Mitsubishi Evo VII & VIII
Discussion
as a means of getting from a to b in a fast and fun way, legend has it that theres not much better way to do it than in a evo.
but the tales of running costs to make your eyes water are forever at the bottom of the reports, just after the bit that tells you how epic they are...
with my age creeping up, and no claims heading in the same direction, im tempted. £9-10k seems to get you in the seat of either an evo VII or VIII.
The VII fq-300 sounds the pick of the bunch, while i think an VIII would have to be the 260 model.
So, for someone doing 15-20k a year, is it madness to even consider an evo? the majority of the miles will be motorway based at the beginning and end of the week, with short journeys on weekdays. Ive done the lancer register running costs calculator, and have checked out insurance. What im after is some real info from real owners, including the boring stuff like what its like out of its natural habitat of the a and b roads, and sitting on the motorway at 60-70mph during my busy commute - even an honest appraisal of what mpg to expect in this environment would be welcome.
even if its only a stint of 6months, i would love to experience an evo - my last experience of 4wd jap turbo power left a sour taste after a below par celica GT4.
cheers
but the tales of running costs to make your eyes water are forever at the bottom of the reports, just after the bit that tells you how epic they are...
with my age creeping up, and no claims heading in the same direction, im tempted. £9-10k seems to get you in the seat of either an evo VII or VIII.
The VII fq-300 sounds the pick of the bunch, while i think an VIII would have to be the 260 model.
So, for someone doing 15-20k a year, is it madness to even consider an evo? the majority of the miles will be motorway based at the beginning and end of the week, with short journeys on weekdays. Ive done the lancer register running costs calculator, and have checked out insurance. What im after is some real info from real owners, including the boring stuff like what its like out of its natural habitat of the a and b roads, and sitting on the motorway at 60-70mph during my busy commute - even an honest appraisal of what mpg to expect in this environment would be welcome.
even if its only a stint of 6months, i would love to experience an evo - my last experience of 4wd jap turbo power left a sour taste after a below par celica GT4.
cheers
this is just my opinions.
i had a viii for 2 years and had a few small mods to it, when you really cane'd it around the small roads they are unbelievably fast not much can touch them.
300mile motorway trip at 100 leptons could achieve 27mpg thats 4 up with baggage but it's noisy and cos am 6'1' found it uncomfy, the standard clutch was a pig in traffic, but they eat the miles so easy.
got rid after 2 years for a cayenne turbo which i,ve had a while, so what am i doing now selling that to hoperfully get a evo x miss them that much, the evo felt so much safer at high speeds down the lanes and on the motorway, boss engine, fantastic handling and brakes sod the comfort. never let me down only money i had to spend was the basic service parts apart from mods.
put a smile on my face like no other car i had.
i had a viii for 2 years and had a few small mods to it, when you really cane'd it around the small roads they are unbelievably fast not much can touch them.
300mile motorway trip at 100 leptons could achieve 27mpg thats 4 up with baggage but it's noisy and cos am 6'1' found it uncomfy, the standard clutch was a pig in traffic, but they eat the miles so easy.
got rid after 2 years for a cayenne turbo which i,ve had a while, so what am i doing now selling that to hoperfully get a evo x miss them that much, the evo felt so much safer at high speeds down the lanes and on the motorway, boss engine, fantastic handling and brakes sod the comfort. never let me down only money i had to spend was the basic service parts apart from mods.
put a smile on my face like no other car i had.
Well, my tuppence worth is...
