Just test drove an EVO VIII. My WRX vs Evo comparo!

[WilliamG]

Ok so I couldn't resist and took a 15 minute test drive of an EVO at the local dealer.

Exterior:

So ok...the EVO just looks fabulous in person. I LOVE the silver one so much it hurts! Even the altezzas look pretty darn sweet in person. The front is really aggressive and definitely looks the part. I even liked seeing the wing in my rear-view when driving down the road.

The white EVO is the worst colour, in my opinion, since the curves and aggressive styling don't show up well at all.

Anyway...

Interior:

Cheap, cheap, and cheap. The interior is SO cheap in fact that I was astonished. It felt like an early 90's cheapo-sedan. Really unimpressive. The dials are small and archaic, and the steering wheel is cheap, and the gear-shift is cheap. Heck, one of the doors started rattling whilst I was driving.

Acceleration:

Very, very nice. Definitely a step-up from my stock WRX. Feels very graceful and doesn't surge like the stock turbo in the WRX does. However, you certainly feel where the acceleration comes from. 19.5lbs of boost. That's just....nuts. I wouldn't say it was light years quicker than a stock WRX, but quicker nevertheless.

Clutch/shifter:

This is an interesting part. I found the actual shifting to be slightly less involved than a WRX with the STi short-shift. It felt kind of....mushy. I also noticed a little clutch shudder when engaging first gear, which was odd. Changing gears at high RPMs was VERY aggressive and very fun though. I didn't like the lack of user-involvement though when shifting. Just...not as clear-cut as the WRX shifter. (with short-shift.)

Handling/ride:

Ok so here it is. The handling. Terrifying, in a word, but in a good way. The steering is incredibly responsive. You just touch the steering wheel to the left or right and the car nigh-on VEERS in that direction. Believe me, if you're highway driving and knock the steering wheel in any direction, you'll know about it in a hurry! Really really nice feedback. Handles really, really well. Definitely a step beyond the stock WRX handling. I went on a route that the dealer guy goes on with the EVO to show off the acceleration and handling, and later I did the same route in my WRX and the EVO just felt a little quicker, and certainly handled better.

Final word:

HOWEVER, the ride suffers. My wife and I have to drive the WRX regularly, and I have to say I prefer the WRX for the everyday driver. The seats are just more comfortable in the WRX. The suspension is more comfortable. The handling is more comfortable. The ride quality is INFINITELY more comfortable in the WRX. I feel that the WRX is THE best AWD turbo sedan you can buy, if you want a combination of comfortable ride + performance and handling when needed.

The EVO really just is a street-legal rally car. There's no two ways about it. If you absolutely must have rally-like ability everyday, get one. Me, I need the all-rounder and I'm glad I got the WRX instead.

[MawviN]

Nice write up.. I agree with most of what you said, but I dont think the interior is that bad.

But besides that, the best AWD turbo I can think of is the audi S4. Sorry

I have only ridin in a EVO8 I never had the chance to drive one. But the way it puts me in the seat makes me wet my pants. I love the acceleration and the amazing handling. For a stock car, that car is simply amazing.

But I yet to ride in a STi, which in fact I'm waiting to do. The STi looks promising and super aggressive. Maybe Ill come across one that Ill be able to drive/ride in.

[04EJ25]

Originally posted by MawviN
Nice write up.. I agree with most of what you said, but I dont think the interior is that bad.

But besides that, the best AWD turbo I can think of is the audi S4. Sorry

I have only ridin in a EVO8 I never had the chance to drive one. But the way it puts me in the seat makes me wet my pants. I love the acceleration and the amazing handling. For a stock car, that car is simply amazing.

But I yet to ride in a STi, which in fact I'm waiting to do. The STi looks promising and super aggressive. Maybe Ill come across one that Ill be able to drive/ride in.

Too bad the S4's are now V8's. Oh well!

