Dejan wrote:HI Jace,
First of all, it's very nice of you to join the club, we definitely needed something of the other kind to spice things up and and GOSh i just wanna say haven't you made quite an entrance, it almost seems like everything else was made so trivial with the beast you have, and looks like you've already risen to the presidential status around here, hahaha, enjoy it while you can lolz...
Thanks for the welcome. LOL I sincerely didn't mean to attract this much attention when I joined- I really was coming here trying to find out what CJ Lancer bits and pieces I could get to put on my Evo (e.g. the folding mirrors). The Evooz forum is great but most of the focus there is on pure power mods, very expensive bodykits (aka "POA") and the WRX vs Evo challenges... but there isn't much attention given to the lighter/simpler things which is what I wanted info on.
By the sound of things, it seems like you are based in around the Epping region in Sydney?? Thats great, cos I wasn gonna say next time if you are bored, maybe we could meet up for a cruise around, cos I work in the Lane Cove area and finish up late sometime, and i'm not usualy up for anything over the week days, so something to look forward to I guess??
I actually live in the CBD (due to work) but my parents live in the Hills hence why I travel between the two. Either way, I always keep my Friday nights and most of the weekends open for socialising/car events/etc.. (anything but work).
I happen to be the 2nd ever owner in NSW to own a RA, its a red one, and gosh i love every minute of it, and i can't help but imagine how much you'd love your EVO cos these cars are just simply the best there is in the market, they all have the potentials to embarass cars double its price.
To be honest when I was waiting to pick up the Evo I was having 2nd thoughts because I felt the price (more on it later) was quite expensive for what is essentially a super-fast-Lancer. I knew I was paying for the technology/active driving/etc..., but I couldn't help but think that I would never make use of 100% of the potential. Then I remembered my Civic which when I bought it (just a day after I got my Red P's) I thought that car was too fast for me too and I would never need the 103kW of power. In the end I feel that I've made a good choice because like the Civic, this car gives me room to grow and learn the limits.
NOw for some question, why not, everyone's had their say.
Why did you go for the MR evo?? how much did you pay?? I'd say 72 grand drive away brand new bargain price.
A few reasons;
1. I needed an automatic (living in the city and commuting to/from client offices) and the SST sounded like the perfect option.
2. The price difference between a GSR with SST, and the MR, is <$6k. For that money you get heated leather recaros and leather backseat, BBS rims, bilstein shocks, eibach springs, slightly nicer looking trim on the outside (i.e. the chrome and body-coloured bits), HIDs with AFS (turning lights), and the Rockford+MMCS*.
3. In buying the MR, I would get both higher resales if I ever did want to sell it, as well as the added benefit of not needing to modify the headunit/dash which is what I'd do if I bought the GSR.
At the end of the day, most dealers are willing to negotiate on price since there's a lot of Evo's sitting around from 08 which haven't been touched. Drive-away for a brand new MR can be had from a lot of dealers in the sub $70k bracket (this is for NSW) with freebies thrown in. I saw someone else on the EvoOz forums who got a better deal than me at $67k driveaway with a free jacket and trackday!
I bought the Ralliart with the mindset of modding it down the track to a sub 12 second quarter mile warrior and corners like a Lotus without having to spend the price tag of an M3. It isn't that hard apparently with a total budget of 7 grand all that could be achieved with an afternoon's work at MRT. That would mean a total investment of 57,000 on my Ralliart and it'd be able to eat any other sports cars on the road for breakfast. That is the reason why I didnt go with the MR, as I can't justify the 72 grand price, but then again EVO owners have a social ego that you just can't compare with anythin else out there, so still a great choice from you mate.
Are you planning to mod your car down the road?? Are you thinking bout taking your car to tracks any time soon?? Mind you i'll be takin my RA to the Wakefield track day again comes the September meet, and I 'd highly recommend you to join me cos by then my project wold be partially complete, and it'd be purely down to driving skills as our cars would be lineball whichever way you look at it, (mine would proly be quicker straight line sorry to say
) and it should be WAY TOO MUCH FUN just thinking about it.
I don't intend to mod it for a while because the warranty is solid (and after all, it's built into the cost of the car) and the car is fast enough for me as it is. I want to maximise the potential of the car first with my driver ability before I go into modding it. That's how I felt with my Civic before I installed the intake for example.
As for the Evo social ego and all that... it's probably true. Alot of guys out there dream of buying an Evo and when they do, it's cloud 9 for them so I can see why they might get big headed about it. As long as it doesn't get to the point where they put down other peoples' rides then I think a bit of happy spirit and optimism never hurt anyone. As for me, I always wanted an Evo throughout high school. I figured I'm still relatively young and the luxury cars didn't really impress me, so I bought my dream car. Probably not the most practical nor the most parent-friendly, but I am happy with my choice.
Regarding track- I admit I'm a noob to it. I've been with my cousins who take their track racing very seriously (they drive sponsored cars) but I usually just watch. The Evo came with MRT driver training day so I'll try that out and see how it goes
I also gotta look into the track-day-insurance which I heard about from someone on another forum as well because better to be safe than sorry.
Until next time, take care of your babe. Also, good on you for keeping things quiet and flying under the radar, cos a lot of ppls would be too busy showing it off and bragging around and end up either crashing it or lost it before they know how.
Cheers,
Dejan
Thanks. I really do prefer to keep things quiet nowadays because there really is nothing to gain by showing off or bragging. At the end of the day, I've been blessed and am grateful to be so fortunate; and on the other hand, it very easily could have been me on the other side of the fence looking across at the showoff kid with an Evo.