I got my Evo VI TME in November and really just wanted one to scratch an itch. Only intention was to drive it occasionally and add it to the toy collection. Have to confess I am totally hooked now and think I must drive it every day, and I walk past a few decent motors to get in my Evo. As a means of getting from A to B it really is a rapid piece of kit. I have a 30 min commute to work which fortunately is on the back roads and its fairly fast grin inducing fun. Evo's have small petrol tanks tho so it seems that I am filling up on V Power every 2-3 days but in reality thats about every 200 miles at a cost of around £40 which isn't too unreasonable but that figure can be much lower with a bit of spirited driving. I drove mine up from London to Scotland on the Motorway and it was fine but the sports exhaust does drone a bit which I guess might be wearing. Servicing was probably a slight concern for me since the thought of a service every 6 months / 4500 miles is a bit spooky but I had the intermediate service in December which was only £110 and I believe the next bigger one will be about double that. Bearing in mind the cost of a Ferrari service then its not too unreasonable I guess. Don't think I am overly comfortable with the "boy racer" image that generally comes with the car which is perhaps why I have gone a bit OTT on the WRC look, but you really do get a lot of performance for the money. I was lucky in that I specifically wanted a VI TME which probably have a reputation as being a bit of a Polishers car so it was reasonably easy to find a good one. Some of the other cars out there have been fairly well "enjoyed" so make sure you take the time to get a good one.
/2d
chaps, thanks for the replies - good to hear a balanced view, particularly the boring bits like can you live with them day to day. i wouldnt be going into it blind - i know at the end of the day they are highly tuned cars and with that may come the inevitable costs.
i think im right in saying that the VIII onwards have a 6 speed box - i assume this make for a more refined motorway trip?
either of you guys live in the NW, or know of any reccomended indys i can check out r.e. servicing costs etc?
i think im right in saying that the VIII onwards have a 6 speed box - i assume this make for a more refined motorway trip?
either of you guys live in the NW, or know of any reccomended indys i can check out r.e. servicing costs etc?
the vii and evo viii 260 are 5speed same running gear, all the other viii are 6speed which i found can be a pain sometimes selecting the right gear seams to be a common problem with them. just annoying sometimes rather than a problem really,.
i live in the n.w., car planet in warrington are quite good.
i live in the n.w., car planet in warrington are quite good.
I bought a IX a couple of months ago and do my 110 mile round trip commute on relatively clear A-roads.
I average about 26mpg without really trying, the suspension is a bit bumpy but not unbearable, and it's not particularly noisy compared to many other sporty cars. They also have a surprising amount of room front and rear and a big boot. I'm 6'5' and perfectly comfortable spending 2 hours a day in mine. Stereo is pants, but that's easily rectified.
Passengers tend to whinge as they're in all of the potholes.
I think that 5th gear is actually the same or even longer than 6th, so it's more of a performance thing. I've driven a 5 speed and it is fine, the 6-speed is a bit notchy, and although the throw is nice, as said, it takes a bit of practise to get up and down it efficiently. Saying that it's got so much torque from 3k onwards you can usually just swap between 5th and 6th once you're on the move.
If you intend to do any modifications, don't get a 260, as they have a smaller turbo and downrated gubbins I believe. I'd recommend an 8 FQ MR if you can stretch to it. They are VERY easy to get up to 360-380 bhp.
I average about 26mpg without really trying, the suspension is a bit bumpy but not unbearable, and it's not particularly noisy compared to many other sporty cars. They also have a surprising amount of room front and rear and a big boot. I'm 6'5' and perfectly comfortable spending 2 hours a day in mine. Stereo is pants, but that's easily rectified.
Passengers tend to whinge as they're in all of the potholes.
I think that 5th gear is actually the same or even longer than 6th, so it's more of a performance thing. I've driven a 5 speed and it is fine, the 6-speed is a bit notchy, and although the throw is nice, as said, it takes a bit of practise to get up and down it efficiently. Saying that it's got so much torque from 3k onwards you can usually just swap between 5th and 6th once you're on the move.
If you intend to do any modifications, don't get a 260, as they have a smaller turbo and downrated gubbins I believe. I'd recommend an 8 FQ MR if you can stretch to it. They are VERY easy to get up to 360-380 bhp.
