Jetta GLI... I just saw one in at the supermarket.... MASSIVE rims (prolly 17s or 18s) and I love the new exhaust cutout. Not to mention the 6 speed, and 210 hp engine...

I'm curious, I know this is off topic, but, do you know what the aftermarket looks like for the Protoge5? I'm probably going to get one to replace my wife's 95 T-Bird.

Oh, and, gotta say, most of those are out of the Lancer's range price wise. I think that it would be better to show what would be lower than 16K fully loaded... any takers on THAT challenge?

 

Focus zx3
Elantra gt
mazda p5
sentra se
toyota carolla s
suzuki aerio
honda civic
golf gl
jetta gl

all around 16k

I don't want another Jetta 4 rather have the gti with the vr6 and 6spd

 

Check this place out http://www.protegeclub.com/forum/index.php
The aftermarket looks good for the p5

 

Thanks for the info on the P5.

Now, to address your new list...

The VWs are about 20K, not 16 (reason I couldn't afford it). The ZX3 that is that price is bone stock, no power anything (it WAS a potential candidate for my wife), and the majority of the others aren't exactly blow-the-doors-off better. They may be a little better, but, not enough to really qualify them as being a necessarily better option... most use the exact same drivetrain set up, and comparable power, not to mention the fact that some have quite a bit less torque than the Lancer. The advantage that most have over the Lancer is a higher hp motor option, which, takes it out of range. I did my homework before buying this car, and, like I said, the GTI was my first option, but, I couldn't afford it. So, this is what I ended up with because it was the best car for the price. This is a case of I bought it because it was the car I could afford and loved, not a case of me defending it because I own it now.

EDIT: I misread the trim type on the VWs... I didn't even consider the GLs, because it was either the VR6 or 1.8T or nothing.