800hp Evo 9 Vs Stock Evo 7, which Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution is best? | ReDriven USED car review

It takes a lot for a car to gain the title of 'legendary', but in the case of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, any lesser description would be an insult.

With a history that spans a quarter century and ten iterations, be prepared to do you research if you're thinking of buying one.

Let us know what you think in the comments below and hit subscribe and the bell icon to stay up to date with all our latest content.

00:00​​​​​​​ - Intro
00:57 - What is it?
04:08 - Does it look good?
07:24 - How's the interior?
09:56 - How's the tech?
10:35 - Is it practical?
11:23 - What goes wrong?
15:30 - Is it safe?
16:04​ - What's it like to drive?
22:00 - How much does it cost?
22:58​​​​​​ - Running costs?
23:49​​​​​​​ - Should you buy it?

#mitsubishi
#evolution
#jdm

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At ReDriven, we’ll be taking you through the pros and cons of a huge range of used cars to see how well they’re going now that they’re a few years old, have thousands of kilometres on the clock, and are coming toward the end of their warranty, or maybe don’t have one at all.

Plus, thanks to our resident mechanic, Jim, you’ll find out what commonly goes wrong with them and what might need to be fixed.

Most importantly, we want to make ReDriven a voice for the most in-the-know used car experts there are...you guys.. See, you’re the ones that actually buy, live with, love and sometimes unfortunately hate the cars we’ll be reviewing.

So we want to hear your thoughts. Hit us up in the comments, or on Instagram and Facebook.

We’d love nothing more than for you to give us as much feedback as possible, so we can make this channel the best it can be.

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[Unknownst]

As an Evo fan, regardless of how old this car was, I will never stop dreaming to buy one. A dream car is always better to drive than flashy ones.

[eddieburgos]

Ive had mine for 17 years now. Got it brand new off the lot, plan on keeping it 4ever 💪🏼

[juliantaffa]

So I bought a decently modified Evo VII almost a year ago now, I live in Sydney.
This is honestly a 10/10 video, so good for potential buyers. Those prices are very accurate.

All of the technical stuff is 100% correct, only thing I'd add is to check that when you go full throttle and lift off, for two things. First, having a super fluttery blow-off valve is bad, it should come out in one hit. Second, if the car shunts forward or not. Mine did shunt, and it turned out that the diff and suspension bushes were worn. Have a suspension shop have a look, for high km Evos it's a very common problem to have cracked bushes.

For modified examples, my mechanic (Evo specialist) recommends servicing every 7500 km, or every 4000 km if you're running E85. E85 isn't close to where I live, which is a shame, because you can generally get a good 40kw more power just from switching fuels. The stock ECU can even be tuned for Flex Fuel so whatever is available can be put in. Evos are expensive to run and expensive to maintain, especially in the first year.

Evos are hilariously impractical - yes, the seats are very comfortable, you get rear legroom and the boot is decent, but oh my god the turning circle is shockingly bad (my mate's Extra Long Wheelbase Mercedes-Benz Vito had a tighter circle), 90% of Evos run wayyy too stiff, and the amount of fuel that the 2.0L engine sucks is beyond belief.

**BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY**
But I don't care about any of that stuff above, it's the most fun I've ever had in a road car. I feel like a little kid playing with a big Hot Wheels car, when I'm driving it all my problems go away. You get a big, goofy grin and all the money and effort is worth it. I've many so many amazing memories that just wouldn't have been possible without it. I had no idea I could get this emotionally invested in a car. I love the damn thing.

EDITS:
- You say to ignore the automatic ones. This is generally true, however if you plan to build for very high power (450+ kw, like not mucking around kind of power), the autos are actually not a bad call. This is because you can get the auto transmissions built to withstand the silly power, and they are considerably cheaper to buy than the manuals. You'd be getting rid of the manual box anyway and replacing it with a sequential. The wagons are also primarily automatic, and they use the auto transmission from the VII GT-A

[milkymilkyisacat]

15:50 I laughed out loudly when you mentioned doors as a safety equipment🤣🤣 Nice video as usual. Evo was always my favorite car when I was young, still love them.

[fhd]

One of the best looking, timeless cars ever in my opinion

[ihavealife]

As someone from the States, it cracks me up when someone from your side of the world just casually calls someone a "dick head". Love the content.

[Jameesjourneys]

Owned my 9 FQ340 for 10 years now. Absolutely love it

[KG_Costco_Chicken]

Being an (Heavy moded) EVO for years, "horizontal sky diving" is one of the best description🤣

[Benchmark]

Thanks for the feedback on Alex's car guys.

We are very proud of what we have created for him... It's a very special machine thats for sure!

[mobility]

I bought my 04 Evo VIII new in California. It looks new as it's been garaged all it's life. Yes it has nearly 300k miles, but the engine has been rebuilt, with a light tune from WORKS means it's quite a bit quicker. As a daily driver, you NEVER forget this is a high performance car. It rides firm but not jarring and it never fails to get lots of looks and thumbs up. I've moved to Arizona but every where I go there's ALWAYS someone asking to take a pic or ask if it's for sale. A guy in a new C class even offered me $30k cash! I STILL love my Evo! A word to the wise...if you take care of it, it will take care of you.

[jonathanwishart]

A few years ago I drove a rally car evo through the Adrenaline website rally experiance. These cars as a rally car are just insane how fast they are, in second gear doing 80 and you mash the loud pedal you will easily hit about 220 with almost no effort.