Edited by OJ on Thursday 15th January 11:00
theres a couple of fq300 8's on autotrader for less than 10grand now, as i said the 260,s just use the same stuff as the 7's. the fq models have better seats as there changed when there imported here.
mate use to imports cars so get to drive a range of jap cars back from the docks quite alot so tend to feel the differance from differant models, when your in an out of them all the time.
if you really want one just buy one, cos otherwise you'll end up regetting it.
mate use to imports cars so get to drive a range of jap cars back from the docks quite alot so tend to feel the differance from differant models, when your in an out of them all the time.
if you really want one just buy one, cos otherwise you'll end up regetting it.
snorkel sucker said:
chaps, thanks for the replies - good to hear a balanced view, particularly the boring bits like can you live with them day to day. i wouldnt be going into it blind - i know at the end of the day they are highly tuned cars and with that may come the inevitable costs.
i think im right in saying that the VIII onwards have a 6 speed box - i assume this make for a more refined motorway trip?
either of you guys live in the NW, or know of any reccomended indys i can check out r.e. servicing costs etc?
Try wayne at arneside motorsport, bought mine from him years ago when he sold them, top bloke and great servicei think im right in saying that the VIII onwards have a 6 speed box - i assume this make for a more refined motorway trip?
either of you guys live in the NW, or know of any reccomended indys i can check out r.e. servicing costs etc?
http://www.stationgaragearnside.co.uk/
OJ said:
...
If you intend to do any modifications, don't get a 260, as they have a smaller turbo and downrated gubbins I believe. I'd recommend an 8 FQ MR if you can stretch to it. They are VERY easy to get up to 360-380 bhp...
I wouldn't get a 260 either (unless you're going to modify it to 400 bhp right away, as it's a cheap base car), but it has exactly the same turbo as the VII and VIII. Also the engine internals are possibly better than the VII and at least as good as the VIII, but the cams are less aggressive, which along with the exhaust and fueling/timing maps explains the reduction in power.If you intend to do any modifications, don't get a 260, as they have a smaller turbo and downrated gubbins I believe. I'd recommend an 8 FQ MR if you can stretch to it. They are VERY easy to get up to 360-380 bhp...
There's a simply huge amount of information in old threads on the MLR, have a search around, this is a good place to start:
http://www.lancerregister.com/showthread.php?t=156...
a sub £10k evo VIII would be great - hadnt realised they were up for that price. Having done some more reading i think a VII fq-300 would be preferable to an VIII gsr - comments noted r.e. gearchange 
i dont plan on doing any mods so id plump for the better base car to start with - having had a focus ST tuned to 290bhp if i were going to go down the evo route i would want to get one with at least 300bhp - no point doing things by half!
thanks for the pointers on the specialist in the NW - will check them out.
i dont plan on doing any mods so id plump for the better base car to start with - having had a focus ST tuned to 290bhp if i were going to go down the evo route i would want to get one with at least 300bhp - no point doing things by half!
thanks for the pointers on the specialist in the NW - will check them out.
youngsyr said:
I wouldn't get a 260 either (unless you're going to modify it to 400 bhp right away, as it's a cheap base car), but it has exactly the same turbo as the VII and VIII. Also the engine internals are possibly better than the VII and at least as good as the VIII, but the cams are less aggressive, which along with the exhaust and fueling/timing maps explains the reduction in power.
That's the ticket, cheers. At least I got 'gubbins' right 
snorkel sucker said:
i dont plan on doing any mods
Neither did I when I bought my VII (see my profile), but slowly, I got used to the performance, and then I caught the tuning disease. And so will you if you buy one. 
They're not cheap to run by any means compared to more everyday cars, but mine was the most reliable car I've ever owned. I had it for two years before divorce stopped play, and in all that time, the only thing that went wrong was a blown bulb in the dash.
Tuning up to 350bhp is simply a matter of exhaust/fuel pump/remap.
LeighW said:
snorkel sucker said:
i dont plan on doing any mods
Neither did I when I bought my VII (see my profile), but slowly, I got used to the performance, and then I caught the tuning disease. And so will you if you buy one. They're not cheap to run by any means compared to more everyday cars, but mine was the most reliable car I've ever owned. I had it for two years before divorce stopped play, and in all that time, the only thing that went wrong was a blown bulb in the dash.
Tuning up to 350bhp is simply a matter of exhaust/fuel pump/remap.
the "plan" would be not to mod but if your last sentence is true then i fear temptation may knock at my door...
Hello.
