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Couple of questions before I take the plunge

1701 Views 15 Replies 12 Participants Last post by  Evo X_X', 
thebearjew
This is my first day on the site and it's great. I have a couple of questions before I trade my 08 Range Rover in on a 2012 Evo. Please take it easy on me if these have been asked as I HAVE probably put in about 20 hours of research on the subject in the last two day. Haven't gotten much sleep. And I'm a little emotional about giving up the Rover. I love her but I think it's time I have a little fun on road where I am most of the time.

I am pretty sure I have it narrowed down to the GSR, Although the MR looks very enticing and I'm sure the auto is amazing I have spent the last 2O years of my life driving automatics (not counting the street bikes I used to own) I have always been a Bimmer and Rover person but the Evo got my attention because it looked like a sports car that I could also take to the mountains when we visit the snow. I test drove one today and pissed my pants. I never knew the Japanese made a car so raw. I felt like a kid again. Grinning ear to ear. I loved the harsher ride, the sound of engine, the slight whine of the turbo, the non power seats. Anyways I probably lost your attention by now so let me ask the questions.

What is the suspension difference between the MR and the GSR. I know the MR has an "upgraded" suspension but that may mean different things to different people. For me I like the harder/ sniffer feel every bump ride. Would that be the MR or the GSR or are they close to the same?

Wing or no wing or is that just personal choice?

Can anybody tell me if there are different options/upgrades for the GSR? I don't want to rely on the salesperson as in most cases after a couple hours of research on a car I end up knowing more than they do.

Last question and I appreciate your time, I just want to make sure I get exactly what I want. How is the reliability? Coming off my 3rd Land Rover I can obviously deal with cars that aren't known for reliability. Character and soul can make up for that, but just wondering what to expect? I had read a few forums making jokes about Mitsubishi voiding the warranty the second you sign for the car. Does that have some truth to it?

Again, I really appreciate you reading through my dribble and helping me out. This seems like a great forum and hopefully come Monday I will be an official Evo owning member. Although I will shed a few tears for my beloved Rover.


BTW I'm is Southern California, USA if that makes a difference on what options are available to me.
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steelbahamut
2012 shouldnt be too bad, as theyve ironed out a lot of the issues with the earlier years ie. 2008.

Ultimately you just need to decide if you want the 5 speed in the GSR, or SST tranny with the MR. Each have their pros and cons, but with all the different packages availible now you can get a GSR with the same leather interior/bilstein suspension/large wing etc. that the MR has.
The GSR supposedly has slightly stiffer suspension then the bilstein/eibach combo in the MR, but running on upgraded coilovers they both feel soft to me :p

Reliability wise, car is relatively reliable with light to moderate modifications and used as a DD, maintained properly, and following the rules for care of a turbocharged vehicle. If your looking to make big power, run a super aggressive tune, or beast the car on the track then you will need to be prepared for when things start to break.

My car is pretty heavily modified, in fact I barely remember what it was like to have an OEM car :D Im not the best guy to give advice on a stock Evo so ill let someone else chime in.
There is a ton of information here, and a friendly community. Stick around for a bit and you should have all the info you need to make an informed buy. Welcome!
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evo jason
Wow, big post to tackle. I'll try to break it into pieces.

Uscbryan said:
I am pretty sure I have it narrowed down to the GSR, Although the MR looks very enticing and I'm sure the auto is amazing I have spent the last 2O years of my life driving automatics (not counting the street bikes I used to own) I have always been a Bimmer and Rover person but the Evo got my attention because it looked like a sports car that I could also take to the mountains when we visit the snow. I test drove one today and pissed my pants. I never knew the Japanese made a car so raw. I felt like a kid again. Grinning ear to ear. I loved the harsher ride, the sound of engine, the slight whine of the turbo, the non power seats. Anyways I probably lost your attention by now so let me ask the questions.
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I personally prefer the GSR, but you could go either way. I actually just came back to the Evo after a street bike (GSX-R 750). I'll definitely miss the gixxer but I can't be getting myself killed now that I have a family. If you enjoy the raw feel driving a X I'd highly suggest taking a test drive in an Evo IX. If you aren't caught up on a more "mature" exterior styling and some creature comforts like cruise control, the IX may put an even bigger smile on your face. It's even more raw and, of course, you get the 4g63 mivec motor.

Uscbryan said:
What is the suspension difference between the MR and the GSR. I know the MR has an "upgraded" suspension but that may mean different things to different people. For me I like the harder/ sniffer feel every bump ride. Would that be the MR or the GSR or are they close to the same?
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The GSR is slightly stiffer, but you can always buy the used parts from a MR owner who switched to an aftermarket suspension. That is, if you don't go aftermarket yourself. If you don't mind the harsh ride I would go with the GSR and upgrade to coil overs.

Uscbryan said:
Wing or no wing or is that just personal choice?
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Personal choice. If you're hardcore into 1/4 drag go with no wing, as it will actually slow you down slightly. Otherwise it's personal preference.


Uscbryan said:
Can anybody tell me if there are different options/upgrades for the GSR? I don't want to rely on the salesperson as in most cases after a couple hours of research on a car I end up knowing more than they do.
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Check out the Mitsubishi website. They detail what is included in each package. Just keep in mind most of the things offered in the options can be added after you buy the car.

