Keep MSP vs buy STi, EVO, or 03 Cobra?

[anarchistchiken]

As much as I love my protege, even heavily modified they're just not in the same class as evo's and STi's. Simple fact is, when you mod a car, stuff get's ****** up. A 300 hp car from the factory is gonna be a lot more fun/more reliable then a car with 170 hp stock tuned to 300 hp. I'd personaly go with the evo maily for the better handling, slightly better power, and the fact that they're still somewhat rare. The STi I think also has a lot to be desired with the styling of the rear end. On the other hand, the interior on the Suby is nicer, I like the new front end (over the bug eyes), and Subaru isn't in imminent danger of going out of business.

Ford sucks. I hate the 97-04 'Stangs, the interior is just disgusting, and they're like ******* ants on spilled soda, everywhere you look there's anoth damn mustang. That would drive me nuts.

 

[anarchistchiken]

Yeah those new 9-2's are pretty freaking sweet.

 

[JBreed]

a collector car has to be something worthwhile. the fact they made it one year doesnt mean anything. it has to be attractive in ten years to be collector. it has a slew of problems now, imagine it in ten years with 100k + on the odometer.

I have no problems! Only when you start changing things and throw common sence to the curb do you have problems... MSP is a bad ass little ride!

 

[Matthew]

yea, must be your first car

 

[JBreed]

Haha, not hardly!

 

[TX Speed Demon]

Getting an exhaust, FMIC, intake and bumping the boost to 9psi will cure your lack of highway speed. Still won't compete with a cobra, but it will pull nice and clean through fourth gear.

Save the extra 20K for a rainy day.

 

[unwrittenLaw]

get the evo.

 

[Saevii]

I checked out the Saab homepage and was really surprised at the 9-2x, impressive but I wouldn't ever pay retail for it. The limited time discount is really nice though (I'd get the 9-3 Arc if I were going to buy a Saab).

Nathan
FOR SALE: Titanium MSP #944

 

[SciFiMan]

IMO, the Evo because it is said to be a better daily driver than the STI and a driver can handle it on the edge easier. A Cobra would be nice for the power if you like rear wheel drive, straight line work, and not ultimate curve carving. All nice choices though. I haven't seen any model year consumer reports on reliability for any of these- you might want to check that first.

 

[65racecoupe]

The Cobra would be s*** in the snow. Kenny Brown or Griggs Racing would be great.

I would get the STi or Evo due to where you live and you wanting a daily driver with performance. You will get tired of the Cobra in bad weather. You can have FUN with the Rally Cars.

 

[Greysave]

Yes, I am stationed at Offutt AFB

I drove the EVO today thanks to a local owner I found on evolutionm.net. So....the Evo handles great and puts the STi to shame in that department. The power delivery actually seemed much smoother than I expected because of what people have said about lag then big boost. The STi has rediculous torque but the understeer and vague steering response are BIG detractors to me. Both cars look good to me so that isn't going to sway me much either way.


Nathan

I think that stock for stock the evo does handle better. The paltforms are completely different to drive though and that isn't a fair comparison. The evo trans is based on a front wheel drive design while the sti is based on a wheel rear wheel drive design. With that being said I feel much more comfortable taking a corner in my sti. Another think that should be noted about the sti suspension is that the wrong springs were mated with the struts. If you spend a few extra hundred dollars and get the sti pinks which have the proper spring rates for the struts the car handles amazingly. My set up was tein springs and I had no problems in the handling department...I could out corner an evo with stock springs. Haven't ran into too many dropped evo's. I just installed tein flex's today and will let you know how they ride. The turbo lag in the evo is very appernt under 3500 rpm. The sti has much smother in the power delivery department and stock for stock an sti always kills an evo. There are more mods for the evo but they also like to pop transfer cases. There is a 700 whp sti in PR that is on stock tranny. The sti also has a more computerized engine with avcs kinda like subaru vtec sorta. At any rate I love my sti. The speed is a different class of car and is hard to compare.

 

[Pirana]

STi....now how much for your speed.(dark)

 

[Mr. Win]

if you have the money get out quick...