I've got a fair bit of experience driving evos. I used to work for mitsi and drove every kind of evo and did lots of miles in them. For the budget you have you need to try and get an 8 mr fq. Ideally a 320, but 300 would be ok. The mr has a nicer gearbox, better suspension, better interior. They are the important bits that will really make the difference. Engine wise the cams and turbos are different. There are more differences but to me these are the important ones. The lights and trim bits are different between the models.
The 260 is a great car, but its missing lots of things. The head lights on them are aweful.
Servicing isn't that bad. The 4500 miles service is only realy an ayc service and about £110. As always how you drive dictates costs. I've know people get 18000 miles from tyres and 60k from a cluth. On the other extreme, one chap used to have 4 tyres and pads @ every 4500 miles. On every other service had to have disks. With a clutch at 12000 miles.
I hope I have helped. If you need anymore info let me know.
Lew
P.s I now drive a subaru, only because i can't afford an evo 8.
I've got a fair bit of experience driving evos. I used to work for mitsi and drove every kind of evo and did lots of miles in them. For the budget you have you need to try and get an 8 mr fq. Ideally a 320, but 300 would be ok. The mr has a nicer gearbox, better suspension, better interior. They are the important bits that will really make the difference. Engine wise the cams and turbos are different. There are more differences but to me these are the important ones. The lights and trim bits are different between the models.
The 260 is a great car, but its missing lots of things. The head lights on them are aweful.
Servicing isn't that bad. The 4500 miles service is only realy an ayc service and about £110. As always how you drive dictates costs. I've know people get 18000 miles from tyres and 60k from a cluth. On the other extreme, one chap used to have 4 tyres and pads @ every 4500 miles. On every other service had to have disks. With a clutch at 12000 miles.
I hope I have helped. If you need anymore info let me know.
Lew
P.s I now drive a subaru, only because i can't afford an evo 8.
snorkel sucker said:
LeighW said:
snorkel sucker said:
i dont plan on doing any mods
Neither did I when I bought my VII (see my profile), but slowly, I got used to the performance, and then I caught the tuning disease. And so will you if you buy one. They're not cheap to run by any means compared to more everyday cars, but mine was the most reliable car I've ever owned. I had it for two years before divorce stopped play, and in all that time, the only thing that went wrong was a blown bulb in the dash.
Tuning up to 350bhp is simply a matter of exhaust/fuel pump/remap.
the "plan" would be not to mod but if your last sentence is true then i fear temptation may knock at my door...
Reason being that you can take the VIIIs and VIII MRs up to 400 bhp relatively cheaply (about £2K all in).
With the VIIs, at least some of them have different engine internals and it's still open to debate whether they're able to run 400 bhp as reliably as the later cars.
You're probably thinking "3XX bhp is enough, I don't need any more than that", but so does everyone when they first drive one! A couple of years later and you're seriously considering changing the conrods, upping the boost and going for 450 bhp!
renmure said:
Well, my tuppence worth is...
I got my Evo VI TME in November and really just wanted one to scratch an itch. Only intention was to drive it occasionally and add it to the toy collection. Have to confess I am totally hooked now and think I must drive it every day, and I walk past a few decent motors to get in my Evo.
You're not joking!!I got my Evo VI TME in November and really just wanted one to scratch an itch. Only intention was to drive it occasionally and add it to the toy collection. Have to confess I am totally hooked now and think I must drive it every day, and I walk past a few decent motors to get in my Evo.
y2blade said:
Snorkel Sucker= did you buy one in the end?
ive havent mate, no. still debating what to get next - i think the mini will be going up for sale shortly though. Evo still an option, although budget may see me having to plump for a 260...Also toying with the idea of an m roadster though!
snorkel sucker said:
y2blade said:
Snorkel Sucker= did you buy one in the end?
ive havent mate, no. still debating what to get next - i think the mini will be going up for sale shortly though. Evo still an option, although budget may see me having to plump for a 260...Also toying with the idea of an m roadster though!
my "short" list is currently 8!
it was down to 5 at one point, I should have stuck it on the dart board then, while it would still fit 
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