newer alternative to the Evo 8/9?
#24
EvoM Guru
iTrader: (8)
mrfred,
I bought a 2013 VW Golf R. It actually reminds me a little of an 03 Evo. (open diff, etc) It's impressed me more then I thought it would. If you look at it as a capable street car it's great.
Every body says they cost too much but forget smart people do not pay MSRP for cars. It's a fully loaded 4 door (HIDS, Sunroof, Leather, keyless, upgraded stereo) MSRP is 37k but I bought it for 33K brand new.
I've had it for almost a year now. Here is my pros/cons list:
Pros
Hatchback (tons of room)
AWD
Great interior quality for the money
"light AWD sedan" (same weight as a Evo 8, 32XXlbs)
Strong motor (Cast iron block, forged internals, etc)
Ability to self tune
Great ride but still handles well (still not an Evo though, but what is)
Smooth 6spd trans
27mpg hwy / 22 city
Cons
So much more complex then Evo (I think a tenet of German engineering is making things complex just for the hell of it)
15 min ecu flash times (ugh!)
$700 for self tuning cable/software (limited defs)
Euro tax (parts cost a ton)
Not a 50:50 AWD system like Audi Quattro but still not bad
Fuel system constraints so E85 is hard (HPFP + LPFP, etc)
I have about $1200 into it power mod wise and it's about +50whp/50wtq. Just two power mods, an intake ($300) and a high pressure fuel pump ($950+!!!) and of course another $700 for the tuning solution. Still not bad.
I bought a 2013 VW Golf R. It actually reminds me a little of an 03 Evo. (open diff, etc) It's impressed me more then I thought it would. If you look at it as a capable street car it's great.
Every body says they cost too much but forget smart people do not pay MSRP for cars. It's a fully loaded 4 door (HIDS, Sunroof, Leather, keyless, upgraded stereo) MSRP is 37k but I bought it for 33K brand new.
I've had it for almost a year now. Here is my pros/cons list:
Pros
Hatchback (tons of room)
AWD
Great interior quality for the money
"light AWD sedan" (same weight as a Evo 8, 32XXlbs)
Strong motor (Cast iron block, forged internals, etc)
Ability to self tune
Great ride but still handles well (still not an Evo though, but what is)
Smooth 6spd trans
27mpg hwy / 22 city
Cons
So much more complex then Evo (I think a tenet of German engineering is making things complex just for the hell of it)
15 min ecu flash times (ugh!)
$700 for self tuning cable/software (limited defs)
Euro tax (parts cost a ton)
Not a 50:50 AWD system like Audi Quattro but still not bad
Fuel system constraints so E85 is hard (HPFP + LPFP, etc)
I have about $1200 into it power mod wise and it's about +50whp/50wtq. Just two power mods, an intake ($300) and a high pressure fuel pump ($950+!!!) and of course another $700 for the tuning solution. Still not bad.
Last edited by razorlab; Oct 7, 2013 at 06:32 PM.
#26
EvoM Guru
iTrader: (8)
Problem is, the rom isn't very well defined with the user ended tuning solution (Eurodyne Maestro 7) and the support is VERY lacking.
There are other tools to disassemble, visualize and flash but they are very non user friendly and I haven't even touched them.
Here is a 2011 Golf R bin file and a excel file of all the map names and descriptions. I don't have the raw bin file from my own 2013 USDM R because Maestro wraps it into a different file (like cobb does).
http://norcalmotorsports.org/users/b...20original.bin
http://norcalmotorsports.org/users/b...hAcronyms.xlsx
The MED 9 bosch ecu is pretty complex (surprise!). It's all torque based, even boost control. That's why having a not so well defined rom has been a bit frustrating for me. Couple that with 15 min flash times making it even more frustrating that I haven't really tuned the car much. I think I've flashed it a total of maybe 8x this whole year.
Last edited by razorlab; Oct 8, 2013 at 11:08 AM.
#28
EvoM Guru
iTrader: (8)
Catbacks are $900+
Downpipes are $600+
It's a bit ridiculous. It's like I'm driving a Porsche or something.
Honestly, I've been kicking around the idea of getting rid of the car and picking up a 2014 Evo GSR. It's hard to go back to that horrible interior though.
#29
Evolved Member
iTrader: (12)
After selling my Evo's I tried a couple different things.
1s was a 4dr SI CIVIC , nicer interior, quieter and better mpg ...HATED IT .
2nd up was a Camaro SS (ls3) , looks "cool" , no room inside, takes a lot of $$ to make power after the 40hp from bolt ons .
So I'm coming to the realization there is NO REPLACEMENT for evo/4g63 close to the price.
1s was a 4dr SI CIVIC , nicer interior, quieter and better mpg ...HATED IT .
2nd up was a Camaro SS (ls3) , looks "cool" , no room inside, takes a lot of $$ to make power after the 40hp from bolt ons .
So I'm coming to the realization there is NO REPLACEMENT for evo/4g63 close to the price.