[DSMEVOLUTION]

Ok well i've been doing alot of searching for Evo's lately and i'm looking to get on under $24k with less then 25,000 miles. I have a couple questions though if you guys could help...

1. Do all Evo 8's come standard with HID's?
2. Which year of the Evo 8's is the fastest or puts down the most stock power?
3. What will and will not void the large warranty?
4. Do only 05's have the ACD?
5. Are their any major body differences between the 03's, 04's and 05's?

I plan to buy and evo within the next month but i want to make sure that i do make the right choice and I want it to be BONE stock which is also hard to find. Any help would be greatly appreciated. BTW i still have my 1995 Talon tsi but it was rearended by a small box truck causing great damage to the rear. So the trucking company gave me $5200 and i still get to keep the car because it's not totaled and they didn't go through their insurance company. So that leaves me with a nice down payment! :thumb:

 

[Warrtalon]

The first thing I'll say is that ALL of this info is available through searching on the Web, and Mitsu itself has explanations of exactly what parts come on each model for each year, which allows you to see it for yourself. However, I'll do my best to give you the highlights and point you in the right direction.

1) No. 03/04 GSRs, 05/06 MRs, and 05/06 GSRs w/SSL come standard with HIDs. 04/05/06 RSs don't and neither do 05/06 GSRs w/o SSL (sun/sound/leather package). Pretty dumb move by Mitsu on this one.

2) Naturally, they got faster as they progressed. 06 IX > 05 VIII > 04/03 VIII. That's not only in terms of stock power, but also power potential with the same mods. The IXs are still in the research phase, but initial testing has shown HUGE gains with minor mods due to the newer, improved, larger turbo (and somewhat because of the MIVEC). Since you're looking for used and under $24k, then only the 03/04 will be available to you, and those are the same in terms of power and features.

3) This is dependent upon the dealer, but the basics you can get away with are a drop-in filter, cat-back, and turbo timer, but nothing else. The Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act states that the dealer must PROVE that a particular aftermarket part caused a certain part to fail, but that doesn't stop most Mitsu dealers from denying warranty claims just from the mere sight of mods. A few things that will get you in trouble in a hurry would be any exhaust component from the cat forward, any tuning devices, any boost controllers, and any suspension work. Again, though, like I said before, this won't hardly affect you when buying a used one for $24k with less than 25k miles. You are most likely ONLY going to get an 03, which will mean the 3yr/36k mile warranty will almost be gone, if not already (many are 3yrs old now). Only the 05/06s have the nice 5yr/60k bumper-to-bumper and 10yr/100k powertrain warranties, but you won't find any anywhere near $24k unless you get the stripped RS or find an individual selling it in a hurry.

4) Only 05s and 06s have ACD.

5) No visible differences between the 03-05 models. The 05s have ACD, larger hotside on the turbo (10.5cm^2 vs 9.8cm^2), improved wastegate design, stronger tranny, and front LSD, all of which are very important. The 05 MR also has even more additional items, but you can't find one for less than 28-29k.

 

[DSMEVOLUTION]

Thanks for the info. Mitsu dealers are always trying to give you the run around and i'm convinced they are some of the worst out there. As far as voiding the warranty will a cat-back void warranty or only a downpipe? Now when you say potential power being greater for 05's why is that. Isn't the motor exactly the same between 03-05? Now deosn't the 03-04's have a 60,000 miles powertrain warranty?

 

[Warrtalon]

Thanks for the info. Mitsu dealers are always trying to give you the run around and i'm convinced they are some of the worst out there. As far as voiding the warranty will a cat-back void warranty or only a downpipe? Now when you say potential power being greater for 05's why is that. Isn't the motor exactly the same between 03-05? Now deosn't the 03-04's have a 60,000 miles powertrain warranty?

1) A cat-back shouldn't affect the warranty, but a downpipe or cat replacement usually will.

2) 05s have a larger exhaust housing on the turbo, which makes them faster from the factory and capable of more with the same mods as compared to an 03/04. I explained this in point 5 above.

3) The powertrain warranty doesn't cover much. The bumper-to-bumper warranty is the full warranty that covers everything. On the 03/04, that's only 3yr/36. The limited powertrain warranty may last 5yr/60k, but I don't know that for sure. On 05s, the bumper-to-bumper is 5yr/60k, and the powertrain is 10yr/100k along with a 7yr/100k corrosion warranty.

