Raced an EVO Today.
 

Had my first real race today. Me and a bunch of friends meet today to play a game of flag football. One of my friends cousins has an EVO. When we were leaving from our meeting place to go the football field I just so happen to get the chance to line up at the light with the EVO. His friend in the passenger seat is hanging out the window talking all this sh*t about how well he is going to launch on me. Anyway the light turns green and my reaction time was way off and he gets about a 3 car pull on me. I floored it, and spun tires half-way through 1st gear. The whole time I'm just walking him down. By the time I hit 3rd gear it was over I pulled on him like crazy and killed him by about 4 cars before I had to stop for the next light. Talk about an adrenaline rush that was fun as hell. Anyhow just thought I'd share my first real race (aside from some ricer I killed a few weeks ago) story with you guys. Vette = 2, Imports = 0

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

wow..nice one...have you been to the track by chance? depending on whatr year evo, it should be at least a 13 second car, if not faster.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Way to beat a 4 banger! ;)

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Evos are actually pretty nasty cars on the street. 4-wheel drive is nearly impossible to beat off the line. If you're going to street race (I don't advise it), insist on a rolling start which is common anyway--takes away their biggest advantage. If you have the M6, remember that 3rd gear is the vette's ace: that is where sheer power begins to really show--so pick somewhere long enough to wind out through 3rd. This means you want a rolling start and more than 1/8th mile to completion.

Stock Evos can do mid to very low 13s depending on the driver and tires. A few on the street are running NOS or bigger turbos and can run down into the low 12s. Few of the people that own moded EVOs (or stock ones for that matter) can resist advertising it with decals and ridiculously big wings and what they call "fart mufflers" (they really call them that, can you believe it?),so there are not too many sleepers to worry about--if it looks stock, it probably is. But you still won't take it right off the line if you are running stock tires.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

dont hate me, but i have been looking around for an evo, but i will likely wait until the prive of the Evo IX has come down a bit, in a year or so. i was at an event last weekend, and there were a handful of Evos there that drove in, drove out, running in the low 11s, and a bunch in the tens. i know on eo f the guys, and he hasnt taken the valve cover off yet..stock from top to bottom,and he runs 10.30s. a good driver with intake and exhaust can get an evo VIII into the high 12s, and with items like a MBC, and Ic sprayer, etc, can get into the low 12s/high 11s..

as for racing from a roll, racing from a roll is like trying to screw with pants on...you may get to finish, but its just not the real thing.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I agree with you Pat. I love Amercian Muscle Cars but I know own an AWD car and love the thing. I can not see me driving a FWD or RWD car again unless it is a weekend cruiser.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

when i finally get the evo, i run ya sometime...:)

my current car breakdown is 1 strong RWD car, 1 turbo FWD, 1 NA FWD, 1 old beater RWD truck, and a modded RWD truck, so AWD has not been in my realm of dealing yet, but ive driven a built STi, and the evo is very attractive to me...[8D]

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Ok but you have to take off your turbo since I have the N/A Impreza. ;)
Nice breakdown. :) I started in an 85 Mustang GT then got a 80 Camaro, then the good ole college commuter 88 Dodge Shadow, then a 94 GMC Sonoma that was slightly modded, then a 2001 Civic, and now the 05 Impreza RS.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

i also had a shadow in college! :)

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I had an Audi S4 before trading up to my Prosche. It had 340 HP and the Quasttro driver and I really liked it. EVOs are nine cars -- I wouldn't want one just because of the styling. But its just as much fun, and challenge, to get performance out of them as a vette or anything else.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

My college car was my '04 V6 Mustang...the Corvette was definitely a big step in HP for me.....and you are truely right about 3rd gear, I've had 2 races so far and each time I didn't pull on them until 3rd gear.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

did you buy your car modded, or have you done it all yourself?

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I haven't added anything to my car yet, everything but the chrome letter inserts came on it when I purchased it. by next summer I should have a lot more done to it. Kinda hard right now cause I have a wedding coming up in Sept. '06 so I gotta stop spending on the car and put money elsewhere.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

you wedding,or someone elses?

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

My wedding to my girlfriend of 3 years.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

congrats!! [8D]

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Thank you, I'm looking forward to it.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Interesting December issue of Motor Trend on the newstands now.
I suppose on this forum the comparison test of Z06-Viper-Ford GT is the big topic (the vette wins overall and on the road course).