Uscbryan said:
Last question and I appreciate your time, I just want to make sure I get exactly what I want. How is the reliability? Coming off my 3rd Land Rover I can obviously deal with cars that aren't known for reliability. Character and soul can make up for that, but just wondering what to expect? I had read a few forums making jokes about Mitsubishi voiding the warranty the second you sign for the car. Does that have some truth to it?
Click to expand...
This really depends on what you want to do with the Evo. If you keep it completely stock it's really quite reliable. If you modify the car at all, be prepared for Mitsu to void your warranty even if the problem is unrelated to your mods. There is definitely truth to that joke though. Pretty much every Evo is modified (at least a little bit) and driven like it was meant to be driven. Because of that Mitsu tends to blame any problems with the Evo on the owner, usually assuming they did something to cause any problems that come up. To be fair, that is probably the case the majority of the time, but not always.
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KruMsz
well... you have many big decisions to make depending on your goals and environment. each model has its pros and cons. many people will be very baised based on what they own and their mentality/maturity. im not young and as reckless anymore and i deal with lots of cops and traffic (norcal), so i went with a MR... auto, yet manual when you want and need and also the 6 speed. depending on power goals if you mod... consider and accept your warranty is out the door if you mod. if you have read enough of the evo issues here, you will see a 50/50 coverage depending on car issues. Most people will say, put all the stock parts back on before you go in. Some get away with it and some dont. As for suspension, regardless if you get the GSR or MR you will need to lower the moster truck wheel gap. All in all, i have never once doubted my decision in buying an evo and i have had ZERO buyers remorse. i got a great price and this car has brought nothing but smiles. Good luck with your decision.
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H
Id try to get the SS option so you get the HIDS.
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evo jason
Also, I think you deserve a fair warning. These cars are highly addictive. If you think the stock car was impressive, just wait until you get a few bolt on mods and a tune. If you're like any of us, you can sell the Evo and 4 years later you will still be thinking about it. There is something about the way the miracle AWD system sucks you through impossible corners that alters your brain chemistry.

Just sayin' :thumbup:
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padme
Dont get the SS model... so u can put on ebay halo's
and get an LED strip for it too!! whoohoo
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Lesterh
evo jason said:
Also, I think you deserve a fair warning. These cars are highly addictive. If you think the stock car was impressive, just wait until you get a few bolt on mods and a tune. If you're like any of us, you can sell the Evo and 4 years later you will still be thinking about it. There is something about the way the miracle AWD system sucks you through impossible corners that alters your brain chemistry.

Just sayin' :thumbup:
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I agree 100%. Everything under the sun is made for this car, so it's hard to stop modding once you start. And the car is simply so much better after a couple bolt-ons and a tune. I would personally recommend getting an MR, even though I drive a GSR. The GSR is awesome for my purposes (fun weekend car) but it definitely gets old on the highway and commuting any distance. It's definitely not a Honda-quality gearbox. The SST is so unlike an automatic that you'd likely really enjoy it if you haven't driven a stick in a while. I am planning to keep my GSR, and buy a 2013 MR for a DD. And try to keep it stock lol. There's no car like it.
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Sequence
^ Like Lester says... go for an MR... I rode in one for the first time the other day and I loved how dynamic it was compared to the GSR.... the different modes, slap shit, paddle shift, and the SST shifting on its own... suspension is a little smoother ride not much greater but GSR does get old driving a stick and if you plan on keeping it stock or close to stock... MR is the way too go esp if you have the money!
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M
Sequence said:
^ Like Lester says... go for an MR... I rode in one for the first time the other day and I loved how dynamic it was compared to the GSR.... the different modes, slap shit, paddle shift, and the SST shifting on its own... suspension is a little smoother ride not much greater but GSR does get old driving a stick and if you plan on keeping it stock or close to stock... MR is the way too go esp if you have the money!
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+1.


Sent from my Autoguide iPhone app
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zumbido
make sure you look at South Coast Mitsubishi. i've never dealt with them, but i always hear about people getting crazy cheap Evos from them.
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thebearjew
Thank you everybody. Although you did confuse me a little more since I had finally decided on a GSR and now I read a few posts saying go fo the MR. Oh man, decisions. I do plan on modding it, I would like more horsepower some day. I will drive the MR and GSR again today and see what I like. Although I think I can handle a stick. I seem to be more about fun than comfort. I rode a Ducati 996 for a couple of years as a daily driver. You don't know what lack of comfort is until you ride a few miles on one of them.


Thanks again for the advice
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TheBlade
I disagree with Evo_Jason, the GSR's KYB struts and springs are stiffer than the Biltstein/Eibach combo on the MR.


I went with the GSR. the short 5th gear for highway cruising is a little annoying but I'm still happy I went GSR and added hid's, fastkey, rockford, leather, sunroof, etc. ...actually really happy with the leather :)

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evo jason
I could very well be wrong on that point, the MR just felt a little stiffer to me, I haven't actually compared the spring rates.

Edit:

From http://www.evoxforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24155

dave said:
you're right, the MR suspension is softer than the GSR because the Bilsteins run less rebound valving than the KYBs on the GSR.

makes it a more comfortable ride, but may hurt track times. interesting that the spring rate in the rear is a little stiffer but its negligible difference in rate like every lowering spring.

thanks for the list...shows that from the factory, the car is a little overdamped, but not enough to really matter....definitely not worth going to springs for.
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TheBlade
evo jason said:
I could very well be wrong on that point, the MR just felt a little stiffer to me, I haven't actually compared the spring rates.

Edit:

From http://www.evoxforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24155
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Sokay by me, I agree with what you say the rest of the time :shades:
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Evo X_X'
if you dont have an evo yet buy this

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mitsu...ht_3909wt_1064

if you dont youre fucking up.

this was on another thread in the general section
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