 

[DSMEVOLUTION]

Wow, thank you. You were very informative. I test drove an 03 the other day and I can say is damn. It was the first time I ever drove one and i'm even more excited to buy one now. However the one i test drove had basic perfomance done to it such as exhaust, boost controller, etc. But the previous owner traded it in for an 06 but swapped all parts so it's stock again except for the cams. The salesman had no idea what cams it had but i wouldn't want to touch the car anyway. The dealership i went to is going to sell me an 05 with a few hundred miles in it. It's just a basic evo 8 without the ssl package. I'm getting it for $25,500 because i get $1000 off due to my parents just purchasing a brand new endeavor a few months ago and they have special for recent college grads so they are also giving me $500 off on top of that. I think it's a pretty good deal but i really wanted a sunrooof and HID's but oh well.

 

[Warrtalon]

Well, they only give a $500 loyalty rebate, so you may want to double-check on that $1000. I would assume that $1000 includes both the $500 loyalty rebate and the $500 college grad rebate. Also, remember that the only way to get that college grad rebate is if you FINANCE THROUGH MITSU. That pissed me off to no end, because I had all my ducks in a row, had waited 6 months for the 05 MR to show up on the truck, had my loyalty rebate ready, and had just finished my undergrad, but had planned on financing with my bank/lender USAA.

I ended up with 3.99% and the $500 loyalty rebate, but missed out on the college grad rebate.

 

[DSMEVOLUTION]

No it's a $1000 loyalty because they told my parents that when they bought their vehicle. I went to another dealer than my parents and they told me that since my parents bought a mitsu I would get $1000 off. Then they asked if I graduated college recently because it would take another $500 off and I would have a total of $1500 off. I'm gonna try to ge the thing for $25k flat though.

 

[Warrtalon]

No it's a $1000 loyalty because they told my parents that when they bought their vehicle. I went to another dealer than my parents and they told me that since my parents bought a mitsu I would get $1000 off. Then they asked if I graduated college recently because it would take another $500 off and I would have a total of $1500 off. I'm gonna try to ge the thing for $25k flat though.

Yeah, I know you can get a $500 college grad rebate, but I explained above that you ONLY get it if you finance through Mitsu. You can probably still get 0% financing if it's a new 2005, which would be better than $500 off with 5.99% from Mitsu.

I'd doublecheck on the loyalty rebate. The Mitsu website says you can only get a $500 loyalty rebate when purchasing an Evo. You can get higher rebates when buying other cars, though. Salesman like to say a lot of things, so I wouldn't take it for granted what they told your parents upon the purchase of the Endeavor.

 

[Bailzz]

not that it makes a HUGE difference, but the 05 are also 200 lbs lighter

 

[Warrtalon]

not that it makes a HUGE difference, but the 05 are also 200 lbs lighter

Uhm, no, there is no significant difference in weight between the years. The difference in weight depends upon the trim. From lightest to heaviest for 05:

RS < GSR < MR < GSR w/SSL
31xx < 3260 < 3280 < 33xx

 

[DSMEVOLUTION]

The nice thing is that I can handle car salesman really easily. I'm actually in sales so I make them know I want a nice deal and if they don't give it to me then I go somewhere else. If he said that i'm getting $1500 off then i'm gonna get $1500 off. I'll make sure that I walk away with a new 05 GSR for no more than $25,000.

 

[Warrtalon]

The nice thing is that I can handle car salesman really easily. I'm actually in sales so I make them know I want a nice deal and if they don't give it to me then I go somewhere else. If he said that i'm getting $1500 off then i'm gonna get $1500 off. I'll make sure that I walk away with a new 05 GSR for no more than $25,000.

Ok, man, whatever you say. :|

 

[DSMEVOLUTION]

I really don't mind financing through mitsu, I may not get 0% but most people buying the evo don't get 0%.

 

[DSMEVOLUTION]

Well I finally got my ride and man do I love it. I decided to buy one new instead of used because it is almost impossible to find an untouched used evo. It really suprises me how many people buy an evo and throw their own parts on them and void the warrantly, then want to sell it for more than $20k... Anyways I picked up a 2005 GSR. It was one of the last brand new 05's around. Anyways i took it from the show room floor with 52 miles and i was able to get it for $29k. I really was hoping to get one for around $25k but every new 05 left has the ssl package and I just couldn't resist. I just couldn't imagine buying a car over $25k and not having it decked out. Plus the electric blue color is just beautiful. I doubt i'll be modding it soon because i love that long warranty!!