But they also test four 13-second cars, which reminded me of this thread:
Dodge Charger SRT (425 HP): 0-60 in 5.0 seconds, 1/4 mile in 13.5 at 106.3
Pontiac GTO (400 Hp): 0-60 in 4.7 seconds, 1/4 mile in 13.3 at 105.9
Mitsi Evo (286 HP): 0-60 in 4.5 seconds, 1/4 in 13.3@103.4
Suburu STI (300 HP): 0-60 in 4.7 seconds, 1/4 in 13.0@103.5
Interesting that of these four "modern muscle cars" the Suburu is quickest through the quarter mile.

What is interesting is the 0-30 times for the two Japanese cars: the Suburu does 0-30 in 1.3 seconds!!!, compared to 1.8 for the GTO, 2.1 for the Charger, and 1.6-1.8 seconds for the Z06, Viper, or Ford GT:::: powerful 4-wheel drive rally cars are just "unbeatable" off the line.

On the other hand, the Suburu takes 10.8 seconds to do 30-100, the Charger 9.8 - set up a rolling start race and you take away thier one advantage.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Yeah, not to mention with the four banger awd turbo cars turbo lag is a b!tch.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Actually the turbo lag on these cars is not that bad. What I don't like about them and many others is the lack of torque, particularly low end torque. Small displacement, high RPM, turbo engines have lots of power, obviously, but like the Honda S2000, you have to rev them to get any performance. That means in day to day driving they are just not that much fun.

I have owned some real small-dsiplacement, high RPM jewels, including an 1964 Alfa 1600 Zagato coupe (95 cubic inches) about 30 years ago which could do nearly 140 mph when properly tuned (however, it would stay properly tuned for only about two hours). it would rev to 7000 RPM but had a nice exhaust sound rather than the "hornet buzz" of most "rice burners." But it was no fun to drive on the street because it was a dog below 5500 RPM.

I've grown to love low end torque (I built my vette engine for low end torque over high end HP and have never regretted it). As Iaccoca once said, "People think they want horsepower but they buy based on the torque [they feel in the test drive]." A lot of torque makes a car flexible and strong - and communicates a real feeling of power when you drive it. Cars like the Evo are fun, but mostly what they communicate to me when I drive them hard is not a feeling of power, but of noise.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Lee, i have always felt that the top gear acceleration tests were a bit uneven. take, for example, the test between the new Mustang GT, and the new Charger RT. the top gear accel test, from 50-100, or something like that, takes the mustang some 10 seconds, while the charger did it in like 5 or 6. the reason that i think it does this is because theyre testing an MTX mustang, and an automatic charger. if youre in a manual car, and youre going 50 in high gear, for one, your not in the correct gear to tear up to 100, but even if youre gonna try, you put the hammer down, and youre no where near the power band. on the other hand, with the charger in an atx, you put the hammer down,a nd the auto trans drops into passing gear.

the test that you posted has the charger, which i know is an auto and the gto numbers would dictate an auto, as 13.3 for an mtx ls2 would be awful. on the other hand, the Sti and Evo arent offered in autos.

i am, however, shocked that the STi won the 1/4 contest. do you know what years the imports were?

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Top gear tests are worthless anymore because so many cars have overdrive top gears. But the 30-100 times I compared were based on the acceleration numbers in the test, not just top-gear runs, just the difference between the 0-100 and 0-30 times, and indicate how fast the cars are in a rolling-start drag race (the type you typically run on the street). Here, the EVO and STI will get killed by just about any big V-8 -- I would not be suprirsed if a stock Mustang GT coulnd't take one 30-100, although I haven't checke4d.

The charger is available only with a 5-speed auto but it still is pretty fast. For a daily driver I prefer an auto, at least if it is "smart": I have a 5-speed Tiptronic in my Porsche (maybe the smartest automatic i've ever driven) and it makes for a quicker car in traffic than a six-speed would be, and its reasonably fast (quarter mile in 13.5). Despite the transmission, from 40 up it is a bit faster than an Suburu STI as I dueled with one on US 64 one day: about what you'd expect since it weighs a bit less and has 320 versus 300 HP.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

my current DD has an "auto stick" and while i would prefer to have gotten a stick, a knee problem prevented that at the time. however, as autos go, this one gives you a great deal of control. the reason that i asked about the years of the imports, is because the newer Evos are a little stronger, and the IX and newer have larger turbos, stock.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I've gotta take the time to get behind the wheel of an EVO or WRX. I've never had the chance to drive on of these AWD sports cars to see how they feel. The only turbo charged car I have driven is my friends '03 VW Golf GTI which had a decent amount of power (but then again I was driving a V6 Mustang at the time and had no idea what real power was).