 

[Pirana]

(uhm)

 

[Mr. Win]

face it... while the car handles well it problems ridden and the motors arent going to take the stress over time.

 

[LazerBlueP5]

I think that stock for stock the evo does handle better. The paltforms are completely different to drive though and that isn't a fair comparison. The evo trans is based on a front wheel drive design while the sti is based on a wheel rear wheel drive design. With that being said I feel much more comfortable taking a corner in my sti. Another think that should be noted about the sti suspension is that the wrong springs were mated with the struts. If you spend a few extra hundred dollars and get the sti pinks which have the proper spring rates for the struts the car handles amazingly. My set up was tein springs and I had no problems in the handling department...I could out corner an evo with stock springs. Haven't ran into too many dropped evo's. I just installed tein flex's today and will let you know how they ride. The turbo lag in the evo is very appernt under 3500 rpm. The sti has much smother in the power delivery department and stock for stock an sti always kills an evo. There are more mods for the evo but they also like to pop transfer cases. There is a 700 whp sti in PR that is on stock tranny. The sti also has a more computerized engine with avcs kinda like subaru vtec sorta. At any rate I love my sti. The speed is a different class of car and is hard to compare.

Couldn't agree more- 300lbs of torque goes a long way towards making very smooth power delivery. It's very difficult to "lag" the car- it feels like it has power EVERYWHERE in the RPM band.

Plus a lot of the negative write ups regarding the understeer of the STi were on the 04. The 05 has fixed a lot of it's issues ...albiet it still has a hint of understeer- and a wicked throttle-off OVER-steer too!

I don't know where the earlier poster got the info regarding the Evo being a better daily driver- it's the exact opposite. The STi is more civil. It has a very useable 6th (overdrive) gear. I can cruise at 70mph below 3k on the tach.

The interior is beautiful- and the climate control and Driver-Controlled-Center-Differencial kicks major a**!

 

[65racecoupe]

Couldn't agree more- 300lbs of torque goes a long way towards making very smooth power delivery. It's very difficult to "lag" the car- it feels like it has power EVERYWHERE in the RPM band.

Plus a lot of the negative write ups regarding the understeer of the STi were on the 04. The 05 has fixed a lot of it's issues ...albiet it still has a hint of understeer- and a wicked throttle-off OVER-steer too!

I don't know where the earlier poster got the info regarding the Evo being a better daily driver- it's the exact opposite. The STi is more civil. It has a very useable 6th (overdrive) gear. I can cruise at 70mph below 3k on the tach.

The interior is beautiful- and the climate control and Driver-Controlled-Center-Differencial kicks major a**!

The EVO is as close as you can get to a rally car for the street. The STi wouldn't be legal (2.5l engine - more torque).

I doubt that you care about that.

I would have a hard time deciding.

 

[1sty]

STi, unless your like and don't have a house yet. In which case get that first.

 

[1sty]

Couldn't agree more- 300lbs of torque goes a long way towards making very smooth power delivery. It's very difficult to "lag" the car- it feels like it has power EVERYWHERE in the RPM band.

Plus a lot of the negative write ups regarding the understeer of the STi were on the 04. The 05 has fixed a lot of it's issues ...albiet it still has a hint of understeer- and a wicked throttle-off OVER-steer too!

I don't know where the earlier poster got the info regarding the Evo being a better daily driver- it's the exact opposite. The STi is more civil. It has a very useable 6th (overdrive) gear. I can cruise at 70mph below 3k on the tach.

The interior is beautiful- and the climate control and Driver-Controlled-Center-Differencial kicks major a**!

From over a year of ownership, I can verify every single word of this post.

Lag does not exist on the STi. The car can start out in 3rd gear on a hill and still be flying in no time. Even though the 04 was supposed to not be all that good in handling, I though it was great, atleast for me.

 

[TXMazdaSpeeder]

a collector car has to be something worthwhile. the fact they made it one year doesnt mean anything. it has to be attractive in ten years to be collector. it has a slew of problems now, imagine it in ten years with 100k + on the odometer.

it only has a slew of problems if you cant take care of a car and dont bother to fix things, just replace the broken part wiht another part thats gonna break.