I understand that sometimes you see a heavily modded Evo and you say to yourself.. OH ****.. I shouldn't buy this thing.. it's probably beat'en on. But the truth remains. we own sports cars and anyone that will ever buy this car will definately someday push the envelop. Buying a modded car might save you thousands especially when all that work usually doesn't end up in the original owners pocket. You might end up with a stage 3 Evo for just about the same as one that was stock.

Most people that own Evo's don't leave them stock for long and I find it quite funny that they look for stock Evo's only to mod them themselves when they could have saved thousands buying a modded one from the beginning.

I say if you're looking for a used Evo talk to the owner and look at the condition of the car. Drive it and you'll see even if it's stock or modded if it's a good purchase. I know plenty of stock evo's that where beaten on and it is easily noticed with a simple drive.

Good luck.

BTW I'm never selling mine.. so I'm not writing this hoping to benefit anyone I just want to voice my opinion on a view that's hardly ever considered or taken.

 

i bought my 03 used with 19k on it. The second i put an exhaust on it the clutch went. Now i know clutches suck in the evo, but it was driven hard beforehand im sure.

had it for a bit over 2 years but the only other issue i had was when it was -20 degrees when the brakes would stick in the rear causing the issue shown below.




need i say more????????????

LOL! Ok so it was -20 degrees and things dont seem right regardless of being used.. just thought it would look cool in the post

 

have owned 2 evos both bought used...first 03 was bought from a dealer...had a turbo timer and boost guage and 14K...no probs - had to eventually get a clutch @ 22K and brakes...sold it b/c of the color (LY) - 2nd evo bought private party 15 mr...so far so good

my advice is if you can, go the private party route - get it checked out mechanically, which i'm sure you will regardless where you buy it from...just be realistic in knowing that most used evos have been beaten or driven hard at some point, so just be careful and be thorough in your search

 

I bought mine used from a private party. My advice to you is to thoroughly inspect the car...specifically looking at the usual areas that are tell-tale signs of the car being modified previously (valve/ cam cover bolts indicating possible cams/ cam gears being installed, vaccum lines to the wastegate actuator being modified which indicates possible boost controller being used, damage to the radiator right in front of the turbo assembly which indicates a possible turbo swap/ modification, etc.). If you find anything that doesn't seem to add up, ask the owner questions about it and see if you feel comfortable with the answer. You can't ask questions about the previous owner if you pick up the car from a dealer. Just my $.02 in.

 

I woke up one morning and decided to buy an evo. Nothing like brand new car smell

 

i agree with the jedi. me and my father both have evos, mine has mods and his does not. on a daily basis mine is much better taken care of in many ways. i'm not saying i dont enjoy my car but it has only seen a few hard track days and a little fun in the canyon. when my dad bought his i thought for sure the thing would be blown up before 5000 miles. he didnt wait to break it in or nothing just let her have it.

 

This is more what I'm worried about. I don't mind buying a used car with mods or that has been modded but I am just worried about buying a car that has been abused (like the fathers). I expect the car to be driven and not babied. That's what sports cars are for. I guess I was lucky with my rex because I got it from a family that is very well known in racing (i won't say the name for their sake.) But I know that car was driven hard but also driven well and maintained correctly.

I guess my first question should be do evo owners who sell their cars tend to take care of them? I've been around cars for a long time and just don't want a car that has been abused. My decision to buy new or used isn't so much based on what I can afford but based on what is smartest financialy. And a car that is unreliable will end up costing more in the long run.

 

usually they take care of them; however seeing how the cars have been used and can be obtained much cheaper... causing younger kids to afford.. they tend to not be taken care of as much as i would say before.

I'd say not to worry a whole lot as long as the mileage seems to be moderate and in top looking shape and drives great.

 

heres my story: bought an 05 stock evo been driving it for about 3 monthes went to switch insurance carries and found out the previous owner had done 5k in damage in a wreck that the dealership did not tell me about... So i went there and was so mad and they were like theres nothing we can do...... But like they have said stay away from modded ones unless you know the seller..

 

It's actually reassuring to hear all these people say they haven't had many problems with their used Evos.

I bought mine new. Granted, it was on the first boat to the US in 2003 and was one of the first 50 Evo VIII's to touch American soil.

Dude...It's an Evo. It's not some run-of-the-mill sedan where buying used doesn't much matter or effect the overall quality of the car. It's an Evo, and therefore a high-performance sportscar. In my own opinion, I would rather spend the extra money for a new car that I know will be broken in properly and treated well. I'm not knocking the crowd that bought used in any way. I hope that everything continues to go well for those people. I, personally, would rather know EXACTLY what the car has been through and had done to it. My VIII is a 2003 with 32,000 miles and not a single problem. I'm decently modded and I still have the stock clutch and brakes with no problems. Good luck.

 

I bought mine on ebay and had no problems other then the previous owner loved ebay stuff so I n have to replace most of it with better brand name stuff. But no problems here with the car. Still look good and drives better now that I fixed her up with the good parts.

 

Bought my 03 used from a friend. Had 49k on it. Had tt,cams, exhaust and a piggy back, also came with a set of rims and suspension not on the car. Took the piggy back off and had it tuned at ams. Clutch went out replaced that with a twin, also the t case went out at 62k. It was at the track though, and the car has been tracked at least 500 passes. It now has an lsd and a 50trim and I can't be happier. Oh I also forgot to mention, all the mods were put on when I was around, so it wasnt a suprise to the quality of work. As everyone else said, drive the car and take it to a mechanic you trust and someone who kinda knows about an evo. Have them look it over and make your decision from there. If its an 03 be ready for the open diff to give you problems if you like to launch it like idiot. Also be ready for a clutch. But other than that most ppl dont seem to have to many problems.

 

 

i bought mine used also. 05 MR with 14,000 miles on it for 22k. No used evo is stock nor never been beat on. All used evo has been beat on or modified. My evo was modified, and the previous owner has stripped everyhting off the car except for the hks 272 cams. So when buying a used one, make sure you do your homework on the specific car first before you sign any paperwork. 1st week of owning the evo, I blew the head gasket, cause it was boosting like 28psi. If i had a choice of doing it all over, I would go buy a brand new one. But since i already bought it, I'm stuck with it, and have to deal with the problems as it comes. good luck!!!

 

i bought mine back in 04 with 7k miles, only problem from the previous owner was clutch, but i got it for 24,800 so it was a deal back then since most were going for about 28-29k