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I drove a Suburu STI (the new model) recently and it really is okay. It has reasonable low end torque -- I was a bit surprised, but is still going to be a pain daily in traffic. These are good cars, powerful, a bit noisy and jittery, but more quality and feel than I expected, and with a nice "attitude."

I really prefer a good auto-stick type auto trans for a daily driver, particularly if you have little low end torque and have ti dice with traffic. The problem with driving a car like the Honda S2000 (I hate to pick on this car, but I've never driven a car that had less torque down low in comparison to power up top) is not that you have to shift all the time to get any power. What I displie is that you have to a n t i c i p a t e shifting when you need it, its a constant effort to think ahead, etc.
When I bought my Porsche I was concerend about low end torque so I got the Tiptronic. It has paddle shifters on the steering wheel but what I like best is that it is very smart - its adapative and after several months just seems to knows when to shift hard, soft, when to hold a gear. But the best part is that you can force a downshift: I know most auto transmissions will kick down if you floor the car, but the Prosche has a feature nothing else I've owned had. I can force a downshift -- even a double downshift, by just "tapping" the throttle (push down hard but only a bit -- its the rate of push not the distance that does it) then let up in the blink of an eye, -- so short of a time the engine hardly has time to repsond). Similarly you can force an upshift by letting up instantly on the throttle just a bit, then back down. It takes practice but it is the coolest feature in traffic.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

That Porsche sounds like a nice ride what model is it?

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

It is a 2004 Carrera 2 - basically a "bottom of the line" 911 - 3.6 liter, 320 HP, 275 ft lbs torque, about 3100 lbs, Tiptronic 5-speed non-overdrive transmission (will redline in 5th gear at 171 mph). I bought it after the 2006 997ss came out and decided on it because I could get an entire $10K off sticker and it was 110 lbs lighter, with the same engine, as the newer model. Its pretty fast - jumps a length out in front of a C5 A4 convertible right of the line (doesn't spin its tires with all that wiegh on the rear axle) and stays there (but can't pull any more ahead) up to as fast as we tested (about 100). Does not corner or brake any better than a vette but it is way smoother and quieter and it feels "quicker" - can zip around road explanades and tight corners because it has a shorter wheelbase.

I bought it because, for good or bad, I had modified my vette to where I wouldn't drive it every day. The vette is driveable daily, but a bit extreme, but mostly I just worry about the (uninsured) money I have tied up in it in traffic: I could not afford to replace the engine or major damage. The Porsche makes a greaty daily driver but it is surprisingly basic. It has leather (including, believe it or not, a leather headliner), power windows, etc., ABS, stability control, etc. but no power seats, no dual climate control, 18" wheels only, no automatic darkening mirrors or auto-dimming headlights or auto-turn on wipers or headlight washers, no adjustable suspension, or ceramic brakes or turbo or antying. It does have a Bose sound system that is incredible (but only with the rear seats folded down, when up they completely block (are right up against) the rear speakers). Single CD player only.

The thing that is amazing is that it had $18k in "options" on it that were all driving oriented: things I thought it should have as the base model (salesman told me no one imports the base model into the US, mine is pretty much the bottom as imported, but the options including a sport suspension and upgraded tires and wheels and one unusual option even for this dealer:::: a $2400 "sport exhaust" which IS cool: rather snarly unless you push a button on the dashboard that cuts in an extra set of mufflers and then it is as quiet as a Honda Accord, and it loses only 4 HP (I had to have it dynoed--261 with extra mufflers turned on vs. 265 RWHP without): I turn it on each morning before starting off to work at 6 AM so I don't annoy my neighbors.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

youre a lucky man lee, you have some awesome cars...[8D]

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Yeah, of course I drove beaters, such as a 14 year old Dodge "V-7" (Dodge V8 with one cylinder that just nothing would make work) for years while I raised and put three kids through college before I "got rich."