[eluminx]

Originally posted by MawviN

But besides that, the best AWD turbo I can think of is the audi S4. Sorry

Probably true if money is no object but not so if you factor in the $15k higher sticker cost along with insurance and maintenance expenses....

[2001S4]

Originally posted by eluminx
Probably true if money is no object but not so if you factor in the $15k higher sticker cost along with insurance and maintenance expenses....

WRX starts at $24,500 not $15,000.

[vicbdn]

Haha, I dont think the interior is so cheap you have to go into seizures explaining it, but then I drove a GEO metro before getting my evo so I have no room to complain eh? Perhaps I'm just used to not being pampered and thats why I can accept my evo so well. I rode in a m3 and I can say the interiors of both cars well, dont really matter and if you say STi > m3 interior then I have nothing to say. When i'm driving, i really dont sit there and stare at my interior.

Comfort wise...my geo wasnt comfortable. It felt like i was in the geo again when i got into the evo, since my geo suspension was so cheap and bumpy.

[ttownrex]

he said 15K higher

[Tuco]

Originally posted by 04EJ20
Too bad the S4's are now V8's. Oh well!

Worse yet the new S4's have been frying their clutches and having valve train problems. There's a fair amount of discussion on audiworld.com about people having engines rebuilt or replaced. And as a matter of fact, someone was actually standing up for the rex's and STi noting how much abuse they take and keep right on ticking. Geesh, $50k for something that you have to baby (which according to some posts people were babying their cars as they weren't even past the break-in point).

T.

[MisterFast]

its probably because that damn monster(new age s4) puts out so much torque! one of my friends friends got one, a red one, already put on a 2k kit on. I raced him he bogged and I caught him in v8 N.A. lag and pulled up to 175 mph! no but the car is real so is the kit, so is its beauty.

[tacomaboy138]

already put on a 2k kit on. I raced him he bogged and I caught him in v8 N.A. lag and pulled up to 175 mph! no but the car is real so is the kit, so is its beauty.

Made sense until this part of the post?!

I liked the old TT setup. I don't know if the new NA setup is better or worse, faster or slower, but what I do know is that I like turbos, therefore I like the older S4's + I drove a chipped one that absolutely hauled!! So much torque it put my rex to shame.

[TurnWRX]

This is kinda unrelated but related to test driving, but I was sent an email from Mazda to test drive any car I want and after the test drive I could receive a $25 gift certificate. Well, I emailed a mazda dealership and told them that I had no plans on buying a car right now and that I would like to test drive the RX-8 and get my gift certificate. I got an auto generated response seconds later from one of the internet managers. I am still waiting for their reply to my message. I guess that "I have no intention of buying" message had them delete my email or something


Not to hijack the thread or anything but I noticed on mazda's website that the rx-8 has 238 hp. Wasn't it suppose to have 250 hp? I guess it was due to some recall?

[vicbdn]

They over rated the HP. They didnt recall, but offered to buy back everyone's cars that wanted to sell them back because of false advertising or something.

[MawviN]

If you do bring the money into the picture then the WRX would most likely be the best AWD-T car you can buy.

But it really depends what your opinion. Some people like the 1G DSM's. I know they are fast, but it's not something I would buy personally.

For the Luxery and Power, the S4 is Nice (I didn't know they just released the V8 version). I think I'll stick to the AWD bi-Turbo.

Such a nice car with a widebody kit!

[04EJ25]

Originally posted by tacomaboy138
Made sense until this part of the post?!

I liked the old TT setup. I don't know if the new NA setup is better or worse, faster or slower, but what I do know is that I like turbos, therefore I like the older S4's + I drove a chipped one that absolutely hauled!! So much torque it put my rex to shame.

They went from a 6TT to a V8 N/A and the power to weight ratio remains about the same. It dosen't make sense. Unless the V8 is a better engine from idle to redline, but after reading these posts, it doesn't seem so. Maybe they are just trying to grab all of the attention away from BMW and Mercedes who are still using 6's...

[Dream]

What dealer in MN let you test drive the EVO if you dont mind me asking?