[jzfromauburn]

Just recently discovered this channel, instantly subbed! Keep more awesome contents coming mate!

[ayojex]

Got the 8. I've had it for one year and it's a blast. Nice to drive and nice to look at

[tonymarshall]

I have owned my Evo 7 gta for nearly 15 years. It’s a slightly softer ride than the manual version..a lovely car to drive especially at weekends…it’s just covered 100.000 k from new.

[jeffreyalston]

Great channel. Checking in from the United States with a 2003 Evo currently with 200, 000 miles. Properly maintained they will last.

[teddownunder]

Massive evo fan loved the vid! Saving for a evo 6 Tommi Makinen edition and praying they dont spike in price catastrophically in the next few years

[jameelali]

I owned an Evo 6 approximately 400 who, nice suspension and brakes with Enkei wheels; regrettably sold it to a good owner, now up to 515 who; then.. after withdrawal symptoms for 2 years, I got an Evo 5 … done Enkei/Twins/drilled rotors/stg 2 clutch/flywheel (Evo 9) 3” exhaust (Greddy)in mint condition; buffed the body. Beautiful . I am happy and stress free.

[cjmcrae]

Great review, AK - I’m happy to be a fan and follower of the channel after watching this.

I appreciate you doing everything you mentioned at the start of the video; trawling through the plethora of information online in Facebook Groups, the old Evo Forums, blog posts and speaking to owners regarding these cars, as everything that was said in this video I know to be true over my seven years of ownership of Evos.

Why do I care about that? As you mentioned, the ownership group of these cars are generally very loyal and enthusiastic to the platform and we can tell when someone doesn’t know what they’re talking about. I used to drive a Camry before my first Evo and my world changed after first seeing an Evo in a used car yard, and then driving one, and then again driving it how it was meant to be driven.

I’d never really cared what cars looked like until I saw an Evo. The aggressive front bar was burned into my brain and I fell deeply in love with the look. I knew I had to have it. And then once I took it for a drive, it just elevated the experience to another level that defied possibility for me.

“My brain and eyes couldn’t keep up with the amount of information being violently penetrated into my brain” - this is how I felt when I first let the car show me its true colours. When you mould your foot to the throttle and then plant that into the footwell the violent acceleration and thrust of your head into the back of the Recaro is a rush I have never felt in any other activity. But then you combine that with the almost surreal sensation of the four tyres confidently putting that the power onto the road it is actually mind-boggling experience. And I continue to own an Evo because I can replicate that feeling almost every time that I get behind the wheel.

I have never really wanted another car (or at least as badly as I once longed for the Evo) after owning this. There is nothing for me that can I point to and say has a better combination of looks and driving experience than an Evo. Japan no longer makes cars like this and there are seldom European cars that come with a manual gearbox - plus they’re too lazy to move the indicator stalk to the right-hand side of the steering column. Even as you mentioned you would likely have to move into the supercar or exotics territory to get the combination of driving pleasure that an Evo can give, but my salary is yet to reach that level.

Everything I’ve written might not align to someone else’s experience, but that would only be because they’ve bought a lemon/woundback odometer/rust bucket example that was unfortunately common on some of the old Parramatta Rd dealerships that existed once upon a time. If the car has simply been kept up to date with it’s logbook servicing requirements, and modified professionally and/or to a high quality, these cars are almost bulletproof.

I drive an Evo X GSR (five-speed manual) now, and I daily it. The fuel consumption is abhorrent, the manual is not ideal in stop-start Sydney traffic, and the boot space is compromised due to the battery and windshield washer fluid reservoir being located there; but then again it doesn’t matter once you begin driving.

The only points I’d add to your video are at 18:40 the famed Brembo squeal is apparent. This does not indicate something is wrong with the car, it seems to be inherent on every Evo. Whilst there are certainly pad and rotor combinations that will aid in minimising the sound, I don’t think you can fully eliminate it. Not sure if this is common to other cars with 4, or 6-pot calipers, but definitely there with Evos.

The other item worth considering is that because the sale price of these cars have appreciated so much, I’ve found that insurance companies are lagging, or entirely avoiding raising their market and/or agreed values to match the sale prices of these cars. If that’s not the case, you will either have to pay an eye-watering premium, or you will have a kilometres restriction on your policy; which completely defeats the purpose of owning a car that is so enjoyable to drive.

Great review again, AK and ReDriven team. Pleasantly refreshing to see such an accurate depiction of these beautiful examples of Mitsubishi’s peak. If you’re ever running low on content, you are welcome to visit my Evo X. Also happy to share my Evo knowledge/experience if you are considering purchasing one.

Cheers!

P.S. you are a very lucky man to sit in, and drive Alex’s car. One of the best examples in the country undoubtedly.

[TwistedDonners]

A hell of an iconic car you guys have reviewed and was an honestly big eye opener as to the pros and cons of them.

When that 800hp Evo scares you more than a Lambo or McLaren and make wrestling a croc in your birthday suit a more appealing option you know there's something special about that car🤣

Will you guys be doing the best and worse cars you've reviewed this year as a video next week or sometime soon?

Have a good Christmas and new year guys as well as Hullsy and stay safe with the new omicron strain lurking around and look forward to your next videos.

[joelgoetze]

My first was a cb lancer gsr, 1600cc turbo awd in the early 90's. I also had cc and ce lancer evo's with the 4g63. I never got my hands on a later one. But the early ones were really fun cars. I did have one engine fail early due to a tensioner on the timing belt letting go during track use, but they were solid things.