I want more: my dream is to own a 1953 Buick SKylark convertible with the wire wheels and the supercharger (really, they are hideously ugly but very very cool), a 70 427 Corvette, a red 94-96 C4 with an aftermarket small block 427, and then my present 427 C5( I'd own 3 generations of 427), but my wife says anything goes, even an Aston DB9 to replace the Porsche in a few years -- but only two cars at a time. And the vette stays forever.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I can't believe Vette guys and gals talking about an EVO. These sleds weigh 3200/3300 lbs and have 286 hp. My stock Vette in good air runs 12.65/12.70. I should say almost stock. Blackwing, custom tune and a 3:42 with an A4. At the strip with my DR's I can launch hard with no tire spin. On the street I control the throttle and again, no tire spin on street tires.

There is no way an EVO, even with 4 wheel drive can keep up even from a standing start. A 1/4 mile race wouldn't even be close. The Vette would finish by several car lengths. And we should talk apples to apples. An EVO on spray vs a Vette on spray. Again, not even close.

I hope you folks don't mind me butting in. I'm a very humble guy. Intelligent, good looking and one of the best drag racers on the planet. I also have a hard time expressing myself. :D

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Yes BUT the Evo has 4 cylinders! So bragging about how a V8 is a faster car is not that great in my book. The Evo is cheaper and more versitale than a Vette in my opinion. Not to piss of any Vette guys because I love them too. ;) I just think if you are looking for a car that you can drive everyday in every road condition and in any weather the Evo or Sti is the way to go over a Vette. If you want something fast for a nice weather summer car or weekend car the Vette is the way to go. Everyone has their own taste and reasons for buying and driving what they do. ;)

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I agree 100%. My daily driver is a Ford crew cab with a diesel. We love that truck. But I don't compare it with the Vette. Some of the posts were comparing the performance of the EVO to a Vette when there is no comparison. I don't think I was bragging. I had nothing to do with creating the Corvette.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Oh I know man. I was just sort of commenting in general. ;)

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

Thats definitely a good point you are looking at 2 completely different classes of vehicles. There isn't any chance that a stock EVO would be a Corvette.....but I still had a good time beating him:D

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I respect EVOs and STIs immensely. They are just differnt cars- really rally cars. The one thing any vette owner ought to think about is this nightmare: you are chasing an EVO or an STI down a winding, dusty, gravel road, late at night- a road you don't know well. In other words, its a rally race, not a closed road race.

You're in their element, and you will lose, if not lose the road and end up in a ditch. On the dragstrip they are in your world, but as rally cars they are in the tradition of the great Lancias and Abarths of the 70s and 80s -nasty on short, twiting, turning courses where events are unpredictable.

Have some respect for them. Different cars, different worlds. They ARE very cool cars.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I had a lighly modded STI as my last tuner car. vf22 turbo, 3" catless exhaust, k&n short ram, no ecu mods. and it was quick. awd is too easy to drive :) but very fun. I took out a 996 from 65-120 by about 5 car lenghts (not that big of a kill) but a kill none the less. I raced an ECU modded EVo at Big willow and was dead even. I could not get away, and he could not gain on me. The big hp rwd cars just seem like alot more fun to drive and take a little more skill to keep her in line( ie, alot more fun IMO).
MAtt

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

EVOs and STis are really nice cars. I respect them for several reasons. First, they have a lot of power for their displacement and size, and they are complete designs: Mitsi and Suburu took the time to give them good 4-wheel drive systems and suspension and brakes to equal their power, as opposed to the Neon SRT, which is just a 225+HP motor dropped in a car designed for 140 HP and a very unblanced design as a result.

And I do not consider the EVo and the STi to be a new concept, or "rice" in any way. In my mind, they are a continuationof the European ralley-car design tradition of Abarth and Lancia, etc., going back to the 60s: boxy but fast, small displacement 4-wheel drive cars designed to stay on the road when driven on twisting drit back roads by people who are certifiably crazy.

And both are fast: even stock either one can take some 996s - mine has the automatic and does only 13.5 in the quarter - either of those two turbo 4s is a stock 13.3 car in the quarter.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

no way the rolling start and long straight away is almost cheating. you should just race where ever you show up not het all of these advantages over the other car. thats not being fair now is it hah?

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

I'm sorry but I don't understand. Were you thinking I said a long straight and a running start were cheating. Where did you get that? Its not in my book. I nearly always race from a running start -- makes less noise and smoke and attracts far less attention.

RE: Raced an EVO Today.
 

...and doesn't wear your tires down as quickly...